Movie Analysis Crash By Paul Haggis Essay - 1305 Words

The movie I chose to discuss for this paper is Crash by Paul Haggis. Once given the list of movies to watch my girlfriend suggested we match this movie because you see a lot of racism in it. Being in a rough time in the world right now social issues come close to me so I must watch it. In the movie there are a lot of scenes that connect to social issues that plague this world currently and many things I learned in class. I will attempt to bring each scene to a connection to social issue or things taught in class. In this paper I will talk about the use of interpersonal, intercultural concepts, racism/stereotyping and Knapps conflict strategies. The main characters in this movie all connect with each other and they don’t even know it .In â€Å"Crash† taking place in Los Angeles, there are 10 Important characters that all end up connected to each other through interpersonal communication. You have two white LAPD officers John and Hansen, the African-American couple Cameron and Christine, two car jackers Peter and Anthony, Farhad a store owner and finally Daniel. Through ways connecting through racism and concepts taught in communication. With the movie Crash people can piece together the events and feelings of the characters through their own experiences with interpersonal communication. According to Mark L. Knapp interpersonal concepts is communication occurring between parties who are interdependent of each person’s behavior. It has to deal with the type of relationship whichShow MoreRelatedMovie Analysis : Crash By Paul Haggis2104 Words   |  9 PagesCrash is a drama film produced and directed by Pa ul Haggis. The movie was made about 12 years ago and dealt with the racial and social tensions in Los Angeles. This story that evolved over 2 days involves several key characters – an African American detective who has a brother who is into crime; the Caucasian District Attorney (DA) and his overpowering paranoid wife, a Caucasian police officer who is downright racist and an African American movie director and his wife, who have to interact with theRead MorePaul Haggis Crash: Movie Analysis2167 Words   |  9 PagesPaul Haggiss film Crash (2004) explores the social and racial tensions that are prevalent in contemporary Los Angeles. Crash is comprised of a series of vignettes in which people lead parallel lives that briefly intersect throughout the film and converge through various car crashes in Los Angeles. Crash features an all-star cast, which includes Sandra Bullock, Brendan Fraser, Matt Dillon, Ryan Philippe, Than die Newton, Terence Howard, Chris Ludacris Bridges, and Larenz Tate. Through various vignettesRead MoreMovie Analysis : Crash By Paul Haggis1287 Words   |  6 PagesPaul Haggis’s film â€Å"Crash†, examines characters’ who’s seemingly diametrically opposed views of racial equality cause them to crash into one another. The characters of Officer Ryan and Officer Hanson played by Matt Dillion and Ryan Phillipe are affected when the crash provides them with introspection into to their own prejudice behaviors. The crash breaks up skewed fragments of their beliefs, ideas, and perceptions. Literally, crash means to move with force and speed into an object or obstacle followedRead MoreMovie Analysis : Crash, Directed By Paul Haggis2010 Words   |  9 PagesCrash, a 2004 film directed by Paul Haggis, began by saying â€Å"It’s the sense of touch†¦Any real city, you walk†¦You brush past people. People bump into you. In L.A, nobody touches you†¦.I think we miss that touch so much that we crash into each other just so we can feel something†. The word â€Å"touch† suggests people contact with each other. â€Å"Feel† indicates a sense of emotion. In a society, where people from different background, culture, race, and ethnicity come in contact with others, each individualRead MoreMovie Analysis : Paul Haggis Academy Award Winning 2004 Film Crash Essay1108 Words   |  5 PagesIn Paul Haggis’ Academy Award-winning 2004 film Crash, many narratives intertwine to paint a picture of one of today’s melting pot cities: Los Angeles. Characters are challenged both to play into stereotypes of their races and counter them. The film relies on its viewers being familiar with myriad racial stereotypes; each scene is a guessing game, where the viewer must guess whether or not the character will act in a way that is stereotypical to their race, gender, etc. One such guessing game concernsRead MoreDepth Analysis of the Movie Crash2037 Words   |  7 Page spaper will provide a broad analysis of the movie Crash, and yet a specific picture of visual narrative techniques and audio techniques. The categories contributing to the nucleus and major movie components are theatrical elements, cinematography, editing, and sound. The Academy Award winning movie Crash is a story about society s controversial subjects projected in an in your face depiction of lives that in some way or another, cross. Depth Analysis of the Movie Crash The over-all theme ofRead MoreFilm Crash Film Analysis1178 Words   |  5 PagesMEDIA ANALYSIS Essentialism and non-essentialism views on race as represented in Paul Haggis’ film Crash. â€Å"You couldn’t find a whiter, safer or better-lit part of this city. But this white woman sees two black