...Manuel A. Noriega – Friend or Foe? Manuel Antonio Noriega Morena was born on February 11th, 1934 in Panama City, Panama to a poor accountant and his maid. (Tyle) At the age of five, his parents allowed a school teacher to adopt him. As a teen, he attended a well known high school, the National Institute, in preparation of becoming a doctor. During his time here, he participated in various anti-US protests. When high school was over, his family could not afford to send him to medical school so instead, Noriega accepted a scholarship to attend the Chorrios Military Academy in Peru. He graduated in 1962 with a degree in engineering. For the next few years, Noriega trained obstinately at the U.S. Army School of the Americas in Fort Benning, Georgia becoming highly decorated in intelligence, counterintelligence, and jungle operations and then went on to take a course in psychological operations (Psyops) at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. In 1967, Noriega returned to Panama and joined the Panama National Guard. One year later, he was promoted to lieutenant. That same year, the leader of Panama, Amulfo Arias was removed from power by the military a short 11 days after winning his second election. Many speculate Noriega played a major part of this military uprising. Control of government power was assumed by Colonel Omar Torrijos. Torrijos already had a great deal of respect for Noriega but one incident sealed the deal. In 1969, Torrijos was out of the country, a group of...
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...Film Guide/Study Questions The Devil’s Backbone (El espinazo del diablo) First impressions It is always a good idea to register your response to a film right after viewing as you are still emotionally involved in the story. Use some of these points to help you. 1. Did you like or dislike the film? Why? (either answer is valid – but it is always interesting to explore the reasons). I did like the film because of the beautiful barren imagery, ingenious use of symbolism and Del Toro’s unique way of bringing out societal issues in a highly suggestive manner. I also enjoyed the role of the ghost to push the story line forwards with each apparition. 2. What, do you believe is the main theme of the film? The Spanish Civil War, more specifically how Franco’s army and the right-winged parties consolidated while the left-winged opposition fragmented and was, eventually, forced out. Also there is a general message about war and how such terrifying events can rob children of their childhoods. 3. Were you frightened during the story? Of what? Which characters were more frightening – Santi? Jacinto? Did this response change as the film progressed? If so, how? At first the movie seems like any other typical ghost/horror story, where one grows weary of the ghost’s presence primarily due to fear of the unknown. However, as the storyline develops, one becomes uncomfortably accustomed to the ghost’s appearance. Furthermore, after learning the circumstances behind...
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...Question 1 – The powers of various parties involved in the dispute Actors New Zealand (NZ) actors were virtually powerless during the Hobbit dispute. Many had worked under non-union contracts for years in local productions and the Lord of the Rings trilogy, which was inferior in comparison to many unionised actors overseas. This would be repeated in the Hobbit production whereby actors would work as independent contractors and not employees. Thus, the Hobbit producers would have absolute control over NZ workers who would not have the protection of minimum wage or working conditions that they could under a collective employment contract. To address these issues for the Hobbit project, some NZ actors sought to negotiate better conditions through their union. However, they were shut out as Hobbit producers refused to engage in bargaining and deemed it illegal for them to have a collective agreement with independent contractors (Bridgeman & McLaughlin 2011, p.3). Unions Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA) is an Australian union which the NZ Actors Equity joined in 2006. MEAA was no match against a formidable opponent in Warner Brothers in both power and strategy. A global conglomerate such as Warner Brothers had little to fear against a union organisation with a few hundred NZ actors. McAndrew & Risak (2011, p.72) infer that it was a naive strategy for an Australian union to challenge such a powerful organisation with an aggressive yet ineffective boycott of Hobbit...
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...NAME May 31, 2015 SPAN 2322 Critical Film Essay: Pan’s Labyrinth El laberinto del fauno, the original name given to the Mexican-Spanish film was both written and directed by Guillermo del Toro in 2006. This film takes place after the Spanish Civil War and covers the Francoist period we have discussed in class. After carefully watching this film a second time, I have a better understanding of the many elements portrayed in the film that I found confusing after watching it the first time. The biggest element for me being fantasy vs. reality (documentary) and the idea of “two Spains” that it portrays. As a representation of the effects of the Spanish Civil War, there are clearly two sides, the Popular Front and the Francoists. The Popular Front consisted of socialists, communists, Marxists, republicans, and even communists who formed a coalition and demanded an independent judiciary free from government control. Although the labyrinth is most associated with the idea of fairytale or fantasy in my opinion the Popular Front represent the “fantasy” aspect of the film, because what they were trying to accomplish would be seen as something improbable or unattainable to an outsider looking in or someone who associates themselves as a member of the Francoist movement. The Popular Front was portrayed as very poor throughout the film, depending heavily on the captain and his military for sources of food and hospitality. This preceding statement is exactly why the Popular Front...
