Week 11 - Francis Ford Coppola

There will be a quiz today about your movie review.

Francis Ford Coppola (born 1939) is included here mainly for his directing of three iconic movies of the 1970s, "The Godfather" (1972, "The Godfather Part II" (1974) and "Apocalypse Now" (1979). Although he has directed and produced other movies, these three are the ones that make him a legend in movie history. Besides being a great director, Coppola is also famous for his screenwriting.

Coppola first became known to the public for his screenwriting for the movie "Patton" (1970). He did not direct this famous biopic set in World War II, but his writing won him his first Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.

Coppola really shot to fame with the release of "The Godfather" (1972), which Coppola screenwrote and directed. The movie is based on the best-selling book by Mario Puzo about a mafia family. Coppola was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director, though he did not win. He did win the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and the movie won for Best Picture. The lead actor in the movie, Marlon Brando, won the Academy Award for Best Actor. In all, the movie was nominated for 9 Academy Awards, winning three. "The Godfather" is often ranked by movie critics as one of the best movies of all time. Many lines from this movie are famous and quoted in popular culture, and many movies and TV shows have tried to imitate various aspects of this movie.

"The Godfather Part II" (1974) is a sequel to "The Godfather." Usually, sequels are inferior to the original, but in this case, the second movie turned out to be as good as, or better than, the original. "The Godfather Part II" was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, winning six, including Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Picture. The two Godfather movies established Coppola as the best director of the 70s. These movies also turned actor Al Pacino into a movie legend.

Slideshow about some main characters in The Godfather I & II

Coppola's third great movie of the 70s was the anti-war movie, "Apocalypse Now" (1979). Coppola wrote the screenplay (with John Millius) to be a modern, loose adaptation of the Joseph Conrad novella, Heart of Darkness. He directed and produced this movie, which had many serious problems and almost didn't get completed. Two famous actors from "The Godfather," Marlon Brando and Robert Duvall, had iconic parts in this movie. After many delays, the movie finally came out in 1979. It was nominated for 8 Academy Awards, including for Best Director, Best Picture, and Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium.

The three Francis Ford Coppola movies above are available in the Tsurumi University Library. 

One of Coppola's less famous movies is a kind of romantic comedy, "Peggy Sue Got Married" (1986). This movie stars Nicholas Cage and Kathleen Turner. It was nominated for three Academy Awards. This is a fun movie, and very different from the others above. It's a good movie, and was made when Nicholas Cage was a young rising star.

* Several members of Coppola's family are famous in the movie business. His nephew, Nicolas Cage, is an Academy Award-winning actor ("Leaving Las Vegas" (1995)). His sister, Talia Shire, appeared as an actress in "The Godfather" series and in the "Rocky" series. His daughter, Sophia Coppola, is a respected movie director ("Lost in Translation" (2003), "Marie Antoinette" (2006), "The Bling Ring" (2013)).
* The theme from "The Godfather" is one of the most widely recognized theme songs in modern movies. The actual title is "Speak Softly Love."

[My personal thoughts and recollections about Francis Ford Coppola and his movies were supplemented with details, dates and numbers from Wikipedia. - Kevin] 

Francis Ford Coppola biographies:
Wikipedia
IMDb
Biography.com

Trailers and clips from several of Coppola's movies:
The Godfather (1972) - trailer
   Michael explains how his father helped Johnny Fontaine - clip
   "Speak Softly Love" - theme song from "The Godfather" 

   Michael does business with Moe Greene and scolds Fredo - clip
The Godfather Part II (1974) - trailer

   The murder of Don Fanucci - clip; Robert DeNiro as the young Don Corleone
Apocalypse Now (1979) - trailer
   I love the smell of napalm in the morning. - clip 
Peggy Sue Got Married (1986) - trailer, featuring Nicholas Cage

EdPuzzle - The Godfather Part II scene; Michael and Kay fight over the children

 

Class work for today (Dec. 1):
Fill in the PDF handout while watching this WatchMojo video clip about the best movies to win Best Picture Academy Awards. You will also need this Wikipedia list of movies that have won Academy Awards for Best Picture. Click on the movie link to find the director's name.

To Do List

1) Watch many Coppola trailers and clips

2) EdPuzzle - The Godfather Part II

3) WatchMojo Top 10 Movies to Win Best Picture Academy Awards; video and PDF worksheet 
4) Movie Review Quiz

 

Week 10 - Woody Allen

Woody Allen (born 1935) is included in this blog site because he's a famous and outstanding director, but he's actually multitalented, as he's also a screenwriter, actor, comedian, author and musician. Woody Allen's movies are usually considered comedies, but they are "smart" comedies that rely more on subtle verbal humor than on funny images or ridiculous scenes. They often deal with serious themes, especially the relationships between men and women. If you see a Woody Allen movie, you must be prepared for a lot of dialog. Very little actually "happens" in a Woody Allen movie. The entire movie is only the words that characters say to each other and the ironies and contradictions that are found in the lives of people interacting with one another.

