Barton Fink

Barton Fink Trailer

Barton Fink

Barton Fink is a 1991 American period film written, produced, directed and edited by the Coen brothers. Set in 1941, it stars John Turturro in the title role as a young New York City playwright who is hired to write scripts for a film studio in Hollywood, and Joh Goodman as Charlie, the insurance salesman who lives next door at the run-down Hotel Earle.

The Coens wrote the screenplay in three weeks while experiencing difficulty during the writing of Miller'sCrossing. Soon after Miller's Crossing was finished, the Coens began filming Barton Fink, which had its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May 1991. In a rare sweep, Barton Fink won the Palme d'Or, as well as awards for Best Director and Best Actor (Turturro). Although it was celebrated almost universally by critics and nominated for three Academy Awards, the film grossed only a little over $6 million at the box office, two-thirds of its estimated budget.

The Cohen Brothers

Joel David Coen (born November 29, 1954) and Ethan Jesse Coen^[1] (born September 21, 1957), known informally as theCoen brothers, are American film directors, screenwriters, producers, and editors. Their films include Blood Simple (1984),Barton Fink (1991), Fargo (1996), The Big Lebowski (1998), O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000), No Country for Old Men(2007), Burn After Reading (2008), A Serious Man (2009), True Grit (2010), and Inside Llewyn Davis (2013).

The brothers write, direct, and produce their films jointly, although until The Ladykillers (2004), Joel received sole credit for directing and Ethan for producing. They often alternate top billing for their screenplays while sharing film credits for editor under the alias Roderick Jaynes. They have been nominated for twelve Academy Awards together, plus one individual nomination for both, winning Best Original Screenplay for Fargo and Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplayfor No Country for Old Men.

John Turturro

John Michael Turturro (born February 28, 1957) is an American actor, writer and director known for his roles in the films Do the Right Thing (1989), Miller's Crossing (1990), Barton Fink (1991), Quiz Show (1994), The Big Lebowski (1998), O Brother, Where Art Thou?(2000) and the first three films in the Transformers film series (2007–2011). He has appeared in over sixty films, and has worked frequently with the Coen brothers, Adam Sandler and Spike Lee.

John Goodman

John Stephen Goodman born June 20, 1952) is an American actor. Early in his career, he was best known for playing Dan Conneron the television series Roseanne (1988–1997), for which he won a Best Actor Golden Globe Award in 1993. He is also a regular collaborator with the Coen brothers on such films as Raising Arizona (1987), Barton Fink (1991), The Big Lebowski (1998), O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000), and Inside Llewyn Davis (2013).

Goodman's voice roles include Pacha in The Emperor's New Groove (2000), and Sulley in Monsters, Inc. (2001) and Monsters University (2013).

His other film performances include the lead role in The Flintstones (1994) and supporting roles in The Artist (2011), Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (2011), Argo (2012), Flight (2012), and The Hangover Part III (2013). On television, he has had regular roles onAmazon Studios' Alpha House and on the first season of HBO's Treme, and has been one of the most frequent hosts of Saturday Night Live. John Heilpern of Vanity Fair calls him "among our very finest actors."

Myths & Heroes - Bonnie Tyler : Holding out for a Hero

Gaynor Hopkins , more known as Bonnie Tyler is a Welch singer born on June 8, 1951 in Skewen, Neath, Wales. The begining of her stardom was in 1976 with her song, "Lost in France", from her debut album The World Starts Tonight which made the UK top 10. She then had a transatlantic top 5 hit with "It's a Heartache" in 1978.

In 1977 she had a throat operation, to remove her nodules .She was ordered to remain silent for six weeks. She didn't because one day she just screamed out in frustation. That episode of her life developed her distinct singing voice. ‘I had my first hit in America with my new husky voice on It’s a Heartache. Three other girls had recorded the song before me and it didn’t go anywhere in America, so maybe my husky voice was what that song, and my career, needed.’

