High School Confidential Rough Draft Since the genre first took off in the 1950’s, teen films have been among the most popular film genres around the world with young people. In many of these popular films, we see the same thing over and over again: recurring roles. Fictional characters in these movies are often relied upon to fill destined roles to enhance the level of entertainment brought to the viewer. The author of the article “High School Confidential”, David Denby uses descriptive diction, syntax and comparative writing to appeal to the audience, and give the reader a sense of familiarity to the characters seen in these movies. Denby’s use of rhetoric also brings about another topic of discussion …show more content…
We have two villains: a popular girl, who Denby describes as being “The most hated young woman in America” (Paragraph 1, p. 709) and her male counterpart: a jock. He also gives us specific descriptive evidence in these films of how they often tell an underdog story, where a “nerd” or an outcast ultimately ends up being the hero in the end. “The movies try to turn the tables” Denby says (Paragraph 4, p. 711). He goes on to describe the effect this common plotline might have on kids who may feel socially unaccepted in real life. His detailed description of how these movies may influence unrealistic expectations, and create emotional tensions for those who don’t fit in with “the beautiful ones”. David Denby does give us one specific truth behind these movies though. Although the “nerds”, or highly intellectual people are often looked down upon by their peers, they ultimately end up living successful lives. He says that it’s the “One unquestionable social truth the teen movies reflect” (Paragraph 2, p.713) and ironically describes that if the Columbine shooters would have known that, the situation may have turned out …show more content…
He says that these films dramatize “not what happens, but how things feel”. By this, he means that in most real life schools, you typically won’t see the “cliques” or groups decided by status that we see so often in movies. The directors of these movies often place these groups of social status these movies to add to the plot of the movie, or to add emotional appeal. Although these movies are mainly intended for pleasure, or joy of the viewer, this genre does have a dark side. Many describe stories of triumph for the outcast, but there are several instances where directors have taken a different approach to this. They take it a step further, making the victimized outcast vengeful and angered towards their peers. Denby gives us specific examples of this in movies like “Carrie” and “If…” (p. 713, paragraph 3). Although he doesn’t believe a situation like this happened that could have possibly caused the tragic events at Columbine, Denby gives the reader a real life example of a high school tragedy that is similar to the plots of many of these movies. He gives us an open perspective of just how quickly a potential hero could turn into a villain. The determining factor of whether or not the misfit character turns out to be a hero or a villian typically lis within which rhetorical concept of persuasiveness that the writer
Mr. Leo wrote this piece not only for informative purposes, but also to convince a particular audience that, whether intentional or not, characters have taken on harmful images some may find offensive. He is not speaking only to his fairly educated, loyal readers, but also to those who may have taken part in producing the movie. Mr. Leo makes visible to his readers what he believes to be stereotypes in the film. People may not have noticed these before, so he makes clear definitions and comparisons. To the rest of the audience, those who had a hand in making the movie, he makes a plea not to redevelop these characters in future films.
Another instance where the plot creates ideas about the film’s diegesis is during the scene when Dean and Veronica are killing Kurt and Ram in the woods. After the second gun shot, the camera goes inside of a police car where two offers are smoking marijuana. This gives the idea that law enforcement are idiots and have no control. A third example of the plot creating ideas about the film’s diegesis is in the conversations youth have with authority figures. For example, the two conversations Veronica has with her parents on the back porch are nearly identical. This shows that in the film’s world parents and other figures of authority are morons and are not given respect at all. The film’s narration creates the idea of the stupidity of popularity while advocating for the social justice amongst peers in a high school setting. The story of the film is told through the actions of Veronica as she tears apart the social hierarchy at her school through a series of murders which leads to putting her on top of the social ladder. After this, Veronica befriends Martha Dunstock. By doing so, she destroys the social hierarchy at her school, bringing social justice to all
...lms these students get away with murder and still go on to college. This simply does not happen in real life; therefore, looking to Hollywood films for the true colors of schools is not in the best of interests. We have to realize that directors produce these films in their vision of American culture. We as Americans always look to the American Dream of sometime “making it.” The films neglect to see the loser’s point of view, meaning Hollywood films only look to a positive ending because it is in our nature to believe in the American Dream. This book allows our society to actually look past the films fantasies and observe the true inequalities in school. Although Hollywood films do correctly show how urban, suburban, and private students behave in schools, they do not show the true outcomes of real life.
