V for Vendetta

"Voilà! In view, a humble vaudevillian veteran, cast vicariously as both victim and villain by the vicissitudes of Fate. This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is a vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished. However, this valorous visitation of a by-gone vexation, stands vivified and has vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin van-guarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition.
"The only verdict is vengeance; a vendetta, held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous.
"Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose, so let me simply add that it's my very good honor to meet you and you may call me V."

1) Write down the meanings of all the new words from the lines above in your vocab list.

2) In the comments section write down all the similarities you noticed between George Orwell’s 1984 and “V for Vendetta.” (Click on the image to watch the last 10 min. of the movie that we couldn’t watch in class).

Film Club Selection

A la folie pas du tout

The title, a la folie pas du tout, is more ironic and telling than the unknowing viewer would dare to guess. A whimsical love story, yes it is. But its whimsy is short-lived and fades quickly to concentrate on the dark underbelly of relationships, emotional attachment, and the complexity of the human spirit

Film Club Selection

Film 2

Timmy Robinson's best friend in the whole wide world is a six-foot tall, rotting zombie named Fido. But when Fido eats the next-door neighbor, Mom and Dad hit the roof, and Timmy has to go to the ends of the earth to keep Fido a part of the family. A boy-and-his-dog movie of sorts, "fido" is hilarious satire and will rip your heart out!

Film Club '09

La Gloire De Mon Pere (The Glory of my Father) is based on the book by acclaimed French author, Marcel Pagnol. This heartwarming film traces the adventures of a young French boy as he and his family spend one summer in the splendid French countryside where he learns the secret of the hills of Provence.

Winchester Film Club

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Film Club Movie 4: Eagle vs. Shark

It all begins with Lily, a lonely oddball and fast-food waitress who happens to be a hopeless romantic. Then there’s Jarrod, the man of Lily’s dreams, another lonely oddball and video game clerk, who has spent the last decade plotting ultimate vengeance on a bully from his high school past.

When these two connect at a “dress as your favourite animal” party, she’s an anaemic Shark and he’s a fluffy-headed Eagle. It’s a match that seems made in outcast heaven, but when Lily decides to risk everything for love, her hopes are nearly dashed. After a brief fling, Jarrod dumps Lily because he’s too busy “training” for his all-important payback mission. But neither of them can anticipate just what kind of grit the steadfastly optimistic Lily will show in her heartbreak. As Jarrod’s day of reckoning arrives, and everything hits the fan, Jarrod and Lily will find something that goes beyond romance and revenge -- faith in who they are.

Things to Think about:

1. How would you describe Lily and Jarrod?

2. How does all the absurdity in the film tie up with deeper emotional truths?

3. Why does Jarrod attack the cripple even though he knows it was wrong?

4. Disucss the elements of humour and quirkiness in the film.

Film Club Movie 3: Il Postino (The Postman)

Mario is a postman in a fishing village on a small island off the coast of Italy. Arriving there in 1953 is famed Chilean poet Pablo Neruda, exiled from his native country for espousing communist doctrine. Mario is curious about this new resident who, despite his advancing age, has a seemingly magical power over women. Eventually, after delivering Neruda's mail for a while, he gets up the courage to engage the poet in a conversation about writing. This begins an unusual collaboration, with Mario providing a sounding board for Neruda's ideas and Neruda teaching Mario about poetry and its relationship to life.

Things to think about:

How does the ending catapult the movie from a good to a great film?

What sort of a person is Mario?

How does the director keep the reader engaged throughout the film?

How is Pablo Neruda the perfect foil for Mario? (Is Pablo a good mentor? Discuss why.)

Ultimately, what is the movie about? Is there an underlying theme or message?

Film Club Movie 2: Who Killed the Electric Car?

In 1996, electric cars began to appear on roads all over California. They were quiet and fast, produced no exhaust and ran without gasoline. Ten years later, these futuristic cars were almost entirely gone. What happened? Why should we be haunted by the ghost of the electric car?

Things to think about:

Who do you think was most responsible for the death of the electric car?

What do we learn about the oil and automobile industry after watching this documentary?

How big a role should the governments of the world play in regulating car safety and quality of emissions?

Film Club Movie 1: WALL-E

What if mankind had to leave Earth, and somebody forgot to turn the last robot off? After hundreds of lonely years of doing what he was built for, WALL*E (short for Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class) discovers a new purpose in life (besides collecting knick-knacks) when he meets a sleek search robot named EVE. EVE comes to realize that WALL*E has inadvertently stumbled upon the key to the planet's future, and races back to space to report her findings to the humans (who have been eagerly awaiting word that it is safe to return home). Meanwhile, WALL*E chases EVE across the galaxy and sets an adventure into motion. Joining WALL*E on his journey across the universe is a cast of characters including a pet cockroach and a heroic team of malfunctioning misfit robots.

Things to think about:

How do the creators of WALL-E give the robots human emotions? (What do we learn about being human from watching the robots?)

What do you find endearing about WALL-E and EVE?

What is the film’s message about consumerism?

What vision of future human society does the film depict?

Comment on the animation during the end credits.