Last Vegas (2013). Reviewed by Thomas Morgan

last vegas 2A buddy movie is a film that tells the story of a close relationship between two men, often with a light-hearted tone. In more recent years, there has been an increase in the output of buddy movies, showing the relationship between four men who have been brought together by a particular event. In American Reunion (2012), it’s a high school reunion; in Grown Ups (2010), it’s the death of a basketball coach; but in Jon Turteltaub’s Last Vegas (2013), it’s the wedding of big-shot bachelor, Billy (Michael Douglas). Continue reading

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Last Call: Deadline for 5.3 (2014) Is February 1st

The deadline for open call 5.3 (2014) is February 1, 2014. Undergraduates, send in those fall 2013 essays for consideration today! For more information, including eligibility and submission guidelines, please see the original post:

Questions and submissions can be directed to Liza:  futurefilmscholars AT gmail.com

We look forward to hearing from you!

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The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013). Reviewed by Thomas Morgan

hobbit 2Bilbo and company return in this epic, action-packed adventure, which sees the dwarves come up against their greatest foe, in an attempt to reclaim the lonely mountain of Erebor from Smaug the Destroyer. Continue reading

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FM 4.1 Is Out!

Film Matters is pleased to announce the release of issue 4.1, which includes the following peer-reviewed feature articles:

  • Sub-Cultural Ethnography and the Case for Dogtown and Z-Boys by Christopher G. da Canha
  • “Hearing” War Crimes: Affective Evocation of Violence and Political Engagement through Sound Editing in Jean-Luc Godard’s Masculin Féminin (1965) and Michael Haneke’s Caché (2005) by Kevin Hatch 
  • Emotional Engagement in Representations and the Issue of Perceptual Realism by Hanna Kubicka 
  • Martin Scorsese’s Raging Bull, Italian American Masculinity, and the American Dream by Christina Marie Newland
  • More than a Musical Mission from God: Themes of Unification in The Blues Brothers as Fleshed Out by Bollywood Masala Cinema
    by Grayson Nowak
  • Fantasia and the Generic Confluence of Convention and Abstraction by Erin Nunoda
  • CGI: An Evolution in Cinema by Matthew D. C. Stamm
  • Pied Piper vs. Faun: Storybooks and Female Empowerment in The Sweet Hereafter and Pan’s Labyrinth by Amanda Stonebarger

These featurettes:

  • Der Räuber/The Robber (2010) and the Berlin School by Amy Lewis
  • A Conversation with Su Friedrich by Jacob Mertens
  • Is It Worth It? by Eliccia N. Edwards
  • For Film Fans by Film Fans: A Look at Firstshowing.net by Joey Powell

And our first dossier on film schools and resources, which includes the following special featurettes:

  • UC Berkeley’s Film Studies Program by Eamon Fay 
  • Western Carolina University’s ‘‘Motion Picture and Television Production’’ Program by Rachel C. Gentry
  • Florida State University College of Motion Picture Arts by Brooke Gibson
  • Not Your Average Film School: A Brief Overview of SMFA by Jonathan V. Mariano
  • Obligated to In-State by Lawson Sitterding
  • Longhorns with Lenses by Levi Vasquez
  • The Moving Image Archives at UNCSA by Joshua D. Zich 

Not to mention some engaging reviews of recent books, films, and DVDs/Blu-rays by Jude WarneShane Wisniewski, Kale Hills, Brendan Boyle, and Duygu Eyrenci.

It’s a packed issue!  For more information, please visit:  http://www.intellectbooks.co.uk/journals../view-issue,id=2585/

And think about becoming a Film Matters author today!  Submit to open call 5.3 by February 1, 2014!

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Call 5.3’s Deadline Is February 1st!

The deadline for call 5.3 (2014) is fast approaching — February 1, 2014.  Help us fill the last issue of the new year by submitting your film-related research papers for consideration today!  More details can be found in the following document (Word):

Looking forward to hearing from you!

