YEAR 9 INDO:  Before we watch the film as an example of popular Asian viewing, I want you to look at this image. In your posts I would like you to consider what it communicates about the characters in this film.

Student reactions to advertising material – before viewing film

YDE:  ‘… I think the film is about a son and his father’s life together. Maybe going through many experiences together and maybe the problems they face.’

N1K:  ‘…This movie is about a man and a boy that has a crazy imagination. He imagines he is flying somewhere. They wonder what’s in space.’

Col0012:   ‘… I think that the movie is about two brothers that like to draw and colour in pictures. Or the older guy might be babysitting or looking after his younger brother or next door neighbour.”

Tseoo59:  ‘,,, I think the movie is about two guys…the older one could be the brother of the younger one. The kid could like draw because of the pictures on the poster.’

Joe: ‘,,, I think the movie is about two guys that have a challenging and unhappy life. I think one might be mentally challenged or something like that…Honestly I don’t think it will be that good. Also I don’t really like Bollywood films.’

MOU: “… I think the movie is about a lost kid.’

Frank:  ‘… I think that the film is about the young boy getting close to his brother. And the young boy’s mental illness or maybe he is dying and they’re trying to make the most of the time they have left.’

Bob:  ‘… I think the film is about outer space and two people might be wondering what is in space. They may be using their imagination and imagining that there is different stuff up there.’

Pak Jack: ‘… I think that the boys are determined to achieve a goal hence the expressions on their faces. Maybe they want to fly a plane or ride an elephant. Or maybe they want to be in a movie hence the meaning of the title.’

Cass Jackson: ‘…I think the film will be about somebody going away and about kids having an imagination and lots of colours surrounding them … I think the movie will be emotional but very good.’

Gladys Brown: ‘… I think the film sounds very creative and about a boy who gets along with his teacher… I think it will be very interesting’

HSE:  ‘…I see a guy and boy in the poster. The boy looks depressed. I think the boy likes to draw. I think the film’s about the guy’s and the boy’s life and the problems between them.’

1234: ‘… A kid, colours, imagination (looking somewhere) special in some way…A movie about school and a boy and a gift.’

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jeanette93: ‘…I think the film will be about a kid that draws and maybe he is very lonely…like a smart kid that no one cares about and to get his mind off things he draws.’

Ermira2008: ‘…it’s something about the sea and depression. A kid that’s a good artist and he can’t have a chance because he is so poor. And his teacher is helpful to him.’

Georgie93: ‘… I think the film will be about 2 brothers that have lost someone or their parents. Something has happened in their lives that is really sad…it will be dramatic and emotional. There might be a sad theme behind it and they just want things to be normal before this happened.’

Observations: Pre-Intermission

 We’ve watched up to the point where Ishaan is sent to boarding school

MOU: ‘.. it is a good movie to watch with your family but I think the kid is bad in schoolwork.’

Georgie93: ‘… the strengths of the film are it shows us what happens when a student is failing school. How he begs to not go to boarding scool. The weaknesses are that Ishaan doesn’t pay attention or do any of his school work, so he is asking for this. It is really his fault.’

Tseoo59: ‘What is a strength? There are too many weaknesses to say.’

Joe: ‘ There are no strenghths in the movie. There are plenty of weaknesses such as it doesn’t have a good story line.’

ColOO12: ‘The strength of the movie is that they show everything in detail. The weakness is that it takes too long.’

N1K: ‘The strength is the contrast in the characters…how there is a nice parent and an angry parent; a child that is a high achiever and a child that is disobedient and doesn’t pay attention. The contrast in characters makes the film interesting.’

YDE: ‘I find the movie quite fun and strange but very interesting. It seems real, like there is no acting.’

Cass Jackson: ‘It’s good…not boring. But stop pausing it! Ishaan’s Dad is an ***…his Mum is understanding. It flows smoothly’

Ermira2008: ‘It doesn’t get boring…only when the teacher turns it off!’

Pak Jack: ‘The movie is quite sad at times but also funny.’

1234: We empathize with Ishaan and his depression in going to boarding school. We know how much his father wants him to be like his brother.’

Chair: ‘I am enjoying this movie but think the dad is tight, and feel sorry for the boy because he can’t help if he’s dumb.’

Frank: ‘There is one strength…that the film will eventually end. It is a slow story, there is no violence and no comedy.’

HSE: ‘I find the movie really interesting.’

Little Stars: ‘ The movie is good, funny and interesting. I liked his imagination.’

Are Ishaan’s problems his own fault? (Observations Pre-Intermission)

MOU: ‘I think that Ishaan’s problems are that he tries his hardest to read in school but he can’t coz he is always day dreaming in school…thinking of cartoon things. He wants to make friends but they don’t want to be friends with Ishaan coz they think that he is not a normal person. Also Ishaan’s father wants him to be like Yohan….smart.’

1234: ‘No, I don’t think that Ishaan’s problems are his fault. Obviously, he has a disability in learning and he tries his hardest to learn but he finds it hard. Other people should realise that he has difficulties in learning and they should try to help him a bit more so he can focus and learn in a different way to help him make it easier.’

Georgie93: ‘Most of Ishaan’s problems are his own fault. he doesn’t do his work, or do the right thing. His parents had no choice but to send him off to boarding school. He kept saying he would do better but his imagination kept taking over which caused him to fail and therefore be sent to boarding school.’

Lisa: ‘ Yes I believe Ishaan’s problems are his own fault because all his parents ask him to do is behave and he doesn’t listen so his parents are forced to take the last option…to send him away until futher notice. Now that he has been sent away, do you think he will behave? No he doesn’t. I think Ishaan is just like me in a way.’

Bob: ‘Most of Ishaan’s problems are not his own fault. he did get pressured by his dad and when he was sent to boarding school he said that he would do better in school and try harder, but he kept imagining things.’

