Now that we have seen such timeless Kung Fu classics as Shogun Sammurai, Kill Bill, Enter the Dragon, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon and of course Kung Fu Hustle one should be quite the Kung Fu connoisseur. Using examples from all the films we watched in class please explain how the elements of philosophy, honor, choreography, violence and action are intertwined throughout the Kung Fu genre and make a film truly a Kung Fu classic. Also note the styles of cinemetography, such as climactic slow motion action scenes, that render a Kung Fu movie great.

minimum 300 words.

maximum 500 words.

If you pas 500 words you fail for being that kid.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Ang Lee, 2000-2005)

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon is a timeless story that takes place in QING China when miracles were credible and spirits and gods were present in man's world. It is not unbelievable that zen warriors float through the air, skim the water and battle in trees and on rooftops. Pain, revenge and duty are the stuff that bind us in this world and are the main plot line of the movie, but in the afterlife love and faith linger on.

Li Mu Bai, a great warrior decides to turn in his sword, the Green Destiny to a treasured friend. When the sword is then stolen, it is up to him to retrieve it. At the same time he is trying to avenge his master's death by the evil Jade Fox. He is joined in his quest by Shu Lien, the un-conceded love of his life. During all of this, they are introduced to Jiao Long Yu, the mysterious and beautiful daughter of a well known family. She is the mysterious link to all these tales. But through all the many subplots, this is in essence, a love story.

American Splendor

(Shari Springer Berman / Robert Pulcini; 2003)

This is the true story of Harvey Pekar, a cynical file clerk at a local VA hospital. His interactions with his co-workers offer some relief from the monotony;their discussions encompass everything from music to the decline of American culture to new flavors of jellybeans and life itself. At home, Harvey fills his days with reading, writing and listening to jazz. His apartment is filled with thousands of books and LPs, and he regularly scours Cleveland's thrift stores and garage sales for more, savoring the rare joy of a 25-cent find. It is at one of these junk sales that Harvey meets Robert Crumb, a greeting card artist and music enthusiast, who years later, finds international success for his underground comics.

Crumb's success inspires Harvey to write his own brand of comic book: American Splendor, a truthful, unsentimental record of his working-class life. First published in 1976, the comic earns Harvey cult fame throughout the 1980s and eventually leads him to the sardonic Joyce Barber, a partner in a Delaware comic book store who end ups being Harvey's true soul mate. The film takes us through their bizarre experiences of Harvey's cult celebrity stature....

Everything is Illuminated

(Liev Schreiber, 2005)

Adapted from Jonathan Safran Foer's best selling book, Everything is Illuminated is both a funny, quirky, and thought-provoking film. The main story is a grimly familiar one - A young Jewish American--Jonathan Safran Foer--travels to the Ukraine in the hope of finding the woman who saved his grandfather from the Nazis. He is aided in his search by Alex Perchov, a naïve Ukrainian translator, Alex's grandfather (also called Alex), and the grandfather's deranged dog, named Sammy Davis Jr. Jr. He has only a photograph and the name of a village. Will they find the village? This directorial debut by Liv Schreiber will leave you smiling and, most likely, scratching your head just a little bit.

ASSIGNMENT: How does the past illuminate everything? Consider both the film and your thoughts on life in response to this question. 200 words

MORE ON MARTIN.........http://www.scorsesefilms.com/

The Departed (2006)
The Aviator (2004)
Gangs of New York (2002)
Bringing out the Dead (1999)
Kundun (1997)
Casino (1995)
Age of Innocence (1993)
Cape Fear (1991)
Goodfellas (1990)
The Color of Money (1986)
Raging Bull (1980)
New York New York (1977)
Taxi Driver (1976)
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974)
Mean Streets (1974)

ASSIGNMENT: Reflect on Scorsese as a director, in regard to style, light, angle. Be sure to also mention at least one of his charcters and how they might connect to Scorsese himself.
DUE: Thursday, 5/7


Taxi Driver (1976)
Vietnam vet Travis Bickle is 26, a loner in the mean streets of New York City, slipping slowly into isolation. In solving his insomnia by driving a yellow cab on the night shift, he grows increasingly disgusted by the low-lifes that hang out at night. Travis constantly, almost obsessively, reflects on the ugly corruption of life around him, and becomes increasingly disturbed over his own loneliness and alienation. In nearly every phase of his life, Bickle remains a complete outsider, failing to make emotional contact with anyone.

His touching attempts to woo Betsy, a Senator's campaign worker, turn sour when he takes her to a porn movie on their first date. He even fails in his attempt to persuade child prostitute Iris to desert her pimp and return to her parents and school. Driven to the edge by powerlessness, he buys four handguns and sets out to assassinate the Senator, heading for the infamy of a 'lone crazed gunman'...

Casino (1995)

This Martin Scorsese film depicts the Janus-like quality of Las Vegas--it has a glittering, glamorous face, as well as a brutal, cruel one. Ace Rothstein and Nicky Santoro, mobsters who move to Las Vegas to make their mark, live and work in this paradoxical world. Seen through their eyes, each as a foil to the other, the details of mob involvement in the casinos of the 1970's and '80's are revealed. Ace is the smooth operator of the Tangiers casino, while Nicky is his boyhood friend and tough strongman, robbing and shaking down the locals. However, they each have a tragic flaw--Ace falls in love with a hustler, Ginger, and Nicky falls into an ever-deepening spiral of drugs and violence.