Film review Titanic

Film review Titanic With masterful planning, the design and the production of the Titanic is a marvel that moved the film industry to higher levels. The film director and producer, James Cameron, and other crewmembers succeeded in bringing to the world’s attention the events that surrounded the greatest maritime disaster that claimed about 1,500 lives.Advertising We will write a custom critical writing sample on Film review: â€Å"Titanic† specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More By paying meticulous attention to detail, the production designer of the film, Peter Lamont, succeeded in creating the ‘world’ of the film. He did this with the intention of avoiding the restrictions that comes with film production in the actual environment. More over, this enabled him to tackle the possible variables in the production process (Barnwell, 2004). In order to design the ship’s interior such that it looked like the original one, the crewmem bers used artifacts from that era. Nonetheless, the design crew was forced to make everything from scratch since everything had to be new. Consequently, forty acres of waterfront in Rosarito Beach in Mexico was obtained for constructing seventeen-million-gallon tank for the outer surfaces of the reconstructed massive vessel (Champkin, 2010). The super-tank was beneficial for filming since it provided two hundred and seventy degrees of ocean view. In spite of the ship being constructed to full scale, the production designer took out unnecessary sections of the vessel. He then moved forward the well deck to ensure that the vessel was able to fit in the tank. The other parts that were not catered for were then filled with digital models. The length of the ship’s lifeboats and funnels were reduced considerably, excluding the boat deck and the A-deck, the other sections of the superstructure were steel plated, and a fifty-foot lifting platform was included such that the ship could sink as planned. Referring to the design of the original structure, the production design crew reproduced the exact representation of its interior. Other sections of the ship, such as the liner’s first class, were built out of real wood using photographs and plans of the original ship. During the ship’s sinking, the designs true to the originals were also actually destroyed. The custom building of the ship was meant to validate the historical detail of the movie. The effects that the filmmakers used in the movie are marvelous. Previous movies about the 1912 catastrophe had depicted the water to be in a slow motion.Advertising Looking for critical writing on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More However, the film producer was not convinced of this and he ensured that the shooting of the forty-five foot long miniature of the ship was done perfectly. Thereafter, there was some incorporation of d igital water as well as smoke. Some extras shot on a motion capture stage were also incorporated and for the digital extras and stuntmen, the faces of several actors were scanned to produce the visual effects. The production design included a sixty-five foot long representation of the original ship’s stern. This was intended to divide it into two parts repeatedly when depicting the sinking scene. In order to depict the scenes that were set in the ship’s engine, wreckage of a liberty ship used during the Second World War were used. This was combined with a number of miniature support frames to depict the occurrences at the ship’s engine. The actors who played a role in this scene were filmed using the chroma key compositing technique. The detailed design of the ship was meant to support the narrative such that the occurrences could be as desired. In order to sink the interiors of the ship, about nineteen million-litre tank was used. It was designed such that, dur ing the sinking scene, the whole set could be tilted into the sea. For sinking the Grand Staircase, three hundred and forty thousand litres of water were placed inside the set as it was being lowered into the huge tank; however, contrary to the plan, the fall of the water destroyed the staircase. The first half of the seven hundred and forty-four foot long outer walls of the ship were first allowed to get into the tank. However, as it was the weightiest section of the ship, it smoothed out the shock impulse against the water. This assisted in enabling the set to get into the water. During the sinking, much water was released from the set. Following the successful sinking of the dining saloon, about seventy-two hours were utilized in filming Lovett’s remotely operated vehicle (ROV) navigating the shattered pieces in the present. After sinking the ship, the other scenes were filmed in the sub-zero Atlantic Ocean in 1.3 million-litre tank. The frozen dead bodies were generated b y applying fine powder on the actors. This crystallized on exposure to the water at sub-zero temperature. In addition, their hair and clothes were covered with a waxy material to show that their bodies were starting to decompose.Advertising We will write a custom critical writing sample on Film review: â€Å"Titanic† specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Perhaps the most visually dramatic special effects of the movie relates to the climactic scene in which the filmmakers depict the ship to be breaking up into two separate parts before going under. To achieve this, a full-sized set was tilted, together with one hundred and fifty extras and one hundred stunt performers. Ultimately, the ship plunged to the bottom of the frozen ocean. The film producer, Cameron, stated that the previous versions of the film did not portray the incident as chaotic as it should have been since they represented the final plunge into the ocean as a gracefu l slow event. To portray this, Cameron instructed the actors to fall off dangerously on the side of the ship that was slowly sinking. However, this was unsuccessful as some people got injured. Ultimately, to make the sequence less dangerous, images of individuals created using computer was used to depict this risky falls. The ship was designed, as described above, such that this could occur as desired. This also assisted in supporting the narrative of the film. In spite of the success of the film, there are a number of critical reactions to its design. Notable is the high cost of its design. With a budget of two hundred million dollars, the production team of the movie have been criticized for only managing to construct a half of the original ship. This meant that some scenes were shot and reversed when the filmmakers wanted to portray the occurrences on the other side of the ship. Some critics have said, â€Å"It is flawlessly crafted, intelligently constructed, strongly acted and spellbinding. If its story stays well within the traditional formulas for such pictures, well, you dont choose the most expensive film ever made as your opportunity to reinvent the wheel† (Ebert, 1997, para. 3). In conclusion, since the events in the movie took place over ninety years ago, the production crew attempted to tailor the actions in the film to their historical context. Therefore, various technologies and effects were used to achieve this. In addition, the design of the American epic romance film was such that it supported the narrative. Despite of the film’s critical reaction to its design, it highly regarded as one of the best movies ever produced. References Barnwell, J., 2004. Production Design. London: Wallflower Press.Advertising Looking for critical writing on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Champkin, J., 2010. The making of titanic; the real story behind the film of the year.  Web. Ebert, R., 1997. Titanic. [Online] Rogerbert.com.

