Write a paragraph or two in response to each of the following prompts:
As always, I like to start by examining the title in some detail. Why is this movie called “A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night”? What does that phrase ordinarily suggest and how does this film play with our typical expectations about being a “girl” and walking alone at night?
As I mentioned in the introduction to this movie, the director Ana Lily Amirpour used to work as a DJ and she carefully curated the songs for this film. Consider how the soundtrack choices and the actions that are choreographed around particular songs affect our experience of the film and our understandings of the characters. You may either pick on particular song and scene or discuss the music more generally.
“A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night” is basically a black-and-white silent film. How do the lack of color and the near absence of dialogue affect your experience of this movie? Why would the director choose to make the film in this way? What can she better accomplish with these choices?
Finally, consider this film as a vampire movie. What things does it borrow from previous vampire films you’ve seen? What innovations does it introduce? What is the significance of vampires generally? How does this film use the vampires and vampirism as metaphor to make larger comments about social relationships influenced by class and gender?
Professor Chuck 