Globalization

Globalization is the process which connects people, nations, and cultures all over the world through communication networks and trade. According to Professor Straubhaar’s lecture, the process provides increased opportunities for communication, exchange of material and symbolic goods, and migration of people across national borders. Because of globalization, the access to interact with individuals across the nation is as efficient and smoother as ever.

Culture Imperialism involves in promoting a powerful culture and infusing the culture of one society into another. Usually, this is seen as a dominance of a powerful culture over a less known or desirable culture. Through the works of globalization, a much more dominant and successful culture can slightly or drastically change an adjacent culture by altering their economy, social system, and/or way of life. Music, films, fashion, etc. are all great examples as to how the US uses cultural imperialism with globalization to infuse into other cultures.

To illustrate cultural imperialism in the media, Disney, a Western corporation, is the largest media and entertainment conglomerate in the world. Supported through transnationalization within a cultural-linguistic market, the Disney Channel can be heard in multiple languages those including, South Africa, Pakistan, Israel, France, etc. Because of such cultural proximity, society is in quick favor from the connection in one’s native language, it is easier for them to accept what Disney has to offer as enjoyment in their homes and lives. No other television channel has had such success and dominance in the global media flow in other countries as Disney has.

Smoking Kills

This ad in particular advertises smoking in the form of a skull at the butt of the cigarette alongside blood signifying death, hence the quote, “Smoking Kills.” A close-up and intricate lighting is expressed in such a way, viewers are forced to stare. The hegemonic ideology of “smoking is cool” has always existed, but with “being cool” also comes consequence. The ad is a powerful public notice in that death holds a huge role in playing the consequence. Younger generations are usually those who tend to lean on smoking, the advertisement is a portal for those searching for an answer as to whether smoking is good for you or not, and for those who already smoke the ad plays a constant reminder to their deadly practice.

One of the potential appeals of advertising discussed in lecture was the attention appeal. The attention appeal in itself characterizes with the need to call attention of a certain situation to the viewers be it a negative or a positive connotation. By this appeal, advertisers can draw the eye in and aid in the form of viewers and their established opinions/actions.

In relation to this ad, the attention appeal exemplifies this display of “death” by caution and warning to all smokers or those who might think about smoking. Viewers are called to attention of something almost unconscious-like with the harsh reality of death. It’s impossible for one to not have a look and catch a chill, or for those who feel nothing and is the smoker, when things finally spiral down, the smoker will always recall the ad that told its future. Even those who are neither, the ad enables them to try and prevent this unhealthy habit from forming. In this, the ad is powerful and most influential for viewers to either turn their life around before it’s too late, or prevent this custom into their lives.

Toy Story

In the movie Toy Story, the classic Hollywood three-act structure is established. As Professor Ramirez-Berg describes, there is an introduction, a complication that leads to a climax, a solution, and finally the happy ending. Major decisions are made and two plot points. Basic elements are also included such as a protagonist, a plot, a chronological scene progression, and standard lengths in all three acts.

Act One comprises of the introducing of main characters, setting and basic plot. First set in Andy’s room, Woody is missing his hat; toys help him find his hat, readying him for cowboy camp with Andy. Andy accidentally rips Woody’s arm after playing with him and sits him on the shelf deciding to leave him due to being rushed by his mother. Being there Woody spots Wheezy, the forgotten penguin, and notices a yard sale. While trying to rescue Wheezy from the yard sale, he instead is stolen by a collector. Buzz tries to run after him, but falls off and is left with catching a glimpse of the license plate.