Subject-Verb Agreement on SAT Writing Strategies and Practice

Subject-Verb Agreement on SAT Writing Strategies and Practice SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Subject-Verb Agreement may be the most tested grammatical rule on the SAT. Therefore, just by mastering this rule and its applications, you will be well on your way toward achieving a ridiculously good score on the SAT Writing. While the rule itself is relatively simple, the questions related to it can be challenging and a bit tricky. In this article, we’ll teach you how to become a master of all things subject-verb agreement on the SAT. In this post, I’ll do the following: Give you a clear understanding of subject-verb agreement. Explain why and how subject-verb agreement questions on the SAT can be tricky. Offer general strategies that can help you correctly answer subject-verb agreement questions. Provide you with practice questions so you can test what you’ve learned. Review: What's a Subject? Simply, a subject is the noun which corresponds with a verb in a sentence. In a sentence where there is an action, the subject is the noun which is doing the action. Here is an example: Justin saved the world. Justin is the subject because he did the saving. In a sentence where there is a description, typically using a form of the verb â€Å"to be†, the subject is the noun which is being described. Consider this beautifully written sentence: Justin is amazingly humble. Justin is the subject because he is the person who is amazingly humble. Now that we have a basic understanding of a subject, let's define this ubiquitous SAT grammar rule. What Is Subject-Verb Agreement? Subject-verb agreement is a rule stating that all subjects must agree with their verbs in number. Singular subjects take singular verbs. Plural subjects take plural verbs. Most of the subject-verb agreement questions on the SAT deal with verb forms in the third-person singular form (he/she/it/one) and third-person plural forms (they). In the present and present perfect verb tenses, third person singular verb forms end in an â€Å"s†. Third person plural verb forms do not. Let's check out an example sentence to give you a better understanding of this rule: The celebrity chef cook lobster and foie gras. This sentence probably already "sounds" wrong to your ear, but let's break down exactly why. The subject of this sentence is "chef". Obviously, because we are only talking about one chef, the subject is singular. Therefore, the verb should be in the singular form. However, "cook" is the third-person plural form of the verb so this sentence is incorrect. Here is how the sentence should read: The celebrity chef cooks lobster and foie gras. Here's another basic example: The gymnasts performs incredible feats of strength. In the above sentence, the subject is "gymnasts" because they are doing the performing. "Gymnasts" is plural so the verb should be in the plural form. However, "performs" is in the singular form. This is the corrected sentence: The gymnasts perform incredible feats of strength. This rule is relatively basic and easy to comprehend, right? Some of you may be thinking that all subject-verb agreement errors on the SAT will be as simple to detect as they were in the example sentences above. However, in traditional SAT fashion, sentences on the SAT are intentionally deceptive and questions related to subject-verb agreement can be rather challenging. Subject-Verb Agreement questions can deceive you Why Are These Questions Tricky? Generally, questions related to subject-verb agreement on the SAT can be difficult because the subject is usually not placed directly in front of the verb. This problem appears in two ways: Interrupting Phrases, and inverted sentences where the subject follows the verb. Common Trap #1: Interrupting Phrases Interrupting phrases are phrases thatseparate the subject from the verb. Such phrases make locating the subject and determining whether the verb should be singular or plural more difficult. There are specific types of interrupting phrases and we'll take a closer look at a few of them. You don't know need to know all of the specific grammar terms, but it's important to recognize how they influence subject-verb agreement questions. Non-Essential Clauses Non-essential clauses are phrases describe a noun, often the subject of a subject-verb agreement question on the SAT. Non-essential clauses are surrounded by commas. These clauses can be removed without creating grammatical errors or changes in the meaning of a sentence. Take, for example, this sentence: My doctor, who is very unfriendly, spoke to me for less than a minute. The phrase in bold is a non-essential clause. It is separated by commas and removing the clause does not create an error or change the meaning of the sentence. The phrase is only used to provide descriptive information about the subject. See: My doctor, who is very unfriendly, spoke to me for less than a minute. A non-essential clause often starts with a relative pronoun (which, who, whose, or where), but it doesn't in a phrase known as an appositive. An appositive functions like a non-essential clause, but it doesn't have a verb. Here is an example: My doctor, a very unfriendly man, spoke to me for less than a minute. Again, the phrase provides information about the doctor, but it can be removed and will