Reflection of our work doing this blog

The fact that we had to do this assignment gave us the possibility to learn using technology. I mean, we were not inside the classroom paying attention to the teacher and taking notes. We did this outside the class using internet, and we managed the time to do this assignment. We liked the fact of doing this work in terms of “informality”. The most remarkable things we learnt were how to create and use a Blog because it helped us to use different PC programs useful for the creation, and the development of the Blog. In addition to that, we had the chance to study Film concepts such us, Genre, Mise-en-Scene, and so on.

We also developed different skills that are really helpful. For example, we are able to make critical comments, to make good researches, and be creative to do different works.

In conclusion , we would like to have more homeworks and tasks using more than a notebook and a pencil because we should use all the tools that technology offers to society.

Relation between our film and others.

Before beginning with the third task we think that it’s our obligation to refer to every film given to our classmates, films made more than fifty years ago that have contributed to the development and legacy of film history.
Furthermore, all the movies given to our classmates were helpful to the people living in those years as a way of escaping from the hard reality that they were living. For example, WW2 and the difficult economical situations suffered by the United States, some of them gave people the possibility to be amused by the great scenes that masterminds such as Sam Peckinpah, Hitchcock, Woody Allen, and so on. Although the lack of technological elements, they learned to take advantage of the simplest things that they had at there reach.
Even though what we are about to say seems to have no further relation and it could possibility be taken as a contrast, we have established that there is a co-relation between the fact that most of the movies have different genres, following different patterns, which means that they were made for different types of audiences, but it’s the fact that all of this movies were made with the purpose to catch audience that makes them similar.

Some of the similarities that we found during our research were that in 15 from 17 movies had English as the main language.

Corpse Bride - English Language
Citizen Kane - English Language
Casablanca - English Language & Country (USA)
Cabaret - English Language & Country (USA)
The Wild Bunch - English Language & Country (USA))
The maltese falcon - English Language & Country (USA)
The gold rush – Country (USA)
Rebel without – English Language
Brazil - English Language
The Third Man – English Language
Manhattan - English Language & Country (USA)
Vertigo - English Language
Wizard of Oz - English Language & Country (USA)
High noon - English Language & Country (USA)
Elephant - English Language & Country (USA)

The movie with which we found a particular similarity was with the movie
“High Noon” a movie which is part of the Western Genre just like ours, they share the same pattern in which the movie does not only focus on cold blood killing but the mission that the main characters have.

Another minimum similarity that we found was that “The Battle of Britain” and “The Wild Bunch” were both released in 1969.

The last similarity we found involves 4 movies, “High Noon”, “Elephant”, “The Thin Red Line”, and “The Battle of Britain” due to the action scenes that the movies had.

The Wild Bunch '' Wanted ''

Mise-en-Scene

*Setting: Texas Mexico Border, 1969.

*Acting: William Holden as Pike Bishop, Ernest Borgnine as Dutch Engstrom, Robert Ryan as Deke Thornton, Edmond O'Brien as Freddie Sykes, Warren Oates as Lyle Gorch, Jaime Sánchez as Angel, Ben Johnson as Tector Gorch, Emilio Fernández as Gen. Mapache, Strother Martin as Coffer, L.Q. Jones as T.C, Albert Dekker as Pat Harrigan, Bo Hopkins as Clarence 'Crazy' Lee, Dub Taylor as Rev. Wainscoat, Paul Harper as Ross and Jorge Russek as Maj. Zamorra.

*Costumes: Cowboys>common clothing according to the age which they belong to. For example, men weared cowboys, sherif and gun's clothing and women big dresses according to her social status and age.

*Lighting: It seems to be not very important because most of the scenes are during the day. the importance of lightning in the movie is more noticeable in fights scenes where we see shoots and explotions.

*Make up: Nothing special, very common since it is a movie created in the 1960's that shows how people looked like in the western part of the US.

*Print: Diegetic print .

Sam Peckinpah year by year filmography.