Act Two deals with Woody making new friends after failing in escaping from Al, his collector. The toys back home decode the license plate and set out to save Woody. In the meantime, Woody is introduced to the story of his new friends and discovers their show “Woody’s Roundup” where they claimed he was the star of is canceled. Later they find out they are all planning to be shipped out to Tokyo and Woody rejects. The toys refuse to be buried in storage once more, Al tears Woody’s arm completely, and Woody tries to get it back at night so he can leave. Woody and Jessie argue over who switched the TV on and the toys make their way to Al’s Barn through the use of traffic cones. Repairman repairs Woody anew. Woody becomes closer to toys, and decides to stay when Jessie opens up to Woody about her life, hence, the mid point of the story. The toys are getting closer, and Woody is excited about Japan. They come to the rescue only to find Woody willing to go to Japan. Buzz tells Woody he is only a toy, Woody eventually changes his mind and tries to have the rest of the round up come along until Prospector is raged, locks Jessie and Bullseye, her horse, and leaves.

Act three is the airport climax. Al disappears in a car and toys drive a Planet Pizza and chase after him. They enter a pet container and search for Woody in the baggage conveyor room. Prospector knocks out Buzz and it becomes Woody vs. Prospector.  The toys help in fighting against Prospector where he then ends up in a girl bag. Jessie is on luggage trolley, Woody and Buzz set out to save her. As a resolution Woody and Jessie jump off the plane deciding not to go to Japan, and go home to a better and safer life. Finally reunited, the toys welcome Andy home; Andy fixes Woody as well as Wheezy where Woody then says how its fun while it lasts. And all is as it should be back to normal and happy with new additions to the gang.

I Dream of Jeannie

TV sitcoms as a whole are one of the most favored and still very apparent aspects of television. These sitcoms are humorous half-hour long shows and has a tendency to be episodic, as well as proscenium, staged among a live audience, or pre-recorded, cinematic. A series like this has the ability to tie in the last episode with the first episode so the story is continued, thus the familiar five minutes re-caps displayed in the start of a show so first-time viewers can review over previous episodes. TV sitcoms are centralized around a theme where character development is seen but not as stressed as hour-long dramatic TV shows. Therefore, episodic things are concrete within an episode where characters usually do not age.

I Dream of Jeannie, the sixties classic TV sitcom arranges a half-hour long humorous style consisting of repeated similar events in action around a centralized theme. In this, astronaut Captain Tony Nelson always finds himself in risky and unpredictable situations ever since he becomes master to Jeannie, the once trapped in a bottle Djinn, who is also madly in love with him at first sight. As the master of Jeannie, in each episode he usually needs to keep from the discovery of her being a Djinn through wacky and comedic plots, by the sometimes help from devoted friend and colleague, Major Healey aware of Jeannie’s powers. Because of this, their Colonel Dr. Alfred Bellows, who often catches Jeannie’s powers in the making, is left dazed and confused, as well as being called delusional. If a viewer were to miss a few episodes the main idea wouldn’t be missed since the usual recap of previous episodes are recalled, re-enacted, ending with a happy ending structure.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

A movie I think that has great impact on shots is, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Throughout the whole movie, time is all around, literally shown on faces everywhere as the main character, Benjamin Button, ages backwards.

Long Shot:

            This specific shot, also known as a Long Shot, focuses on the entire scene giving notice to location, and the actor’s entire body from a distance.  Although the character, Benjamin’s body is cut off, the real main focus is of Daisy, his soul mate. We are enabled to see the darkness of the outside area they are in, the fog, and his glare at her magnificent ballet “line” also noticing the red of her dress. Obviously, she is an important person to him, and the intensity of the scene is immense.

Medium Shot:

            In this scene, both Benjamin and Daisy, are shot from top to waist, or better known as a Medium Shot. By the help of this shot, we can graphically read what is going on by the position of stance, body language, change in clothing, even color in clothing, etc. At this point, Benjamin and Daisy realize they are finally about to meet in the middle of their ages; his arm around her, and her head on his shoulder, signifies equality, comfort, and relaxation in their relationship. The dark shades in the clothing also shows the passing of time, and how Daisy is no longer young, and in Benjamin’s case, no longer too old, a shade just about right for their ages.