not create any errors or change the meaning of the sentence. So, how will knowing about these phrases help you correctly answer SAT questions related to subject-verb agreement? I'll explain. Non-Essential Clauses and Appositives on the SAT On the SAT, these phrases will be placed between subjects and verbs to trick you into thinking a subject is singular or plural. Look at this example of an incorrectly written sentence in which I've underlined the subject and bolded the verb: My math teacher, who is extremely demanding and yells at all the students, give too much homework. The subject is singular and the verb is in the plural form. However, there is a non-essential clause separating the subject from the verb so it is more difficult to locate the error in subject-verb agreement. Also, on the SAT, there will often be a plural noun in the non-essential clause placed right next to the verb in such a sentence. Many test takers will incorrectly assume that "students" is the subject,especially if you read the question quickly in one go. Here is the corrected version of the above sentence: My math teacher, who is extremely demanding and yells at all the students, gives too much homework. So, how do you avoid falling into this common trap that the SAT will set for you? Strategy For these types of questions, always cross out appositives and non-essential clauses. Doing so will make it easier to notice any issues with subject-verb agreement. The resulting sentence should be grammatically correct. Let's do this with the incorrectly written version of our previous example: My math teacher, who is extremely demanding and yells at all the students, give too much homework. Crossing out the non-essential clause leaves us with "My math teacher give too much homework." The subject-verb agreement error in that sentence is easy to spot. Here is another type of interrupting phrase, probably the most common on the SAT: the prepositonal phrase. Prepositional Phrases Quick Review: prepositional phrase begins with a preposition. Prepositions provide additional details about nouns and often answer the questions "Where?", "When?", or provide descriptive information. Here is a chart showing examples of commonly used prepositions: http://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-a-preposition-definition-uses-examples.html On the SAT, prepositional phrases are often inserted between subjects and verbs to make errors in subject-verb agreement less noticeable.Take a look at this incorrectly written sentence with the prepositional phrase underlined: Changes for the new and improved SAT is going to be implemented soon. The subject of the sentence is "changes" and the prepositional phrase provides descriptive information about the changes. Because the subject is plural, the verb should be in the plural form. Once again, notice how the SAT can trick you by putting a singular noun, SAT, right before the verb, "is." If you go by ear, you're likely to fall prey to this trap. Here is the corrected version of the sentence: Changes for the new and improved SAT are going to be implemented soon. The approach you should take with sentences that contain a prepositional phrase is very similar to the one you should use with non-essential clauses and appositives. My ghost writer. He knows his SAT grammar. Strategy Cross out the prepositional phrase and the resulting sentence should be grammatically correct. Also, doing so will make it easier for you to identify the subject and ensure that the subject and verb agree. The subject will never be contained within a prepositional phrase. Let's use the cross out method with the above incorrectly written sentence: Changes for the new and improved SAT is going to be implemented soon. The subject-verb agreement error is much more obvious. Hooray! Interrupting phrases are not the only tactic the SAT uses to complicate subject-verb agreement questions. Common Trap #2:Sometimes the Subject Will Follow the Verb Occasionally, the normal word order of a sentence will be changed so that a prepositional phrase appears at the beginning of a sentence and the subject will follow the verb.In these sentences, it can be difficult to identify the subject and determine whether there is an error in subject-verb agreement. Take, for example, the following sentence with the prepositional phrase underlined and the verb in bold: On my forehead resides five unsightly pimples. We know that a subject cannot be contained within a prepositional phrase and the subject must correspond with the verb. What is doing the residing? The pimples. And "on my forehead" provides information about where the pimples are located. Because the subject is plural, the verb needs to be in the plural form: On my foreheadreside five unsightly pimples. The correctly written sentence may sound more awkward to you because the noun "forehead" is singular and it is placed right next to the plural form of a verb. That is why you should focus on the rules and not rely on what sounds right. In rare cases, the verb comes before the subject but is not preceded by a preposition.What? How is that possible? Check out this sentence with the subject underlined and the verb in bold: Eating Hot Cheetos is fun, but less fun is its consequences. In the sentence, what is less fun? The consequences. Therefore, "consequences" is the subject which