Some advice (because I care):

And like I said in class, as in life, a positive "first impression" always earns extra points. When I look at some papers (which might be wrinkled or smeared with ink) and there is: no name, no title, no date (or some of these are penciled in afterwards) - it is NOT a good "first impression." One of you even tried to hand in an essay written in pencil. This is 10% of your grade. Not a "wake up in the morning and type out some random crap" kind of essay where you forget your name and student info. IF and WHEN you go to university, AVOID at all costs these "little" over-sites, because they may earn you a D or an F or (if you are lucky) a C. 5 minutes late to your professors office to hand in a term paper? "Sorry. It's past the deadline. No grade." Seriously. It happens. So, my advice: BE METICULOUS in all aspects of life. Take pride in your work. Cleanliness is next to Godliness. Serve your essays to your teachers on a shining silver platter that says "This is QUALITY work, teacher. I deserve an A++. And it's handed in a FULL DAY early! I'm awesome!" That's my rant for today. Also title your work creatively. "Review: Earthlings" is boring.

Academic Film Review: Earthlings

Two Part Assignment:

Part 1: FIRST DRAFT HARD COPY (on paper)

DUE DATE:  ASAP!  First 8 students who hand this assignment in on paper get bonus points.  Last eight students get minus points.  From a descending scale of +.08 to -.08

Part 2: Second Draft: Blog version enriched with grammatical clean up and video and images etc.

DUE DATE: When you get it back on paper.

Hello Students,

We didn't finish watching Earthlings, and I think you should watch the ENTIRE thing again before you write.  Here is the best video quality link I can find - straight from the earthlings.com website:

http://earthlings.com/?page_id=32

I also encourage you to READ and investigate the film a little.  What do other people say?
Google it! But IMDB is a good place to visit:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0358456/



Here are the requirements for your assignment:

Official Prompt: After watching the film "Earthlings," share your opinions while keeping in mind a few key questions. How effective was it? Did it change any of your views/habits? How valid is the message? Do you think the logical, emotional, and ethical appeals of the film are balanced or particularly one sided?

Word Count: 800 - 1000. No more and no less. Points will be deducted for shorter and longer.

Tone: Pretend you are writing for an ivy league student newspaper. You can be a bit more academic and informally engaging with your style of writing. A bit of cracked.com with a bit of Wiki mixed in.

After hunting around various Ivy League newspapers, Berkley's was the best for film reviews:

http://www.dailycal.org/section/arts/film-and-television/


Structure: 

Intro: Paragraph one should have a hook! You can summarize the film and tell us the important details, BUT don't bore us from the start.  Get us interested in the issue and confront us with the essence of the film.

Body Paragraphs: You can get a bit TOEFL mode here, and analyze and evaluate up to three points/segments of the film that interest you.

SUPPORT your opinion/credibility with: Quotes from the film, quotes from other critics, quotes from the filmmakers (Joaquin Phoenix, Shaun Monson).  HYPERLINK with embedded links to your sources.

Conclusion: Bookend what you started with by delivering what your "hook" started.  Give us your final verdict.

INCLUDE: Relevant video, pictures, links etc.

Focus on CONCISION and lean sentences. Don't be repetitive or make the same point twice.  Keep your reader engaged and moving forward through your review.

REVISE and don't upload a post full of missing articles, ugly paragraphs, and misspelled words.