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...In Pan’s Labyrinth directed by Guillermo del Toro, Ofelia’s innocence is explored. Generally, when people begin to gain more experiences in life, especially of the darker things in the world, they lose their innocence. Innocence is an important part in this movie as it is in an important part in any child’s life. Every child has those moments in life where all of a sudden they are seen as mature and there innocence is seemingly gone, making Ofelia’s journey much more relatable for anyone watching. Throughout the movie, Ofelia’s innocence changes in order to show her full cycle through life. Ofelia’s innocence begins to change when she starts her first task of going into the tree and getting the key from the frog. Before entering the tree Ofelia, still had the innocence of a young girl. She hadn’t experienced many dangers or scary situations in her...
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...Alex Vassallo Vassallo -1 Ms. Jelen American Literature 1/19/15 Vampires Of The Twenty First Century The book that I am reviewing is called the The Strain by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan. My opinion of The Strain is that it is a good book with a lot of horror themed elements and it is a perfect read for any one who like vampires or monsters. The Strain is a modern vampire novel that takes place in New York City. We spend most of the book following a handful of main characters who are trying to stop the spread of a vampiric infection, all while trying to hunt down the head vampire who is spreading the plague. You also follow another group of character who are the living with the infection and who spread the disease to there family. The main characters of the book are Dr. Ephraim Goodweather, Vasiliy Fet, Dr. Nora Martinez, and Professor Abraham Setrakin. Ephraim and Nora work for the Center for Disease Control(CDC) and are in a relationship and have been for a long time. They are the only few people that are taught how to deal with the vampires. Vasiliy Fet is a exterminator who was brought in by Ephraim and Nora. Professor Abraham Setrakin was a teacher but before that he fought the vampires starting when they showed up during World War II. The Professor teaches Ephraim, Nora, and Vasiliy how to...
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...Art express experiences in life and how people deal with them. Many filmmakers use specific techniques to express how they represent their interpretation of life within their film such as the use of color and texture, fairy tales or myths, and character portrayal and their personalities. In Guillermo Del Toro's film “Pan's Labyrinth” he uses the real world and the fantasy one to parallel each other. Color and texture are used to reveal the harshness of war and political oppression. Del Toro reflects the real world with the use of cool colors such as blues and grays and tried to use as little color as possible. Del Toro’s use of texture was very subtle and he decided to use very little furnishing and other props in the real world to make it more dull and less welcoming. In the fantasy portion of the movie Del Toro’s use of color is very warm and welcoming. He uses a lot of reds and golds to express a more homely and accepting atmosphere. Del Toro uses texture in the fantasy world by placing large paintings and a lot of furnishings like chairs, dressers, tables, etc. In “Pan’s Labyrinth” the struggle between good and evil is depicted. The story takes place in Spain 1944. The main character Ofelia meets several strange and magical creatures that lead her through a variety of trials. The antagonist, Captain Vidal is the symbol for evil and brutality. Ofelia travels with her sick mother to meet her new stepfather and runs into a fairy along the way that then leads her to a dilapidated...
