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1.5 Major Theories Today

(Due: Oct 3 Status: Not Completed)
Major Film Theories Today


1. Watch SAC Film Theories.mov under the Assets.
2. Watch Keynote 1.5.3 Keynote QT under the Assets.
3. Watch Shen Nu aka The Goddess, a 1934 Chinese Film from writer/director Yonggang Wu. The film is broken into 8 parts, I’d like you to watch all 8, so that you can see the film in its entirety.
4. I’ve selected the Goddess for a number of reasons: first, I want to point out that while America might hold prominence in the film industry, other nations had strong national cinema’s that rivaled our own and contributed to the language of film. Secondly, notice how this example of another national cinema utilized the same components and elements of storytelling to build a strong narrative.
5. Read the critical essay by Rothman, Chapter 6 on The Goddess (pages 55-66).
6. Consider the following concepts:
• As you’re reading the Rothman essay, take a closer look at the summary he writes on the film. Notice how he keeps the summary succinct, by focusing on the actions that move the story forward.
• What are the two turning points/ plot points in the movie?
• How does Rothman arrive at his position that The Goddess invokes a vision of innocence – what symbols, passages, scenes, characters does he use to support this?

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