Class Discussion on Movies

I never knew much of anything about movies before our class discussions. I go, I know if I like it or not, and then I leave. I didn't know that there are certain types of shots and cuts, etc., and how that can have an impact on the way you view the movie and what you think about it. I almost feel manipulated in a way! But it is a good manipulation for the most part, because it helps you to get into the story, to know what is coming next, and to move the story along. I think it interesting how film making evolves. In the movie screening I went to last week, Bang the Drum Slowly, it seemed quite slow moving, and I think it was because there were fewer cuts from one scene to another. The camera showed one scene for a longer time. Before learning about scenes and different types of cuts, I could tell that it moved slower, but I wouldn't know why. So that is kind of cool.