Response Writing assignment:
Write about the two key aspects of the film: the personal and the political/social. See below for more details.
What to do first:
Watch the film, taking notes, keeping track of the main things: character, plot, setting.
Since it’s a film, especially note the interplay/balance of dialogue and visual scenes. You will notice that the film actually does not have a lot of dialogue and many of the shots are quite slow/visual, almost like a photo rather than a film. Also, it’s in black and white, which enhances the feeling of looking at old photos. Relax and enjoy (but don’t fall asleep, and again…take notes!) Warning, there is some nudity in the film and sad scenes (I personally cry in 3 different places).
If you can, go back and watch key scenes again, just to make sure you’ve “got it” and to pay close attention to any scenes that you may want to include in your writing E.g. when Cleo goes looking for Fermin or when the family goes on the trip to the beach.
Now start the writing. Focus on these two aspects, shoot for 250-350 words each. As usual, if you enjoy this process you can expand into a complete film review for your first formal essay:
The Personal Story:
How do the stories of Mrs. Sophia (the mother/employer) and Cleo (the servant) parallel each other? How do the two women differ? In what ways does the film suggest similarities? Discuss this as a film about family.
The political/social context:
The film takes place mostly in Mexico City in 1970-71. What is the social/political context? How do you know what it is? Should there have been more information? Is it “enough”? Do you think it is well done? How does the context affect the women personally?
In both sections above be specific about the film by focusing on at least one scene each and dialogue just as you would if you were writing about a scene in a story or novel. You can do this by describing the visuals: camera angles/distance, length of shots, lighting, sound. The Setting/scenery, costumes, appearance of the actors, all of these things are part of the story telling which you can describe and comment on. Of course, think of how scenes work together either by contrast or similarity. Where do you see motifs (repeated images, e.g. the driveway, the housecleaning, telephone calls). Also, be sure to quote from the text (*you can do this by taking notes on the subtitles.) If you are fluent in Spanish, feel free to quote it in the original!
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