Film Styles

          As many of us are aware, there are different types of films and each film has its different style. The first film I will be talking about is Coach Carter. Coach Carter is about a coach that moved schools and will be taking over the new coaching position. Unfortunately, the new team he will be coaching aren't used to being winners and therefore, need lots of help. The first part of the film was about the coach teaching these thugs how to first become young men and second, talented basketball players that win. This took lots of hard work, dedication, and much discipline.
          This film had a unique style. In most films like this one you are used to the new coach coming in and changing everything and transitioning this team into champions. Although this was the case for majority of the movie, there was a litlle contrast in the end. Normally, the team will have been undefeated the entire season and continued on to win the championship. However, in Coach Carter the team went undefeated the entire season and made it to the semi finals. In the semi final game the Oilers were getting killed and made a historice comeback. Unlike most movies, instead of making this comeback and winning the game, the team lost in the final seconds.
          This to me was an interesting film style because in the end the story relays a message back to its audience. It says that it is good to be great but you won't always be the greatest. After the team had lost, the community still had their signs held high and still congratulated the Oilers. The players then came to realize that they didn't only make a change in their winning, they made a change in themselves and in their community.

Advertising

          I first want to start off with a few facts about advertising, given to us by Silverblatt ch. 14 "Overview of Advertising".
U.S. ad spending in 2006 reached a record $285 billion-the equivalent of $950,000 for every person in the United States.
An hour of prime-time network programming contains 18 minutes of advertising, down from 16 minutes in 2003 and 12 minutes in the 1980s.
By the age of 65, the average American has seen two million TV commercials.
American children are exposed to 40,000 ads per year.
When dateline NBC recently asked children to choose between a banana and a rock with a Scooby-Doo sticker on it for breakfast, nearly all chose the rock.
          Just by reading the few facts listed above you can make many statements about the effect of advertising on Americans. By looking at the 3rd fact "An hour of prime-time network programming contains 18 minutes of advertising, down from 16 minutes in 2003 and 12 minutes in the 1980s" we can say that overtime, the shows that we watch are becoming shorter and shorter due to advertising. These are the same one-hour shows but the commercial time is growing, which means that more commercials are being shown and less actual television.
          I will be honest, advertising isn't all bad because sometimes that commercial catches your eye and the item they are showing is highly attractive. For instance, I like cell phone commercials because of the new technology that is being built with the phones. My phone is half broken and I've been looking for the perfect phone to fit me for weeks now. This commercial came on the other day for a Blackberry Torch. I have always been the one that says "I will never buy a blackberry" but the advertisement for the phone fit my specifications so well that I am currently doing everything possible to get one.
          Overall advertising has come a long way over the days and will continue to thrive. Little do many know, but advertising is still an important part of communication.