Get out your questions about the three social commentary films: Life is Beautiful, Everything is Illuminated, and Hotel Rwanda.

 These are the semester notes which I will be collecting TOMORROW:  Film Elements notes  Citizen Kane notes  Sunset Boulevard notes  Heroes Epic Journey notes  Elements of Comedy notes  Hotel Rwanda notes

FINAL EXAM Now that you are aware of how similar these movies are and which scenes reveal these similarities, let’s take a look at your final exam! Let’s read the prompt for your final essay!

What are you being asked to do?  Find a common theme about genocide that applies to all three movies  While your theme should be written in “theme statement” format (instead of _______, we should____”), you want to PROVE the second part of the theme as you write your essay (the “we should” part)  Find one scene in each movie which effectively communicates this message  Find two specific ways in which the scene communicates this message (verbally and visually)  Clearly explain how these specific scene details actually communicate this message (based on your knowledge of the purpose for lighting, camera angles, camera proximity, texture, sound, dialogue, etc.)

 Your final exam will be an in-class exam that will be written over two days.  You are welcome to use any notes, outlines and rough drafts that you wish.  If you do not finish in the two days given, you will have to come in on your own time (before school, after school, at lunch or during 6 th period) to finish.

 Introduction paragraph  Hook: Grab the reader’s attention by a statement, question or scenario that gets your reader thinking about genocide.  Explain: Explain why you gave your statement question or scenario (what relevance does it have in the real world?).  Bridge: Connect your hook to your thesis (here, you may want to mention something about movies).  Thesis: State exactly what you will prove in this essay  Review what the prompt asks you to do and create a statement that addresses this.

 Body paragraphs (one body paragraph for a scene in each film)  Topic sentence: Briefly summarize what happens in one scene in the film  Explain/expand: Mention how this creates the message/theme about genocide.  Evidence: Describe one film element that you noticed about this scene that helped created this message.  Explain: Explain what this film element reveals (i.e.: if the lighting is important in creating the message, explain why. If the close-up shot of a character’s face is important, explain why. If a cluttered mise-en-scene is important, explain why)  Evidence: Give a second film element about this scene that you noticed which helped create this message.  Explain: Explain what this film element reveals about the message being sent.  Wrap-up: Explain very clearly how both film elements work towards creating the message.

 Conclusion paragraph  Restate thesis: Review your thesis by restating it in different words.  Review ideas in essay: Summarize the main ideas that were outlined in your essay (mention specific film techniques in the movie which you discussed as the evidence in your body paragraphs).  Apply to the outside world: Discuss why the information provided in your essay is important for the real world.  Final statement: Give a final statement about the topic of your essay that leaves a powerful impact on the readers.

 Now, turn over the prompt and start brainstorming.  First, ask yourself what the common message/theme about genocide is in all three movies.  Next, find one scene in each film which very clearly helps to communicate this message.  Summarize each scene.  Next, find at least two film elements (lighting, camera angle, camera proximity, framing, cluttered/empty shots, sound, or dialogue) which help to communicate this message (verbally or visually)  Make sure that you are able to CLEARLY explain HOW each detail in each scene helps to work towards the message.

Let’s say the message in Royal Tenenbaums was “Don’t struggle with loneliness; instead, take joy in the people in your life who you love and who care about you.” You could discuss a scene from the movie as evidence of this theme in this way: One specific scene in The Royal Tenenbaums which presents the message of the importance in taking joy in people who care about us is the scene in which Richie Tenenbaum is speaking to his father, Royal, on the roof of their house. Richie had gone through a severe depression, but later, decided to be honest about his love for Margot. In this scene on the roof, he discusses his love for Margot with his father and tries to take heart in his openness about who he loves. While most of the film is shot in low-key lighting, this scene is shot in extremely high key lighting. High key lighting usually symbolizes joy. Since this shot is filmed with such obvious use of lighting, the director is trying to suggest that Richie is finally finding joy in talking with ones whom he loves and talking about the one he loves. Later in this scene, Richie’s childhood pet bird, Mordecai, comes back after years of being gone. As Richie reunites with this bird, we come to realize that the bird represents Richie’s father Royal since both were gone for a very long period of time. Richie’s reconnection with the bird highlights the importance of surrounding oneself with those who bring joy to ones life. Through the use of high key lighting and the symbolic reuniting of Richie and the bird, we are able to see the suggestion of the importance of taking joy in those whom one loves and in finding comfort in being with those who love oneself.