In Allen's early movies, he often appeared as the lead actor. He was not a typical movie hero, as he was small, thin, homely, and weak looking. His character was often insecure, as he worried aloud about his relationships with women. Interestingly, in his movies, he was often paired with young, beautiful leading ladies. In Allen's recent movies, he seldom appears as the lead character. On the other hand, his lead male actors can often be imagined as a younger substitute for Allen. An example would be the character played by Owen Wilson in Midnight in Paris (2011).

Woody Allen has been nominated for Academy Awards 24 times, winning 4, including Best Director for Annie Hall (1978). He has been nominated for his screenwriting more times than any other screenwriter. Interestingly, he never attends the Academy Awards presentations, and never collects his awards.

Although Allen is popular all over the world, he is especially appreciated in Europe, where his intelligent comedies seem to connect well with European sensibilities. Some of his most recent movies, Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008), Midnight in Paris (2011), and Magic in the Moonlight are set in Europe. The majority of his movies, however, are set in New York City, where Allen lives.

* Woody Allen plays clarinet in a professional jazz band every Monday evening in New York City. 
* Allen created a scandal when he began a relationship with the daughter (Soon-yi Previn) of his long-time girlfriend, Mia Farrow. Allen was 56 and Soon-yi was 19 when the relationship began. The two have now been married for 25 years and have two adopted children.
* Actress Diane Keaton, who appeared in several of Allen's movies, started a women's fashion trend with the clothes she wore in the movie Annie Hall (1978). The trend was to wear masculine-looking clothes with a vest and a necktie.

Several of Woody Allen's movies are available in the Tsurumi University Library.

[My personal thoughts and recollections about Woody Allen and his movies were supplemented with details, dates and numbers from Wikipedia. - Kevin]

Woody Allen biographies:
Wikipedia
IMDb
Biography.com

Links to trailers and clips from a few of Woody Allen's movies:
[Note: Woody Allen has made over 60 movies; the movies below (with the exception of Annie Hall) are from his recent releases.] 
Annie Hall (1978) - trailer
Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008) - trailer
Midnight in Paris (2011) - trailer 
Blue Jasmine (2013) - trailer
Magic in the Moonlight (2014) - trailer / PDF exercise   ⮜
Irrational Man (2015) - trailer; starring Emma Stone, Joaquin Phoenix
Wonder Wheel (2017) - trailer; starring Justin Timberlake and Kate Winslet 
A Rainy Day in New York (2019)

Make Beliefs Comix
Here's a comic I made with Make Beliefs Comix, an online comic building site. The scene is from 'Annie Hall,' Woody Allen's most famous movie. Here's the original scene from the movie.

Here's another comic from the same movie, but after the character, Alvy, has become an adult. And here's the original movie clip (at 1:40 in this scene).

EdPuzzle - Annie Hall

To Do List

1) Watch some Woody Allen trailers and clips.

2) Do the Magic in the Moonlight listening exercise (PDF) above.   ⮜

3) Do the Annie Hall EdPuzzle.

4) Fix any problems with your movie review blog post.
5) Do the Word Families grammar exercise (form below)

6) Be aware: there will be a quiz next week (Dec. 1). Don't be absent.

About your Movie Review Blog Post ...

• Is it complete?
• Did you capitalize the title?
• Is the title in italics in the content of your review?
• If your movie is part of a series, which number is it? For example, "It's the third movie in the ___ series."
• Is the spacing perfect? (One line space between paragraphs; no space before the first word; one space after a period or comma.)
• Are all words spelled correctly?
  
  

⭐⭐⭐ Make your Movie Review Blog Post perfect. Be sure you understand all parts of the movie review. There will be a quiz on your blog post next week! (Dec. 1). Don't be absent! ⭐⭐⭐

---

What comes next?   I have a ____ .  (noun? verb? adjective? adverb?)

Word Families

adjective	adverb	verb	noun
free	freely	free (freed)	freedom
calm	calmly	calm (calmed)	calm, calmness
quiet	quietly	quiet (quieted)	quiet, quietness
perfect	perfectly	perfect (perfected)	perfection
deep	deeply	deepen (deepened)	depth
creative	creatively	create (created)	creation
decisive	decisively	decide (decided)	decision
lost		lose (lost)	loss
special	specially (especially)	specialize (specialized)	specialty
influential	influentially	influence (influenced)	influence

He’s a free man.       He spoke freely.      He freed the birds from the cage.    I like my freedom.

