Tuesday, October 28, 2008
The Exiles
Quintin from Cinema Scope magazine reviewed the 1958 film "The Exiles" about a group of Native Americans living in Los Angeles in the 1950s. I recently had the opportunity to see the film at the Union Theater and was completely taken by it. I have Native American family on my mother's side, and I used to spend my summers on the reservation, which I think gave me a bit more insight into the film. The film is not as much about despair and loneliness, but about "the proletarian class having fun." Although this is the major theme of the film, there is a strong undertone of sadness and the sense that they are the lowest racial class in America. "The Exiles is, of course, about being Indian, and about being poor and being displaced." This is shown through the scene of racial tension when they go to the gas station and a white man is filling their car, and how they only go to clubs and places that are full of minorities. I thought the article was interesting that it looked at the film at a different perspective, and didn't just highlight the oppression the people felt, but also the fun they were having.
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I was glad we had the opportunity to see "The Exiles" at the Union Theatre. (You have a good job, yes?) It was compelling, I thought, in the way it was so immersive, rather than narrative. And, yes, the sadness was pervasive. (And the print was gorgeous!)
Questions about your reaction to Quintin's "review": when you say he wrote about it from a different perspective, do you mean different from yours? Could you detail why this is "interesting"? I guess, for this assignment, I'd like to hear more about your thoughts about his assessment, his writing. As a response, this remains rather on the surface, is more about your experience with the film, than engaging with another viewpoint.
And :also is it incomplete. For this blog you were to commenton _2_ articles.
Next time, in addition to completing the assignment, engage with the article more thoroughly. Given your understandable investment in "The Exiles," you could have examined Quintin's take on the film much more thoroughly. The effort is much too cursury here.
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