Here is my final zine about cult film fan reception. I wanted to give a short example of the multiple ways fans celebrate cult films. (forgot to post it earlier!)

Libertofinal. physicalzine.

Once upon a time in a cult film class in Alfred University, they watched Once Upon a Time…In Hollywood and it was the final film the class would watch. It was one of the newest films the class had watched this semester and was nominated for ten academy awards and was able to win the Oscar for best supporting actor. The film received wide critical praise and was considered one of the best films of 2019.

This was the fourth time I have watched Once Upon a Time…In Hollywood and each time I watch the fim, I love it even more than the previous time. I just love that it is a love letter to Hollywood and that it is what makes it great to me. I have always loved any movie that comes out of Hollywood, whether that be a big blockbuster or a little indie film. This film reminds me how much I love Hollywood as a whole. I was sad at first when this or 1917 didn’t win best picture, but after seeing Parasite in theaters, I could understand why that beat all the other films. I was really happy that it at least won for best supporting actor and this is one of my favorite roles that I have seen Brad Pitt in.

I first saw this film with my mom and I knew about the Manson murders and thought that is what I was going to see with the end of the film, but I was thoroughly wrong and glad that I was wrong. When I first saw the film with my mom, she really loved the film and thought it was great. That is the same way I felt as well and we both loved the end film. In the theater I laughed so much during the murder spree. What made me laugh the most was when Rick Dalton brought out the flame thrower and just torched the one girl. I was glad that we did not see the murder of Sharon Tate and I had to explain to my mom how it was really suppose to happen at the end of the film.

I really enjoyed the reading this week “Once Upon A Time In Hollywood: The Final Rodeo” by Priscilla Page and that is because I like her analysis of the film and I just really liked the article in general. There was one little paragraph that I really enjoyed from the reading and that was the paragraph where both Rick and Cliff play the hero and the villain and I never noticed that until I read this article. I also like the part that this is Tarantino’s most layered film and I would have to definitely agree with that. There is so much to this film that I am always finding new things in the film that I never knew about before. I also like that the characters are also layered as well and that just adds to the whole film. Some of my favorite movies are when there is a lot of detail put into the film and also that the characters are extremely complex as well. Both Rick and Cliff are  complex characters because we know certain things about their lives, but we don’t know all the details, like if Cliff murdered his wife. 

Now to talk about the semester as a whole. I really enjoyed this class and I finally got to watch some films that I have always wanted to watch. My issue with movies is I try to find the positive in any, sometimes that is very difficult with some films, and that is also the case for a few of the films this semester. I tried to like every screening and find the positive in them, but there are a few films that I did not like as much as the rest of the films. 

I already knew my favorite film of the semester was going to be Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood and that is still the case. But there were a few films that came close to taking that title for me, one even more so than the rest of them. I liked the film The Warriors because it was basically one big chase and with the comic book transitions, it was like watching a comic book.

I liked the films Dazed and Confused and Detroit Rock City because it had songs in it that I loved and Dazed had a few iconic memes that I have been trying to figure out where the origin was.

But, there was one film that came close to beating Once for me and that film was Suspiria. I loved the new Suspiria when I watched it and was always trying to figure out a way to watch the original. I never could and when I saw the original was on the syllabus, I got very excited to watch it and I loved that film. That is one film I think should not be removed from the syllabus because it is an iconic horror film, and the style of the film is very unique as well.

Now for the films that I really didn’t like. There were really only two films that I didn’t like and that was Maniac and also Pink Flamingos. I didn’t like Maniac because there was no plot to follow and it was just a bad film to watch. I didn’t like Pink Flamingos because it just was weird to me. I liked some parts of it, but overall, I didn’t really much like it. I would keep these two films part of the syllabus because they definitely have a cult following and are two films that can prove that any film can gain a cult following.

Overall I really liked this class and I didn’t want it to end. Even though we went with the only format, I still enjoyed this class. I am glad that I took this class as part of my final semester at Alfred University. I only wish that I could have taken more film classes during my four years here. I will leave with one video that best sums up Quentin Tarantino in a funny way. Also I can’t wait for his tenth and final film, whatever that might be, and I do like the rumors as to what it might be.