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Announcing Open Call for Papers 5.3 (2014)

Film Matters is pleased to announce our open call for papers for consideration in issue 5.3 (2014) — the deadline is February 1, 2014.  So please submit your film-related research papers today!

For more information, please download the official document (in Word):

Submissions and questions should be directed to:

  • futurefilmscholars AT gmail.com

We look forward to receiving your papers!

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CFP: Film Bytes Micro-Essays on SHOTGUN STORIES (2008)

Film Matters invites current undergraduates to submit brief analyses of the recent independent film, Shotgun Stories (2008).  Each submission should be in the format of a micro-essay, a 3-5 sentence analysis, which is concise, focused, and minimalist.  Upon review, selected submissions will be featured in a dossier to be published in a forthcoming issue of Film Matters.

Micro-essay topics might include: responses to particular stylistic motifs; aesthetic choices; technical aspects; and salient contextual /professional issues.  Chosen writers will be contacted via email prior to publication.

Please send submissions no later than November 20th via email to: futurefilmscholars AT gmail.com

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Call 5.1’s Deadline Is September 1st!

Just as a reminder, call 5.1 (2014) for Film Matters is still open — the deadline is September 1, 2013.  So submit your end-of-spring-semester papers for consideration today!  More details about the call are in the following (Word) document:

FM Call 5.1

If you have any questions, please email Liza: futurefilmscholars AT gmail.com

Thanks!

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FM 3.4 Is Out!

Film Matters is pleased to announce the release of FM 3.4, which includes the following peer-reviewed feature articles:

  • Sergei Eisenstein and Montage: When Cultures Collide in Once Upon a Time in China II by Robyn Burley
  • Man with a Movie Camera: An Implementation of Dziga Vertov’s Manifestos by Robert Catherall
  • The French Blockbuster Beyond the Martial Arts Genre by Jennifer Goldberger
  • Carole Lombard as a Transcendental Comic by Olympia Kiriakou
  • Going Through the Motions: Journeying through Myth and Ritual in Three Maya Deren Films by Daniela Mejia
  • Particles and Beams: Video Art as the Penultimate Twentieth Century Medium by Alexander R. Serban
  • Hard Science Fiction in Film: Analyzing Duncan Jones’s Moon by Katherine Springer
  • Mainstream Mulvey: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and (500) Days of Summer as Alternatives to the Feminist Avant-Garde by Brenna Claire Williams

Not to mention, these fine featurettes:

  • Ultimate Spin: Spider-Man by Daniel Robson
  • Improv’s Place in Film by Kale Hills
  • Crossing Over: The Past and the Future Identity in The Murderers Are Among Us and The Bridge by Debora Scatena-Hubbard

And, as always, some strong reviews of recent books, films, and DVDs/Bu-rays by Jade Playle, Brendan BoyleMelinda MilesAbigail Anundson, Joshua D. Zich, and Matthew D. C. Stamm.

It’s a great issue, if we do say so ourselves — thanks to all our contributors!  Read more about it here:  http://www.intellectbooks.co.uk/journals/view-issue,id=2413/

And think about contributing to our next issue!  Submit those end-of-semester papers for consideration in FM 5.1 today!

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Reel Talk 6.3.13

Katrina Hargrave asks: “A simplified definition of a world view is a collection of beliefs about life and the universe held by an individual or a group. Since films are made by individuals and/or groups, for individuals and/or groups and are often about them, it stands to reason that within films one can find the expression of a world view or a particular set of world views (be it the writer’s, director’s, or character’s). What particular beliefs about life and the universe can you find articulated in your favorite films or films you’ve watched lately? Are there any two that have the same theme but express different beliefs? What films have you found to express a similar or dissimilar world view from your own and why?”

Curator Biography

Katrina Hargrave is a student at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. Her interest lies in cinematic storytelling and the creation of “image systems.” She’s currently obsessed with Korean films and loves anything by Studio Ghibli.

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