Answer the following questions in well-developed 500-750 word essays (not single paragraphs).  You should choose to write on five questions from each group. All journals should be typed (12 point and no weird fonts) and double-spaced. You may cite the readings you've done for class but are not required to do so. Do not do any other research for these responses.
 
FIRST GROUP

1) Margie was made nearly sixty years ago. It's set twenty years earlier. However, many of the conflicts, characters, themes, and events are similar to teen films made today. What elements of the film are common to teen movies today? Are those elements presented differently in Margie than they would be today? If so, how? What are the major differences between Margie and teen movies today?
 
2)      Rebel Without a Cause created the archetype for the character of the rebel. Discuss the character of Jim Stark. How does he rebel? Is he really "without a cause"? If not, what is he rebelling against? What are the characteristics of the teen rebel character, and how does Jim illustrate them?
 
 3)      Science fiction films of the fifties often reflected social anxieties beneath the surface of their stories. What anxieties are shown in The Blob? How does the film connect fears about space and unknown worlds with those about teenagers and juvenile delinquency?
 
4)     Rape is used as a plot device in both High School Confidential and Where the Boys Are. Discuss the presentation of rape in the two films. What do these films suggest about late 50s/early 60s attitudes about rape and female sexuality?
 
5)      What is "satire"? Explain how Wild in the Streets functions as a satire. Ultimately, does the film endorse or reject social change? Why do you think this way?
 
6)     What instances of transgression and rule-breaking are present in Cooley High? What is the film's attitude towards rules and regulations?
 
SECOND GROUP
7)     Hairspray, Mischief, Cooley High, and Margie are all films set in an earlier time period than they were made. How do the films view the times in which they're set? What techniques do the films use to create nostalgia?
 
8)      Many of the teen films we’ve seen present teenagers as separated from their home lives and as isolated from or struggling against adult society and/or established teenage society. Discuss how the teenagers create substitute domestic arrangements or build new societies of their own in Rebel Without a Cause, The Breakfast Club, and Over the Edge.  Compare the films, discussing these new societies and how they differ from the established societies from which the characters emerge.
 
9) Compare and contrast the depictions of sexuality and sexual behavior in Blue Denim and Cruel Intentions.  What do the differences show about changes in the culture that produced those films?
 
10)  Compare and contrast the settings of Reckless and Risky Business.  Discuss how the settings influence the personality and development of the films’ protagonists, Johnny Rourke (Reckless) and Joel Goodson (Risky Business). Which of the two characters best fits the archetype of the "Rebel"? Why do you think this way?
 
11)  Where the Day Takes You and Wild Boys of the Road both depict the lives of homeless teenagers. What similarities in the lives of these teenagers are presented in the films? What differences are apparent? How does the difference in the times the films were made and set account for these differences?
 
12) Scream features characters viewing and discussing the film Halloween.  Compare/contrast both films.  What are the conventions of the horror film discussed in Scream?  How does Scream diverge from the conventions established in Halloween?  Why is Scream different?