DUE DATE: any time before 11:59pm on Dec 13, 2018—no late papers accepted!

Length: 2 pages minimum

Prompt

How does this work INTERPRET its
depicted period and place in history?
Consider what MESSAGE the film sends to
audience, and whether this message is
effective or accurate. Please illustrate with
examples from the film and the course.

Please do not simply recite a plot summary, obsessively rate acting or visual effects, or
nitpick minor historical inaccuracies that do not affect the story. Focus instead on identifying and
dissecting the film’s main THEME(S) about the history in question. For example, The Green
Berets (1968) and Apocalypse Now (1979) both deal with the Vietnam War, but have essentially
opposite interpretations of it as a noble and just struggle, or as a nihilistic quagmire, respectively.

Assorted Films

Below are some sample works that can be used for this assignment. You are not limited to
choosing from these examples, but please make sure your choice fits within this class, and is not
a documentary. Please check with me if you have any questions about your source’s suitability.

1492: Conquest of Paradise
(1992)
Aguirre, the Wrath of God
(German, 1972)
Amistad (1997)
Apocalypto (Maya, 2006)
The Book of Negroes
(miniseries, 2015)
Cabeza de Vaca (Spanish,
1991)
Captain from Castile (1947)
Carlota Joaquina, Princess
of Brazil (Portuguese, 1995)
The Crucible (French, 1957)
Erendira Ikikunari (Spanish,
Purépecha, 2006)
Hamilton (theater, 2015)
John Adams (miniseries,
2008)
The Last of the Mohicans
(1992)
The Liberator (Spanish,
2013)
The Mission (1986)
The New World (2005)
Northwest Passage (1940)
The Other Conquest
(Spanish, 2000)
The Patriot (2000)
Pocahontas (1995)
Return to Aztlán (Nahuatl,
1990)
The Road to El Dorado
(2000)
Roots (miniseries, 1977)
Roots (miniseries, 2016)
Toussaint Louverture
(French, 2012)