Sections offered FALL 2021:
#16419
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CHRISTOPHER ANDERSON |
TuTh 3:15-4:30pm
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HU 217
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CLASS NOTES: COLL (CASE) A&H Breadth of Inquiry credit, includes film showings on Tuesdays
Above class meets In Person. For more information visit https://covid.iu.edu/learning-modes/index.html
This course will explore the films of Joel and Ethan Coen, the Academy-Award winning filmmakers responsible for such classic American films as No Country for Old Men, Fargo, and The Big Lebowski, along with a dozen more critically acclaimed films made since they broke onto the scene with Blood Simple, their stylish, shocking 1984 debut. Working as collaborators for more than three decades, the Coen brothers have written, produced, and directed a series of strikingly original films that have earned them a reputation as among the most compelling filmmakers in the history of modern American cinema. Combining a deeply ironic wit with a dark sensibility, the Coen brothers’ films pay tribute to classic movie genres, while casting a wary eye on American ideals and the history of American popular culture. They are still among the most highly regarded filmmakers in America: their latest film, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, debuted on Netflix in December 2018 and received three nominations for the 2019 Academy Awards, including Best Adapted Screenplay.
The goal of this course is to introduce students to the study of film and culture by focusing on the films of the Coen brothers, and through these films, to trace an idiosyncratic path through the history of American cinema from the late 20th century to the present. The readings, screenings, assignments, and classroom activities for this course are intended to help students develop competence in critical thinking and analysis, as demonstrated through exams and short essays, and advanced skill in the writing of reasoned arguments, as demonstrated in formal papers. Students are not required to have any prior experience in film criticism or history – just an interest in learning to think critically about movies and American culture.