Two word puzzles (or are they word games? Let's call it word trivia) that require filling in the blanks. To fill in the word count blanks, there's a bonus film study too
The first word puzzle may seem easy (because it is) but it's really warm up for the second puzzle that proves that looks can be deceiving.
Check out the answers.
For the first puzzle, fill in the blanks and complete the phrase. The phrase will describe a famous person whose name can formed by the letters used to fill in the blanks. (Ignore the "....." because using the spacebar twice in a row is banned on Suite101).
B_AUT_ _UL......._GYP_ _A_........_OYAL_Y
Person: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
For this second puzzle, fill in the missing letter for each word. The ten letters, in order, will form the puzzle's answer. There are many possibilities for the ten words, but only one for the puzzle answer.
- _ABLE
- SHA_E
- TR_CK
- DE_TH
- STAR_
- DE_ER
- INE_T
- TR_ST
- EL_TE
- GRAN_
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Special thanks to the Penny Press for this week's puzzle.
On that note, I'd like to thank Steven Spielberg for his tame and lame take on War of the Worlds (2005) that I was able to watch while writing this article, mostly undistracted. It isn't that his work is terrible: Catch Me If You Can (2002) was very entertaining and I will definitely see the newest Indiana Jones chapter due out next year.
The latest buzz about that is that Shia LaBeouf has signed on, who is hated by some, but has to be recognized as a talent, especially with A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints (2006). Although Transformers looks very questionable.
Now without further ado, I present the first part of a two part cinematic study of Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) and Clueless (1995), both directed by Amy Heckerling.
When most audiences sit down in front of a movie screen, they take little time to consider the gender roles of the characters. However, feminist critics have pointed out that movies form naturalized messages about gender that reflect our society’s view. With this understanding, Amy Heckerling uses the high school setting to critique the archetypal view of male dominance in society. Through character, narrative, and stylistic elements, Heckerling creates a world that parodies the female in Clueless and reverses the roles of gender with regards to sex and power in Fast Times at Ridgemont High, setting the females above the males.
Across the two films, Heckerling creates strong central characters that carry the plot, therefore relying little on narrative points. Clueless features Cher Horowitz, a typical Valley Girl: blonde, beautiful, and wealthy, with her main concerns being that of image: fashion and popularity. The audience is introduced to her as she prepares to dress for school with her computerized wardrobe that allows limitless combinations. Truly, a “way normal life for a teenage girl,” as Cher describes. Later, she blames her failed attempts at flirting with her date on her image as well. Cher attributes it to her hair or bad lighting while more logically, her date is actually gay.
Heckerling employs countless visuals to spoof the issues involved with female image in the media, whereas women must be thin, small, and beautiful in order to find a male. Most evident in Clueless are the countless number of girls walking around with bandages around their chins and noses after their plastic surgery. The cell phone is used throughout the film as a symbol of popularity. In every scene at the high school, at least three students are on their phone. Cher even has a handbag made only for her cell phone, which she must carry during physical education. The bridge between image and popularity is formed in a moment in which a girl scratches around her nose bandage with her cell phone antenna.
Check out the second installment of the analysis below the answers, or if you are the one to jump ahead, there's always the third and final part.