This week really hit home hard for me. I had such a great time taking this class and I couldn’t have asked for better classmates. This being my final film class that I’ll be taking at Alfred really makes this so bittersweet. I wish that we weren’t sent home in the middle of the semester because I definitely missed having the class react to everything that happened on screen. It felt like we had our own art house theater there and we got to always hear Dr. Schlegel’s thoughts and stories that he’s got on every single movie. I’m gonna miss it a lot for sure. But that sort of leads into our screening this week. I was lucky enough to have Dr. Schlegel in a few classes before I finally saw “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” so I got to hear his thoughts plenty of times. It really helped actually. This movie was such a love letter to the history of Hollywood I felt like it was made for film lovers. There was so much care put into everything and for a little over two and a half hours, I was transported to 60’s Hollywood. It was so cool. The whole world felt like it kind of melted away while I watched it. That seems to happen every time I watch a Quentin Tarantino movie. I had the same thing happen with the Hateful Eight and Reservoir Dogs. Even though the movie isn’t my favorite movie of the semester, I feel like this was an absolutely perfect way to end the semester. The whole movie dealt with topics that I feel like I’ve spent my whole time at Alfred learning. On top of that, I now totally get how this is a great candidate for a cult movie. It was so cool to see recent history changed by Tarantino. I know he’s done that in the past but something about seeing it so close to modern day is so interesting to me.

I was really curious about the movie after watching it so I looked up some videos on YouTube and the symbolism at the end of the movie was even deeper than I thought. I knew that Rick being invited up to Sharon Tate’s house is clearly Rick being invited into “new” Hollywood finally, an ending that really makes you feel good. Honestly it was nice to see justice delivered to the Manson Family and even thought that’s not how real life was, it was just so satisfying I loved it. What I didn’t really get was that Sharon Tate’s death was sort of the unofficial end of the Hippie Era. It was so cool to see that Quentin was basically not only giving her the ending that she deserved, he was also preserving the 60’s. I thought both Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt seriously killed it in this movie, especially Pitt. I really loved this movie and I’m thinking I should get a physical copy.

Now onto the class itself. I guess it’s time to say goodbye. A lot of the people in this class were people I’ve had multiple classes with, and it’s been so much fun to learn about this stuff with you guys. I’m pretty sure I won’t find another group of people who enjoy movies as much as you guys, so hats off to you. Seriously, you guys made the whole trip way more fun. We watched so many movies throughout the semester, and some have really stood out to me while others not so much. I think the best film we watched this semester is one that anyone who knows me isn’t surprised by at all. It’s The Warriors. I mean, what’s not to love about this movie? It’s just such a jolt of lightning from the late 70’s. It’s the so ridiculous while somehow maintaining a strong (yet simple) story. We’ve got clear heroes and villains, an objective, a chase scene that lasts the whole movie, and a killer soundtrack. What’s not to love? It’s such a simple and pure movie that it’s hard to not like it, especially when it’s set next to some other movies in the class that really make you think a lot or require outside context to understand things like the plot or characters. Not to say that any of that is bad, but sometimes you just want a simple action movie, and The Warriors absolutely delivers. The other movie that I think might be really close to my favorite is Blacula. I thought William Marshall was a serious presence on screen that you don’t see often in movies. I feel like he carried the movie with really powerful and believable acting that is hard to describe but you kind of just know it when you see it I guess? Anyway those were my favorites, now onto my least favorites.

This class had nothing but excellent movies, however there were still a few that I couldn’t fully enjoy. Valerie’s Week of Wonders was just too weird for me. I don’t know, maybe it’s just because I watched it without really expecting much but ended up sort of getting a plot that doesn’t really make sense but that I kept trying to make sense of? It was really annoying that sort of push and pull that was happening with it for me and I couldn’t stand it. Maybe I would enjoy it more on a second viewing, but I’m not exactly in a hurry to do that. The other movie I wasn’t crazy about was Maniac. Look, I know and understand why we had to watch it, but I want you guys to understand; I watched it TWICE. Dr. Schlegel mentioned it in another class and I thought he was recommending it so I watched it only to be like what the hell did I just watch? Imagine being forced to watch it a second time! Yeah, it was not fun. At least there was some context this time and I learned from it. But yeah, those are the movies I didn’t enjoy. But on some level, I guess I learned to appreciate them even though they weren’t my favorite. And I think that’s why I loved taking this class. Thanks for an awesome semester and I hope everyone continues to take film courses!

