Themester is an IU program held each Fall that combines classes and special events, like lectures and exhibits, to encourage students to experience that semester’s topic through multiple disciplines and formats. This program is part of the university’s attempt to give students a well-rounded educational experience. In honor of IU’s bicentennial, the Fall 2019 Themester topic is Remembering and Forgetting. Below are some movies that offer perspectives on memory, all of which can be checked out at Media Services.
This film is all about personal memory. From the same director of Inception (2010), this is another movie that will mess with your mind. The main character, Leonard, is searching for the man who raped and murdered his wife. One problem: he has short-term memory loss due to the attack and cannot make new memories. After a few minutes of hearing any new information, he forgets it. I highly recommend this film to anyone who likes to have their brain broken by a movie.
Set in a fascist, dystopian Britain, this story follows the life of Evie and a masked man known as ‘V’ while they ignite a revolution to overthrow the government. The film explores how we remember heroes and ideas. I recommend this movie to any superhero lover or lovers of revolution.
This film is all about how the dead are remembered in Mexican culture. The main character, Miguel, dreams of being a musician despite his family’s ban on music. After stealing a guitar from his dead idol, he finds himself in the Land of the Dead. He must make his way back to the Land of Living before he disappears forever, but he refuses to go back before getting his family’s blessing to play music. I recommend this movie to any Pixar lovers, or if you are in need of a good cry.
Director Spike Lee brings to life the true story of Ron Stallworth, a black police officer in Colorado who infiltrates the Ku Klux Klan in an undercover operation. This film is all about how we, as a nation, remember our history of racism. I highly recommend this film to anyone interested in watching a great film about past and present racial tensions.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
This film is about personal memory and how we remember those we love. After the main character, Joel, finds out his ex-girlfriend has had a procedure to forget him and their relationship, he chooses to do the same. The movie follows him as he desperately attempts to stop the procedure while it is happening and before his ex, Clementine, is permanently erased from his memories.
Do you have memories you wish you could keep forever? Ones you would rather forget? Scientists are constantly learning more about human memory. Recent research has even identified specific neurons that map memories in the brain. For more information about Themester for Fall 2019 or to view upcoming Themester events, check out this link: https://themester.indiana.edu/about/theme/index.html
Isabella Salerno is a junior studying Political Science, American Studies, and Sociology. In her free time you can often find her in a coffee shop around Bloomington.
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