1. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 6 [return to top]

• FILM: TONY SCOTT, True Romance, 1993 (US, Colour, 121 min.)
• READINGS:
• Joel W. Martin, "Introduction: Seeing the Sacred on the Screen", in Screening the Sacred, ed. by Joel W. Martin and Conrad E. Ostwalt, Jr., Boulder: Westview Press, 1995, pp. 1-12 .
• Paul W. Diener, "What is Religion?," in Religion and Morality, pp. 1-8 (readings packet).
• David R. Loy, "The Religion of the Market" JAAR 65 1997) 275-290 (esp. 275-281).
• William H. Phillips, Analyzing Films: A Practical Guide, pp. 3-10 (readings packet).

2. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 13 [return to top]

• FILM: OLIVER STONE, Platoon, 1986 (US, Colour, 120 min.)
• READINGS:
• "Theological Criticism", in Martin & Ostwalt, Jr. , eds., Screening the Sacred:, pp. 13-17.
• Avent Childress Beck, "The Christian Allegorical Structure of Platoon", in Martin & Ostwalt, Jr., eds., Screening the Sacred:, pp. 44-54.
• Lloyd Baugh, Imaging the Divine: Jesus and Christ-Figures in Film, pp. 205-225 (readings packet).
• Peter Goddard, "Jesus goes to the movies," The Toronto Star, March 29, 1997 (readings packet).
• Corrigan, Timothy. A Short Guide to Writing about Film, Ch. 1-3 (pp. 1-76).

3. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20 [return to top]

• FILM: DAVID FINCHER, Aliens 3, 1992 (US, Colour, 115 min.)
• READINGS:
• "Mythological Criticism", Martin & Ostwalt, Jr. , eds., Screening the Sacred, pp. 65-71.
• Janice Hocker Rushing, "Evolution of 'The New Frontier' in Alien and Aliens: Patriarchal Co-optation of the Feminine Archetype", in Martin & Ostwalt, Jr. , eds., Screening the Sacred, pp. 94-117.
• Corrigan, Timothy. A Short Guide to Writing about Film, Ch. 4-5 (pp. 77-124).
• NOTE: First Paper: A 5 page critical analysis of a film using one of the the three methodologies presented in Screening the Sacred: - Due Feb 10 (in 3 weeks)

4. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 27 [return to top]

• FILM: JOHN G. AVILDSEN, Rocky, 1976 (US, Colour, 119 min.)
• READINGS:
• "Ideological Criticism", Martin & Ostwalt, Jr., eds., Screening the Sacred, pp. 119-123.
• "Redeeming America: Rocky as Ritual Drama", Martin & Ostwalt, Jr., eds., Screening the Sacred, pp. 125-133.
• Timothy Corrigan, A Short Guide to Writing about Film, Ch. 6-7, Appendix & Glossary (pp. 125-179).

5. WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 3 [return to top]

• FILMS: (In class) ANTHONY MINGHELLA, Truly, Madly, Deeply, 1991 (UK, Colour, 90 min.)
• (Privately) JERRY ZUCKER, Ghost, 1990 (US, Colour, 128 min.)
• READINGS:
• Conrad E. Ostwalt, Jr., "Conclusion: Religion, Film, and Cultural Analysis", Martin & Ostwalt, Jr., eds., Screening the Sacred, pp. 152-159.
• Donald Wiebe, The Irony of Theology and the Nature of Religious Thought, 1991, pp. 213-227 (readings packet).

6. WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 10 [return to top]

• FILMS: (In class) BRYAN SINGER, The Usual Suspects, 1995 (US, Colour, 106 min.)
• (Privately) STANLEY KUBRICK, The Killing, 1956 (US, B&W, 83 min.)
• READINGS:
• Student Paper: Joseph E. Dadson, "The Reliability of the Individual: A Critical Comparison of Two Exercises in Film Noir" (readings packet).
• Bernard F. Dick, "The Crime Film" and "Film Noir," in Anatomy of Film, 3rd ed., pp. 103-109 (readings packet).
• Rick Salutin, "God may be in the details, but he's hard to find on TV" The Globe and Mail, Friday, December 12, 1997.
• First Paper[20%] ñ Late submissions will be deducted 1% per day.

7. WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 24 [return to top]

• FILM: ALBERT BROOKS, Defending Your Life, 1991 (US, Colour, 112 min.)
• READINGS:
• Paul Heelas, "Manifestations," in The New Age Movement: The Celebration of the Self and the Sacralization of Modernity, pp. 15-40 (readings packet).
• Lizzie Francke, "Review of Defending Your Life" Sight and Sound, p. 41.
• NOTE: Second Paper: A 10 page comparison of any two films: Due Mar 24 (in 4 weeks)

8. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 3 [return to top]

• FILM: ATOM EGOYAN, The Sweet Hereafter, 1997 (Canada, Colour, 110 min.)
• READINGS:
• Jon D. Levenson, "Child Sacrifice in the Hebrew Bible: Deviation or Norm?," in The Death and Resurrection of the Beloved Son, pp.3-17 (readings packet).
• Genesis 22:1-18 (The Binding of Isaac), and Judges 11 (Jephthatís Daughter).
  James Kendrick, review of The Sweet Hereafter, (readings packet).

9. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 10 [return to top]

• FILM: JOHN WOO, The Killer, 1989 (Hong Kong, Colour, 110 min.)
• READINGS:
• Stephen Teo, "A Better Tomorrow ñ John Wooís Moral Dimension," in Hong Kong Cinema: The Extra Dimensions, pp. 174-183 (readings packet).
• Hal Hinson, review of The Killer, The Washington Post May 10, 1991 (readings packet).
• Ken Derry, "Mimesis, Scapegoating and René Girard: An Introduction," pp. 1-4 (readings packet).

10. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 17 [return to top]

• FILM: LEWIS GILBERT, Educating Rita, 1983 (UK, Colour, 110 min.)
• READING: Maggie Humm, "Feminist Theory, Aesthetics and Film Theory," in Feminism and Film, pp. 3-16 (readings packet).

11. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 24 [return to top]

• FILM: LEE TAMAHORI, Once Were Warriors, 1994 (New Zealand, Colour, 103 min.)
• READING: Robert Sklar, "Social Realism with Style: An Interview with Lee Tamahori" Cineaste Vol. XXI, No. 3, 1995, pp. 25-27.
• Second Paper[40%]ñLate papers accepted at a deduction of 1% per day

12. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31 [return to top]

• FILM: WOODY ALLEN, Hannah and Her Sisters, 1986 (US, Colour, 103 min.)
• READING: Gary Commins, "Woody Allen's Theological Imagination," Theology Today 44 (July 1987) 235-249 (readings packet).
• Final test review

13. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 7 [return to top]

• TEST: In class: (90 Minutes) Based on the required readings and the lectures in class [20%]. Marks will be posted on the web-site