Little Stars: ‘The problems Ishaan experiences in the movie are not always his fault, but he could try harder in school. What makes his problems worse is that other people like teachers and his father don’t understand him.’

Tseoo59: ‘I say most of Ishaan’s problems are his fault because it is his choice to sit in the back of the class and look out of the window and daydream. He doesn’t have many friends and doesn’t like the school that he goes to. Teachers always get him in trouble and they don’t help him much.’

Jeanette93: ‘Ishaan’s problems are in a way his own fault because he chooses not to pay attention in class and learn what he has been taught, but he has a different way of learning. Some of his teachers are a bit to blame because they don’t understand the way he learns. If they did he would be able to understand what he is being taught.’

YDE: ‘Ishaan’s problems are not necessarily his fault. It is not his fault he sees things differently to others. but it is also his parents’ fault that they don’t try to understand Ishaan’s feelings towards school and learning. Especially his father…he especially does not like the fact that Ishaan is a little different to the rest. He does not accept that and causes Ishaan’s problems to become serious.’

Pak Jack: ‘In a way Ishaan’s problems are his fault as he does not try and change the way he acts. But also he may not be to blame because his parents may not have disciplined him the right way which made him worsen his actions.’

Gladys Brown & N1k: ‘No it’s his parents fault because they choose to ignore that Ishaan has a mental disability.’

Chair: ‘I honestly think he should go to the doctor’s and get himself checked out because he must have some sort of learning problem and mental problem. His parents shouldn’t just send him to boarding school when he obviously does not want to go there. He misses his mother a lot.’

Ermira2008: ‘It’s his fault. Their parents care about him. He just doesn’t want to learn about anything…he’s a really bad boy. He’s dumb and mental. he should be doing well at boarding school. He’s putting his parents through stress. His bro is the smart one.’

Cass jackson: ‘Yes Ishaan’s problems are his own fault, because he doesn’t focus as much as he could.’

Col0012: ‘I think most of Ishaan’s problems are his own fault. he chooses not to learn and pay attention in his classes and that’s why  he struggles to read when he is trying his best. He is always getting into trouble … like when he starts dreaming and when he was supposed to give the test papers to his mum or dad and he throws them to the dogs without thinking what the consequences will be.’

Final observations: After seeing the entire film

YDE: ‘The most memorable scene was the last scene where Ishaan won the art competition and also the scene where the art teacher helps him learn English and also their own language in a different way to other teachers. I like the way Ishaan changes through the art teacher and also the way his father changes towards his son. There wasn’t really anything I didn’t like …the whole movie was interesting and quite different to what I’ve watched before.’

Col0012: ‘One of the memorable scenes was when he met the teacher in the clown costume playing the flute. I liked the part when Ishaan’s class was being taught about the people that couldn’t read and then he knew he wasn’t the only person that couldn’t do those things. I didn’t really like the painting competition… I found it a bit boring.’

Gladys Brown: ‘ There are a lot of scenes throughout the movie that are very memorable. Some of them are when Ishaan enters the boarding school and he is sooo emotional and wants to go home also when Ishaan enters the art competition and wins and how the teacher helps Ishaan through his tough time at the boarding school. I loved everything about the movie except Ishaan’s father.’

Ermira93: ‘I thought the movie was interesting and exciting. It was actually quite a great movie and I thoroughly enjoyed it and it was actually a movie where I didn’t get bored watching it. It was pretty well acted and the little Ishaan was great. The teacher seemed very caring and he knew what was wrong with Ishaan and went to tell his parents straight away. I think that the movie was well directed and it was really fun. I’d hope to watch more BOLLYWOOD movies like this.’

Bob:  ‘ The scenes which are memorable was when it was the painting gallery. When the teacher had drawn a picture of Ishaan it was sort of sad. I basically liked the whole movie, especially when the painting part occurred…like when they drew pictures of the teachers.’

Pak Jack: ‘ The scenes that are most memorable for me are when the dad is screaming at Ishaan when he got into trouble then told him that he has to go  to boarding school. Also when the fire crackers are going off and Ishaan is trying to act like he doesn’t care that he is going to the boarding school. The last scene that I remember is when the new teacher comes into the classroom wearing a clown suit and stars singing a rhyming song.’

Jeanette93: ‘ I thought the film was very emotional at first and it was really good that someone showed care for Ishaan and turned him around completely. The most memorable scene for me was the scene where the teacher helped and spent time to help Ishaan read and write. The other scene that I thought was memorable was the scene with the painting competition when they announced the winners. I liked the whole movie and found it very caring and thoughtful of the new teacher at the boarding school for what he did for Ishaan. I really enjoyed the movie!’

Georgie93: ‘The memorable scenes were when Ishaan was begging his mum and dad not to go to boarding school. Also when he was meeting the new teacher and just talking to him; he was bonding with him and Ishaan became a better and more confident person. I like how Ishaan became a better student at the end of the film. It was better seeing him happier and better and not miserable with all self esteem lost. I didn’t like that Ishaan wagged school because he made things worse and ended up being sent to boarding school. It was bad that his father kept pushing him that he had to go, but Ishaan kept begging but didn’t get his way. Overall it was a very interesting film and I really enjoyed it and got a few messages out of it.’

Joe: ‘ Scenes that were memorable were when the new teacher was acting funny on his first day and in a clown suit doing stupid things. I honestly didn’t like the movie because I’m not into Bollywood films. The movie was funny in a silly way at some points in the film.’

Tseoo59: ‘The scene that I found memorable is the bit where the new teacher comes into the classroom singing and in a clown suit. The bit that I liked in the movie was the painting scene at the end and the bit I didn’t like was the first five minutes or so because it was boring.’

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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