Word: formulaic
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...actors in a Wes Anderson movie put on a sort of theater of artifice; faces become masks, from behind which the humanity of a character can either struggle or fail to emerge. Perhaps the greatest failure of “The Darjeeling Limited” was in reversing this formula instead of developing on it. But the utterly blank faces of Fox, his family, and friends—posturing, wry, flummoxed, or brooding countenances as they fit their respective characters—allow for development that’s left totally up to the script. Fox?...
...underperforming schools, the most commonly chosen simply requires schools to make some change, any change - such as a new curriculum or extra training for teachers. Weak sauce, in other words. With this new $3.5 billion, districts (which will compete for cash obtained by states through the application of a formula) will have to show that they are ready for and capable of implementing one of four rather dramatic strategies: (1) replacing the school's principal and at least 50% of its staff; (2) closing the school and reopening it as a charter school; (3) closing the school and moving students...
...drink, smoke and experiment sexually with little guidance. Since they were not taught to develop internal controls, they have great difficulty with impulse control. Really, being a little less controlling when your children are young and a little more so when they are older is a much better formula...
While the Disney film wove comedy into a Disney-esque plot about a young girl breaking out of the confines of tradition to pursue her own destiny, the new Mulan focuses on patriotism, filial piety, romance and the difficulties of war. The formula is part of an evolving mainland genre that has seen filmmakers incorporating more nuanced, entertaining storytelling into patriotic plots. "China is anxious to be part of the global community. There's a lot of concern over soft power right now," says Poshek Fu, professor of cinema studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. "Movies...
Franchi's creative flair is evident throughout, from the funky furniture (including a sofa inspired by Vladimir Tatlin's famous Monument to the Third International) to the themed rooms. Dedicated to Ayrton Senna, one room has a video of the Formula 1 champion above the bed. A new suite devoted to Picasso is scattered with ephemera from the master's Mougins studio...