Villacreces, Falanga, Cooper, Malveaux: Distractions (One Minute Film)

Distractions students have in the library while studying for finals.

Malveaux - Minority Report

Minority Report is a film by Philip K. Dick that explores the concept of distributing consequences to someone before their crime ever takes place based on foreknowledge provided by what the film refers to as “precogs”.  The film, set in 2054 Washington, D.C., presumes that any intended act in the future that does harm to society in any capacity is a crime. 

The “precogs, three physics, uses their gift of foretelling the future to determine who, where, when, and at what time someone will commit the crime. The police unit, led by Tom Cruise, then seeks out the pre-determined perpetrator and prosecutes them for the crime they haven’t committed “yet”. According to Terri Murray, in the article Our Post-Moral Future?, a crime is meaningless until it is done, and is a crime precisely because it is done therefore redefining the meaning. Murray also argues that the definition of a criminal is retrospective because the freedom that allows a criminal to choose whether or not to commit the crime is the reason he or she is defined a criminal should they choose to proceed with the act. This is an important concept that isn’t explored in Minority Report. 

The precogs foresee the crime and the police unit acts upon it. Their intentions are to prevent murders, however, they are stripping away someone’s inalienable right, which is free will. What viewer’s should ask themselves after watching this film is at what does a police unit’s obligation to capture criminals infringe upon a person’s right to have private thoughts. 

Malveaux - Paranormal Activity

There aren't many good horror films nowadays, but the film Paranormal Activity may suggest that the future of horror films is bright. Paranormal Activity is a film written and directed by Oren Peli about a couple who is haunted by supernatural elements in their home in San Diego. The entire movie, footage from Katie and Micah, documents a series of days and nights inside Katie and Micah's bedroom. The film opens with the scene of Katie confessing her haunted past to Micah, whom she just recently moved in with. The couple then decides to place a video camera in their bedroom at night to tape the ghosts or supernatural elements that happen when Katie falls asleep. What they find on the tape each night, is the main attraction. The terror and horror that works incredibly well consists of footprints, closing doors, noises, and an erie sense of supernatural presence all captured on camera. Using those images and a low budget camera, the film plays upon real-life elements to grab viewers' attention and place them on the edge of their seats like The Blair Witch Project. The realism is the crowning achievement here. Overall, the film does a masterful job of depicting simple terrifying images while documenting a story of a couple haunted by supernatural beings. Peli allows viewers to engage in the film and shows a very convincing fictional story that's sure to keep moviegoers terrified long after leaving theaters.

Malveaux - Social Network Review

Aaron Sorkin's The Social Network was an interesting film, to say the least. When first viewing the trailer for the film, I was very skeptical. I saw a movie primarily telling the story of how Facebook, a social website where people created profiles for themselves, had been created. My immediate reaction was how would a film about social media be even remotely interesting, let alone good. As the film showed in theaters, many critics gave the film very positive reviews saying that the direction in which David Fincher took, the script, and performances of both Justin Timberlake and Jesse Eisenburg were exceptional. After watching The Social Network, I would agree. Although the film tells the story of how Facebook came to be, the film explores much more than that. It can be argued that the movie isn't so much about the social website itself, rather the primary focus is the conflicts and relationships between Zuckerberg, his best friend Eduardo, Sean Parker, and the Winklevoss twins who are suing him. Facebook is simply the vehicle by which Sorkin and Fincher drive the story. Through these relationships, the film is able to show how important these interactions are to understanding the development of Facebook.

There are plenty of areas where the film excels. Some of those include the intelligent, yet witty dialogue between the characters, the superb casting of Eisenburg, Timberlake, and Andrew Garfield, and the development of the story. One aspect of the film that in my opinion is the most exceptional is the directing job done by Fincher. All throughout the film, the story is told in flashbacks from Facebook's inception all the way to its progression as a fully functioning website and both separate lawsuits that followed. Fincher showed the scenes from the lawsuits, the present situation, while flashing back to all the moments that caused the two lawsuits against Zuckerberg. This is where the movie shined because it kept the movie entertaining and fresh while telling the story in its entirety. Overall, whether you have a Facebook page or not or have any interest in the story behind the website itself, this is a must-see for viewers in 2010. The exceptional directing and acting alone is enough reason to see this movie; the story behind a website that you probably use to socialize with friends is just the icing on the cake.