For our last week of this class we watched an ode to Los Angeles epic directed by Quentin Tarantino called Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. I watched this movie in the theatre with my family all sitting in seperate, last-minute seats because that’s how important it was to us. Given that my mom detests gore and almost any kind of exploitation film, Tarantino is a household name for creating layered, interesting films that mirror genre tropes through all eras of film. “I steal from every movie ever made,” he said in a 1994 interview. “Great artists steal; they don’t do homages.” With a revered filmography of nine movies, his idiosyncratic style of filmmaking has paid tribute to 1970s blaxploitation, wuxia films or his favourite genre: the spaghetti western. His films, though laced with violent outbursts, are extremely warm and lively. The energetic plots and settings which he chooses to depict are meant to compliment his quick-whip dialogue that reveals a stunning amount of intention in each of his beloved characters. Once Upon a Time pays homage to other genres and eras with the precision of a stylist and the obsession of a collector. It’s obvious Tarantino is a film buff with an intense dedication to do his characters justice, and his famed last film of his career is a peak of sentimental reverence to the industry he is a luminary of. 

Once Upon a Time follows the lives of three different contributors to the Hollywood economy, all at different levels of status. Rick, a has-been hero struggling for relevance despite his profound background in westerns, and Cliff, a silent-brooding type stunt man that is called to violence more than he intends, share an adorable friendship. Sharon Tate, an image of fresh, lively, and relevant to the movie industry, hardly interacts with their plotline at all. Priscilla Page’s article describes how they are three-different levels of the Hollywood hierarchy, but “They’re united by pop culture and by a cityscape: they listen to the same radio stations, watch the same TV shows, drive the same streets.” Media is everywhere in the film, there’s music, radio commercials and kitsch from the era that intensifies the nostalgia with very careful intention. Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote, “You don’t resurrect an era this completely without caring. Collectively, these details become an act of reverence.” Which is exactly what Tarantino wishes to depict. He illustrates the sentimentality of what Hollywood was before being shifted forever at the turn of the decade, punctuated by the violence of the Tate-LaBianca murders. 

Mod queen

The layers of his characters and his scenes is a labor of love, and you can feel it through the screen. The film gives life to the past, and new life to an actress that was robbed of her future. Tarantino is using his power as a filmmaker to immortalize Sharon Tate and take the power away from the Manson Family. It’s like a historical fanfiction, in the structure of an american western film. It’s an ode to films, those who made them and where they came from, and a satisfactory revenge flick that offers a glimpse at a more just reality. 

Overall I think the film lineup was amazing and essential. It gave a great timeline on the evolution of film and taste, and increased the cult interaction by giving the opportunity to see films that I otherwise would haven’t had access to. This class has had a very profound effect on how I can write from my own perspective and include suggestive research to argue for points I really enjoyed making. It’s amazing to get graded on my ability to interpret such interesting films.  didn’t really imagine a definition for “cult films” before reading the general characteristics in “The Cult Film Reader” and had never really questioned it either. Considering I’ve been a part of the crowd of consumers to media my whole life I would generally gravitate towards the cinema of my attraction, which had no formula. I’ve always found a polarizing view on movies to be very boring, and can recognize the worth of a film being “critically acclaimed” but always find that my personal language in movies I’ve seen will ultimately draw me to enjoy something new. I did find particular interest in cult films even without a full understanding of what they were because of the enthusiasm of fans surrounding their existence and that both considerably “bad” and “good” films could be in its rankings. Movies have always been integral in my household, and some were very sacred to us for personal reasons. This is why certain films stay with people, because of how the audience experience is shaped in receival. It was for this reason I was interested in cult films initially, and having the opportunity to write my own opinions and apply my film knowledge and get graded on it has honestly been great. 

I really enjoyed discussing how films were reappropriated by fans, and how they created their own fandom economies to give more content to underrepresented groups of people. My favorite new watch from the semester was probably Sid and Nancy. I had never seen it before despite being interested in the band enough to know the story. I thought it was illustrated to be romantic yet somber with a bang on soundtrack that follows the explosive punk music they originated in the beginning into a depressive new wave as their era begins to fade. My second favorites were Carnival of Souls and Blacula, as they were first watches for me as well. 

