perhaps it's just the impending new academic year, but i find that, even more than usual, i'm thinking about lots of screen-l messages in the context of my teaching, specifically wondering whether and how many of them might be introduced into an intro to cinema studies course for non-majors . . . as an old narratologist i'm endlessly fascinated by questions of narration in fiction and film, and of the variable kinds of unreliability in the two . . . and i'm thus tempted, especially in light of ed oneill's interesting comments on MORTAL THOUGHTS and USUAL SUSPECTS, to introduce one [or both] films into the syllabus i'm finalizing this week-end . . . but i find myself wondering whether this is not a kind of byway in film study, very interesting to those who have already know the mainstream, a kind of odd dialect rewarding to those who've mastered the lingua franca of film . . . more simply, is this something that beggining students ought to know, and is it something theyre likely to find interesting as opposed to merely a wierd curiosity . . . and i think it also worth keeping in mind that introducing this thread into a course means that something else [neo-realism?; the "gaze"? ; documentary styles?] will have to go to make room . . . so, in short, how important do screen-L'ers think the issue of reliable narration is in introducing students to the world of cinema? all thoughts eagerly welcomed mike frank ---- To sign off SCREEN-L, e-mail [log in to unmask] and put SIGNOFF SCREEN-L in the message. Problems? Contact [log in to unmask]