She hit the big time when she became the first Welsh singer to have a transatlantic number 1 hit with "Total Eclipse of the Heart" in 1983, for which she was nominated for Grammy. The accompanying album "Faster than the Speed of Night" also entered the UK Album chart at number 1.

It was hard for her to repeat the success, but  "Holding Out for a Hero" in 1985 from the Footloose (1984) soundtrack made her famous again. In 2004 she recorded the Total Eclipse song in French, and it went to #1 in France!

She remains active in the music industry having toured all over the world, the singer Meat Loaf, and performed at Michael Douglas & Catherine Zeta-Jones' (British actress and dancer) wedding. Also, she has become a successful business woman.

Like many celebrities Bonnie Tyler doesn't like aging , she declared in an interview in 2007 that she is  a "bottox fan" which made her look more stunning than she should be at 55.

I've been around for such a long time. My first hit record was over 20 years ago and the people who bought my records then are married now and they probably still play these records and their children like them.

Meaning of the song 

The protagonist is looking for a hero with amazing capacities that most of heroes have. Strenght, speed, wiseness and a natural high sense of proctetion. She is tired of the common men who are the complete opposite of her savior and who cannot meet her expectations for the man she could be completly devoted to. This hero is so amazing that he's almost untainnable , he probably lives so far away "Somewhere just beyond my reach" away enough for him to watch her, the hero in question might even be a god or a half-god living beyond the clouds and the stars.

She's holding out for him means that she is waiting for the right one to appear, she will be waiting until the end of the night if it is necessary

My interpretation for the song if I read behing the lyrics could be applied to many situations since I know that the main theme is the seeking for a hero. In the song "Somewhere after midnight in my wildest fantasy" could mean that the protagonist is in a helpless situation and that she may be friendless and/or isolated so the fact that she can dream could be her only form of escapism, she builds her own world, her own "white knight upon a fiery steed" hoping that one day he will come to life and maybe save her from whatever she is afraid of, running from.

Meaning of the video

In the beginning , we see a burning house the video then shots of angelic background singers dressed all in white. Bonnie Tyler then escapes from the burning house thereatened by evil cowboys dressed in black, carrying neon whips. A cowboy hero wearing all white riding a white horse, with  a gun, and the evil cowboys flee on their horses. The cowboy appears as the song is ending in front of kneeled Bonnie Tyler. The meaning of the video is just linked to the lyrics except that we know now that the hero has now come to save the day and defeat evil. 

The song "Holding out for a Hero" is related to the theme "Myths and Heroes" because the word hero is always mentionned and it is a portrait that is painted throughout the song with the traits of the common hero. The role of the hero here is as always to rescue the ones in need.

Boulevard of Broken Dreams

Boulevard of Broken Dreams was realesed on the album "American Idiot"

 Two contrasting reviews of this record

"The observations don't always dig as deep as they're meant to, and buzzwords occasionally stand in for insights, but American Idiot finds Green Day both shaking up its formula and applying it in novel and unexpected ways." 

"Green Day's PR manager walks up to them one day and says "You guys are has-beens, but you're under contract for one more album, and I've got just the thing to make you hits, even at your old age! See, everybody hates President Bush now, and you guys can just ride that to the bank, right?" The band convened and decided they could by ripping off everything that made their 1994 album Dookie a success, then loading it with political bullpucky. Kids ate it up, adults praised it, and three men who made their fortunes writing songs about masturbation and marijuana became the sages of the 21st century. God help us all." 

  
Short biography of the band. 

Green Day is an American punk rock band formed in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Amstrong and bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt. For much of their career the band has been a trio with drummer Tré Cool. In 2012 guitarist and backing vocalist Jason White became a full member after playing in the band as a session and touring guitarist for 13 years. Cool replaced former drummer John Kiffmeyer in 1990, prior to the recording of the band's second studio album, Kerplunk (1992).

