Thursday, October 10, 2013

Blog 3



I chose the article Don't Judge a Tablet by Its Cover by Maurizio Pesce. I chose this article because, although it's not even in the same REALM as my assignments topic, it shares some similar aspects. Both articles are in regard to something that is rather a diamond in the rough. Pesce is describing a product that seems undesirable at a moments glance but shows just how deep the product really is and that it has true merit. It is the same with the subject of my paper, a classic Japanese film, Rashoman.






"Truth is relative" (Working Title)
If you were under the impression that a film needed to have vivid colors and special effects in order to really wow you, think again. Akira Kurosawa’s Rashoman is a triumphant piece of cinema in an era without color or computer generated special effects. You may want to turn your nose up when realizing it’s a black and white film and in subtitles, but its riveting story and beautiful composition will reel you in long before you can make your escape.

2 comments:

bossenfort said...

Hi Chris,

First off, I like how you present the challenge to "think again" in your opening sentence, it engages me. I think you do an effective job of modeling your template review intro paragraph. You point out why people would overlook the subject you are about to review, but you quickly provide reasons not to simply skip over it. Overall, your intro captures my attention and leaves me eager to read the review in its entirety.

Cheers!
-Ben

Amy Bolaski said...


Hi Chris,

Like Rachele, you've used one genre of review as a model for another (she used a film review as a template for product review while you've done the opposite). I think this is great. And I like how you've drawn a simple, concrete element from each (the "diamond in the rough" approach).

That said, the assignment is to be based on something very current; review as a genre demands such currency (as per the prompt: "You must choose a topic/text that has premiered/been publicly introduced within the last few months or so, be it a product or a film, etc. The review is a genre that requires timeliness – no one wants to read a review of the iPad 2 now that the third version is out. Professional critics often publish reviews before products and media are even available to the public, but obviously we can’t do the same. Still, we’re going to stick to the genre’s constraints as closely as possible."

Roshomon IS a great film, a classic, as you say, but that's the problem here - it's really old. I'm not sure whether you've begun the paper (beyond the intro) but I'd like you email me when possible beginning.

The intro you have here is solid; you can take this approach regardless of what you write about. Hope the feedback helps.

A