I decided to write my essay on Spirited Away, Hayao Miyazaki’s most successful film. Spirited Away follows the adventures of a young girl named Chihiro as she attempts to save her parents who were transformed by an evil witch named Yubaba (Baba Yaga??), who just so happens to be the owner of a magical bathhouse within the spirit world. Chihiro must survive in a world of spirits and monsters as she is forced to work under Yubaba at the bathhouse in order to free herself and return her parents back to their human form.

I plan on writing an expository paper focusing on the close connection between the childhood experiences of director Hayao Miyazaki and the actual contents of the film. I will argue how the heavy usage of archetypal elements within the film works to portray a universal message of female empowerment. I will also delve into how the universality of the film contributed to the film’s enormous success, as it holds the status of the second-highest-grossing anime film worldwide.

Concerns: I don’t really understand whether or not the nationalist/archetypal aspect is supposed to be a huge part of the paper. It isn’t on the syllabus but it was discussed.

If the nationalist/archetypal thing isn’t required for the paper, I will likely alter my focus to Miyazaki’s impeccable ability in creating an entire universe in his films and argue how he makes the viewing experience so insanely immersive. There are so many ways I want to go with this essay, I just can’t decide which one I want to go with.

Like I’ve seen others mention, I’m kind of confused about how much we should talk about production history. In the expository prompt, it seems like the production history is actually the main element of the essay.

Lady Bird is the movie I propose as the subject of my expository paper. Lady Bird is a 2017 semi-autobiographical dramedy written and directed by Greta Gerwig. The plot of Lady Bird follows the coming-of-age of a senior in high school with a particular focus on her family relationships.

My argument will first focus on the the influence Gerwig had as a result of the independent film production structure and how she used it to tell her deeply personal story. The former part of this section will encompass Gerwig’s input during development, casting, and filming. The latter part of this section is inspired by a quote from Gerwig that reveals “nothing in the movie literally happened in my life, but it has a core of truth that resonates with what I know.” Then, my argument will discuss the public and critical reception of the finished product as a vehicle to analyze the success of various aspects of Gerwig’s vision. In this section, I plan to incorporate ideas related to archetypal and nationalist myths as they appear in opinion pieces.

Concerns:

(Structure) The structure I proposed in the previous paragraph is the first one that came to mind. Do you think that that structure is satisfactory or not? If not, what could/should I change about it?

(Content) Do you think there will be enough content to fulfill the page constraints and will it be interesting enough? Based on preliminary research, I think the answer is “Yes,” but I would love additional input.

(Sources) I used the references on Wikipedia as a starting point to locate some sources. How should I continue my research?

Movie: Avatar (2009) by James Cameron [Expository]

The movie Avatar (2009), by James Cameron is a sci-fi movie that takes place over 100 years in the future on a planet named Pandora. Humans are colonizing the planet and planning to mine for a rare metal native to the Na’vi (Pandora natives) territory. In order to gain the trust of the Na’vi people, scientists create organisms called “Avatars” which link to a human host and allow them to take the shape of the Na’vi people. Jake Sullivan, the main character of the movie, is a host of one of the Avatar and becomes part of the Na’vi tribe, causing him to feel remorse for the people which makes him want to stop the colonization that he originally helped initiate.

In my paper, I would like to make the argument that the movie Avatar (2009) serves as a national and archetypal myth in the sense that it creates a unity between indigenous people and the movie’s audience by highlighting the consequences of human greed. The movie supplies the Na’vi tribe with sights of impeccable beauty which lies in contrast with that of the human world. Multiple symbols in the scenes of the movie suggest that greed leads to nothing but corruption and despair.

Concerns: I am not sure if my argument is enough to be able to fill five pages. However, I don’t want my argument to be so broad that I won’t be able to prove it all in five pages. Also, I feel like I need a more concrete definition of the difference between archetypal and national.

I intend to write about The Truman Show (1998) for my paper. I intend to do a critical analysis of the film, using The Secret Cinema (1966) as comparison, as both films deal with themes of voyeurism, paranoia, and the protagonist’s questioning of their reality. I feel like both films are very much archetypical in their themes, but to different extents.

The Secret Cinema plays to the idea of a person’s actions being held to high scrutiny and judgement by those close to them. The main protagonist, Jane, constantly finds herself faced with off-putting if not downright disturbing behavior by her peers, and her reactions are filmed and screened to a private audience which she is unable to access. Meanwhile, The Truman Show plays more to the universal idea of control. While Truman is always being watched, he is not put into situations that would force a reaction like Jane is. Rather, the world around him is manufactured to influence his behavior towards that of complacency. Truman Show is also greater in scope than Secret Cinema, with the former being a tale of overcoming fear and societal expectations and the latter being a story of questioning those you trust.

I feel that, through the comparison of these two stories, we can find a more thorough examination of how human beings come to question their reality and understand their place in it.

Some of my concerns are:

Is a purely thematic approach a satisfactory way to write the paper? The instructions for the critical analysis were a little less clear than the expository analysis. Should I supplement the thematic exploration with the production history for good measure?

Should I be doing an archetypal approach for both of the films? I feel like archetypical fit them both, but I’m not sure if the critical analysis would prefer I do one critical and one nationalistic.

