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In Green Book the travels of Dr. Shirley and Tony Lip through the deep south are explored.  Their relationship begins with Dr. Shirley being introverted and reclusive while Tony is portrayed as a gregarious, accepting individual.  I couldn’t help but feel that this dynamic was somewhat unrealistic and plays into the white savior trope that can be found in numerous films that explore race relations.  While the friendly nature of Tony fits well in a feel-good story that sells tickets, it seems somewhat unrealistic given the nature of race relations in the 1960’s.  While viewing the film did you feel that Tony Lip’s character was authentic?

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In Smoke Signals, the character of Thomas is the audience’s connection to a rich oral tradition that has been critical to Native American cultures for Millenia. Although the movie employs flashbacks during Thomas story, he remains the narrator during these flashbacks.  Thomas is the connection to the past and there is also an element of legend within his storytelling.  When discussing what makes a good story Thomas says he wants both truths and lies, essentially telling the audience that the best stories have elements of both in them. I would argue that oral tradition is fairly insignificant in modern day American society, do people feel that this is a trend seen globally or something that varies from culture to culture?

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After watching the film Frozen River I was left not completely knowing how I felt about the role that Ray played in smuggling people into the U.S.  While on the surface it seems risky and against the law I found it somewhat difficult to find the fault in Ray and Lila’s role.  Both mothers are doing the job out of necessity to provide for others and so their motivation to participate in the smuggling comes from pure intentions.  Furthermore, neither lady has malicious intentions or ill-will towards the people they are smuggling.  With that being said, both mothers actively participated in a venture that often results in manipulative and exploitative practices.  Is it possible to view these characters as both a hero and a villain due to the difficult circumstances they found themselves in?

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Although Tucker has a cast that I was thoroughly excited to see, and even has a background story that I am somewhat interested in, the movie itself fails to live up to the expectations.  Ultimately the screenwriting was not interesting enough throughout the film.  For the first half of the movie there seems to be little conflict at all while Preston Tucker seems like he can’t be stopped.  His goals come crashing to a halt before he can get up and running all the while the audience hasn’t made a connection to the character.  If the main character of the film is somewhat boring, the events and conflicts that arise around them will also be less impactful.  Ultimately did you feel connected to Tucker or any character for that matter?

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In Pray The Devil Back to Hell the lesser of two evils is eventually settled for in order to stop further bloodshed.  The work of the Liberian women to demand peace is inspiring while also demonstrating the reality of the harsh world we live in.  While further violence was prevented, corrupt individuals who had directly participated in the violence that plagued Liberia were rewarded with positions in the new Liberian government.  Atrocities were committed by both sides of the regime and ultimately all parties that were involved in the peace talks should have been replaced with newly elected officials.  Does the fact that corrupt individuals came to power through the peace talks lessen the significance of the work done by Liberian women?

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Si Se Puede

In the documentary film Dolores the life’s work of Dolores Huerta is explored against a backdrop of oppression, struggle, racism, sexism and politics.  The influence of executive producer Carlos Santana is certainly significant and I found myself dancing to the film on numerous occasions. Dolores Huerta is revered by her peers and the body of work that she has accomplished during her life, and on display in the film, would give anyone the motivation to get out there and make a difference.  The most resounding lesson one can take from viewing Dolores is that the power of one person can be significant when they create a network of people that are all facing a similar problem.

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Gender roles reversed

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a little about myself