We seem to do so much awesome stuff in my basic acting class. Whoever wrote the syllabus is a pure genius, as I've yet to be anything less than entirely engrossed in each class session we've had so far. The other day we did a sense memory exercise that involved us recalling something that we've always wanted to say to someone but have never had the courage to follow through on it. We were to pick someone at random in the class and say it to them. Some of the comments that people chose to share started off rather lightly but progressed to some heavy stuff by the end of the class. It was a stunning experience, really. Something that will really make you think deeply and give you an odd sense of empowerment. I feel better having done it.
On a separate note, my Film Analysis professor actually bragged (I emphasize that bit) to the class on Wednesday that he had not seen a single Star Wars film and saw no need to. I love the University of Iowa as much as the next hawkeye, but I'm beginning to question my film education. I was absolutely flabbergasted to find out that one can apparently become a professor of film studies without having seen any of those films. I don't even expect him to like any of them (I honestly don't think he would), but any more you almost have to make a conscious effort not to see those movies, considering their permeating ubiquity.
much respect
josh
1 comment:
I watched episodes IV and V over the summer for the first time. IV was just okay, V was pretty good. Still haven't seen VI or the prequels, - well, except for I, which I saw in third grade and remember only vaguely.
The thing about watching those movies when you haven't seen them before is that there's nothing at all surprising about them. It's such a part of the pop culture collective unconscious that mentioning that Darth Vader is Luke's father isn't the least bit of a spoiler.
I personally don't believe that your film professor needs to see the original trilogy to have a better understanding of what he's doing; he probably knows enough about films to not have to watch them.
A possible reason as to why he hasn't watched them yet might be the same reason a lot of people don't own TVs: just so they can say "I don't own a TV." It sounds like a really vapid and shallow reason for not watching a movie, but it's something I think we all engage in. For instance, I refuse to see Napoleon Dynamite. I realize it's probably a decent-sized chunk of Gen Y cultural lore, but I just don't want to see it.
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