guys †¦ and her reaction is blind fear† (Cheadle Haggis, 2004). This quote is from the academy award-winning film Crash, by Paul Haggis. Haggis demonstrates both essentialist and non-essentialist concepts through his characters living in downtown Los Angeles. Crash follows various charactersRead MoreReview on the Movie Crash1033 Words   |  5 PagesFILM SYNOPSIS: In Crash, a simple car accident forms an uncompromising foundation for the complex discovery of race and prejudice. Paul Haggis overwhelming and incredibly thought provoking directorial debut succeeds in bringing to the forefront the behaviours that many people keep under their skin. And by thrusting these attitudes toward us with a highly deliberate, reckless abandon, Haggis puts racism on the highest pedestal for our review. There is no better place for this examination thanRead MoreReview on the Movie Crash1022 Words   |  5 PagesFILM SYNOPSIS: In Crash, a simple car accident forms an uncompromising foundation for the complex discovery of race and prejudice. Paul Haggis overwhelming and incredibly thought provoking directorial debut succeeds in bringing to the forefront the behaviours that many people keep under their skin. And by thrusting these attitudes toward us with a highly deliberate, reckless abandon, Haggis puts racism on the highest pedestal for our review. There is no better place for this examination than theRead MoreUndeniable Thought(Film Crash) Essay1212 Words   |  5 PagesFilm Analysis #1 February 7, 2012 Undeniable Thought The film Crash by Paul Haggis is a film involving issues of race and gender, which is viewed through the intersecting lives of strangers seen through an auto accident/crash in Los Angeles which opens the film. This film is trying to symbolize what goes on in the world today in regards to racism and stereotypes. Paul Haggis tries to make a point on how societies view themselves and others in the world based on there ethnicities. This movie intertwines

Education Is The Most Powerful Weapon - 1598 Words

Introduction Education, the most powerful weapon which can be used to change the world. Miriam-Webster dictionary defines education as the knowledge, skill, and understanding that you get from attending a school, college, or university (1). In today’s society, education is dispensed and received through different forms: campus-based, internet-based, distance, and home education. Home education or homeschool means a nonpublic school conducted primarily by the parent, guardian or other person having custody of a child (2). Though all states in the United States permit parents to homeschool, some states (such as California) require homeschoolers to register as private schools (3), while others (such as Pennsylvania) require children that are homeschooled to take standardized tests when they reach third, fifth, and eighth grades (4). It is the responsibility of the homeschooler to know and comply with all the requirements of the state in which he or she resides. The purpose of this article is to educate the reader on homeschooling of children in childhood developmental stage (Age three to twelve): its background, benefits, and position in today’s society, the reasons why parents opt for it, its impact on children socialization, and the difference in performance and behaviors among children in traditional school and those who are homeschooled. Background, definition, and legal status of Homeschooling in childhood Homeschooling: Back to the Future? January 7, 1998, is aShow MoreRelatedEducation Is The Most Powerful Weapon Essay1252 Words   |  6 PagesThroughout our history, most of the revolutions were turning points that contributed and improved the modern society that we are living now. Social reformers such as Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson have been spreading the message that education is crucial in leading to a successful life. However, there are still many people, especially those from the bottom of our social hierarchy pyramid, are struggling in daily life because of the lack of education. Social problems that we encounter theseRead MoreEducation Is The Most Powerful Weapon1841 Words   |  8 Pagesâ€Å"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world†, says former South African President, Nelson Mandela. While this statement is very true, there are a few caveats to this statement. If students do not want to reap all the benefits of educat ion, they will not be as likely to change the world. Therefore, we need to make sure to provide an education that facilitates change in the world. One way of doing this is improving the quality of instruction to facilitate learningRead MoreEducation Is The Most Powerful Weapon878 Words   |  4 PagesEducation has been aimed at helping students learn new and exciting things every day, that later they can use in their own lives. A purpose in education is to teach students developmental skills in; math, reading, language arts, and science. This helps us gain practice, patience, and skills for job preparation, college, and social and moral responsibility for ourselves. During my senior year of high school, all of my teachers were preparing us for college. They prepared us by having us write papersRead MoreEducation Is The Most Powerful Weapon1343 Words   |  6 PagesKnowledge. Education. These are the most powerful weapon in life, and since the dawn of time knowledge becomes the ul timate skill of an individual. Through the blade of knowledge, we can unleash our true full potential, eventually contributing massively to the world in exactly the same way great minds have done. Leaving behind countless contributions is the mark of a truly successful person. According to Nelson Mandela, the celebrated former President of South Africa, â€Å"Education is the most powerful weaponRead MoreEducation Is The Most Powerful Weapon1541 Words   |  7 PagesNelson Mandela said, â€Å"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.