Movie Review

Angela Balcome

German 110

Book Reviews

All Quiet on the Western Front Review:

All Quiet on the Western Front is a War movie that is rated highly be viewers and critics.  It is known as, “One of the most powerful war statements put on film” (Starpulse, 2011).  When taking a look at where this movie rates on the tomatometer, it received a 97%, with an average rating of 8.6/10.  A total of 32 reviews were counted and a massive 31 rated it “Fresh” and only 1 rated it “Rotten.”  As far as the audiences ratings, it was given as 85% which is very high.  A total of 15,758 user ratings were received with an average of 3.8 out of 5 star (Flixter, 2011).  All Quiet on the Western Front has awesome audience reviews, one being by Brad Wright who wrote, “All Quiet on the Western Front is probably the most truthful and one of the best war films of all time, and a true tear jerker.”  I would agree with Brad in the way that it is a true tear jerker and it’s the best war movie made back in the day that I have seen.  I thought this movie showed many aspects of war, and gave the audience an inside look of what it is like by really putting forth the drama, pain, and effects that the war had on the soldiers.  This movie has won many awards as shown in a New Your Times article.  These awards include: 100 greatest American Movies, Best Picture, Best Director, Best Film, and many more.  These awards alone show what a truly terrific movie All Quiet on the Western Front is.  A writer for the New York Times talks about the movie in an article.  She writes, “Carl Laemmle’s Universal Picture Corporation has produced a trenchant and imaginative audible picture, in which the producers adhere with remarkable fidelity to the spirit and events of the original stirring novel” (Hall, 1930).  This review shows us that the writer thinks that the movie is great, that not all movies that are based on book are good, but this one is, and I would agree.  Based on all the reviews I have seen through my research I would say that All Quiet on the Western Front was a huge hit by not only the audience, but also the critics.  I would suggest the movie to anyone who is interested in a war movie.  It truly is a terrific, terrifying, and realistic movie that will keep you on your toes the entire time.

Works Cited

Hall., Mordaunt. "Movie Review - All Quiet on the Western Front - THE SCREEN; Young Germany in the War. - NYTimes.com." Movie Reviews, Showtimes and Trailers - Movies - New York Times - The New York Times. NY times, 20 Oct. 2011. Web. 20 Oct. 2011. <http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=980DE7D81738E03ABC4850DFB266838B629EDE>.

"All Quiet on the Western Front - Rotten Tomatoes." Movies | Movie Trailers | Reviews - Rotten Tomatoes. Flixter. Web. 20 Oct. 2011. <http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1000642-all_quiet_on_the_western_front/>.

Franz Kemmerich summary of AQOTWF

Character Analysis:

Franz Kemmerich

Franz Kemmerich is one of Paul Baumer’s classmates and comrades in the war.  After suffering a non severe wound early in the book All Quiet on The Western Front, Kemmerich should be ok.  This wound was not life threatening until Franz contracts gangrene, which made it a life threatening situation very fast.  Gangrene is a serious and potentially life-threatening condition.  It is caused through an infection or injury , and a large amount of body tissue dies.  When gangrene occurs, the result is normally amputation.  In Franz Kemmerich’s situation his leg had to be amputated.  The death of Franz Kemmerich occurs in Chapter Two, and marks the first encounter of what life is like in the war.  It is an eye open to both fellow soldiers of Franz’s in the war and also to the readers.  After Franz’s death we watch how the rest of the soldiers react and how his death makes the war feel so real right form the beginning.  Franz Kemmerich sets the tone for reactions of AQOTWF early on in the book.

Berlin Calling Report

Berlin Calling Report

Berlin Calling was a movie that I found very interesting.  This movie showed me how this type of job that Ickarus has as a DJ, and the business and fans that come along with it relate to our norms and differentiate from what we are used to in our society.  I found many similarities in the way that everywhere you go there is a so called “drug crowd”, what I mean by this is that some places have a bigger population and you will see more drug use.  At the same time when you go to small towns such as the town I grew up in, you don’t notice the drugs as much.  Don’t get me wrong, I know there were drugs in my town it was just a select number of people and it was in the dark, they tried hiding the fact that they were users.  Whereas in Berlin Calling the use of drugs was everywhere, from the business of Ickarus and Alice, to the fans using while they came to the clubs, even in the bathrooms.  One person stated in the movie the fact “party power”  when I heard this it made me think that she was using drugs as a party enhancer.  Maybe she was not using daily or as much as Ickarus.  One of the main cultural differences that jumped out at me and I think our class as a whole because it was mentioned in class, was the naked people in the movie.  Sexuality in the movie Berlin Calling is not meant to turn you on or arouse you, but to show you what everyday life is like.  Where’ as in the US naked scenes in movies are triggered towards turning you on.  I realized that as a big difference, even as watching the movie, it was not meant to show you affection, passion, or give you arousal like a movie in the United States would be used for.  Overall I found the movie Berlin Calling Interesting and I am glad that we watched it.  

