COMP 223 Reading Films (Same as English 203) (Not offered 2008-2009; to be offered 2009-2010)

ENGL 203 Reading Films (Same as Comparative Literature 223) (Not offered 2008-2009; to be offered 2009-2010)
An introduction to the interpretive analysis of film, emphasizing the role played by such formal features as mise-en-scene, editing, cinematography, and sound in generating meaning. In addition, we will consider aspects of film history, including the role of genre and the contrasting narrative and visual conventions prevailing in Hollywood and in strikingly different national traditions, such as the silent cinema of the Soviet montage and the French New Wave cinema of the 1960s. Critical readings will be assigned, and we will examine films by such directors as Eisenstein, Keaton, Murnau, Renoir, Hawks, Welles, Kurosowa, Hitchcock, Almodovar and Jonze.
The format will mix lectures with class discussion. Requirements may vary by section, but will include several short responses, a seven page critical essay, a midterm, and a final exam. Active participation in will be required, along with a willingness to view course films more than once.
Prerequisite: a 100-level English course, except 150. Enrollment limit: 35 (expected: 35). Preference given to sophomores and current English majors. Not open to students who have taken English 204 without permission of the instructor.
(Post-1900)