Study Guide for “Requiem for a Dream” (Darren Aronofsky, 2000)

Study Guide for “Requiem for a Dream” (Darren Aronofsky, 2000)

1. In “Requiem for a Dream”, the director Aronofsky’s use of camera is very subjective. Identify a few examples from the film and then discuss what purpose(s) such a subjective camera serves in the film.
2. Identify some of the scenes in which the director uses distorted images and discuss what messages are conveyed through these images.
3. Examine the scenes in which Aronofsky splits the screen into two and discuss how they serve the film.
4. What technique(s) does the film display when we are first introduced to the four protagonists of the story?
5. Comment on what the following could mean to Mrs. Goldfarb: the red dress, the TV show, the refrigerator.
6. Comment on how mass media is perceived in the film.
7. Explore the theme of “American Dream” in relation to the film title.
8. In an interview ["Dreams Fulfilled: A Darren Aronofsky Interview", David E. Williams (2000), filmthreat.com], Aronofsky describes the film in the following manner: “… this film is about addiction versus the human spirit. And it’s a one-way ticket into the sub-sub-basement of Hell..” Discuss the quote in relation to the film.
   
9. Essay Topic: In relation to how the four major protagonists are represented in “Requiem for a Dream”, discuss the following quote by Aronofsky: “One of the things this film is about is the hole we create in our present when we chase the illusion of tomorrow and then the distances we go to fill that vacuum with anything and everything.” [Source: Walsh, D. (2000). “Shouting but not saying much”, World Socialist Web Site]

© Ali Nihat Eken, Istanbul, September 2008

Study Guide for “The Devil Wears Prada” (David Frankel, 2006)

Study Guide for “The Devil Wears Prada” (David Frankel, 2006)

1. What is the importance of the opening shots of the film? How do they serve the film?
2. Whose point of view is the story told from? What clues are available for identifying the narrative voice in the film?
3. What does the film tell us about the concept of beauty?
4. What does the “Runway” magazine symbolize in the film?
5. Discuss what binary oppositions the film is built upon. How do these oppositions help you understand the characters depicted and the issues dealt with in the film?
6. Identify what “satire” means and then discuss to what extent and in what ways “The Devil Wears Prada” can be called a satirical film.
7. Identify what “melodrama” means and then discuss to what extent and in what ways “The Devil Wears Prada” can be called a melodrama.
8. Would you consider the ending of the film conventional? Why? Why not? Explain.
9. Discuss the following quote from the film: (In a restaurant in Paris, Andy tells Christian) “If Miranda were a man, no one would notice anything about her except how great she is at her job”.
   

© Ali Nihat Eken, Istanbul, September 2008
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