I got my midterm from SOCB172: Films and Society. I got a B, which was pretty good on an 8 page essay I happen to finish an hour before class. I could’ve done better had I not wasted some time and had it proofed. Then again, my interesting insights on the film Psycho were pretty good. Though some of them were drawn from DOC3 material, my own amateur background in movies in and psycho-socio analysis paid off. I had pretty cool comments from the TA that graded my paper. Though some were constructive, she managed to maintain it to keep a positive frame of mind and helpful suggestions. My DOC papers felt like they were torn apart without anything helpful or constructive. I feel like I know what I can do for my final from this.

I went out to Blockbuster to rent some movies. I have trouble looking through new releases because I’ve almost seen most of them, at least the ones I feel are worth seeing. On Psycho, I wrote on how the film, as a horror genre, is sexist and brought many interesting points, even to my psychoanalysis of various figures Hitchcock used, and the techniques that conveyed them. I rented a bunch of movies, a few for my pleasure or leisure. There’s hardly anything I feel like writing about since horror films are easy for me to find implications on gender and sexism. I could actually get by pretty well with talk on sexual implications in terms of homosexuality, but there’s honestly very few mainstream films that have gay themes. Of other mainstream films where there are gay characters, much rely on stereotypes that I can critically analyze and is relevant to the paper requirement, though I would be stepping outside of what I feel the film strongly conveys. I could make an argument of the marginalizations of homosexuals in films and talk about how they are reduced to stereotypes, but then again it won’t be as clear-cut and apparent as the implications of sexism as in horror films. I need something that I could critically analyze in that detail.

Therefore, race relations are something that I am familiar with. Jonathan (the prof prefers to be called by his first name) suggestion films, but he seems to be mostly interested in black/white racial relations. I decided to rent films that depicted Asians. I want to give a new feel and perspective. Depictions of Vietnam and the people are something I would be able to do, like how I did with Full Metal Jacket. I rented out We Were Soldiers, something recent, which parts of the movie were shot near where I’m from and a few people I know were casted as extras in the film. I’m always upset when one group of Asians is used to represent another, like Pilipinos were casted as extras to play the Vietnamese. A lot of Asians can tell the difference between Asians, and Pilipinos are different than most Asians in terms of the ambiguity and conflict with other Asians with the identification of Asian (other Islanders as well, but let’s just keep it to the Philippines since it’s large and known). I suppose I could elaborate on that later. Anyhow, We Were Soldiers is an option. I also have Platoon that could be like Full Metal Jacket in terms of when it was made and the message it may deliver that I could actually explore.

Regretfully, I also rented Kung Pow! Enter the fist, knowingly it was blatantly an Asian dis. Along with analyzing the implications of the film in terms of racial notions, it would work very well, or so I thought. I don’t really see the comedy in that. I feel very offended by it, though even if I weren’t Asian, I wouldn’t see the humor. It was actually pretty dull and boring and honestly wasn’t funny at all. I thought it was stupid. Thank goodness the DVD was scratched up so much that I couldn’t even finish. I called Blockbuster right away hoping I could exchange the movie, although they said it must only be the same movie. I hate that because I was looking for an excuse to rent a different movie. Anyhow, a blatant movie like this would not do well for a paper I want to read on the subtle racial implications. Every second of this film relies on demeaning Asians.

I watch so many movies and beginning to think very critically on them. I can make a lot of assessments on the implications of movies and make an opinion on it, though I may never be able to be like one of those movie critics that make a thorough brief and analysis of a film. Actually, maybe it just depends on what one centers on. I started a blog movie review page, but it’s so hard to keep up with. For one, to make a review, even so short, takes a lot of thought and I did put effort with the few of the ones I had put up. I watch a bunch of movies. I mean, I know that my site in particular doesn’t make many hits, and that’s actually not why I have it. It’s there just in case someone wants to hear what I think, but it’s primarily there so I could reflect on a movie. I mean, the sense it possibly could be read is more of an incentive than just writing for myself just for fun because of the thought that it is in my head anyhow.

I miss my friend I met up in the Summer Activist Training (which was almost two months ago). Christina was her name, and we talked a little bit, and she watched a bunch of independent films. I watched a few of the ones she brought up, and willing to watch the ones she suggests, and they’re pretty good. We could talk critically about films together, and I miss that. In a sense, when I do write those reviews, that’s probably the closet thing I could get to having a critical conversation about films to someone else. I mean, out of the people I currently know, who is interested in looking at films that critically? Not a lot of people in my class do that on their own of whom I am able to know. I mean, I don’t have a lot of friends to look at movies critically. I mean, I don’t always want to talk about what I think of the dynamics of film and implications and blah blah, it’s just that otherwise, it’s almost useless since it’ll never get talked about. I mean, I gotta have a venue for that. I mean, I do enjoy movies for what they are and I do enjoy just talking about parts I liked about a movie, you know, the typical stuff you might say with a friend after seeing a movie.

I just can’t seem to keep up with the blog reviews. It takes time, plenty of films here, and it does take a lot of thought and effort. It’s too bad I don’t know anybody else to talk about films the way I think them. LOL For a few times, I intentionally slip up and talk a bunch about a movie I just saw or something. Or even when someone asks for what I recommend or what a movie is about. I’m really bad with names of characters/actors and such, and I can’t just come up with a plot detail just like that. I’d have to actually sit right here on my desk alone to think about it for a while, and then go by it. LOL Otherwise, I could comment on parts of the film! It takes like a few viewings for me to actually quote parts of films, though some lines do stick with me.

I wanted to talk about XXX, but I’m tired right now. That’s a great movie, and I’d recommend it. I actually didn’t read any social implications and problems with it that much. It’s an action movie more than a political message and such, though you could infer bits of stuff, but that’s stretching it. I don’t see a lot of feminist arguments to be made. Race wasn’t an issue, though if any, it was actually a critique. It’s a fun movie to watch. Maybe I’ll get into actually talking about the film later, and it is on a much positive note since I liked it a lot. No implications really. Or maybe that’s premature to say?

*sighs* I don’t have a lot of movie buddies to go with. There’s a few movies I do want to see, and then there’s the lack of someone to see it with. Some friends are cool to watch movies with, which aren’t here, and then there’s others that don’t want to watch movies with, and there’s some that don’t like the same things and will end up tolerating the movie that is chosen. Maybe when school starts up again.