The only thing I would add to the course would be to call the students to do more think pieces. If there is a particular question or hypothesis on film or film genres, they could write a question piece that would invite discussion from other students. I greatly enjoyed all the ways we could share our opinions, I just would have loved to initiate more whole-class discussions to get a gauge of everyone’s particular perceptions of films. I also found that when writing to defend a certain subject, such as when we wrote about our individual cult films, I was so passionate about the project I was willing to respond to any dialogue given to me. I really appreciated the opportunity to learn from someone so passionate about films, and being able to continue this class despite recent events. I look forward to Intro to film so I can continue to expand my interests and articulate my own experiences with films.

BY SARAH BATY

What an absolute shitshow of a semester. With all the craziness this remained not only my favorite class of the semester, but probably my favorite class ever. With that being said, let’s dive right on in to the last blog duh nuh NUHHHH!

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood was a masterpiece; however, was I confused 100% of the time? Yes. Not that the movie was hard to follow because it obviously wasn’t, I just literally know next to absolute nothing about the Mansion murders. I didn’t know that the movie was set around it until our discussion on Wednesday. I feel like I should have looked into what the movie was about before I started it and that way I would have had a better grasp on what was going on. After I watched it excuse me, after me and my quarantine pals watched it, we were all genuinely befuddled as to what happened. Once we had the discussion I had to go back and tell everyone what the movie was actually about. I want to watch it again so I can see it in a new light, as a new more knowledgeable me!

Our reading for this week is “The Kids of Today Should Defend Themselves Against the 70’s” Simulating Auras and Marketing Nostalgia in Robert Rodrigues and Quentin Tarantino’s Grindhouse by Jay McRoy. McRoy discusses Rodriguez and Tarantino’s “endeavor to reproduce an increasingly obsolete viewing experience for contemporary cineplex audiences.” They aimed to replicate the specific “feel” of viewing exploitation films by taking out scenes to make it seem choppy, bad audio, or a weird dialogue. McRoy goes on to describe their gestures “toward reproducing the ‘grindhouse experience'” is suspect because as as A-list Hollywood directors with plenty of money at their disposal why would they want to be producing these films? The inspiration came from the love of their own grindhouse experiences and it is as simple as that! Cue in Walter Benjamin here to tear them down. Benjamin claims their attempt to simulate the “aura” of grindhouse cinema “is a futile project from the very start.” The money that they receive to make their movies “dwarfs those granted to the directors of the very exploitation films from which they draw their inspiration.” Here comes my favorite line from the whole reading. McRoy references another essay titled “Tarantino and the Vengeful Ghosts of the Cinema” by Maximilian Le Cain. Le Cain states, “Tarantino might freely use such expression as ‘grindhose’ in describing his work, but he does so from within the safety of the mainstream, never exposing himself to the real dangers and messy pleasures of the B-film.” BOOM ROASTED. READ IT AGAIN BABY MWUAHAHA!! “The real dangers and messy pleasures,” dude I can’t even. This is so fabulous. Tarantino out there trying to make movies recreating the aura while ballin’ out with money. The pressure and the budget are what made the films so great. Trying to recreate something like that within the confines of a big budget and amazing technology is like Benjamin said, a “futile project.”

I am STOKED that I was able to join this class. I know I missed the first couple of movies but no matter I have my opinions and here I go! My least favorite movie was honestly Sid and Nancy. I fully understand how this was a cult film. Shedding light on drug abuse and its consequences is some heavy stuff. I think what threw me off was its placement in the lineup. After watching Dazed and Confused and Detroit Rock City, which are two fantastic movies full of nostalgia and happiness and all that is good and fun in high school, then Sid and Nancy then Matinee it was just off putting. Maybe if it was placed earlier in the semester it wouldn’t have seemed so off putting! Also one that I didn’t like was Carnival of Souls. It was slow the entire time, nothing ever happened. Sometimes she saw the creepy dudes and screamed and that was it. I just thought it was dumb which I feel like is an unpopular opinion from within the class but its whatevaaa I said what I said. *shrugs*