Berlin Calling Movie ? and Answer

Angela Balcome

German 110

Berlin  Calling

Question and Answer:

1. Why is Ickarus taking drugs?

answer: Ickarus stated, “that he is taking the drugs to relax, and to stop stressing.”  He could be taking the drugs for many different reasons. One reason I think that he is taking the drugs is because  of his work.  He is a DJ who uses a lot of techno music.  I feel like from the knowledge we know about drugs that this could relate in the way that he feels drugs enhance the feeling that he gets in the way of how the music hits him.  The beat is enhanced.

1. Why are his fans taking drugs, and which drugs do they take?

answer:  The types of drugs that were used in the movie included: MDMA, MDA, Ecstasy, Cocaine, Crystal Meth, Ketamine, PMA (which is a strong hallocigan), pretty much everything besides heroine.  I think that the fans are probably taking the drugs as a trend, and they like the feeling of being high on a drug when they are around the party scene.  Which includes lots of colorful lights, loud music, alcohol, dancing. 

1. While we can see that his drug habits get him ill and into a psychosis, and while we witness his relapse and inability to work successfully, why does the subculture Ickarus is in focus on drugs?

answer:  One of the characters in the movie called it party powder.  This happened in the bathroom scene.  She asked Ickarus if he had any party powder, saying it in the way that they enjoy the high of these sorts of drugs while they are partying.  This subculture is the music industry.  It relates still today that the stars are normally into bad drugs.  Ickarus is part or this industry and as he stated early in the movie it relaxes him.  Ickarus relapsed because he left and went right back to norm of his life which included: taking drugs in a work scene.

1. Compare the standards you know from your home society with the people you see depicted in this movie.  Which are the stark differences and contrasts.

answer:  I see a relation between my home society and the movie in the way that everywhere there is an area where drugs and partying is rough.  In the movie its Berlin, and for us its Minneapolis.  Clubs such as: Bar Fly in the cities consist of many drugs.  The difference I notice is that my home society is not near as openly naked.   As we see in the movie Berlin Calling,  there are many naked scenes .  We talked about this in class and had noticed that in Berlin Calling the naked scenes are not there to turn you on as a sex scene but it is just showing you there everyday life style.  Where’ as in United States movies, most naked scenes in movie are there to so called arouse the audience.

1. Germany is considered a strong industrial nation the world over.  Do you think that the youth culture as depicted here could change that?  How about work ethics of Ickarus and of Alice, the label director who fires and then resigns him?

answer:  From what I know and understand about Germany and the Culture, I do not believe that the youth will be able to change it. Work ethics of Ickarus and Alice the label director are crazy to me.  I can’t believe how Alice puts up with Ickarus’s “shit.”  If I were Alice I would have fired Ickarus a long time ago.  From what I understood about Alice though, was that she thought Ickarus was making here look good, which in turn would profit her by bringing in more artists.  In the work society that I live in people do not get away with that.  They are fired and do not get there jobs back, as far as California, Vegas and what not I’m sure more of this goes on.

1. Which similar “cult movies” of US origin have you seen, if any?

answer:  The Rocky, Repo Man, Scarface, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.  

Chapter 1 summary

Main Characters:
Narrorator-Paul Baumer
Protagonist-Paul Baumer
Classmates-Muller, Leer, Kropp

Chapter one opens the book with Paul Baumer the narrorator and his classmates and fellow soldiers fighter on the front lines during World War 1.  A unit of 150 men went out fighting and only 80 men returned after a  devastating hard attack during the last day.  On page two in All Quiet on the Western Front, it is stated that, "English heavies opened up on us with high-explosives, drumming ceaselessly on our position."  Once they moved back they settled down to get a good night of sleep, which does not happen very often.  Katczinsky states on page two, "It would not be such a bad war if only one could get a little more sleep."  At this point I think that these young men are realizing what strain the was is putting on them so early on and that this is going to be a long life changing enlistment for them.  The next morning once they had finally crawled out of their quarters they gathered at the cook-house.  The remaining were excited to eat all the food but the cook was only going to give out one serving each.  After a very heated argument the cook agrees to distribute all the food out.  At this early point in the book we see the relationship of authority taking place.  That at first the cook was going to let the remaining food go to waste instead of allowing more servings.  After eating the men settled down to rest, smoke, and play some cards to take their minds off of what was going on and what has happened.  Paul now thinking about his classmate Kemmerich who was wounded and now in the hospital with a wounded thigh and an amputated leg that he is not aware of.  The men think about all the ones who have already been killed and recall that they may have been pressured into the war by Kantorek.  They now despise Kantorek for pushing them into the army and exposing them to the horror of war.  At this point in the book I realized that authority was brought up again.  This time in the way that Kantorek was in authority of all the soldiers and they are blaming him because he was the one who influenced them to join.  After a while they went to the hospital to visit Kemmerich, where Muller realizes that Kemmerich has some nice boots.  Muller's boots are old, worn down, and give him blisters every time that he wears them.  They decide not to push the matter of the boots at the time instead decide to wait till Kemmerich dies and then steal them before the orderlies take them.  Chapter one brings us into the war aspect at a fast pace with deaths and hard times right from the beginning.