They are one of the world's best-selling groups of all time, having sold more than 75 million albums and singles worldwide. The group has won five Grammy Awards: Best Alternative Album for Dookie, Best Rock Album for American Idiot, Record of the Year for "Boulevard of Broken Dreams", Best Rock Album for the second time for 21st Century Breakdown and Best Musical Show Album for American Idiot: The Original Broadway Cast Recording. In 2010, a stage adaptation of American Idiot debuted on Broadway. The musical was nominated for three Tony Awards: Best Musical, Best Scenic Design and Best Lighting Design, losing only the first. Also in 2010, Green Day were ranked number 91 in the VH1 list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". In 2014, the band were announced as nominees for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, their first year of eligibility.

Do you like it or not?

I've always enjoyed listenning to this song when I was younger but I never really paid attention to the lyrics or the video.  I just really appreciated the rhythm and melody. But now that I understand the song I really like it even more because it means a lot to me and I can really relate to it. However, I won't put it on my phone and listen to it on a daily basis because I'll easily get sick of it.


Do you know what it really means?
I guess I know what it means but I could be wrong. I think it is about this constant feeling of loneliness and how a person walks this path that is life,all alone, that no one's here for him. He realizes how lonely he is and it's his lifestyle because it's the only one he's ever known But he looks for someone to walk this path with him and make him feel something other than the two feelings he constanly has. This Boulevard of Broken Dreams is his new home and he accepts it. This song also reflects the theme of emptiness that kind of completes the feeling of loneliness which together create a complete situation of despair. This song in all could be about depression.


My shadow's the only one that walks beside me- My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating

The impact of new technologies on our lives

This is a video called "Youtubers react to Look up" where a group of YouTubers react to the viral video called "Look up" which has more than 48 million views on YouTube which is huge!
In this videos, various opinions are shared but most of them agree with the idea that we should shut down our electronic devices and "look up" so we can enjoy what is around us before it's too late. But they say that they wouldn't be where they are without the Internet. Most of them "preach" the idea of technology surrounding us. But how somehow the Internet gives us everything and at the same time it's ruining everything because of course some people take it too far like being on a date but being on the phone or having a conversation and how at the same time the person you talk to is on their device.
However, some of them say that this video is contradictory because the main message is to let our phones but at the same time it gained all these views because people watched it from their electronic devices (phone, tablet, laptop...) and shared it and/or comment on it. If it wasn't for these new technologies no one would've known who Gary Turk was and what message was. Also nobody can really say that they will let their phones forever after seeing this footage. It shows how difficult it is today to just let go of everything that is technology related because it is all around us, it's everywhere, it's like the "thing" of this generation and it will go on for a very long time. We live in this era where children and teenagers are raised with electronic devices. It is true that it makes us less sociable and make us feel more lonely. But on the other hand it helps people meet each othee through online dating, keep in touch with the viewers (in a Youtuber's case). Let's not forget that the technology generartion also created a lot of jobs that consists in working with/on all things that concern cybernetic. 
One of the YouTubers strongly believes that the message in the video is wrong because he thinks that selling your computer for a engagement ring is "the stupidest thing ever" and that his childhood would've been so much better with an iPad, which shows a clear opposition between the two opinions.

Internet Anonymous

This cartoon takes place in an office, maybe at lunch time or just in the morning. We see two characters : two men, one standing up and the other, sitting on his chair. This man looks pretty happy whereas the other looks a bit concerned or confused. Their activities could be anything. They could be working in the computer section, at a regular office and so on... The sitting man announces that he found a group called Internets Anonymous and is smiling because he seems to be proud of it.
The cartoon means that people get so addicted to Internet that they create support group like Alcoholic Anonymous. Maybe it's to prove that the Internet can be a real addiction just like drugs or alcohol...


I don't think it's representative of today's world because you can spend all the time you want on the Internet you can't be truly addicted. There are some rare cases where people are really addicted but when we think about it there are not too many.
I don't really have a reaction, I think it's kind of ridiculous and I don't feel concerned because I can't take this cartoon seriously it's way over the top.

It's not a real problem because "Internet Addicts" don't put themselves in danger, they don't hurt the people around them. They don't cut people out of their lives. I mean sure they can be less sociable but it's less important than if a drug addict becomes less sociable.