corresponds with the verb. There is an error in subject-verb agreement. The sentence should read like this: Eating Hot Cheetos is fun, but less fun are its consequences. The order of the words has been changed, but this sentence is saying that "The consequences are less fun." So, how should you tackle sentences in which the subject follows the verb? Strategy In these sentences in which the subject follows the verb, simply rearrange the sentence so that it follows the normal structure of subject then verb. This will enable you to more easily spot errors in subject-verb agreement. If you did that in the incorrectly written example above, you would be left with "its consequences is less fun". The subject is right in front of the verb and the error is obvious. Application: Real SAT Example So, we’ve established that subject-verb agreement questions can be tricky because the subject is often not placed directly in front of the verb. Let’s see how this plays out with an actual SAT question. First, let's look at a sentence with an interrupting phrase. The subject of this sentence is â€Å"research†. The phrase â€Å"by several scientists† is a prepositional phrase providing descriptive information about the research. Therefore, the subject is singular and the verb should be in thesingular form. If you get rid of the prepositional phrase, the sentence reads "research suggest". B is the answer; the word should be â€Å"suggests†. There are additional situations which complicate the most basic questions that test subject-verb agreement. Now we'll take a look at some of these specific situations. More grammar fun. Get excited!!! Common Trap #3: Compound Subjects If the subject is two singular nouns connected by â€Å"and†, then the verb should be in the plural form.Here is an elementary sentence illustrating this rule: Justin and the SAT are friends. The subject is both Justin and the SAT so the verb needs to be in the plural form. Here is a more difficult SAT-style example in which a prepositional phrase is also placed at the beginning of the sentence: Under my bed exists a pen and a Taco Bell receipt from 1994. So, where is the subject? "Under my bed" is a prepositional phrase - that's not the subject. What exists? Both a pen and a Taco Bell receipt. We can rearrange the sentence order so that the sentence reads that "A pen and a Taco Bell receipt exists". Because there is a compound subject, the verb should be in the plural form. This is the corrected version of the sentence: Under my bed exist a pen and a Taco Bell receipt from 1994. Application: Real SATExample Here is an example of an actual SAT subject-verb agreement question that uses a compound subject. The subject is both the time and the place. Therefore, the verb should be in the plural form. Also, there is an additional error in the sentence in that â€Å"to approving† should be â€Å"to the approval†. The correct answer is C. Collective Nouns Another unique situation that affects subject-verb agreement involves the use of collective nouns.Collective nouns are singular nouns that refer to groups of people. On the SAT, these nouns, if used in the singular form, should be used with singular verbs.Examples of collective nouns include team, band, company, and committee. Keep in mind that subject-verb agreement questions with collective nouns are rare, but I have seen this type of question on actual SATs. This is what the sentence would look like: After losing by thirty points, the basketball team have decided to fire its coach. Even though there are multiple people on a team, the subject is referring to one team. Therefore, the subject is singular and the verb should be in the singular form. This is corrected version of the sentence: After losing by thirty points, the basketball team has decided to fire its coach. Other Singular Subjects That Can Be Tricky Aside from collective nouns, there are other specific types of subjects that may intuitively appear to be plural but are singular and require a singular verb. Each=Singular The word â€Å"each† implies that you’re referring to each thing individually so you should use a singular verb when â€Å"each† is the subject.This is an example of an incorrectly written sentence using "each" as the subject: Each of the members of the team are athletic. Keep in mind that "of the members" and "of the team" are prepositional phrases. After removing the prepostional phrases, the sentence reads "Each are athletic." Each is our subject so the verb should be singular. This is the correct version: Each of the members of the team is athletic. Every=Singular Similarly, the word â€Å"every† implies that you’re referring to each thing individually. Think of the word â€Å"every† as implicitly stating â€Å"every one†. Here is an example of this rule in effect: Every person in each of my classes are intelligent. Although all of the students are intelligent, this sentence is stating that every single student is intelligent. Also, the use of the singular noun "person" further indicates that the subject is singular and requires a singular verb. Remember that "in each of my classes" is a prepositional phrase. This is how the sentence should look: Every person in each of my classes is intelligent. Gerunds When Used as Subjects=Singular A gerund is a verb which is used as a noun and ends in â€Å"ing†.When a gerund is being used as a