MACS 373

Spring 2016

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Special Topics in Film Studies
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Credit: 3 hours.

Same as ENGL 373. See ENGL 373.

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CRN Type Section Time Day Location Instructor Section Details
58622
Lecture-Discussion
P
11:00AM -12:50PM
TR
137 Armory
Basu, A
Part of Term:
1
Date Range:
01/19/16-05/04/16
Section Title:
Bollywood Cinema
Section Info:
Topic: Bollywood Cinema In this section of ENGL/MACS 373 we will undertake a critical and historical study of the international media phenomenon known as ‘Bollywood.’ We will see exciting, colorful films and also understand how these texts can be connected to the history, political transformations, and national and regional aspirations in South Asia. We shall critically take a look into matters of form (how exactly are popular Hindi films different from or similar to Hollywood or Japanese films?) and how these narratives respond to shifting realities of post-colonial nation-building, tradition, mythology, modernity, globalization, the country/city divide, and the information revolution. We will analyse how popular Hindi cinema has, over the decades, developed highly elastic and flexible formal devices that can combine epic imaginations drawn from the Ramayana or the Mahabharata with manifold matters of the modern world like space aliens, technology, terrorism, pop culture, American superhero genres, world cinema/world music conventions, and a host of other things. On a broader level, we will attempt to grasp the workings of a major filmic tradition that is culturally different for many of us, but is also, in terms of sheer number of products and population reach, the largest entertainment industry in the world. Students will be required to participate in a group project, write short response papers and two longer mid-term and final-term papers. There will also be a final examination.
56864
Lecture-Discussion
R
1:00PM -2:50PM
TR
148 Armory
Soto Crespo, R
Part of Term:
1
Date Range:
01/19/16-05/04/16
Section Title:
Documenting America
Section Info:
Topic Section S: Documenting America From hoarders to living wild at the fringes of America, and from unfettered economic ventures to the comic lives of eccentric overachievers, this course examines the language and visual composition of works produced by documentary directors in the United States. We will explore the ways in which documentary filmmaking shapes our image of America in the works of Michael Moore, Errol Morris, Andrew Jarecki and others. Documentary films try to capture a social reality unmediated by fantasy and as such they provide us with a piercing look at who we are. By studying the composition of narrative voice and sequence, the course emphasizes on documentary as a narrative form designed to integrate critical perspectives with social action. This course takes advantage of the many media available for us to expand our appreciation of a multilayered society. Our syllabus includes films, reading assignments, and opportunities to listen to public speakers. Themes for discussion include: war and its aftermath, the state of the economy, health care, mental illness, poverty, world resources, food production, and the environment. Attendance at weekly screenings, multiple analytical short essays, a midterm and a final exam, and consistent class participation will be required. TEXTS: (Selection) Chomsky, Noam, Profit Over People: Neoliberalism & Global Order; Mitchell, W. J. T., Cloning Terror: The War of Images, 9/11 to the Present; Nichols, Bill, 2nd edition, Indiana UP, 2001, Introduction to Documentary. DOCUMENTARY FILMS: (selection) Dylan Avery, Loose Change 9/11: An American Coup (2009. 99 min.); Banksy, Exit Through the Gift Shop, (2010. 87 min.); Marshall Curry, If a Tree Falls, (2011. 85 min.); Josh Fox, Gasland, (2009. 106 min.); James Gandolfini, Alive Day Memories, (2007. 57 min.); Robert Greenwald, Wal-Mart, (2005. 97 min.); Werner Herzog, Into the Abyss, (2012. 107 min.); Andrew Jarecki, Capturing the Friedmans, (2003. 109 min.); Michael Moore, Fahrenheit 9/11, (2004. 122 min.); Ariel Schulman and Henry Joost, Catfish, (2011. 88 min.); Errol Morris, Tabloid, (2010. 88 min.)
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