Post #5

I found it interesting how virtually every character that Mr. Thompson interviews has negative feelings towards Kane after he died, while when he was alive everyone seemed to love him. The movie hints that Kane could have practically any woman that he wanted, and had people clamoring all over him to be his friend. The only men who have stood up to him so far are Jed Leeland and Jim Gettys. Leyland ended up in a nursing home begging visitors for cigars, and Gettys was an unpopular and disliked man his entire life. I'm very interested to see what thoughts the elusive "rosebud" has on Mr. Kane.

Post #4

Though I could appreciate all quiet on the western front as a well done movie, I have so far enjoyed Citizen Kane much more. The character of Kane is much more charismatic and controversial than any of the characters from the previous movie. The acting is much better, though this may be partially due to the fact that Citizen Kane was made more recently. The plot is also much more difficult to predict. So far, I have no idea who or what rosebud could be (no one tell me), but I felt that i knew that each of the soldiers would die before All Quiet on the Western Front ended. I am very much looking forward to continuing this movie.

Post #3

I thought the choice by the director to make the main characters Germans added to the anti-war agenda. At that time, many of the viewers would most likely dislike the characters because of their background. After watching the film however, they would have seen how the German soldiers were really very similar to the Allied soldiers. In this way, I feel that the movie was very successful in capturing an anti-war sentiment and showing that we are all really more alike than we think.

Post #2

I thought the scene where Paul and the other soldiers spent the night with the French women was funny on the surface, but had a deeper, more somber meaning as well. When we saw the men showing up in togas carrying sausages, they looked ridiculous. In peace-time, the women would have most likely never opened the door to them. But during WWI many people in France were starving and willing to jump at any opportunity for more rations. These women were willing to sleep with Paul and the others so that they could eat. Despite the language barrier, the soldiers were able to convince the women to sleep with them because the offered them food.

Post #1

I thought the most interesting part of the scene we watched today was the hospital scene. When Kemmerick begins convulsing and Paul runs to get the doctor, the doctor did not even know who he was. This is yet another example of dehumanization. Even when the orderly says that Kemmerick has an amputated leg, the doctor still does not recognize him. This shows the way that soldiers are merely turning into numbers rather than people. The doctor also just allowed Kemmerick to die without even attempting to save his life. The doctor views him as just another man dying in bed 26.