Live Flesh by Pedro Almodovar: Scene Analysis :: essays research papers

Pedro Almodovar’s 1997 film Live Flesh (Carne Tremula), is rich in both visual and story elements, making in the perfect candidate for a scene analysis. Upon writing this paper, however, this was almost to my disadvantage. I watched it through and whittled it down to about five scenes I considered analyzing. This self-challenge is a testament to not only this film, but Almodovar’s whole body of work; he has created so many thoughtful, intricate, and all together entertaining films in his career, I had to somehow forgive myself for just choosing one short scene out of only one of his movies for analysis. So, without further ado, here is an analysis of a scene from Live Flesh. The scene I chose to analyze is the one in which David (Javier Bardem) returns home from a basketball game, only to find out his wife, Elena (Francesca Neri) has slept with another man. It occurs at roughly an hour and 17 minutes into the film, and is relatively short, but extremely powerful. The opening shot to the scene of Elena returning home from her tryst early in the morning. She enters the shower and begins to smell her naked body, seemingly bringing back memories from the previous night. Every time she inhales, she lets out an orgasmic sigh, which makes it clear to the audience exactly what she is recalling. With each sigh it seems that she not only had an amazing sexual experience, but that she also doesn’t regret it at all. This is until her last deep breathe. After this, she pauses for a beat, and in this moment, a look of full realization about the events of the past night washes over her face. This moment is fleeting, however, because right when she turns the shower on, she closes her eyes, as if she is recalling not only the scents of the night before, but even the sights and sounds. As soon as she stops moving and cracks a smile, the shot quickly changes to David’s cab pulling up. The cab symbolizes David’s dependence, in that all he can do is sit in the back and tell the driver where to go, showing that his disability has forced him to become dependent on so many different people. The fact that David’s cab was shown right as Elena began to smile shows that David’s dependence is preventing Elena from truly being happy, which I’m sure is a struggle in any relationship involving a handicapped person.

Pros of Lowering Drinking Age Outline

Affirmative side for Lowering Legal Drinking Age (OUTLINE) 1) Human rights. * Individuals who are legally allowed to vote and get married, sign legal contracts, smoke cigarettes, can be responsible when it comes to drinking alcohol as well. Turning 18 allows one to make their own decisions in life. * Evidence #1: â€Å"National Youth Rights Association does not feel this is an issue primarily about alcohol; rather it is an issue about equality, respect, discrimination and freedom.Americans of all ages, races, genders, and ethnicities deserve equal respect, and they deserve the right to make their own choices in life. † 2) Drink safely in regulated environments * Prohibiting this age group from drinking in bars, restaurants, and other licensed locations causes them to drink in unsupervised places such as house parties where they may be more prone to binge drinking and other unsafe behavior. * Evidence #1: â€Å"Among college students, a decade’s worth of research in the College Alcohol Study found the proportion of students engaging in frequent binge drinking had increased.Compared to 1993, more 18- 24 year students who chose to drink in 2001 were drinking excessively- as defined by frequency of drinking occasions, frequency of drunkenness, and drinking to get drunk. † * Evidence #2: â€Å"College students experienced a nearly 10 percent increase in the rate of drinking to get drunk between 1993 and 2001, which corresponded to an increase in secondary consequences and treatment for alcohol overdose. * Evidence #3: â€Å" National estimates suggest that among full-time college students, 690,000 are involved in assaults, 97,000 are involved in rapes, and 599,000 are injured as a result of alcohol† 3) Ineffective * Evidence #1 (Prohibition did not work then): â€Å"In 1920, alcoholic beverages were banned in the United States. However, the government had created a huge black market for the intoxicating substance by encouraging the drin kers to switch to spirits. It is believed widely to have been a misguided and failed social experiment that made alcohol problems worse. † Evidence #2 (Prohibition did not work now): â€Å"95% of those who will be alcohol consumers in their lifetime take their first drink before age 21† * Evidence #3(Prohibition did not work now): â€Å"50% of 18-20 year olds consume alcohol regularly† * Evidence #4(Prohibition did not work now): â€Å"75% of high school seniors, 60% of sophomores and 40% of eight graders have consumed alcohol† * Evidence #5(Prohibition did not work now): â€Å" 5,000 lives were lost each year by those under the age of 21. Of these, fewer than 40% are traffic fatalities. The vast majority- over 60%- of alcohol-related fatalities take place off roadways†

Versailles The Royal Palace in Paris Essay - 606 Words

Versailles Versailles was not always a chà ¢teau or a royal palace it was also a country village on the road to Paris. Now let’s step back to when it was being built. There was a total of four campaigns each lasting around 4-20 years. The first campaign was building the garden and apartments to accommodate 600 guest invited to a celebration party and not much else happened in this campaign. The second building campaign was mainly about creating a place for the royal family to stay at. Louis XIV the king had his own room and his queen also had her own room. Louis’ XIV brother and sister-in-law had their own room as well. A hunting lodge for the royal family was also created for them to stay at as well. The second campaign was also being at†¦show more content†¦Also the son remodeled the courtyard as well for everyone to see. Day-to-day life in the palace you would wake early in the morning before Louis XIV woke up to see him was up. If you were Louis XIV you would wake up to all your servants watching you. The man with the highest rank of nobility would hand the king his shirt. Reason why they watch him wake up is because they consider him as the Sun King and they want to see the â€Å"sun rise†. Another reason he is the Sun King is that everyone revolves around him like the sun in our solar system. People did many things in the Palace like dancing, hunting, and playing cards. Though I am pretty sure they always let him win. Also he would take many walks in the garden everyday with his servants. Everyday his cloths would get fancier and fancier as well as a haircut also a shave everyday. Each of the salons was name after each of the seven known planets in our solar system. There was also a grand theater that all the aristocrats would go to and watch Louis XIV perform. In October 1790 Louis XVI commanded that all furniture in Versailles to be moved to Tuileries Palace. Since the people are Versailles needed that furniture the mayor wrote a letter to him asking not to take the furniture. He responded and allowed the furniture to stay. Even though he allowed the furniture to stay Versailles still had an economic ruin in their once great city. The people got more and more frustrated at Louis XVI and that he wasShow MoreRelatedThe Palace Of Versailles Housed The French Government879 Words   |  4 PagesThe Palace of Versailles housed the French government and all its royalty during the reigns of Louis XIV- XVI. After the French Revolution in 1789 however, it was no longer a permanent royal residence for the government or royalty in France. It is located about 10 miles southwest of Paris, beside the settlement of Versailles. Before Louis XIV inherited it, it was little more than a hunting lodge built by Louis XIII, which he turned into a chateau. 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