Kanopy, the library’s free streaming service, gives me access to the Great Courses. I’m planning a Hollywood Movie Musicals project, so I thought I would start with a film appreciation course. Today, I completed it.
Eric R. Williams was my teacher, and he taught the 24 lectures with the glee of a learned film fan and the enthusiasm of an overexcited dad. There were times that his antics were cringeworthy, but his full-hearted love of film overcome those moments.
Not overcomable was the use of really bad computer generated versions of movie scenes. I’m sure they had to use them for copyright reasons, but I had to look away while they were playing, rendering their use moot.
Another fun thing was that his set was full of fun Easter eggs, like the license plates above the window. I got THX 138 first (George Lucas’s first movie), and eventually the 007 clued me into James Bond’s license plate.
I had to look up the other two. CNH 320 is the Dukes of Hazzard license plate. I can’t find the specific meaning of the 125 PCE plate, but I have learned that 0-499 PCE is reserved for California license plates that are used in film and movies.
This course gave me a solid start to my movie project, and I’m hoping to refer to my notes often. Thanks to Mr. Williams, the Multnomah County Library, and Kanopy for this free resource.