Pulp Fiction (Blog #8)

Most major motion pictures that we know today have one significant commonality, sequential order of events within the plot. The genre of the film is irrelevant, from action, to comedy, to fiction, or anywhere else in-between, most films that come to your mind share this trait. But once in a blue moon, a film is created where the sequence of events might not add up immediately, but in the end, it makes all the difference in the creation of a masterpiece. Pulp Fiction, directed by Quentin Tarantio, tells the stories of multiple characters simultaneously from an individualized perspective.

As the film starts, a suspicious couple is having a conversation in a diner. This conversation eventually leads to a mutual agreement that the diner is a great business to rob. They both unleash their weapons, and the scene changes. This unorthodox method of switching scenes right before the climax leaves the viewer in suspense, keeping them interested. As the film continues, we are introduced to Samuel L. Jackson’s character as well as John Travolta’s. We come to find out they are affiliated with some mob boss in their city as they murder one of their perpetrators. Next thing we know, Bruce Willis is listening to this mob boss speak, and accept a bribe to purposely lose his boxing match later that night. All of these first scenes don’t appear to be related in any significant sense, but it keeps us interested, eager to discover how it will all tie together. As it continues, Travolta is buying top-grade heroine from his friendly neighborhood drug dealer. He shoots up in his house, and goes on his way to accompany his boss’s wife for a night on the town. After the night spirals downward to Travolta reviving this woman from a drug overdose and being terrified of the consequences, the scene changes again.

The first hour of this lengthy film alone exemplifies that showing events unfold out of order may initially confuse the audience, but more importantly, it intrigues them. Given the critical acclaim of this film, it provides evidence that viewers like to stray from the normal path on occasion. The content is not simply handed to them on a silver plate in an easily digestible fashion. We as viewers need to pay attention to detail and make some inferences of our own. As the different sections of plot development continue to unfold, we learn more and more that starts to add up and fill the story with excitement. For example, we learn that Bruce Willis, the boxer that is attempting to flee town, is the owner of the important gold watch. His pursuit of the watch ultimately leads to his savior from the mob boss in a cruel and unfortunate way.

After Willis breaks free from LA, we are rejoined by the dynamic duo of Travolta and Jackson in the scene they were left off in. Once the “divine intervention of God” as Jackson describes it occurs and they make their escape from the crime scene, an accident only furthers their troubles. Once the situation at hand is resolved, they decide to go for breakfast which leads them right to the scene the film began with. When placed in that situation, Jackson finalizes his epiphany, handles it accordingly, and the film goes to the credit roll.

The sequence of events within this film played a massive role in turning it into the success it is today. If the plot followed a traditional format, I believe it would not have been nearly as successful. The idea that the viewers had to think on their own to help make the events line up makes it deserving of the A+ reviews it received from critics worldwide.            

Product Placement of Always Sunny (Blog #6)

I decided to watch “The Gang Gives Frank an Intervention” of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia for product placement in a sitcom. Always sunny is by far one of my favorite sitcoms to ever air on television, and I’ve noticed product placement when watching it in the past. I decided to use this episode as an example because it holds some prominent product placement, but it’s also my favorite episode.

Placement starts right at the beginning of the episode. It shows the gang going somewhere inside one of the character’s cars, and Frank, one of the main characters, is drinking boxed wine out of a diet Coke can. As the episode continues, they continue to show more and more characters adapt and utilize his idea, making the product placement even more profound. The characters continually hint at the idea throughout the episode as well. The gang refers to them as soda cans; however, they never use any other type of can, regardless of how many of them are doing it. I find this interesting because it’s very obvious they are not consuming the product itself, they are only using it as an illusion to drink in public without being suspicious.