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...From visionary director Guillermo Del Toro, comes 'Crimson Peak' (2015) a very welcome return to an old school type of horror story, the Gothic Romance. starring Mia Wasikowska, Jessica Chastain and Tom Hiddleston. It is early 20th Century and In the outcome of a family catastrophe, aspiring author, Edith Cushing (Wasikowska), falls in love with a mysterious figure by the name of Thomas Sharpe (Hiddleston), an aristocrat from Allerdale Hall. Moving to a decaying English mansion, Edith is followed by the ghouls and demons of her past that warned her as a child of the enigmatic 'Crimson Peak' all the whilst becoming cautious of her newly wedded husband and his devious sister (Chastain). The first thing to note about this film is just how aesthically pleasing it is. The beautiful cinematography coupled with the gothic mise en scène creates picturesque moments out of every frame. The visual contrast between each act of the film is also very well distinguished. The film opens up with stunning landscapes and architecture which reflects the class and sophistication of the characters present, akin to a Jane Austin novel or Shakespeare production. As the film progresses and character motivations are revealed the cinematography becomes much more low-key and darkly atmospheric. The use of red takes up a considerable amount of the colour scheme connotating the death, evil and destruction that lay in Edith's path. Snow is also used often to create a contrast with the red, this works...
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...Fairly Real Tales Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth is about the power of fairy tales. As del Toro discusses, for Ofelia, fantasy compensates for the horrors of reality. Throughout the film, she struggles to reconcile her two worlds: the real and the imaginary. Furthermore, her imaginary world can be seen as one in which she has the agency that she is denied in the real world. Ultimately, Ofelia’s fairy tale world offers her insight into the real world and salvation from the horrors of the real world. In an interview, Ethan Alter asked Guillermo del Toro whether Ofelia’s fantasy world is real or all in her mind. He answered that it’s true: “There’s a very clear instance in the movie where there is no other explanation” (Ethan 14). He says that “in my mind, the movie tries to say that if you don’t know where to look, you won’t see these creatures. Like Vidal—he’s unable to see them” (Ethan 14). However, he does say that other viewers may see the film in different ways: “there are two kinds of audiences for this movie: one that will believe it’s real and the other that will think it’s imaginary. For me, the movie is like a Rorschach test. It defines you as a glass-half-empty or glass-half-full person. Which is fine, I like the idea of that being your choice” (Ethan 14). Del Toro’s comments prove that Pan’s Labyrinth attempts to show a world in which fairy tales offer insight into reality and a means of saving oneself from its daily...
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...,Compare and contrast the narrative structure of at least two of the films studied. Your answer should also evaluate the reasons why these structures were chosen. Since the commercial success of Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Amores Perros in the year 2000, there has been an indubitable resurgence in the amount of interest in, and amount of films being produced within Mexico. This picture, as well as Y Tu Mamá También (2001) by Alfonso Cuarón both received worldwide acclaim and have set a high benchmark for the other Mexican releases since the millennium to live up to. This essay will explore the prominence of narrative structure in the aforementioned Amores Perros (2001), as well as Amat Escalante’s Los Bastardos (2008) and Guillermo Del Toro’s El Espinazo del Diablo (2001). The constituents of a film’s narrative structure come under two different entities: the content of the film’s story, and the way in which the story is presented to the spectator. Vis-à-vis the content of the films story, the essay will mention how, on a thematic level, these films each rely heavily on the use of violence to delineate its message and intentions. James Kendrick states that the use of violence in a film is employed as a structuring device and it is evident that each of these films uses violence for differing intentions, of which the essay will later make discernible. Subsequently, the essay will contrast the order in which the stories are presented to the viewer, chiefly, regarding how Amores...
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...Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan in "Vampires Never Die" and James Parker in "Our Zombies, Ourselves," all explain how Vampires and Zombies have taken root and made themselves at home in our culture. While popular culture may not effect academic study directly, it is an escape for students, and teachers, which may help them indirectly. After a long day of school then of studying at home, one’s mind may become worn out and tired, therefore it is impossible to think straight and answer questions correctly. The mind need breaks in order to operate properly and popular culture provides this. There are several things one can gather from popular culture about human nature and society; the stories did a great job in showing this, especially “Why Vampires Never Die”. The fact that humans created myths, legends, fantasy creatures, etc. can say quite a bit. They came from people’s imagination, which will, subconsciously, have fragments of themselves within these creations. Toro and Hogan say “Monsters, like angels, are invoked by our individual and collective needs” and “In other words, whereas other monsters emphasize what is mortal in us, the vampire emphasizes the eternal in us”, meaning fantasy came from our desire for excitement, action, adventure, and anything different. People want to live in a fantasy, and they do not even mind the side effects of monster; in fact, the side effects and risks may add to the intrigue; much like how people constantly ride roller coasters and...
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