Now onto my favorite films mwuahah. I adore Dazed and Confused because I have been watching that movie for a very long time it really is just a damn classic and same with Detroit Rock City! 100% my two favorites. Maybe its because I was slightly reckless in high school as well who knows!! Other movies that I liked that I hadn’t seen before was The Warriors. I’m pretty sure everyone loved it, it’s really hard not to. A movie that I did not expect to like so much was Suspiria. I don’t really like horror movies and I have been having the urge to watch them lately which is so ~weird~ but yea I loved the colors and the storyline was a little wonky but I comprehended it. The witchy aspect and crazy elaborate murders was just something else, I thought it was very cool. Lastly, I will pick one of the old old ones as my favorite…DETOUR. I LOVED IT. I can’t even explain why either I just found it to be so so so good. I like black and white movies, I liked the lead actress I thought she was a ~boss~ and Al was kind of annoying but I also liked him too and THAT’S ALL FOLKS

This is the last blog post of the semester for our last screening, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Before I really start talking about the film, I’d like to delve a little into my first impression of Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Like most Tarantino films Once Upon a Time in Hollywood had gained a lot of hype before its much-awaited release, so it was on my radar. I planned to see it once it came out, of course, but it wasn’t one that I felt I needed to see. I wasn’t going to die if I never got around to it; I could wait until the DVD release. I’m not a die-hard Tarantino fan, but I was going to see this movie at some point because I generally enjoy his work even if I haven’t seen all of it. I waited a week or two after its initial release until our local theater had it, mainly because I didn’t want to drive an hour to a theater that did have it, during this time I heard from other people about the alternative ending to the Manson murders and gained more interest. I knew the basics of the Manson murders and thought, “okay, let’s see how Tarantino does it.” So when I sat down to watch the two hour and forty minute film that used the Manson family as a plot device rather than focusing on them, I was pretty surprised. But I wasn’t disappointed. Even though it wasn’t what I was expecting I enjoyed Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, it was charming. Usually I have to prepare for a three-hour movie, its straining on my attention span, but this movie flew by.

There are a multitude of reasons for that and a lot of them have to do with Tarantino’s attention to detail. For one, it is visually appealing. Besides having historically accurate wardrobe and sets, the cinematography is stunning. The shot where Rick Dalton is floating in his pool practicing lines and the camera pulls away from him and up over his house back to street level where the Polanski’s exit their front door and leave for a night out made me gasp in the theater, amazing. In Priscilla Page’s article “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood: The Final Rodeo”, she mentions that Tarantino drew inspiration from his childhood memories to help shape the look of the film. She says, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood often feels like a story from the perspective of a child’s eye.” There are a number of shots that show the spaces the characters are operating in, prioritizing small details that aren’t essential to film’s plot but definitely add to the viewers involvement in the film. It plays into our sense of curiosity. There isn’t a lot that happens in the three-hour long movie, using different ways to frame or look at a mundane situation like a party or Rick’s camper fill in that time and keep the viewer interested. It also plays into the nostalgic aspect of the film by giving the viewer a chance to recognize the design style of the 70’s.

Charles Manson has become a household name, even if you don’t know what exactly happened you know the name. Because of his historical significance and the amount of research and media that has been created around him, it is easy to assume that a film that includes Charles Manson as a character would be centered around the Manson Family. It is almost a given that a movie set in Los Angeles during the 1970’s would highlight the hippie counterculture, but Once Upon a Time in Hollywood takes the opposite side of the free-love movement. Rick Dalton’s character is battling with his own feelings of inferiority in an industry that is changing faster than he can keep up with, his character also symbolizes the fear of change felt by those who still held on to white picket fence values as the culture shifted. It’s a more subtle representation that doesn’t define Rick’s character; fearing change doesn’t make you a bad person it makes you human.

One of my favorite parts of the film was the characters, mainly Sharon and Cliff. I liked that Sharon didn’t face any conflict in the film, she was a refreshing break from Rick’s personal troubles and Cliff’s curiosity with Spahn Ranch. Her scenes felt light and happy. I liked Cliff because he was a mysterious character, I want to know more about his backstory and what exactly happened with his wife. Yeah, he’s a stuntman, but he was given too large of a part to just be the guy that drives Rick around.

After I watched this movie, I did become curious about Charles Mason. If you are interested in learning the details of Charles Manson’s impact on the entertainment industry the podcast You Must Remember This made a 12-part series about it, here’s the link (it’s also available on spotify). I couldn’t listen to it late at night because some of it did freak me out a bit.

