Basil Allen website link

website

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Cabiria Review

       I found the film Cabiria  a lot more interesting and entertaining than I first assumed it would be. I had never watched a silent movie beforehand and was admittedly apprehensive. But it had a lot of great qualities I hadn't expected, such as the well done score, grandiose sets, and much faster pace and plot. Even the editing, though old, was still really impressive and had me wondering how they did it at times. I really enjoyed the large scale shot of the ships burning and people running-- the film really knew how to do destruction well! I also had to acknowledge the quality difference from the 1913 Antony and Cleopatra  we had seen a bit of before. The text was much more legible, gave more time to fully read it, and fit the plot and characters well, which made me forget at times the movie was a silent one at all.       Though, there were also things that did stand out in less than positive ways. It makes sense for a film made over 100...
Read more

Gladiator screencap analysis - Basil Allen

Image
This scene from Gladiator (2000) is incredibly meaningful both tonally and in terms of the plot. In it, Maximus reveals his true identity to Commodus. Maximus gives a powerful speech, declaring who he is and what he wants: vengeance. Commodus, shocked and disgusted, desperately wants to kill Maximus where he stands. However, both the crowd and the other gladiators stand by Maximus; the other gladiators stand in between the pair, physically protecting Maximus, and the crowd chants, "live! Live!" with growing intensity. Commodus is forced, by the will of the people, to save him, despite every instinct and desire he has to kill him right where he stands.  This shot exemplifies the tension between the two. Most notably, the sword at Commodus' neck. Its presence represents how he is feeling: threatened and "at knife point" to save Maximus from death, as well as threatened by Maximus himself. He stares directly at him, an expression of hatred and disgust on his face, ...
Read more