subject, then the subject is singular.Look at this example: Remembering the names of all of the Kardashian sisters are easy. To determine the subject, think about what is easy. Also, we know that "of all of the Kardashian sisters" is a prepositional phrase which we can cross out and will not contain the subject. Therefore, we're left with "Remembering the names are easy". Even though "names" is plural, "the names" is not the subject and simply provides additional information about what we're remembering. The subject is "Remembering", a gerund which requires a singular verb. So, here is the corrected version: Remembering the names of all of the Kardashian sisters is easy. Who is this? Application: Real SAT Example It's time to take a look at an actual SAT subject-verb agreement question that includes one of these uniquely singular subjects. The subject is the gerund â€Å"storing†, which is singular. Therefore, the verb should be â€Å"increases† and the answer is B. Also, because â€Å"delays† is singular and shares the same subject, you should know that any verb which corresponds with the same subject should be in the singular form as well. Now that we've looked at various types of subject-verb agreement questions, let's go over strategies you can use on your SAT to help determine if you're encountering a subject-verb agreement question and ensure that you answer the question correctly. Want to learn more about the SAT but tired of reading blog articles? Then you'll love our free, SAT prep livestreams. Designed and led by PrepScholar SAT experts, these live video events are a great resource for students and parents looking to learn more about the SAT and SAT prep. Click on the button below to register for one of our livestreams today! General Strategies for SAT Subject-Verb Agreement Look For Errors in Subject-Verb Agreement When a Verb is Underlined In any of the subsections (sentence improvement, identify the error, paragraph improvement), if a verb is underlined, make sure that there are no errors in subject-verb agreement. Always Identify the Subject Both subjects of sentences and subjects of clauses must agree with their verbs. For each verb, find the noun which corresponds with that specific verb.Then, determine whether that subject is singular or plural and make sure that the subject and verb agree. The Subject is Never Part of a Prepositional Phrase Be aware that the subject will not be part of a prepositional phrase.Most subject-verb agreement questions on the SAT separate a subject from a verb with a prepositional phrase. Cross Out Interrupting Phrases The SAT tries to deceive you by placing long phrases in between the subject and the verb. Often, the number of the noun closest to the verb will not match the number of the subject. By crossing out the interrupting phrase, you will have an easier time identifying the subject and determining whether there is an error in subject-verb agreement. Be Able to Recognize the Common Tricks Knowing the common tricks the SAT uses on questions that test your knowledge of subject-verb agreement can be helpful. The better you know these tricks, the more quickly you’ll be able to identify them and correctly answer subject-verb agreement questions. Additional Practice Hopefully, by this point you thoroughly understand subject-verb agreement and how to correctly answer any subject-verb agreement question that may appear on the SAT. I've created some practice problems to test you on what you've learned. Remember to use the general strategies I referenced above. If you're not having fun, you're not doing it right. 1. Every summer in Los Angeles (A) the sound of children yelling(B) at the beach on a weekday indicate(C) that it is summer vaction (D). No error (E) 2. The selfie, which is(A) a photograph taken(B) by many narcissistic people, is(C) extremely popular on various social networking websites (D). No error (E) 3. An effective and helpful(A) tutor demonstrates(B) exceptional knowledge, is responsive to the needs(C) of her students, and listen(D) to them carefully. No error (E) 4. Extremely careful analysis(A) of handwriting samples show(B) that creative people are more likely to write(C) rounded letters (D). No Error (E) 5. Playingsports(A) such as basketball, football, or baseball allow(B) children to learn teamwork(C) and develop(D) coordination. No error (E) Answers:1. C, 2. E, 3. D, 4. B, 5. B What's Next? If you want to know everything that is tested on the SAT Writing section, read our article about what's actually on SAT Writing. After you have mastered the basic questions, study the hardest SAT Writing questions. Finally, if you're aiming for an 800 on SAT Writing, find out how to get a perfect scorefrom a perfect scorer. Want to improve your SAT score by 240 points? Check out our best-in-class online ACT prep program. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your ACT score by 4 points or more. Our program is entirely online, and it customizes what you study to your strengths and weaknesses. If you liked this Writing and grammar lesson, you'll love our program.Along with more detailed lessons, you'll get thousands ofpractice problems organized by individual skills so you learn most effectively. We'll also give you a step-by-step program to follow so you'll never be confused about what to study next. Check out our 5-day free trial: