Amazing Grace is not a good movie, it is a great movie. Films on History can be lengthy and tedious, but that sure is not the case in this fascinating movie about the famous abolitionist William Wilberforce, who was responsible for steering anti-slave trade legislation through the British parliament. Contrary to what its title suggests, “Amazing Grace” isn’t really about the inauguration of the Christian hymn. Set in the 18th century England, it focuses on William’s political career to abolish the slave trade by arguing against it on the floor of the House of Commons, which placed him at odds with some of the most powerful men of the time. William is a motivated man with one purpose; endeavoring to terminate slavery in the empire. Filmed in 2006, this is a perfect example of life, complexity and the pursuit of liberty in the years of the African slave trade.
The movie begins in 1797. A stagecoach carries two men through the countryside in the heavy rain; ahead, two men are whipping a horse lying on the wet ground. The stagecoach stops, and the two men come out; the younger points out tiredly that if they will stop beating the horse, it may be able to recover and get up. One of the men begins to respond aggressively at the interference, but the other stops him, saying that the gentleman who spoke is William Wilberforce of which he's seen speak in London. This scene really sets the stage for demonstrating who Wilberforce is, and the role of his importance.
At a luncheon, Wilberforce is introduced to the beautiful, like-minded woman who is to become his future wife, Barbara Spooner. With many signs of infatuation towards Wilberforce, Barbara gives Wilberforce a reason to exist, as he tells her his story, which allows the fil...
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... do in fact match historic facts.
If I were the director I would have reduced the amount of talking that took place in the movie. Although the movie was very complicated and did indeed require an abundant amount of information for the audience to appreciate the movie, I found myself very uninterested at some parts which led me to slowly stop paying attention. If I were the director I would give my self a pat on the back because of what great work I had done. I would feel so good because I was able to educate so many people of what happened such a long time ago, and the importance of how free we are as citizens today. This movie truly was incredible and clearly demonstrates how one man risks everything, to speak for those, who could not. To make the blind see and to lead a movement that would change the world—“Remember that God made men…equal” (William Wilberforce).
The film The Princess Bride, directed by Rob Reiner, is describe as “Thrilling, exciting, very funny and absolute magic”. No wonder the film has entertained audiences since its release in 1987. While its entertainment value in generally agreed upon, The princess Bride is not precisely inventive, nor original. Westley, the hero, fits closely the profile of the Classic Hero. Similar, the film’s plot mirrors the path followed by the classic hero, across thresholds and into a fantastic adventure. And, like the Classic Hero, Westley must undergo a series of ordeals before he can achieve his goal, to rescue “Buttercup”, and prove true love can overcome all obstacles. The Princess Bride, like most contemporary fantasies, is a retelling of the Heroic
Kozol, Jonathan. Amazing Grace: The Lives of Children and the Conscience of a Nation. New York: Harper, 1996.
Amazing Grace, allows the world outside of South Bronx, to grasp a small understanding of what it is like to live a destitute life. The inequality issues, healthcare problems, and educational shortcomings of the district are a few of Kozol's problems concerning the treatment of the lower class society today. The presence of drugs, the acts of prostitution, and the side items that come with living in the ghetto, are not things that should be present in a child's everyday life. Kozol's examination of the lives of the people living in these slums, clearly shows that these people deserve the same freedoms and comforts that others in privileged classes take for granted.
For the most part, reviews are positive and praise this film. I completely agree with them, this film informed me of an issue I wasn’t even aware had occurred. Before watching this film and taking this class, I was naive, I believed that after we had gained our supposedly “equal rights” everything was okay. Now, I have realized the struggles Chicanos have had to face, my eyes have been opened to these injustices and made me aware that many are still occurring today. This film and class has inspired me to take action against these injustices and stand up for what I believe in.
I realized that sometimes it is fine for things to just be, and I don’t know why. Much of the film has to do with how we think, and what we do in private. Collectively, through these moral and ethical acts (or lack thereof) we can impact the public. Also, by sharing these thoughts and concepts with the public in the documentary, it can affect our thoughts and actions in our private lives; I know it has, at least for myself. One of the earliest topics in the film that I took note of was the ethics of certain matters, in a way that I had never considered before.