† Miriam-Webster dictionary defines education as the knowledge, skill, and understanding that you get from attending a school, college, or university. In today’s society, education is dispensed and received through different forms: campus-based, internet-based, distance, and home education. Home education or homeschool means a nonpublic school conducted primarily by the parent, guardian or other personRe ad MoreEducation Is The Most Powerful Weapon2016 Words   |  9 Pages Nelson Mandela said, ?Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world?. If one were to think introspect on the quote, one can realize the value of education. Education is not only needed for the betterment of any nation but the whole human kind. It is because of education that humans are achieving milestones such leading on the moon and exploring other planets such as Mars. When one is educated, their education gives them endless opportunityRead MoreEducation Is The Most Powerful Weapon868 Words   |  4 PagesNelson Mandela one said, â€Å"Education is the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world.† Education is not just a term to explain a process of getting instructions. Instead, education is extremely essential procedure in one’s life to have this weapon as explained by Mandela. As individuals we tend to learn from life experiences and events that go on around us. We not only learn about how to become successful in life instead we learn how to make a living as we encounter new individuals andRead MoreEducatio n Is The Most Powerful Weapon1195 Words   |  5 Pagessaid â€Å"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world,† and this should be our guiding principle when instituting reform in our country. The United States has the worst economic inequality in the developed world. The wealthy are making more money than ever and the amount of people living in poverty are growing at an alarming rate. As a whole, the impoverished are struggling to provide for their basic needs. A major factor in this inequality is the gap in education. InnerRead MoreEducation Is The Most Powerful Weapon1373 Words   |  6 Pagesâ€Å"Education is the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world† (Nelson Mandela). United States. has a powerful educational arsenal, its community colleges. For the reason being, community college should be free for students of less fortunate and other students who cannot afford college after high school. If the government proposed free community college to the students, each and everyone will have the chance to get an education as well the opportunity to have a better future. Free communityRead MoreEducation Is The Most Powerful Weapon Essay815 Words   |  4 Pages PSC 443 Nelson Mandela said, â€Å"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.† (â€Å"Top 10 Education Quotes) Education is a highly debated topic and many countries are in constant competition to be on top. Two countries who focus heavily on education are Japan and Germany. These two countries differ in a multitude of ways as to how they choose to educate their youth. In Germany, children age three to six can attend pre-school, however, pre-school is not free

Blood, Blood Everywhere Macbeth Essay Example For Students

Blood, Blood Everywhere Macbeth Essay In the play Macbeth, blood is used to show regret and guilt in Macbeth and Lady Macbeth s lives. It also represents Macbeth s untamed killing spree. It also represents Lady Macbeth losing her sanity. In addition it represents the end of Macbeth. In Act I, Scene ii, Duncan asks, What bloody man is that? (1). He is talking about the sergeant who is coming with a report that Scotland defeated Norway in the war. The sergeant told Duncan that it was brave Macbeth who helped them win the war. The sergeant says, Disdaining fortune, with his brandished steel,/ Which smoked with bloody execution (I,ii,16-18). This description of Macbeth s sword is foreshadowing his untamed killing spree. Next in Act I, Scene v, during Lady Macbeth s unsexing scene, she says, make thick my blood,/ Stop up the access and passage to remorse/ That no compunctious visitings of nature/ Shake my felt purpose (43-46). Lady Macbeth is asking the spirits to take all of her womanly features, so that she will not feel remorse, and can assist her husband in the murdering of King Duncan. Later in Act I, Scene vii, Macbeth is talking about his plan to kill Duncan: But in these cases/ We still have judgment here; that we but teach/ Bloody instructions, which being taught return (9-10). Macbeth is talking about how he is going to kill King Duncan with his instructions. Macbeth