She’s a calm person.   She spoke calmly.  She calmed the crying baby.   I am enjoying the calm.

Word Families Grammar Exercise

Week 9 - The Coen Brothers

Ethan (left) & Joel (right)

The Coen brothers are Joel (born 1954) and Ethan (born 1957) Coen. They are a screen writing team and a movie directing duo. When their movies come out, there is always a big media buzz. Their screenplays are often funny and bizarre and occasionally violent. A Coen Brothers' movie is almost certainly a candidate for one or more Academy Awards. "No Country for Old Men" (2007) was nominated for 8 Academy Awards, winning four, including for Best Director and Best Picture. The Western "True Grit" (2010) was nominated for 10 Academy Awards, winning none. Their early movie "Fargo" (1996) is the one that made their names known to the world. It was nominated for 7 Academy Awards, winning two. It is difficult to describe most Coen Brothers' movies, as they don't easily fall into a genre, with the exception of the Western, "True Grit."

* Actress Frances McDormand often appears in Coen Brothers' movies. She is the wife of Joel Coen. She won an Academy Award for Best Actress in 1996 for her role as a pregnant policewoman in "Fargo." She won a second Academy Award for her role in "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" in 2018.
* Famous actors that often appear in Coen brothers' movies are Steve Buscemi, Jeff Bridges, George Clooney, John Goodman, Josh Brolin, Matt Damon and John Turturro. When they appear in a Coen brothers' movie, you can be sure the character will be a memorable one.
* The comedy "The Big Lebowski" is a unique and strange movie that grows on you over time. It was not a popular movie when it came out in 1998. However, people who watch it again and again have grown to love it for the strange and enjoyable characters. It is now a cult favorite, and the characters created by Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi and John Turturro have become movie legends and internet memes.
* Joel & Ethan Coen are listed as co-writers of two recent important movies, "Unbroken," a movie directed by Angelina Jolie about a former Olympic athlete who was a prisoner of war in Japan, and "Bridge of Spies," a spy thriller directed by Steven Spielberg and recently released.

Several of the Coen Brothers' movies are available in the Tsurumi University Library.

[My personal thoughts and recollections about the Coen Brothers and their movies were supplemented with details, dates and numbers from Wikipedia. - Kevin]

Coen Brothers Biographies:
Wikipedia
IMDb - Joel Coen
IMDb - Ethan Coen
Biography.com - Joel Coen
Biography.com - Ethan Coen

Links to trailers and clips from some Coen brothers movies:
Raising Arizona (1987) - trailer; comedy
Fargo (1996) - trailer; drama
The Big Lebowski (1998) - trailer; comedy; now a cult favorite
      The Big Lebowski - clip; "Where's the money?" scene
      The Big Lebowski - clip; "Mark it zero!" insane bowling scene
      The Big Lebowski - clip; Jesus bowling scene
No Country for Old Men (2007) - trailer; thriller
Burn After Reading (2008) - trailer; comedy
True Grit (2010) - trailer; western
Inside Llewyn Davis (2013) - trailer; drama (with Justin Timberlake)
Hail, Caesar! (2016) - trailer; comedy
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018) - trailer; starring James Franco, Liam Neeson

Also ...
Suburbicon (2017) (writing credit only; directed by George Clooney)

Top 10 Coen Brothers Movies - WatchMojo

Handout: True Grit (2010) and No Country for Old Men (2007)

To Do:
Make corrections to your movie review and post it on your blog. Your movie review should be posted and perfect before next week!

___

0   The Godfather was released in 1972.  [Notice: The Godfather is the title.]

X   The Jaws was released in 1975.      [This is incorrect! The title is Jaws.]

0   Jaws was released in 1975.   [Use italics to show the title.]

Week 8 - Martin Scorsese

Movie Writing Part III is due today (Nov. 10): You were supposed to write your comments and opinions about your movie in a paragraph. 

Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese (born 1942) is one of the truly great movie directors. Many of his movies are modern classics with iconic acting and scenes. His early movies often featured the acting of Robert De Niro, while his more recent movies frequently star Leonardo DiCaprio. Many of Scorsese's movies deal with crime and gangsters.

Scorsese has been nominated for the Best Director Academy Award 9 times, and won once for The Departed (2006).  A recent film,  The Irishman (2019) was nominated for 10 Academy Awards, including Best Picture. The Wolf of Wall Street (2013), was nominated for 5 Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. Another recent film, Hugo (2011) was Scorsese's first attempt at big budget 3-D digital effects, and it was widely acclaimed. It was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, winning 6.

