Is Max Fischer a stereotypical teenager?
This montage sequence that starts at the beginning of the film includes intertextuality which is when one film refers to another. This is effective as we see both sides of them. The song that is included in this clip is called 'Making time' by The Creation. This helps create the atmosphere and also shows how busy Max is all of the time which makes it quite chaotic because it gets faster.
I don't believe that Max is a stereotypical teenager because he looks to be very hardworking and is anything but lazy. He tries everything as most of the activities that he does do vary a lot. Teenagers are portrayed to be extremely lazy and laid back also Max is very different. He takes part in most things at Rushmore College whereas most teenagers try their best to stay out of them. Another point that makes him a non stereotypical teenagers is the way he wears his uniforms and outfits. He is very smartly dressed in everything he does which could be a way of expressing him as a person. Normally, teenagers are very scruffy and dress informally. The fact that he is the founder or president of most of his activities might show that he is a good leader and likes to aim high in everything he does. Although in some things he wasn't the very best. He may be good at some things but not at everything. For example, he had a yellow belt in karate club, he was in the debating club, the flying hours were not for very long and he came second in his choir master club. This related to teenagers because not all teenagers are good at everything. Mise en scene plays a huge part in this montage sequence. Each scene fits the title of his activity. An example of this is 'The model united nation Russia'. Here he is sitting in front of the world map and the setting fits his outfit. He has Mexico and India on both sides of him which makes him look more powerful. He is obviously very committed to each activity as he sticks to them and had achieved many things. Normally teenagers don't have any hobbies. Max is always so busy because he is involved in around 18 different activities:
Yankee review publisher- He is in charge of this club; the others follow him which show his dominance. The leads the others in the middle of them as he talks to them. He is also dressed very smartly wearing a blazer and tie.
French club president- In this club he is very important. He is wearing a beree which represents the french culture and he is also sat in the middle of the front row which shows how high skilled he is on that area.
Model united nations- Here he focuses on Russia and this is more appropriate because it is a stronger country which once again shows power. He is wearing a Russian style hat, again with a blazer which shows he cares about his appearance and it represents Russia. He is also sat up straight whereas teenagers usually slouch.
Stamp and coin club vice president- This is not generally a past time of a stereotypical teenagers although he has a large stamp collection which shows he is committed to his hobbies.
Debating team captain- He also plays a very important role in this group as well. He wears a tie whereas the others are wearing bow ties . He tries to show how individual and independent he is. Maybe he likes wearing his school uniform because he wears it a lot. He seems to be very different to the others, this could be because he is poorer or he is just more intelligent.
Lacrosse team manager- Here he looks very smart and it wearing a traditional jocks kit. He looks like the odd one out and not bothered about the game because he isn't focused on it. He is too busy tidying up the jocks kit and it is as if they don't even notice him.
Calligraphy club president- Here he seems like he is the only one in the club which shows that he enjoys doing it even though nobody else is there.
Astronomy society founder- Here he is wearing the beree again which shows formality.
Fencing team captain- In this scene we can see that Max still has his school trousers on. This might show that he can't afford any new trousers or just that he likes looking smart.
Track and field- Here it looks like he is alone once again although this activity is very different to others. he might just be doing it for exercise instead of his leadership skills.
Choir master- He is conducting the choir which shows another one of his interests and passions.
Bombardment society founder- Here he is in uniform once again.
Kungfu club- In this scene, all of the others seem to be better than him and are younger. This could
show he is not as good as sports as he is with other hobbies.
Trap and skeet club founder- Here we can see that he has his only friend with him. Nobody else is doing the activity with him which makes you feel sorry for him.
Beekeepers club- Once again his uniform is still on and he is the only person completing the activity.
Go-karting club- Here he is sitting in a damaged go-kart sitting as an outsider as if he doesn't fit in with the rest off the group. he is once again wearing his school uniform.
Drama club- In a way, it seems arrogant to call the club after himself, although he is keen to keep it running and works very hard.
Flying club- Here he has not completed many hours of flying which shows he is not very professional. He is smartly dressed once again and looks quite intelligent.
To conclude, I believe that Max is a non-stereotypical teenager, because of his personality and he seems to be very committed to everything he does. He is not lazy at all and dresses smartly whereas normal teenagers are very laid back and scruffy. Usually teenagers just go out with friends and don't worry about hobbies or work at school whereas Max looks like he has the determination and commitment to stick to his activities.
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