Essays and Research Papers on Film & Television

3 pages in length. Brilliantly characterized by Billy Bob Thornton, Karl Childers' mild mental retardation sets his life on an unexpected - and undesirable - course straight to prison. The inability to decipher what he saw when he came upon his mother and her lover, Karl's thought process runs amuck and he ultimately ...

A 4 page essay in which the writer first addresses the topic of Expressionism, focusing on the Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, and then discusses how this legacy applies to 2 later films, Fritz Lang’s M and Alfred Hitchcock’s Spellbound. Bibliography lists 6 sources.

A 4 page essay that contrasts and compares the film “Ella Enchanted” and the fairy tale story of “Cinderella.” The writer argues that the film “Ella Enchanted” is an updated and tongue-in-cheek retelling of the fairy tale. “Ella Enchanted” has basically the same structure as the 1919 version of “Cinderella.” There is a beautiful heroine, ...

This 3 page paper is a descriptive, interpretative and evaluative critique of the play “The Little Shop of Horrors.” Bibliography lists 1 sources.

This 10 page paper discusses the TV show “Samantha Who?,” its lead-in and the show the follows it, and its competition to find answers to why networks put programs where they do. It also discusses ways to increase the show’s audience. Bibliography lists 6 sources

A 4 page paper which reflects on the film Henry V directed by Kenneth Branagh. Bibliography lists 2 sources.

A 5 page paper which compares and contrasts the 1939 film version of The Hunchback of Notre Dame with Victor Hugo’s novel of the same name. Bibliography lists 2 sources.

This 5 page paper compares the treatment of women in the films “Vertigo” and “To Die For.” Bibliography lists 6 sources.

5 pages in length. Without any further understanding of paranoid schizophrenia, the average moviegoer may watch and become enthralled with A Beautiful Mind but never consider the story as being grounded in reality; indeed, the expansive nature of Nash's cognitive ability that spanned from one end of the spectrum to another in an unfathomable ...

This 3 page paper discusses some of the themes, characterizations, symbols and sound design in the film “Gattaca.” Bibliography lists 2 sources.

In four pages this paper examines the television sitcom genre with the focus being on the first episode of All in the Family entitled ‘Meet the Bunkers’ and originally aired on January 12, 1971 with answers to various relevant socially essay questions provided and a comparison made between this sitcom and another popular CBS sitcom ...

A 5 page essay that compares Arthur Miller’s play “Death of a Salesman” and the 2006 film “The Pursuit of Happyness” (directed by Gabriele Muccino for Columbia Pictures) present two very different portrayals of fatherhood. The protagonists for both works are salesman, both fathers, both down-and-out and desperate to succeed. But they are also extremely ...

A 4 page paper which examines how the film Four Brothers depicts an aged individual, the mother of the four brothers. Bibliography lists 2 sources.

This 3 page paper critiques the film “Nine to Five” with regard to its portrayal of women (and men) in the workplace. Bibliography lists sources.

A 3 page film review. "12 Angry Men," in its original version, is set in the late 1950s. The principal focus of the film is the guilt or innocence of a defendant, a Latino adolescent, who is accused of killing his father and the prejudice of the 12, white, male jurors. However, an interesting issue ...

This 7 page paper discusses the differences between the play and Franco Zefirelli’s film version of Hamlet, starring Mel Gibson. Bibliography lists 2 sources.

A 3 page paper which examines the significance of battle scenes in the films Saving Private Ryan and The Return of the King. Bibliography lists 5 sources.

This 4 page paper examines the use of the gaze in the film "Vertigo," specifically how Scottie sees Madeleine, and how the audience sees her because of his fascination. It also considers gender and sexuality and how Hollywood portrays women in cinema. Bibliography lists 1 source.

In eight pages this paper examines how Welles’ utilized architecture and lighting in his 1962 film The Trial to communicate what was happening in Berlin and the rest of Germany during the 1920s, with German Expressionism among the topics of discussion. Four sources are listed in the bibliography.

A 5 page research paper that discusses 3 films, which present a similar idea as part of their portrayal of the influence of the media on public perception. In "His Girl Friday" (1940), "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" (1962) and "Wag the Dog" (1997), a main premise in the narrative is that the ...

This 5 page paper discusses the evolution of the vampire from the cruel bloodsuckers of legend to the suave, even romantic, anti-heroes of today. Bibliography lists 7 sources.

A 3 page paper which compares the character of Walter from Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun and Lester from the film American Beauty. Bibliography lists 2 sources.

A 3 page film review of “Peaceful Warrior,” directed by Victor Salva, which is based the 1980 autobiography authored by Dan Millman and the film uses a screenplay adaptation by Kevin Bernhardt (McKenzie). The film fails artistically on a number of levels. First of all, it offers no surprises, as it is a typical sports ...

This 3 page paper uses Thomas Levin’s article, and particularly his reference to the end of “The Conversation,” as a springboard to discuss the way in which surveillance has become narration in a number of recent films. Bibliography lists 1 source.

This 3 page paper takes the position, based on Jib Fowles’ work, that television does not harm children, and that the debate over TV violence is really a disguise for other problems we are not facing. Bibliography lists 2 sources.