Scorsese is also known for his music documentaries, and he has made films about The Band (The Last Waltz; 1978), blues music (The Blues; 2003), Bob Dylan (No Direction Home; 2005) and George Harrison (Living in the Material World; 2011).

* Scorsese grew up in Little Italy in Manhattan. His understanding of Italian-Americans and urban life has contributed to realism in his films.
* One of his trademarks is the long tracking shot, such as the one in "Goodfellas," where the camera moves through a long, complex choreographed sequence without cuts in the action.
* Martin Scorsese was assistant director of the great music documentary, "Woodstock" (1970).
* Raging Bull (1980), starring Robert De Niro, is considered to be one of the greatest movies of all time. It is based on the true story of pro-boxer, Jake LaMotta, and it earned a Best Actor Academy Award for De Niro.
* Scorsese directed the Michael Jackson MTV video, "Bad" (1987).
* Steven Spielberg offered the director's job to Scorsese for "Schindler's List," but Scorsese declined.
* Leonardo DiCaprio credits Scorsese with making him a better actor.
* Scorcese has been active in recent years as a movie and TV producer. He was the executive producer of the recent exciting TV historical crime series, Boardwalk Empire (2010-2014). Boardwalk Empire trailer
* Recently, we saw Scorsese's historical movie set in Japan: Silence (2016), starring Liam Neeson. It's about two Catholic priests who come to Japan in the 1600s to try and spread Christianity.
* The Irishman - on Netflix in 2019. It stars Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and other famous actors.

Many of Scorsese's movies are available in the Tsurumi University Library.

[My personal thoughts and recollections about Martin Scorsese and his movies were supplemented with details, dates and numbers from Wikipedia. - Kevin]

Martin Scorsese Biographies:
Wikipedia
IMDb
Biography.com

Click on the slide below and check out the photos from famous movies directed by Martin Scorsese that starred Robert De Niro (early Scorsese) and Leonardo DiCaprio (recent Scorsese).

Scorsese movies that star Robert De Niro:
Mean Streets (1973) - clips of a very young Robert De Niro
Taxi Driver (1976) - trailer
Raging Bull (1980) - trailer
Goodfellas (1990) - trailer
Goodfellas (1990) - long tracking shot
Movie critics Siskel & Ebert talk about Martin Scorsese and his movie "Goodfellas"
Casino (1995) - trailer
The Irishman (2019) - trailer

Scorsese movies that star Leonardo DiCaprio:
Gangs of New York (2002) - trailer; also stars Daniel Day-Lewis & Liam Neeson
The Aviator (2004) - trailer
The Departed (2006) - trailer; also stars Jack Nicholson & Matt Damon
Shutter Island (2010) - trailer
The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) - trailer

Digital movie; made in 3-D
Hugo (2012) - trailer
Hugo (2012) - beautiful opening scene

Also ...
Silence (2016) - set in Japan! Starring Liam Neeson, Andrew Garfield, Adam Driver, Tadanobu Asano

Coming soon!
Killers of the Flower Moon (TBA; maybe 2023) - no trailer; starring De Niro & DiCaprio!

Music documentaries by Martin Scorsese
The Last Waltz (1978) - trailer (about The Band and other famous artists)
The Blues (2003) - trailer
No Direction Home: Bob Dylan (2005) - trailer
Living in the Material World: George Harrison (2011) - trailer

Rolling Thunder Review (2019) - trailer (about a Bob Dylan tour)

New York Stories: A complete ranking of Martin Scorsese's films, by ScreenCrush (article)

Watch as many of the Martin Scorsese clips or trailers above as you can.

Goodfellas & Shutter Island Handout PDF  /  Goodfellas  /  Shutter Island   ⤂
Do the PDF handout or write answers on paper. Keep it for next week.

Try this multiple choice quiz on the 8 directors we've studied so far.

Loading Eight Movie Directors

Movie Writing Assignment

You should have 3 sections completed now: 1) information 2) story 3) opinion

Show Kevin your paper in class.

Now, let's change the first section (information) into a paragraph.

Example:

The Godfather was released in 1972. It was directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starred Marlon Brando, Al Pacino and Diane Keaton. It won the Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay, and Marlon Brando won the Best Actor Award. The Godfather was the highest grossing film of 1972. It grossed over $135 million and was the highest grossing film ever until Jaws came out in 1975.

Post your completed movie review on your blog; due in two weeks Nov. 24. You can wait until I return your papers to post this.

* Just post the title and the three paragraphs with a space between the paragraphs. You don't need my sentences like "Information about the movie" etc. Just post your writing. Add images to make it better.