...they deserved something positive in return. These people in Rosewood suffered because of the color of their skin and not anything else. I have realized that I am lucky to have the choices I have in my education, and athletics, and I am grateful to be able to play basketball for my school—as back in the times that they lived, they were simply lucky to be alive and did not have any choice in sports to play or fun to have. They simply worked for white people, and tried to stay away from death. They were not given the chances that I have today. This movie gave me a new, grateful and thankful view on the society I live in today.
Jonathan Kozol's Amazing Grace is a book that describes the everyday horrors and struggles for survival, for a group of elementary girls and boys who are growing up in the South Bronx, the poorest congressional district in the United States. "When you enter the train, you are in the seventh richest congressional district in the nation. When you leave, you are in the poorest." This unimaginable way of life seems normal to these children because they really don't know any better. Normal to them is sickness, drug abuse, pollution, death, welfare and violence.
I chose this particular documentary because I am African-American and have personally experienced this issue with myself, my sisters and my daughter. Currently in the African-American community you see that there is a lot of unrest. We see this playing out in the media with the violence that is happening and question how to bring awareness to the issues and to make this better. I feel that this ties heavily to our self-worth and the love and respect that we must have and demand amongst ourselves first.
This film influenced me greatly and how I might be able to go about in my speech making. James Farmer Jr. and his debate team delivered their speeches with a lot of emotion, drawing their audiences in on their side. James Farmer used his own experiences and struggles to drive his speech making, while trying to prove himself to everyone that he was not just a child. Although James Farmer and I are different, especially in the way we present our speeches, I admired the way he used his knowledge and emotions to help win the last debate
Using the themes we have examined in this course discuss the situation of the children in Jonathan Kozol's Amazing Grace. Who defines them as 'other'? How? What makes them feel like 'nobodies'? What makes them feel like 'somebodies'? What is the role of religion in this daily struggle for human dignity?
Belle opens into a crowded dock in 1769 England at the height of the British Colonial Empire, the slave trading capital of the world. This sets the tone for the rest of the movie, informing the audience that this culture is very different from our own. Slavery is a cultural norm and people are ranked due to ethnicity, gender, family relations, financial status, and their professional career. This not only the normal state for these people’s lives, this is considered justified and right in the eyes of many people. Majority of this society believes that the system works, and those who question its’ validity quickly become social outcasts and are thrown to the bottom of this system.
Amazing Grace is a story that addresses the poverty and poor conditions in the South Bronx, which has been left out in the cold and subjected to poverty and a lack of proper accommodations for its residents. The city became a refuge for the homeless that have been relocated from Manhattan in an effort to give the downtown area a more desirable appearance. With the residents of the Bronx struggling to survive in the environment they were born into, Johnathan Kozol gives us a glimpse into what life in the Bronx is like.
This movie is a wonderful production starting from 1960 and ending in 1969 covering all the different things that occurred during this unbelievable decade. The movie takes place in many different areas starring two main families; a very suburban, white family who were excepting of blacks, and a very positive black family trying to push black rights in Mississippi. The movie portrayed many historical events while also including the families and how the two were intertwined. These families were very different, yet so much alike, they both portrayed what to me the whole ‘message’ of the movie was. Although everyone was so different they all faced such drastic decisions and issues that affected everyone in so many different ways. It wasn’t like one person’s pain was easier to handle than another is that’s like saying Vietnam was harder on those men than on the men that stood for black rights or vice versa, everyone faced these equally hard issues. So it seemed everyone was very emotionally involved. In fact our whole country was very involved in president elections and campaigns against the war, it seemed everyone really cared.
What parts of the film were surprising or made you sit back and say, “Hmmm, I need to think more about that? Or, “Wow, I never thought about that.” The part would be when he was talking about “shared equality” up until the 1970’s was a normal thing and how everybody’s income doubled in size as well.
... about the way the Indians were treated, but to see a person desperate to prove his innocence because he was discriminated against for the fact that he was an Indian man show the horrible treatment of the Indians, visually. Furthermore, we learned about the tensions and the anger of the Indians and the crowd protesting was a great way to see the anger being portrayed through film. Overall, I had the opportunity to see what we learned in class through a well-made film and to see the determination of the Indian people. India had a very long journey to independence and through the course it was interesting to learn about the determination of the Indian people; moreover, sitting down and watching the film it showed me how impressive the Indian community was under the British Raj and I got the opportunity to admire the Indians’ perseverance under a hostile rule.