In addition, I found one other significant placement later on in the episode. As the crew is hanging out in the bar, there’s a distinct importance on Coors Light beer products. They have plastic containers for coasters and straws adorning the logo. Moreover, they have multiple neon signs on the walls showing off the brand, as well as keg tap handles boasting the “silver bullet.” But the most interesting part about this is that there are zero other brands of beer shown in the bar. All of the other signs and logos simply say “beer” or “lager” and do not mention any specific brand. To anyone that’s been in a modern bar, they would notice something as odd as this immediately and probably begin to worry since Coors light is an awful beer. Bars don’t carry just one brand of beer, and they want everyone to know they probably have the brand you’re looking to enjoy when you step in. There are signs and advertisements for almost any type of beer you could hope for in a pub today, especially an Irish pub like the one in the show. It makes me wonder what the significance of Coors is for the show, whether they wanted that branding, or if it was the cheapest. Regardless, it’s undoubtedly there for everyone to see.

        

There were some other brands that appeared throughout the episode, but none of them seem significant enough to be considered placement. For example, one of the characters drives an older Range Rover, but you only see it momentarily. In addition, there are plenty of different brands of liquor behind the bar, such as Jameson, Beefeater, and Baileys, but it’s a brief visible shot of them, and they go without mentioning by any of the characters.

It does not seem to me as if It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia emphasizes brand names too drastically, but certain scenarios cannot be denied. However, I don’t know much about branding in television, so it may be something as simple as what brand is cheapest, or if that brand is necessary for the comedy or plot development. In comparison to other popular sitcoms, I would say Always Sunny does a good job with subtle brand approach.        

The Morning Call (Blog 2)

Hello again, today I’m going to post my thoughts about an article I read in The Morning Call, from September 10, 2014 on page “news 2.” The article discussed how Mayor Michael Nutter and City Councilman James Kenney reached an agreement to decriminalize small amounts marijuana in Philadelphia. The article stated that people who possessed amounts under 30 grams, which is slightly over an ounce, would only have to pay a fine of up to $100 or nine hours of community service. To me, this article seems like it was written by someone who can keep a level head about pot in today’s society. It was written fairly, and did not seem to hold any prejudice in its words about people who are caught possessing it. To me, most media seems to hold some kind of favoritism to it about almost any topic. And Marijuana certainly has been a wide spread controversy since municipalities have begun to reduce its negative stigmatism amongst law enforcement. It would be quite easy for an author to take a trip down prejudice lane about this touchy topic, however, it remained fair all the way through. To me, this article shows what journalism is all about. It gave the reader a topic, explained the situation in sufficient detail, and wrapped it up with more information on the topic on a national level. I greatly appreciate media that doesn’t have a twist implemented on it to express the feelings of the writer on the topic. This author seems to understand what marijuana means to the average citizen today, and avoided offending readers about the topic. He stuck to what he was supposed to do without stepping on any toes, which will continue his likelihood of readers following his work. Neutrality is a beautiful thing in the news; it allows people to see a story how they want.   

Introduction

Hello everyone! I’m going to start off my blog by first introducing myself. My name is John Scheers and I am a senior at Kutztown University, not including the “victory lap” I’ll be taking. I am a Communication Studies major and a Public Relations minor, and I aspire to go deep within the Public Relations field. I love that PR is involved with everything in the world today, especially since that means there are plenty of job opportunities out there. My dream is to work in the Public Relations department of the Baltimore Orioles front office. To me, nothing would surpass my ability to help my all-time favorite sports team off the field. With that being said, it’s quite obvious that I’m a huge Orioles fan. I forever represent my devotion to this team, because I have an Oriole tattooed on my right arm for everyone to see. This brings me to my other passion in life, collecting amazing art work on my skin, forever to be cherished by me, no matter where I go. Being tattooed is a slow, painful, and expensive process, but to someone like me, it’s worth every little bit. 

Next, I’m going to discuss my reflection of my professor’s blog. I find the words he has spoken to be quite true concerning most of the media today, mainly the internet. A considerable amount of effort and time is put into irrelevant activities on the web. Numerous people on a daily basis go through huge amounts of stress and discomfort because of social media. I find it to be unfortunate, but media as we know it today is here to stay, and there are many positive advantages of it. From a PR perspective, I have quite the fond view of social media. If used properly, it can be one of the best free or cheap tools a company can take advantage of to help boost their image.