• 1961 The Deadly Companions
• 1962 Ride the High Country
• 1965 Major Dundee
• 1966 Noon Wine (television film)
• 1969 The Wild Bunch
• 1970 The Ballad of Cable Hogue
• 1971 Straw Dogs
• 1972 Junior Bonner
• 1972 The Getaway
• 1973 Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid
• 1974 Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia
• 1975 The Killer Elite
• 1977 Cross of Iron
• 1978 Convoy
• 1982 Jinxed! (stunt director)
• 1983 The Osterman Weekend

Our Opinion.

When we started to do this assignment we thought that the movie Wild - Bunch was hackneyed compared to movies given to some of our classmates but it actually came out to be a gripping film that has memorable scenes of violence.
One of the things we liked the most was that this was a different type of western movie, the plot was not as vague as other western movies in which we find cowboys fighting against Native Americans or Other Cowboys, Bandits with out much more transcendence. However, Wild Bunch has more elements that make this movie much more interesting. For Example, the characters are not just cold blood killers they also show some humanity because they try to do things for others. There is a deep content in the movie the characters have a mission that must be accomplished.

We also enjoyed the mise – en – scene we think that even though the movie is made rather old, it has very good special effects, wardrobe, stunt mans and places chosen for every shot.

History and Background.

The movie takes us to the year 1913, during the height of the Mexican Revolution. In the fictional town of San Rafael, Texas Mexico Border. Although it actually began to be filmed in the year 1967 in a place called Hacienda Cienega del Carmen located in a town at the West of Monterrey Mexico, In the state of coahuila called Parras de la Fuente.


The Mexican Revolution:

Porfirio Diaz was elected president from 1876 to 1910. While he ruled, Mexico improved its technology and economy. Diaz eventually became a dictator, giving the upper class unfair advantages. It was nearly impossible for an average citizen to be in involved in the government. This helped start the Mexican Revolution in 1910.
In 1908, Diaz told an American journalist that the 1910 elections will be free elections. That meant everyone could vote for president, even if they were not upper class. A rich landowner named Francisco I. Madero was interested in running for president. Madero's campaign slogan was "Effective suffrage and no re-election." Madero had many supporters and was bound to win the elections. Diaz knew this, so he rigged the elections and arrested Madero. After Madero got out of jail, he went to San Antonio, Texas it was for this reason that on November 20, 1910 Madero began a call of arms. It is estimated that the war killed more than 1 million of the 1910 population on 15 millions.

Extract from : http://austin.episd.org/ephistory/quadmexrev.htm


Hacienda Cienega del Carmen is the physical place where one of the most important sequence of the movie was filmed, the scene was called ‘’ The Bloody Porch battle ‘’ one of the most powerful shoot – out ever filmed in cinematographic history.

Movie Scene :












Real Place:

Sam Peckinpah

He was born in Fresno, EE UU, in 1925 and died in Inglewood, in 1984.He was an American director who started his career working on television where he wrote and directed many programs related to the western world. For example, Gunsmoke and The Westerner. Peckinpah served in the navy during the WW2.
He got married in Las Vegas with Marie Selland and on the following year he graduated as a Theatre student in the University of California. He worked with the director Don Siegel in the movies Invasion of the Body Snatchers and Dirty Harry and in 1961 directed his first film, The Deadly Companions followed by Major Dundee and The Wild Bunch.
The protagonist of his movies usually responded to the figure of anti-hero which the American culture likes. This firmly defended the ethic code based on the honor and a cynical and materialistic society.
After directing movies related to the thriller genre such as the getaway and his last movie The Osterman Weekend. He started drinking and doing drugs.
Sam Peckinpah died of a heart attack at the age of 59.


Source taken from : http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Peckinpah

Movie Genre

This movie is classified as Epic Western which is a sub - genre of the '' Western Movie ''.Some examples are: Once upon a time in the west, The searchers, The Wild Bunch, The Good, the bad and the Ugly.

Some Characteristis of the Westerns movies are: They often show how primative humans used to be when they had to confront social changes, it mostly shows conflicts between native americans and US cavalary, this type of movies often tries to show the values of honor and sacrifice, sometimes glorifying the '' anti - hero ''.The characters are often cowboys, indians, gunfighters and bounty hunters who carry rifles and revolvers.
This type of movies emphasize brutality and out of control shooting of two diferent groups.

Sources from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western

Sam Peckinpah’s “The Wild Bunch”