is trying to find the best way to kill Duncan. In the next act, Act II, Scene i, during Macbeth s dagger scene, he says, Mine eyes are made the fools o the other senses,/ Or else worth all the rest: I see the still;/ And on thy blade and dudgeon gouts of blood (46). Macbeth sees a floating dagger in front of him, leading him to Duncan s chamber. In the same scene Macbeth says, There s no such thing:/ It is the bloody business which informs/ Thus to mine eyes (49). Macbeth is trying to deny that he is seeing the dagger. He says it is the plan for killing Duncan that makes him see this. Next in Act II, Scene ii, Lady Macbeth says, If he do bleed,/ I ll gild the faces of the grooms withal,/ For it must seem their guilt (66-68). She is going to wipe Duncan s blood on the guards, so it will look like they did it. She does not want any evidence to point at them. Later in Act II, Scene iii, Macbeth says, the fountain of your blood;/ Is stopp d (106). Macbeth is telling Duncan s sons that their father is dead. In the same scene Lennox says, Those of his chamber, as it seem d, had done t:/ Their hands and faces were all badged with blood (111). Lennox is telling Malcolm and Donaldbain who murdered their father. Also in that scene, Macbeth says, Here lay Duncan,/ His silver laced with his golden blood,/ And his gash d stabs look d like a breach in nature (123). Macbeth is saying that Duncan s murder is going to disturb nature. Later in this scene, Banquo says, And question this most bloody piece of work (143). Banquo is asking why they would have a reason to kill King Duncan. In the last part of this scene, Donaldbain says, There s daggers in men s smiles: the near in blood,/ The nearer bloody (158-159). Donaldbain is saying he does not think that the guards murdered his father, but someone who wanted his power. In the same act, in Scene iv, Ross says, Thou seest, the heavens, as troubled with man s act,/ Threaten his bloody stage (6-7). Ross is explaining that the murdering of Duncan has upset nature s balance. .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505 , .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505 .postImageUrl , .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505 , .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505:hover , .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505:visited , .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505:active { border:0!important; } .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505:active , .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505 .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u15db2bbd2e10502386044fb674b50505:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Examine the changing relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth in Macbeth and discuss how this is presented by Shakespeare EssayIn the same scene Ross asks, Is t known who did this more than bloody deed (27). Ross is asking MacDuff if they know who killed Duncan. In the next act, Act III, Scene i, Macbeth says, So is he mine, and in such bloody distance (128). Macbeth is discussing killing Banquo with the two murderers. In Scene iv, Macbeth is explaining to his wife that he sees Banquo s ghost, he says, Blood hath been shed ere now (88). After all of the guests leave the banquet, Macbeth is talking to Lady Macbeth, and he says, It will have blood: they say blood will h ave blood (144). In the last part of this scene, Macbeth says, I am in blood/ Stepp d in so far that, should I wade no more,/ Returning were as tedious as go o er (158-160). Macbeth is saying that he is in so far with all the killing that he can not get out. Next in Act IV, Scene I, the bloody child says, Be bloody, bold and resolute; laugh to scorn/ The power of man, for none of woman born/ Shall harm Macbeth (85-87). The Apparition is telling Macbeth that no man born from a woman can kill him. In Scene iii, MacDuff says, Bleed, bleed, poor country:/ Great tyranny, lay thou thy basis sure,/ For goodness dare not check thee (36-38). MacDuff is talking about all of the murders and bad times that his country is going through. Later on in the same scene Malcolm says, I grant him bloody (66). They are talking about how bad of a person Macbeth is. In the next act, Act V, Scene i, Lady Macbeth keeps seeing this spot of blood on her arm that will not go away. She says, Out, damned spot! out, I say (30). In this scene Lady Macbeth is losing her sanity because all of the secrets she kept inside for so long. In the same scene Lady Macbeth says, Here s the smell of the blood still: all the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand (42-43). She still smells the blood on her hand, and she says that the best smelling perfumes could not take the smell away. In the last act, Act V, Scene vi, MacDuff says, Those clamorous harbingers of blood and death (11). MacDuff is describing the trumpeters as they sound the attack. The use of blood in this play was used to explain all of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth s murders and their guilty consciouses. By the end of the play, Lady Macbeth has lost her sanity from keeping all of it inside. Macbeth, by the end of the play, has killed so many people that it seems like the first murder was nothing.

