Film Review: Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Raiders of the Lost Ark embarks on a journey where Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) tries to get ahold of the Lost Ark. Jones knows that the Lost Ark holds the original Ten Commandments. Anyone that has this in their possesion, literally means that they would be invincible to anything. He is soon to find out that the Nazis are after this treasure to gain power for their army. Now Jones must travel arcross the globe to Cairo in search for the Ark and bring it back to the States to be put in a museum and also to help the U.S government. When traveling to Cairo, he meets Marion, believed to have once been loved by Indiana Jones only to have him hurt her. All in alltThey fight till the end together, which was a lot considering all the gunfighting and the snakes!

Director Steven Spielberg and Producer George Lucas deserves an "A" for this movie. I'm not the only one that agrees. The Lost Ark was nominated for eight Academy Awards and got four of those including Best Sound and Best Film Editing. Also when the movie was released it became a huge success, earning $20 million in the U.S and $384 million worldwide.

I thought this film was actually pretty good considering that I don't watch a lot of action movies. Raiders of the Lost Ark stars Harrison Ford, who by the way is veryy handsome, as the man that can beat and survive everything that comes his way. Indiana Jones does not always hunt for treasure but also finds a lot of time for what he truely loves; archaeology. I believed that this part of the movie was very believable. Ford did a great job going into character and focusing on Jones. The dialogue was very easy to understand and I loved how Jones also had a funny side to him which he expressed. BUT! I do have to step back and look at the movie as a whole. Yes, it's a great adventure film! But seriously? Can Jones really escape death so easily just like that? The obstacles he had to overcome just seemed to unrealistic and almost impossible for anyone to overcome but somehow he did of course. One example of that is the very beginning of the film when he escaping a cave, a huge ball of rock hurls itself at Jones. He runs and runs and gets away. Those parts kinda threw me off but I would have to agree it gives the movie the adernaline it deserves! I did however liked the costumes and where the film took place. It was very real and I got a feel of swampy jungle and the hot desert.

During the jungle scene, I really noticed the lighting and how dark it was. Almost every character, including Jones, had this dark, shadow across their bodies. Then you would see Jones face coming out and into the light giving the audience the feel that he is very important in this film. Also I noticed that when sinister characters were first introduced, you couldn't really make out their faces giving them a dark look. This movie also gave shots of landscape and high angle where you could see the desert stretch for a while. It gave the illusion that this group of people was small and almost helpless. One thing I really enjoyed about this movie was the theme song! I could hear it throughout the film with different insturments and sound. Scenes where it was mellow the theme song would be quiet and slow but when there is something going on, the pace of the music sped up and became more dark.

Learning film in class gave me a whole new opportunity of see Raiders of the Lost Ark in a different way! I have to admit, I picked up so much just listening to the dialouge and music and just watching the characters. This is probably one of my favorite Harrison Ford films and well as the many Indiana Jones movies!

Critique The Critic.

When I first saw the movie Titanic I fell in love, same with my friends and probably everyone else who had the chance to watch it. It's the classic story of girl and boy falling in love only to have another man and social status in the way. (Oh and of course the ship is sinking!) Titanic takes the audience through a love story but also the heartbreaking event that unfolds in the movie. Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet did amazingly well presenting their characters, Jack Dawson and Rose Bukater. I really enjoyed the story line and it gave me a chance to have different emotions towards the many different characters. I also really liked the music that was played. Titanic is one of the rare movies I can stand to watch over and over again without getting bored and stopping the movie. One famous critic I found, Roger Ebert, had similar ideas and thoughts about this movie.

"We see it in the opening shots of ``Titanic,'' encrusted with the silt of
85 years; a remote-controlled TV camera snakes its way inside, down corridors
and through doorways, showing us staterooms built for millionaires and inherited
by crustaceans."

Like Ebert mentions, this is the first scene the audience sees. Even if a viewer didn't know about Titanic's past they would notice how the ship is on the bottom of the ocean floor and they would probably also wonder how did happen? I really loved that about this movie because it gave Titanic a hook to catch the attention of viewers.

"These shots strike precisely the right note; the ship calls from its grave for
its story to be told."

I totally agree with Ebert when he applauds James Cameron, the director, for presenting one of Hollywood's greatest films. Even though the movie was 194 minutes long, it was definitely worth the sit and wait of the movie. Titanic earned eleven Academy Awards including Best Picture and earned over 1.8 billion dollars in the box office.

"It is flawlessly crafted, intelligently constructed, strongly acted and
spellbinding. If its story stays well within the traditional formulas for such
pictures, well, you don't choose the most expensive film ever made as your
opportunity to reinvent the wheel."

Like I said before, Titanic shows a great story and Ebert give Titanic what it deserves best! I also really like how Ebert mentions the visual effects and how well they flow throughout the movie. Yes, there were sometimes when I even say it looks fake or just computerized but Titanic shows the great visual effects it has.

"All of those elements are present in Cameron's ``Titanic,'' weighted and
balanced like ballast, so that the film always seems in proportion. The ship was
made out of models (large and small), visual effects and computer animation. You
know intellectually that you're not looking at a real ocean liner--but the
illusion is convincing and seamless. The special effects don't call
inappropriate attention to themselves but get the job done."

The scene when they first show the great beauty of the ship really represents how big Titanic was in 1912. It was named the "unsinkable" ship and nothing could bring it down. I agree with everything Ebert has to say about this movie. I also agree with what Rotten Tomatoes had to say about Titanic which gave the movie a "Fresh". Overall I agree with mostly all the critics that I came across espeically Ebert. I love this movie and I always will!