Close-Up:

            Lastly, a Close-Up shot allows viewers to finally come up and close enough to feel the emotions of the character and/or find out what they are thinking. This shot is usually from head to neck. Here, Benjamin is in his early stages of aging backwards while everyone is at their regular pace. He’s zoomed in enough to where we can see a closer view to some features of wrinkles, his gray hair, saggy skin, etc. as well as his reading of “Ivanhoe” where he is clearly enthralled by the gape of his eyes and the slight open mouth he has fixed in this scene. 

Star System: Shirley Temple

Working as a factory based system, the studio system was embodied to be an empowering and organized system introducing itself as the key to Classical Hollywood’s Success. From market control to production, etc. a specific aspect that seemed particularly important to me was existence of the Star System and its role in the success of classics. Stars were in fact the products of production and were the representation of what the studios did. Furthermore, they were discovered, contracted by studios, and were paid to sell their products. Since stars were associated with genres and studios, their work was seen as limited due to specific categorization for each actor/actress.

Genres were embodied to understand audiences likes and dislikes as well as expectations. They usually displayed simplified forms of story telling according to musicals, western, horror, comedy, crime, etc. By this, actors were given specific roles to adhere to these genres, yet by ensuring these high demands, actors were as mentioned above, limited to their work. Because of this, a quick image of what kind of films would be made were easily seen if their actors could only be as good as their last role. In this, the Star System gave a negative connotation on how things ended up working for the studios as well as actors if both were a limited conjunction.

A great example to this would be the great, Shirley Temple. By the help of the Star System, little miss Shirley Temple was in fact, discovered, contracted by the studios, and paid to sell their products. The talented and favored actress appeared in numerous films made by the studios in which she was the young hero of the story in each film, never failing to sing, dance, or carry the same traits as the last film, i.e. the curly hair, rosy cheeks, etc. Therefore, the adoration from the public for Shirley Temple was apparent thus giving the studios their many classic, yet similar films to produce. In this, Temple was categorized, traded off, and obviously as well as expectantly overworked to fulfill the reputation of the studios by the aid of the Star System.

All in the Family vs. Full House

“All in the Family” is comparable to the well-known “Full House” television sitcom, in that they are both comedies based around a family environment. With this, both families have their own typical household conflicts, the after affects of the outside world, etc. Also, both focused on the character’s specific role they played i.e. the role as mother, sister, brother, etc. and most importantly, the leading father figures which shaped the premise of each show – Archie Bunker of “All in the Family” and “Full House” Danny Tanner.

Though easily comparable,  “All in the Family” is quite different since it brought many controversial issues in its episodes those being: sexuality, racism, religion, political belief standpoints, etc. which made much more of an impact in society during the time period of the 1970s. “Full House” (1980s-1990s) on the other hand revolved mostly around the young children growing up whereas in the “All in the Family” the daughter of Archie Bunker was in fact already grown, so strong issues were care-free in their home. “Full House” held less of the apparent harsh controversies due to its much more loving and secured environment. Not only this, but the father figures varied since Archie was a World War II veteran, indeed prejudiced against those who were not citizens of America, politically conservative, and heterosexual, etc. whereas Danny was a widow, being much more contained, responsible, and a father who stresses of a respectable upbringing of a healthy no-cheating household for his three daughters.

“All in the Family” is pretty known for their use of language mostly spoken by the outspoken bigot, Archie. Some forms being, “…“fag” or homosexual, "hebe" for Jews, "spic" for Hispanics, "mick" for Irish…” In the episode "Judging Books by Covers" throughout the whole show, Archie takes Mike, his son-in-law’s, friend for a homosexual where he then states offensive racist comments to him and all other homosexuals in general. Although he was quite mistaken, “Full House” never came as close as expressing explicit language or racist comments such as Archie Bunker’s not only because Danny would never allow such vulgarities, but also since it was seen as the more “family-friendly” kind of show.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_in_the_Family#Cultural_impact