David Denby thoroughly explains the distinction between the reality of high school life to what is portrayed in movies in the article, “High-School Confidential: Notes on Teen Movies.” He argues that many of these movies are extremely predictable and all have the same story line. Denby gives numerous examples of the cliché teen movie, which entails the skinny, blonde popular girl and her jock boyfriend who, let’s face it, has his shining moments in life, in high school. Denby’s main objective throughout this article is to distinguish whether these films reflect reality, or just what we imagine to be reality. He also touches on the other side of the social spectrum which usually consists of a quiet, female outsider who is known to be smart and
The famous the note that was left by the teens in detention at the end of the movie shows the social connection between each of their roles in society and how those are tie to society. The teens use the stereotypical names to tell Mr. Vernon who they think they are; the brain, the athlete, the basket case, the princess, and the criminal, they use the names that society has given them because of their reputations, hobbies and looks. They each realize throughout the movie that there is something that connects them to one another which makes them all realize that no matter the stereotypical separation between them, they all have some things in common and can work together for a common goal.
The 1985 film, The Breakfast Club, takes place during a Saturday detention in a Chicago high school. Five students, all from very different backgrounds, must serve this detention together for a nine-hour period. Everyone is at the detention for diverse reasons but throughout the course of the day, they soon discover they are not as different as they thought they were. The Breakfast Club analyzes how social interactions between students and their social contexts lead to the prevalence of discrimination and prejudice within the high school environment. Demonstrating how it is contrary to other films of the era, The Breakfast Club particularly examines these social issues through the establishment of cliques which were founded based on the hierarchy
Michael Lehmann’s black murder comedy, Heathers, was a scathing criticism of high school life and a complete rebuff of the optimistic, lighthearted teen film that John Hughes made so popular during the 1980’s. The timeless issues that Lehmann addresses have allowed this film to reach a cult status. The story centers around Veronica Sawyer, former invisible girl, who had recently become a member of Westerburg High’s ruling clique, the Heathers. When JD, the school’s dark horse, comes into the picture, Veronica finds in him someone who shares her dislike for the Heathers and how they use their power. Under his influence, Veronica starts aiding in the murders of her cruel, popular classmates and pulling them off as suicides. Unfortunately the only things this accomplishes are a rise in the popularity of teen suicides, as they become a popular fad and equally cruel replacements of the murdered characters. A cynical parody of the John Hughes’ teen film, touching on sensitive subjects such as teen suicide, unavailable adult figures, and the overarching pursuit of popularity, Heathers exposed audiences to the black underbelly of adolescence through its use of dark self governing teen characters and postmodern views on conformity.
Mean Girls (2004) is a movie that captures the challenging obstacles, excitements, and the letdowns that the adolescents face during high school. Although the movie is greatly exaggerated and does not hold to the true essence of reality, the film portrays the struggles an individual faces during adolescence. The protagonist of the film, Cady Heron, moves into the suburbs after being raised in Africa by her two scientist parents. As Cady is now enrolled into an American high school, she struggles to find her sense of self-identity as she encounters multiple groups of friends and she tries to fit-in by trying to find the status quo of the “American-high-school-way.” The film also emphasizes the development
Movies often don’t grasp this concept of teenagers struggling to fit in with their own group of friends. Denby states “lost in the eternal swoon of late adolescence, they’re (teenagers) thinking about their identity, their friends, and their clothes” (426). The most important thing too many teenagers in high school are fitting in. They idolize the idea of having a group of friends who are well known around school that other looks up too. The movie Never Been Kissed shows how teenagers often try to hard to gain and maintain friends. The main character who is a newspaper reporter goes back to school pretending to be a high school student. She tries to befriend a group of good looking rich kids and tries her best to impress them and she embarrasses herself in the process. The movie shows of allot of the average teenagers basic
The expectations that audience have of teen films are that expecting it would follow the struggles of growing up or being a teenager. Teen films are generic by categorising the social groups in high school based on stereotypes. Teen film narrative often follows common plot of high school relationships. Jason Reitman’s 2007 teen film, Juno separates itself from the typicality of teen films. Juno goes against the familiar trends of teen films, challenging the audience expectations. This is because the main topic of the film is the struggles and everything associated
The only real way to truly understand a story is to understand all aspects of a story and their meanings. The same goes for movies, as they are all just stories being acted out. In Thomas Foster's book, “How to Read Literature Like a Professor”, Foster explains in detail the numerous ingredients of a story. He discusses almost everything that can be found in any given piece of literature. The devices discussed in Foster's book can be found in most movies as well, including in Quentin Tarantino’s cult classic, “Pulp Fiction”. This movie is a complicated tale that follows numerous characters involved in intertwining stories. Tarantino utilizes many devices to make “Pulp Fiction” into an excellent film. In this essay, I will demonstrate how several literary devices described in Foster's book are put to use in Tarantino’s film, “Pulp Fiction”, including quests, archetypes, food, and violence.