We’ve watched a lot of films this semester and it’s hard for me to choose my favorite, so I’ll start with my least favorite. It was Detour, it wasn’t really my thing. I disliked Al, I know some characters are meant to be disliked but….

I can’t nail down a favorite, but I can narrow it down to two:

Valerie and Her Week of Wonders

I liked how much I had to think through this movie, even though it isn’t really meant to be comprehensible. Valerie was also beautiful to watch; I loved the set design. The soundtrack was airy and ominous, I can see why it has gained its own cult following. The witchy/vampire theme was a bonus as well.

The Warriors

The first time I saw the Warriors was about a year ago and it was like nothing I had ever seen before, it hits different. I love the personalized gangs and the excitement of the chase, it made me feel energized. Another movie I did not know was a cult film but I’m so happy we watched it because I was able to look at it from a different perspective.

Every semester I try to sign up for a fun class, something for myself, and this was my fun class. Watching weird and out-of-the-ordinary movies was already something I enjoyed so when I saw that there was class that studied them, I had to sign up. This class has turned into so much more than that, not only have I gained a knowledge of cult films but I also know a lot more about the movie industry than before (a LOT more). Every week I looked forward to our screenings, I wish we could have continued to watch them on campus but knowing that this class could operate online was a huge comfort. I’m going to miss this class; it’s been one of my favorites. Even though this is the end, I have learned so much about cult film that I feel confident in my ability to continue exploring the cult film category. I will keep a lookout for more film classes to take because I’m hooked.

Schlegel chose no better film to show for the last screening in class, truly an end of an era. Considering Tarantino is a *dummy* acclaimed cult film maker, there was tons of hype about him releasing another film that wasn’t a lil’ b-movie production. I was glad to see a Tarantino film on the checklist at the beginning of the year, and that it wasn’t just Pulp Fiction (for god sakes we all get its’ status). My parents have been quoting Tarantino since I can remember, they were obsessed, even pets of mine were named after Reservoir Dogs. Saying so, it’s compelling that my generation was so amped about this film coming to theaters considering that most Tarantino die hards are now my parents age now and not as dedicated film goers.

So the movie- viscerally fantastic, in my opinion he really wrapped up his whole careers motive into Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. It was obviously a Tarantino film, his classic tropes were screaming the whole time. He had an extremely large budget, to make all his dreams come true and his imaginary world come to life. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood was his chance to pull out all the stops. Gore. Feet. Babes. Hyper stylization. Rewritten history. Drugs. Heists. Seeing actors that repeatedly appeared in older Tarantino films was a real treat for -real- Tarantino fans, and not to mention all the crazy ass cameos… um excuse me Lena Dunham? AND let’s not forget to mention all the dang hotties up in this movie, I nearly popped one. Who thought to put Leo, Margot, Brad, the hot hippie chick in ONE MOVIE and not have everyone absolutely DROOL. The gore in this movie made me want to vomit and grin as wide as I could- at the same time. I mean Tarantino tastefully filmed someone getting bludgeoned to death, in almost a humorous manner. It’s exquisite. He delves into the audiences subconscious and transports them into his own universe. SO Tarantino’s all there but why was it shown in a cult films class????

The only real reason this movie was chosen to be screened was because of Tarantino and his cult status. He has a way of captivating an audience during a film that was unlike no other films. So again Tarantino is cult because of his straight skillz, and he’s aware of the reception, but not all Tarantino is cult! Im not denying facts stated against my point but! I do think that some of his cinematography doesn’t deserve a cult status. I understand he’s rode with the fact that he has a cult following and status in cinema, I just don’t think he should make another film. Another film would be extremely strung out and over worked. His work is done. We understand he’s a fuckin godsend to film history. Tarantino development has been insane, he went from experiencing grindhouse in the flesh, to practically making more tasteful versions of the same. Our reading states it well:

“Indeed, the venues’ shabby confines contributed to the overall viewing experience, attracting eclectic audiences of die-hard cinephiles looking for “edgier” films with controversial or sen-sationalistic subject matter.”

