Course syllabus

SEMESTER 2, 2017
Course Information

• Course Coordinator 

Xuelin Zhou - x.zhou@auckland.ac.nz

• Teacher

Xuelin Zhou - x.zhou@auckland.ac.nz 

• Tutor

Laura Bell & Xuelin Zhou

• Course delivery format

2 hours of lectures and 1 hour of tutorial

Summary of Course Description              

Action Film explores the formal qualities of action genre and its interaction with historical, cultural, economic and media contexts. While the course focuses on action aesthetics, such as narrative devices, blending of visual and aural spectacle, and the relation between “conventions” and “inventions”, it also addresses issues of identity and examines how identity is articulated through looking at the discourses of gender, youth, nation, ethnicity and geopolitics.

Each week we focus on studying one film in class. Two reading articles are provided to help you come to a better understanding of the film and the context in which it was produced. It is your responsibility to complete the required viewing and readings before attending the lecture and tutorial. You are also strongly encouraged to read and view beyond what the course outline frames. There is no central text book for the course; all the required reading materials are available on Talis. The General Library has an excellent collection of books/periodicals and strong holdings of relevant DVDs and videos.

Course outcomes

Students who have successfully completed the course are expected to

• Be better informed about the evolution of action film as one of the most successful creations of world cinema
• Be more alert to the aesthetic elements that form the language of action films
• Be more aware of the multi-generic nature of contemporary (action) films
• Be more capable of using databases to support independent research on set topics
• Enhance ability to apply research to develop a distinctive critical voice