Current Courses

MCS 273: Style and Storytelling in Film
(aka FILM 1310: Introduction to Film)

An introduction to the critical study of film, this course familiarizes students with canonical films (i.e., critically acclaimed and historically influential works), various methods of filmmaking, and several ways to interpret and evaluate films. Specifically we will consider the following: conventions and techniques of film art (mise-en-scene, cinematography, editing, sound); narrative style (classical Hollywood and the three-act structure); specific types of films (genres, documentaries, experimental); and some critical theories within the field of film studies. Classes will consist of lectures, film screenings, and discussion.

MCS 209: Cinema History III: 1975-Present

This final course in the film history sequence is designed to introduce students to a sense of modern film history and the multiple permutations of cinema around the globe. It presents film history from a global perspective, concentrating primarily on the development of new national and transnational cinemas. The course continues to chart the development of the American studios since the mid-1970s while examining the effects of media consolidation and convergence. Moreover, the course seeks to examine how global cinemas have reacted to and dealt with the formal influence and economic domination of Hollywood filmmaking on international audiences. The class will consist of lectures, screenings, and discussions.

Past Courses

ENGL 20803: Seinfeld

When Seinfeld aired in 1989 it was panned as “sophomoric talk radio” and “a mildly amusing” show. Even comedian Roseanne Barr, whose sitcom, Roseanne (1988-1997), ran contemporaneously with Seinfeld on ABC, found the show about four Manhattanites rather pretentious: “They think they’re doing Samuel Beckett instead of a sitcom,” she asserted. However, by the end of Seinfeld‘s run (1998), the show was praised as “an authentic American comedy of manners” as well as “the defining sitcom of our age.” And as the author of our textbook proclaims, the show that introduced the world to the soup Nazi, close talkers, and being master of one’s domain may be “the greatest television sitcom.” This semester, we will explore this popular show from its early shaky period, when some considered it “overly Jewish” and too focused on New Yorkers, to its extraordinary news-making series finale. Through a close examination of Seinfeld, students will continue to hone the critical reading, thinking, and writing skills that they worked on in ENGL 10803. With a critical eye, they will approach the shows as texts, analyzing narrative construction, character types, themes, and selected social issues. Moreover, so that students will understand that this sitcom — as all television shows — is a product of the time period in which it was created, we will place Seinfeld in its historical and cultural context.

FILM 2340: Critical Approaches to Cinema

An introduction to cinema studies, this course familiarizes students with canonical films (i.e., critically acclaimed and historically influential works), various methods of filmmaking, and several ways to interpret and evaluate films. Specifically, we will consider the following: conventions and techniques of film art (mise-en-scene, cinematography, editing, sound); specific types of films (the American film comedy, documentaries, experimental films); significant film movements (Italian Neorealism, French New Wave); and several critical theories within the field of film studies. Classes will consist of lectures, discussion, and film screenings. This course is a pre-requisite for a number of other film courses, so students must receive a grade of “C” or better to proceed to those courses.

FILM 2350: Cinema History

Beginning with the origin of moving pictures and continuing to the present day, this course explores the major movements and authors of cinema history. Specifically, we will consider national and international filmmaking and filmmakers from the silent era (1895-1930), the age of sound (1930-1960), and the modern period of cinema (1960-present). The course also looks exclusively at Hollywood’s self-induced form of censorship as well as its technological innovations, onscreen representations of African Americans, and influence on world cinema. Finally, students will be introduced to several critical and theoretical approaches to cinema studies (e.g., psychoanalytic theory, queer theory, feminist film theory) so that they may situate their personal reactions in a more meaningful context.

FILM 3980: Film Noir

Pulp Fiction (1994), Se7en (1995), L.A. Confidential (1997), Fight Club (1999), and Memento (2001): these current films with their gritty plots, seedy characters, and dim lighting are products of a sixty-year-old film genre or, depending on whom you ask, film movement…or film style…or film mood. Beginning in 1941 with John Huston’s The Maltese Falcon and theoretically ending in 1958 with Orson Welles’s Touch of Evil, this psychologically disturbing, highly contested, inherently American brand of films known as film noir is what this course will consider. Students will screen classic noir (e.g., The Maltese Falcon, Double Indemnity [1944], Sunset Boulevard [1950]) as well as recent noir films, or neo-noir, such as those mentioned above. With a critical eye, they will approach the films as texts, analyzing narrative construction, character types, themes, and aesthetic styles. Moreover, so that students will understand that these films–as all films–are products of the time period in which they are created, we will place film noir (as well as neo-noir) in its historical and cultural context.

NOTE: A full list of my courses may be found on my vita.