Cont’d on Page 2

This movie would forever surprise me. My first time watching this movie was around the time it was first released. They were showing it at the movie theater that Alfred let us go see for 2 dollars and my friend asked me if I wanted to go and I had nothing better to do. It had Leonardo DiCarprio and Brad Pitt so it had to be good. Then I saw Margot Robbie. At the time I didn’t know what cult films were and didn’t know that this was a cult film. The movie was so long and had so much detail and was actually showing us how movies were filmed and how scenes were reshot and how the camera moves around to catch angles. The movie had like 3 storyline in one. We see the life of DiCaprio trying to land a movie role and when he does he battles with executing the role but ends up doing a good job. While that happens we see Brad driving around in this boss car and sees a young hippy girl and takes her home and sees where she lives and it was all suspenseful from there. Then we had Margot Robbie going to the movies to watch a movie that she was in. The second half of the movie was the best. The movies started off kinda slow but then the ending was what got me. Brad’s Pitbull stole the movie at the end and when DiCarprio aka Rick came out with the flame blower to kill the girl in the pool. The end was so crazy that I had to watch it again and again. When I first watched the film I didn’t know what the movie was really about but was entertained by the ending but having taken this class and talked about the movie and its history, It all makes sense. Thanks Schlegel!!!

To talk about Ferderic Jameson and Postmodernism, we basically learn about the a late 20th century style and concept in the arts, archetype and criticism that represent a departure from modernism and has at the heart a general distress and Grand theories of ideologies as well as the problematic relationship with a notch of Art. When we talk about films we like to say that they lost its aura and that in order for it to come back we have to look at old films and old art and understand why they were created and how we can incorporate it into our times but make it better. And with the advance in technology that has happened in sometimes a negative way and sometimes in a positive way. And with the creation of the film “Once Upon a Time In hollywood” we see Quentin Tarantino take history into his own hands and create his own ending the shocking Hollywood and the audience that watched it and have recollection of the original story. We can read about things, but to actually watch it and see it with our own eyes makes it real and heartfelt. That is the power of film. It brings a story to life for all to see, every detail and every dialogue matters and is intentional.

This semester was filled with 14 films, each with different learning topics and experiences. I didn’t know what to expect with some of them but I learned to appreciate each film for its creativity and storytelling styles. My favorite movies of the semester were Pink Flamingo, The Warriors, Dazed and confused, Detroit Rock City and Matinee and Detour and Blacula. 

The Warriors visual was amazing and the comic book style of storytelling was very suspenseful to watch. They risked their to go represent who they were traveling from Coney Island to The Bronx by train in the middle of the night In New York City. The way they had to fight their way through each gang and the cops showed their dedication for what they stood for. Although they lost some members, they never gave up. 

“Dazed and Confused” and “Detroit Rock City” were the two teenage films that I really enjoyed. I feel like no matter what age you are, you can sit down and enjoy a teenage movie and just enjoy what happens or learn a lesson. Your teenage years are the time of your life that you question who you are but try to find who you are through trials and error and speech from adults who want to talk themselves into thinking they are where they want to be when life is really unexpected. From the drugs and unpredictable nights, I was entertained. 

“Blacula” was the horror film in the category of blaxploitation. Blacula incorporated the history of African American by using the original names Africans had coming to American. Blacula did not play the bad guy fully although he was a vampire who needed to feed but he was acting out the nature he was created to be. Then we had a black cop who cracked the case knowing that something supernatural was happening around him even though the other cops didn’t believe him until they had to see for their own. The love story was powerful. He didn’t want to take his leading lady without her willingness to go with him.  

“Pink Flamingo”was Fierce and so unexpected. I can’t talk about Pink Flamingo without saying the word Fierce. Divine did what he had to do in order to prove to his competition that he was the baddest of them all and would do anything to prove it then would leave the state before he gets caught for what he did. I love the trial at the end when they had a cameraman taking pictures of the consequence of messing with him and his family. Divine opened up doors for more people of the freaky nature to not feel alone. 

“Matinee” was a beautiful way of ending off the semester with. We always talk about the way creators and filmmakers came out with new and improved ways to watch movies and talked about how society responded to it and Matinee was a visual representation of all of that. There was something special about Matinee that I would watch again just for entertainment purposes. It was unintentional but surprising that it was about a crisis while we are experiencing an unexpected crisis of our own. 

If I could take this class again, I would!!!

The final week of screening brings us to our final set of blogs. I would like to start this last one by extending my thanks to all of you for a wonderful semester (apart obviously from the pandemic.)