Lagaan (2001) A landmark Bollywood film that gracefully combines art and entertainment Essay Example

Lagaan (2001): A landmark Bollywood film that gracefully combines art and entertainment Paper The Bollywood film chosen for analysis in this essay is Lagaan, released in 2001. The film, directed by Ashutosh Gowariker stars Amir Khan and Gracy Singh in lead roles. The movie combines popular formulaic elements within the time-tested format of sports movies, making it a unique production to have come out of Bollywood in many years. Not only was the movie make a lot of money at the box-office (both in India and abroad), but it also attracted positive reaction from the critics. This is evident from the fact that it was one of the movies nominated for Best Picture under Foreign Language Movie category in the following year at the Academy Awards. It is hoped that reasons such as these make Lagaan an appropriate choice for discussion in this essay. Before getting the detailed analysis of the film, a brief summary of the story is called for. Lagaan is a fictional story set in nineteenth century India, when the country was still under the rule of British Empire. A group of villagers from a remote village in the arid central India â€Å"take up a British officer’s challenge to play cricket in order to get a reprieve from a crippling tax imposed by the colonial government† (Kasbekar, 2007, p. 366) If the villagers beat their colonial rulers, their taxes are waived off for three subsequent years. In the eventuality they lose they will be compelled to pay thrice the usual taxes Moreover, We will write a custom essay sample on Lagaan (2001): A landmark Bollywood film that gracefully combines art and entertainment specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Lagaan (2001): A landmark Bollywood film that gracefully combines art and entertainment specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Lagaan (2001): A landmark Bollywood film that gracefully combines art and entertainment specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer â€Å"The fact that the villagers have never played cricket and do not know the first thing about the game establishes the foundation of the film’s narrative and dramatic structure. The British officer’s sister takes pity on the villagers and secretly teaches them the game so that they have a fighting chance. The cricket match takes up the final hour of this nearly four-hour long film and is marked by moments of comedy, drama, and suspense.† (Ganti, 2004, p.25) Lagaan has proven to be a watershed event in mainstream Indian film industry. This view is supported by the fact that in the years since its release, no other movie had attained such overwhelming popular and critical acclaim. At the time when Lagaan was released, Bollywood was going through a crisis of sorts. Most films released by the film studios of Mumbai (which is where Bollywood is headquartered) were failing badly at the box-office. There were multiple reasons behind this decline, but the foremost among them is the lack of creativity and novelty in the scripts. Even regular movie-goers got fed up with the bland, repetitive and unimaginative story lines of a majority of films at the time. It is in this context that Lagaan should be studied and evaluated, for it then lucidly illustrates the uniqueness of Lagaan (Vasudevan, 2005, p.135). Bollywood is differentiated from the Independent/Art House film industry in India. The former is generally considered as a money making industry with importance given only to â€Å"entertainment†. This is in direct contrast to the Art House film industry, which adopts its ethos based on â€Å"artistic merit†. While Lagaan, without doubt, is a mainstream Bollywood production, it stands out for its artistic merit as well, as will be illustrated below. Firstly, given the lengthy four hour duration of the film, pacing the film becomes a challenging task for the director. Ashutosh Gowariker, the director, does a commendable job in this department as he employs ‘song and dance’ sequences at appropriate junctures to keep the audience engaged to the narrative. The background score given by A.R.Rahman also deserves mention here, as it is one of his masterly works. The task of finding a resonant blend in combining classical Hindustani music with classical West ern is never easy. Rahman overcomes these challenges without a hitch and in the process delivers a unique musical work. Again, such ground-breaking works are not usually associated with Bollywood in general, which further goes to emphasize the enduring significance of Lagaan to the mainstream Indian film industry. Equally competent is the choreographic sequences in the film. Gracy Singh, who plays the role of the jealous village-girl in love with Bhuvan (played by Amir Khan) is particularly graceful in the dance sequences. Being a trained classical dancer, she carries off the role with great ease. The chemistry between the lead pair, especially in moments of