Are there any other ways I can approach the analysis aside from the thematic?

The Secret Cinema is a short film. I imagine this will not be an issue, but I’d like to bring it up anyway just in case.

Se7en (1995) is an American crime thriller directed by David Fincher, written by Andrew Kevin Walker, and produced by Arnold Kopelson. It is a story of two detectives, David Mills (Brad Pitt) and William Somerset (Morgan Freeman), who attempt to track down a serial killer who uses the seven deadly sins as a motif in his murders. Coming from a screenwriter and director who weren’t doing so great in the industry, the movie exceeded expectations by making a profit ten times its budget of $33 million and being highly recognized in the 1990s. The creation and production of the film is the direct reason for the movie’s success and the methods used be emulated in all films of the mystery/crime genre since they are so heavy on plot and the tone which they set.

The movie has many references to mythology and other pieces of literature which are directly referenced throughout the movie (Dante’s Inferno, Paradise Lost, etc.) which support the seven deadly sins making this movie unique in its time. The “head in the box” plot twist ending also sets the movie far apart in originality and brilliance from other films. With this, the movie launched careers for the screenwriter, Walker, and director, Fincher, along with the actors many are aware and still active today such as Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Kevin Spacey. The shooting of it also plays an important role from the setup of the murders and the color palette which they use to support the movie’s miserable and mysterious tone. The film was meant to be quite distinct from other movies made in its time and even controversial due to its bleakness, but still managed to be a great success making about $13 million its opening weekend and close to $327 million total in the box office. With this I will be arguing why a movie of this genre with such harsh murder mysteries appealed so well to its audience in the 90s unlike the movies before it and how the production made it such a success.

Concerns for paper:

• The story has an incredible plot, especially one that can be tied to the course on mythology, that should be talked about. How much of the essay should be focused on plot analysis and the screenwriter’s intentions of the movie?
• The movie did propel the careers of those that worked on and off camera. Is it relevant to the prompt to talk about the movie’s impact on their lives?
• If I were to run out of content (to fill up 6-8 pages), which movie would be good to compare to this one? Should I choose something that came from the same time period (like Showgirls which competed with it the same weekend) or genre (such as The Silence of the Lambs)? Do you recommend the movie not be as successful as this one to set up an argumentative contrast in production methods in correspondence to the film’s success?

In my (expository) essay I would like to analyze the 2007 Coen Brothers “neo-western” No Country For Old Men as a story which, rather than serving strictly as a nationalist tale, examines how a character conditioned by mythological storytelling (such as classic, clearly mythological westerns) reconciles this with the gritty realities of the real world, subverting tropes common in these stories. I would like to compare this interpretation of the story with the most recent Coen Brothers film The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, which embraces the nationalist storytelling which No Country For Old Men rebels against. I would like to examine how the storytelling methods of the two films (such as score, cinematography, tone, etc.) differ based on the theming and messaging of the story, and I would like to examine how elements of Buster Scruggs which No Country For Old Men’s narrative subverts serve as mythological storytelling, such as the presence of binary oppositions and certain very specific storytelling decisions in the film.

Concerns:

I’m not sure how much we’re supposed to incorporate the production history into our papers, since my films have relatively boring/uneventful productions. Would it be better to pick a different movie with a more interesting production history?

I’m also concerned that by addressing so many elements, it might be hard to encompass them all under a concise and singular thesis. For an expository essay, would it be better to just use one film?

Paper type: expository

Movie: Interstellar

Introduction to film: Interstellar is a film that is set after blight has destroyed most of the world’s crops, creating a global Dust Bowl. Cooper, a Nasa test pilot turned farmer, discovers the remnants of Nasa and is tasked with helping in a mission to travel through a wormhole to find a new home for humanity. While in space, themes of love and humanity are continually discussed, as well as loyalty to the mission and humanity over loyalty to individuals.

Topic of discussion: Mythology as it relates to this film and its production history

Thesis: Interstellar creates a tension between the concept of a nationalist myth and archetypal myth, exploring them both in order to make a greater claim about the scientific future of America as well as mankind.

Argument: Interstellar is a film that strikes upon motifs of both the nationalist and archetypal tradition, using the tension between the two to examine American ideals as well as universal human emotions. In the beginning of the film, a heavy emphasis is put on the American experience with elements such as Cooper being both a farmer and pilot, a second Dust Bowl, and Nasa’s mission to explore space travel. As the film progresses, however, while the American ideals are still present, there begins to be a shift to concerns of the broader humanity, discussing personal love, the tension of personal love with the desire to save humanity, and generally the human spirit and its motives as seen through characters like Mann. Even elements like the Dust Bowl evoke an American experience, yet this is expanded into a global Dust Bowl and thus a universal human problem, not just an American one.

Concerns: Making sure that due to the large amount of content within the film that the argument and explanations remains concise.