“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” was a great film to conclude this class. Quinten Tarantino has always been a director I have admired through my recent years of “enlightened” cinematic viewing (thanks to film classes at AU.) However, this film is an absolute game-changer. We have always known Tarantino for his brilliant twists and “Hollywood” endings when he addresses a historical injustice and gives it new life with a happier ending than what is written down in the history books. For this film, that only partially holds true. The dramatic “cartoon-like” violence that ensued in this film near the end put everyone’s mind at ease as it would seem the “bad guys” have met their match with Brad Pitt (probably because of his role in fight club.) Leo’s contribution was one that I saw coming as an earlier camera shot the inside of his maintenance shed held a little too long on a certain fire-breathing device for me to not draw a foreshadow. The pair beat down the three villains with the help of a very smart and good girl (the dog; yeas I looked the dog up and her name is Brandy and she is a fine girl.)

After all the commotion, our minds are almost left to rest on the idea that once again Tarantino has made everything better; we are reminded that this beautiful masterpiece of cinema is non-fiction. The words “Once Upon a Time in…Hollywood” appear, and we are left somber and a reminder of what really happened, and the tragedy that overtook all of Hollywood.

The readings this week were great, and really helped create a better understanding of this film. I also found a lot of YouTube videos that really explained a lot of Tarantino’s work. My favorite clip from the ones that found talked about this film as Tarantino’s “love letter to Hollywood.” This is a concept that we have talked about in class before last week. This film encapsulates Hollywood, and Los Angeles during 1969. The actors where the biggest proponent of this clip in explaining why this film is viewed as a love letter. Kurt Russel was convinced of this after only reading a few pages of the script; it reminded him of his experiences in 1969, and the people he knew (including stuntmen).

Watching this movie, although it was a touch long, was great. However, reading more about its context and underlying meanings was sensational. It brought out an entirely new perspective and tattooed my brain forever. Quinten Tarantino is not just gore, he is a storyteller, and a damn good one at that.

This class will be a tough one to leave. It has strengthened my understanding of cult movies as the weeks have progressed. If you would have told me during my senior year of high school that I was going to be writing a weekly blog for a history of the motion picture class, I probably would have laughed and said “yeah right.” If you would have continued by saying “oh yeah and the next year after that one, you’ll be doing the same thing for a cult movies class.” I would have told you that you have gone mad. But after that first week of history of the motion picture, I WAS HOOKED! Throughout my four years at Alfred University as an accounting student, I have developed a deep-seeded lust for films of all types from all different eras (Except really scary ones). This experience can only be labeled as priceless, for I have been given the tools to understand not only movies, but the directors and why the movies were even created in the first place. I honestly cannot say it enough but thank you all for letting me on the “film ship” and thank you Professor Schlegel for being our captain.

My favorite film that we watched this year is an honest “hold a gun to my head” and ill still tell you this three-way tie. The three films (in no particular order) are “The Warriors”, “Detroit Rock City”, and “Dazed and Confused”. One thing these films have in common is that I never would have seen them if it were not for this class. All these films have now developed a special place in my heart because of how incredible they are. They have helped me understand the platform of cult cinema, and learn to love it. I agree with the order that we discussed as a class that these movies should fit in with the likes of “Susperia” and “Sid and Nancy” because they complement each other nicely and bridge gaps in not only culture but exuding moods.

My least favorite film this year would have to be “Pink Flamingos.” Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the film whole-heartedly. I just think that of all of the films, I like this one the least. There was a lot of things that I expected to see when I sat down in that chair to watch the screening that night, but those things were completely stomped to bits by the filthiest person alive. I know that this film will continue to be shown to future cult cinema classes, and I completely encourage it, because I will NEVER forget the night I watched “Pink Flamingos.”

The most interesting film in my opinion that we watched was “Valerie and her Week of Wonders.” I was fortunate enough to present the readings for that week, and I think had I not had to present them, my level of appreciation for the film and understanding of it, might not have been as high.

The overall workings of this class were as suspected flawless. Even in a time of world crisis, this class as still remained an anchor in my life, and I am sure the same thing holds true for my peers. Thank God for you all, thank God for Quinten Tarantino, AND THANK GOD FOR CULT CINEMA.

The link below is the final project.

https://youtu.be/lTHZsfD0CP0