Humanities and the Snowy Day

Of course, the best part of a snow day is going outside. But eventually, you have to come back in, because nobody looks good with frostbite. So what's the next best thing once you're inside?

Nominate the best movie, book, or music for entertainment on a snowy day. What makes it so weather-appropriate?

Bonus points for figuring out the title reference.

Everybody's a Critic

E.L. Doctorow argued in the essay "Quick Cuts: The Novel Follows Film into a World of Fewer Words," that films can get by without all of the exposition and dialogue that is more essential to books, and that this trend is leading to the "delitera[tion]" of film. Thus, we are becoming a society that increasingly cannot express ourselves in language, and it's all movies' fault.

Discuss. Argue. Vent.
Have movies changed the way we read? Why (not)? How? Is this a good thing?

Can you think of a book or a film that shows an extreme example of the two beginnings Doctorow discusses, either the loooong exposition of setting and character or the sudden descent in medias res just after (or before) the title credits? Do certain genres work better with one opening rather than the other?

What is the most important element of the film, the visuals, the music, the dialogue, the plot, the characterization, etc.? Why?

Due Fri., 12/18