romance, is another area where the movie scores (Kasbekar, 2007, p.378). Through a well thought-out interlay of drama, romance and song-and-dance, Gowariker balances the various imperatives of Bollywood entertainers. It is apt to bring to light at this point that Bollywood and Cricket have been two major sources of entertainment for the Indian public. In many ways, Cricket precedes Bollywood in finding a place in the collective Indian public consciousness, for the sport in India is as old as the British Raj. Bollywood, on the other hand, would have to wait for the advent of film and sound technology to grow into a large commercial enterprise that it is today. Lagaan benefits no end by bringing Cricket to the realm of Bollywood and thereby creating a risk-free approach to commercial success (Ganti, 2004, p.232). The employment of the game of Cricket as a metaphor for larger and real struggles in life is a brilliant conception on part of the director. Not surprisingly then, the Cricket match agreed to by the villagers and their British administrators comprises the central sequence in the film, the detailed discussion of which is as follows (Tripathi, 2002, p.38). The cricket match between the natives and the colonial powers takes up the last one hour of the lengthy movie. During the course of the match the built up suspense and anxiety resolves itself. In other words, the cricket match, with so much at stake for both sides serves as a perfect backdrop in which to unravel the climax. While the cricket match can be construed at one level as the struggle between the underdog and the master, at another level it is an allegory for the real-life struggle by subjects of empire against their colonial rulers. At an even greater level of abstraction, the cricket match is an allegory to the universal tussle between forces of good and evil, with the village team evidently being on the side of the good. There are discernible nationalistic undertones in the movie, as Jyothika Virdi points out in her scholarly work The Cinematic Imagination: Indian Popular Films as Social History: â€Å"Lagaan celebrates the struggle against the empire: the trans-national forces of another moment, that noble moment to which the nation owes its origin and to which Hindi cinema has only made muted references before. The anti-colonial struggle might become the latest imprint to imagine the nation—more than a hundred years after the nationalist movement began in earnest and fifty years after the nation’s independence. The dramatic appeal of the now-historic anti-imperial victory might make it yet another enduring strategy to glorify the nation racked with internal polarizations, confused about contending with intensifying globalization forces, and willing to repress and displace the trauma of two nations with the self-aggrandizement of becoming a regional superpower.† (Virdi, 2003, p.78) The aforementioned observations by Jyothika Virdi are valid assessments of Lagaan. Moreover, it places the key ingredients of the film in the context of Bollywood role as an arbiter of Indian culture, values and notions of national identity. While some Bollywood movies take into consideration such elements as the nation’s tenuousness, its artifice, etc, and try to gloss over fault lines, a majority of the films â€Å"locate these fractures within the nation by projecting a national edifice and the rumblings against it. The nation not only subsumes personal identities but also collectives identified by class, gender, sexuality, community, and caste, although social movements centred around these threaten the hierarchies (feudal, capitalist, and patriarchal) maintained by the nation state. Hindi films explore the tensions these collectives generate, even openly articulate their conflicts within the nation; they offer a glimmer of change—and then contain it† (Gant i, 2004, p.232). It is quite fitting to conclude this essay by stating that Lagaan performs all these functions and more. References: Bale, John, and Mike Cronin, eds. Sport and Postcolonialism /. New York: Berg, 2003. Cook, David A. A History of Narrative Film. New York: W. W. Norton, 1996. Ganti, Tejaswini. Bollywood: A Guidebook to Popular Hindi Cinema. New York: Routledge, 2004. Kasbekar, Asha (2007) ‘An Introduction to Indian cinema.’ In: Nelmes, Jill (ed) An Introduction to Film Studies, London: Routledge, pp. 365–390. Tripathi, Salil. â€Å"Better Than Bollywood: It’s a Hot Summer for India’s Film Industry, but Salil Tripathi Prefers a Film-Maker Who Favours Reality over Schmaltz.† New Statesman 3 June 2002: 38+. Vasudevan, Ravi P.: The Politics of Cultural Address in a ‘Transitional’ Cinema: A Case Study of Indian Popular Cinema. In: Gledhill, Christine/ Williams, Linda: Reinventing Film Studies. London: Arnold, P. 130–164 Vick, Tom (2007) Asian Cinema: A Field Guide, Collins, pp. 87 – 112 Virdi, Jyotika. The Cinematic Imagination: Indian Popular Films as Social History. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2003.