Joseph Campbell’s 1949 model of the archetypal Hero’s Journey was revolutionary, and can be applied to everything from ancient Native American folklore to Star Wars. But when Maureen Murdock, a student of Campbell, asked him about a woman’s development through the Hero’s Journey, Campbell replied, “In the whole mythological tradition the woman is there. All she has to do is to realize that she’s the place that people are trying to get to.” Unsatisfied with this response, Murdock developed her own template for the Heroine’s Journey, which draws from Campbell but incorporates female-centric aspects.

One of the best exemplifications of a female-driven narrative is Pixar’s Brave (2012), a fairytale set in the Scottish Highlands about a rebellious young princess, Merida, who rejects tradition by refusing to be betrothed. I will be writing an expository paper which will use Murdock’s framework to explore how Brave redefines the Hero’s Journey from a female perspective. I will do this by analyzing elements such as narrative, character design, and music. The paper will also look into the production history of Brave, specifically Brenda Chapman (writer and director)’s vision for the film and the conflicts she faced at Pixar as their first female director. Chapman’s struggle for individuality and creative freedom at Pixar complements Merida’s journey in Brave.

Concerns:

How much are we supposed to focus on the archetypal/nationalist stuff, and how much on the production history? How do we balance incorporating both aspects into our paper?

Sources:

Murdock, Maureen. The Heroine’s Journey. Shambala Publications, 1990.

Morante, Laura Domínguez. “Pixar’s New Fairy Tale Brave: A Feminist Redefinition of the Hero Monomyth.” Revista de Estudios Norteamericanos 19, 2015.

Lerew, Jenny. The Art of Brave. Chronicle Books, 2012.

Chapman, Brenda. “Stand Up for Yourself, and Mentor Others.” The New York Times, 2012.Saladino, Caitlin Joanne, “Long May She Reign: A Rhetorical Analysis of Gender Expectations in Disney’s Tangled and Disney/Pixar’s Brave.” UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones, 2014.

My movie: Iron Man 1

My essay will revolve around the idea that superheros and superhero film act as our modern day myths. My current plan is too start with an introduction to Iron Man and the production history of the film. The fact that Iron Man is a comic book hero important, and the idea that a small comic book character has transitioned into the face of worldwide cinematic universe is interesting because he is a cross-cultural hero. After this I will discuss myths and what mythic elements are seen within the superhero storylines, specifically the hero’s journey as outlined by Joseph Campbell. Here I will compare aspects of Iron man with aspects of myths we have read in this class to see how it has borrowed these archetypal storytelling traditions. On top of this I will parallele the significance that the hero has, specifically their importance in helping establish and solidify cultural values for the audience. The Ilias was a story meant not only to entertain the Greeks, but the heroes also acted as role models to show how the ideal Greek man should act. Robert Downey Jr’s version of Iron Man serves a similar role, especially if you look at the character over the course of the MCU’s films. Iron Man was the beginning of the entire MCU, and while the single movie does contain many archetypal aspects, viewing the cinematic universe on a large scale is to me what most resembles the mythic worlds of the past. Every culture’s own mythology was a series of interconnected stories and heros and supernatural beings that everyone knew about, and this worldwide phenomena of the MCU is our modern day version of this.

Questions: Is it more important to talk about the production of the film or how it is related to mythology? Because the prompt seems to emphasize production more but for me I think emphasizing how the film relates to mythology would create a stronger essay, but would it be missing the prompt?

Unsure if I should begin my essay with iron man production then discuss how myths and super hero stories are related, or start with that discussion and introduce Iron Man later into my essay?

Honestly will change a lot of this essay over the course of the next weeks but these are my ideas right now.

Some consider the Marvel Cinematic Universe to contain artistic merit; others find it just to be a corporate money-making machine lacking any more profound meaning. Regardless of which side of the argument you believe, it is impossible to ignore that this franchise has reminded Hollywood that characters and stories matter more than pure action and visual stimulation, a lesson that frankly seems to have been forgotten since Star Wars. I want to embrace this character-focused universe and criticize two movies where I believe Marvel failed to utilize its own teachings: Thor (2011) and Iron Man 3 (2013).

Both of these movies were (over time, as a particular reveal in Iron Man 3 caused quite the initial backlash) well-embraced, as in 2019 Thor and Iron Man 3 have audience scores on Rotten Tomatoes of 76% and 78%, respectively. However, I believe that both of these films ultimately fail the title characters by not completing their character arcs. Regarding Thor, I will argue that the attempted redemption arc supposed completion of this arc eventually falls short because of several missing storytelling factors. Furthermore, I will also contend that the infamous reveal in Iron Man 3 actually undercuts Tony Stark’s arc (even if I misleading marketing is fair game and am not bothered by the nature of the reveal itself) which is constructed with themes of PTSD, causing the ending to also be devoid of a proper emotional payoff. Although I will argue that both movies do not contain complete character arcs, they fail in different ways: Thor‘s otherwise effective conclusion lacks support from the beginning of the film, while in Iron Man 3, there is an excellent setup for a satisfying arc, but the ending fails to live up to this early promise.

My concerns about this paper center around the specificity of my argument. I am worried that by focusing too much on just one element I will not be able to thoroughly criticize all aspects of the film and come to a conclusion about only the respective character arcs, especially considering that last week, Griffin mentioned that he wants us to “look beyond the narrative”, while this entire paper focuses on the narrative.