70's Film & Culture Overview

It has been a strange couple of months. There were ups, there were downs. I got to see good movies from a great time in history. Throughout the confusion and the turmoil, people found ways of shining through. Directors were emerging and showing how they felt about everything through their art. Everything from blaxploitation, gay rights, womens rights, anti-war sentiments, jobless, homeless, crime, gangs, drugs, sex, and rock and roll were expressed in film. Over the past few months a group of us were taken on a journey through all of it.

Although this class took place during an extremely busy time in my life, I still found ways to enjoy it. Even though at times I felt as though the movies were a little over thought, there was validity to the discussions. I feel as though the directors during the time put a lot into their movies because of their passion about certain topics, or maybe things just appeared to have meaning but during the time, that is just how people thought. Us being distanced from this era and somewhat desensitized might be looking back and analyzing things in a way that the directors did not intend. They may have wanted to say something in a subtle way, but not have their audience dwell on it.

Ambiguous endings have their place, but for me, I cannot stand them. We as artists are ultimately story tellers, for me, the story is just not complete without an ending or closure. Unfortunately, the 70's were a time of prominence with this set up.

Overall I loved the class and I feel as though I have learned something about this country's culture that should never be forgotten.

Assault on Precinct 13 (1975)

Assault on Precinct 13 was the story of a police officer who had to take over control of a station that was being relocated for one night. The station was in a bad neighborhood of Los Angeles and showcased the ruthlessness of the gangs there. During the stay, a prisoner transport has to relieve a sick man and another man rushes into the station unable to speak. Gangs had followed the man and commenced their assault on the station. The story was about their survival for one night with hopes of someone coming to their aid.

Although I was slightly confused about the movie, I thought it was good. The cheesy lines of one of the prisoners was welcome in this dark situation that the remaining staff of this station found themselves in. The gangs were depicted as evil beings with no humanity. In fact, I believe that only one gang member had a single line. I felt that this helped distance the audience away from attaching themselves to the gang in any way. And even though this movie was in all actuality a horror or thriller movie, it did have the slight feeling as that of a country movie.

I actually want to see the new rendition of this to see if the original flair is still there. I would enjoy seeing this again.

An Unmarried Woman (1978)

An Unmarried Woman was about the struggles and confusion of a woman who just lost her trust in her husband after finding out that he has been cheating on her. She realizes that she has to become independent and finding out how to do so is a strange concept to her. Along the way she meets a man whom she feels genuinely attached to and in love with but she has lost her faith and trust in men. Now she has to decide what is best for her.

I thought this movie was HORRIBLE. Hands down. The woman, even though confused snapped at every single thought of a man making a pass at her. She took everything the wrong way instead of thinking of the possibility that the man did not actually make a pass, but was being friendly and sincere in her time of need. I found myself annoyed throughout the the entire movie. Although there was one good thing that happened. Towards the end, her ex-husband revealed that his affair was over, and that he would like to get back on good standing with his ex-wife, she did not take him up on his offers, which, to me, is what should have happened. Unfortunately, this was not enough to even remotely redeem this movie.

I hope to never see this again.

Dog Day Afternoon (1975)

Dog Day Afternoon, a movie portraying the level of stress that two people experienced and their way of showing the world that enough is enough. Al Pacino plays as Sunny, who, with his friend Sal, decides to rob a bank. Once inside the police respond and a standoff ensues. Although Sunny never wants to hurt anyone, he is pushed to a point where he feels this is the only thing that he can do. Jobless because he is not in a union, married to a man and a woman, and now having to keep a group of trigger-happy police officers at bay, Sunny makes his move and tries to resolve peacefully what he started with force.

I personally loved this movie. I think it really shows the extent of what some people were driven to during this time. The movie also portrays the ignorance of people against gays and also the normality of it. As wrong as Sunny was, I think that many people would have liked to see Sunny go free at the end.

I will definitely watch this again.  

Saturday Night Fever (1977)

Saturday Night fever with John Travolta as Tony Manero depicts a time when disco was a way of life for some. The movie shows how even though many people move away from their home and try to be something that they are not, they still have a piece of where they are from in them. Tony never really tries to pretend that he is something that he is not and the only thing he lives for is Saturday nights at the Odyssey. In the end he decides that this is not the only thing in life and wants to expand his horizons.

I loved this movie. Hands down. It really kept the audiences attention with the constant flow of the story with very few uneventful times, it seems as though everything in the movie was necessary and I cannot recall any scene that I found irrelevant. The soundtrack is amazing and most of the music even to this day is still recognized even by generations that did not grow up during the time. Even though the movie has its low notes and shows the ignorance of men and how mistreated women were at the time, the movie is a staple in american history about a time that cannot and should not ever be forgotten.

I look forward to the day that I get to see this movie again.

Taxi Driver (1976)

Robert DeNiro as Travis Bickle, Cybill Shepherd as Betsy, and Jodie Foster as Iris play in Taxi Driver. This movie is about a war vet who comes back to New York and gets a job as a taxi driver and sees the city as a disgusting cesspool of filth and degenerate people. As he tries to find out what his role in the world is he decides to take out a corrupt politician but is thwarted and goes vigilante to take out a group of pimps.

I found the movie hard to follow and throughout the movie I do not know what to think about Travis. At first I thought of him as a creep and all around uneducated idealist. To this day I do not know what to think of him even though towards the end he is depicted as a vigilante hero who saved a young girl from the downward spiral of becoming a prostitute. Once again, in a lot of movies from this time, there are many scenes that have a deeper meaning that is left to the viewer to determine what the director is trying to convey. I am not a fan of this because there can be so many different things that the director can be trying to say and I like to think that they do it for their own personal reason and us as an audience just need to accept it and move on, it is, after all, their opinion and message about a confusing time. I like the movie, but like I said, I am still confused about the main character.

I would definitely watch this again.

Jaws (1975)

A shark decides to make an area outside of a small town his hunting grounds during one of the busiest tourist seasons for a nearby small town. The mayor gets fed up and sends the sheriff, a scientist, and an old fisherman to exact revenge on the shark. Their hunt does not go as planned and now they are fighting for their survival in an area where no one will hear you if you call for help.

I loved the movie for what it was. The sheer terror of the swimmers and the graphic violence really blossomed in this movie and violence of this nature was rarely seen before this time. I have a lot of respect for Steven Spielberg for going the distance and showing something that was not looked highly upon in film at this time.

I can see this movie any day of the week and it would never be enough.