Of all the 1980’s films, that can be described as “Eighties Teen Movies” (Thorburn, 1998) or “High School Movies” (Messner, 1998), those written and (with the exception of “Pretty In Pink” (1986) and “Some Kind of Wonderful”(1987)) directed by John Hughes were often seen to define the genre, even leading to the tag “John Hughes rites de passage movies” as a genre definition used in 1990s popular culture (such as in “Wayne’s World 2” (1994 dir. Stephen Surjik)). This term refers to the half dozen films made between 1984 and 1987; chronologically, “Sixteen Candles” (1984), “The Breakfast Club” (1985), “Weird Science” (1985), “Ferris Bueller's Day Off” (1986), “Pretty In Pink” (1986) and “Some Kind Of Wonderful” (1987) (the latter two being directed by Howard Deutch). For the purpose of this study, “Weird Science” and “Some Kind of Wonderful” shall be excluded; “Weird Science” since, unlike the other films, it is grounded in science fiction rather than reality and “Some Kind of Wonderful” as its characters are fractionally older and have lost the “innocence” key to the previous movies: as Bernstein states “the youthful naivete was missing and the diamond earring motif [a significant gift within the film] was no substitute” (Bernstein, 1997, p.89). Bernstein suggests that the decadent 1980s were like the 1950s, “an AIDS-free adventure playground with the promise of prosperity around every corner … our last age of innocence” (Bernstein, 1997, p.1). The films were very much a product of the time in terms of their production (“suddenly adolescent spending power dictated that Hollywood direct all its energies to fleshing out the fantasies of our friend, Mr. Dumb Horny 14 Year Old” Bernstein, 1997, p.4), their repetition (with the growth of video cassette recorders, cable and satellite with time to fill, and also the likes of MTV promoting the film’s soundtracks) and their ideologies.
Non judgmental and Compassion was a message in this movie. If more people would have compassion for others we would live in a better world. It is important to be non judgmental because people never know what happens in a person's life to cause them to act out in a certain way. Mrs. Erin Gruwell’s students were separated along racial lines and had few aspirations beyond street survival. Many people warned her that her students were all criminals who couldn’t be taught. With all odds stacked against her, she accepted the teaching position at Wilson High School. Erin Gruwell saw more in the students than a future as criminals and gang members; she saw them as people who have lost their ways in life. Instead of turning her back as society had done, she held out a helping hand. She had compassion and was non judgmental toward the children’s actions and hatred for one another. Being judgmental...
of influence in both the characters and gender roles of people in our society. The films have brought about the shaping of morals, behaviors and characters of not only children, but also adults in todays society, through engaging them in a constant series of unthinking consumption. In addition, most of the films in Disney bring out many different gender roles and people who grew up watching them have been influenced greatly by the content in the films (Blum 13). This paper will involve the various roles played by the characters in the films and how their roles have influenced the society at large.
To most people the movie Mean Girls is simply a silly teen chick flick and is not good for anything but pure entrainment. Even though Mean Girls is slightly dramatized, high school in reality is perfectly portrayed through this movie. Every high school varies but there is always a domain group of students. The socially powerful are the rich and beautiful girls and everyone else are the loyal subjects to their castle. However, there is a twist in Mean Girls, the message is actually positive. Mean Girls is sending a message that women should not criticize one another to feel empowerment, it is unattractive to men to be mindless, and that White Americans have domains over other races. This movie also implies that nothing wrong with being different from what society accepts.