About the Course
Enhance your ability to assess and enjoy films by sharpening your skills in analyzing characters, plot, and acting.
Soul-fueling films have been produced in all genres and eras of movie-making, but many of the best are not widely known or recognized for their excellence or philosophic depth.
In this course, Dr. Andrew Bernstein will discuss six superlative, yet very different, films:
- Spotlight (2015): the gripping true story of investigative reporters exposing a massive pedophilia scandal within the Catholic Church;
- Bridge of Spies (2015): a Cold War espionage thriller, which illustrates the difference between life under freedom and “life” under totalitarianism;
- Lawrence of Arabia (1962): a classic World War I film that explores free will versus determinism;
- All About Eve (1950): a glamorous story about an unprincipled attempt to gain Broadway success and its debilitating consequences;
- Gaslight (1944): a psychological thriller about a woman’s attempt to overcome her abusive husband’s scheme to convince her she is going insane. The contemporary political term “gaslighting” comes directly and explicitly from this film;
- Fort Apache (1948): a Western classic that integrates a cavalry-versus-Indians conflict with a love story and insights into race, class differences, and the often misbegotten origins of military glory.
Immerse yourself in superb cinematic art; discuss the characters, plot, theme, acting, and dialogue with other active-minded people; and deepen your understanding and enjoyment of these six films—and films forever after.
Missed the course? We’ll notify you the next time it's offered!
How This Course Works
This course is interactive and discussion-driven, so enrollment is limited. Register early to secure your spot.
The course is held live on Zoom, which you can download for free here. Sessions are video recorded, so if you miss a session (or want to review), you can watch the recording. OSI may sell course recordings and/or use them for marketing, promotional, or educational purposes.
The course is 9 hours long, consisting of 6 sessions of 1.5 hours each. Homework assignments are optional. Doing them may require an additional hour or more per week but will greatly enhance what you learn in this course.
Course handouts and supplementary materials are delivered via email. Course participants are invited to an exclusive OSI Courses group on Facebook, where they can post questions and engage in discussions with the instructor and other participants.
Have a question that wasn’t answered here? Read our FAQ or email us at [email protected].
By enrolling, you agree to OSI’s Course Terms and Conditions.
Frequently Asked Questions
OSI courses are live, interactive, and discussion-driven, so enrollment is limited. Register early to secure your spot.
Courses are held on Zoom, and sessions are recorded, so if you miss a session (or want to review), you can watch the recording. You can download Zoom for free here.
Courses vary in length. And some involve homework. Please see the specific course pages for details.
Course handouts and supplementary materials are delivered via email (please register with an active email address). Participants have access to an exclusive OSI Courses group on Facebook.
Zoom is a free video-conferencing app that we use to conduct our courses. You can download it here.
Sessions are video recorded, so if you miss a session (or want to review), you can watch the recording. That said, we highly recommend attending each live session so that you can ask questions and engage with your instructor(s) and other participants.
If you do miss a session, we recommend that you watch the recording before attending the next session.
Anyone aged 29 or younger may apply for an OSI scholarship to cover the full cost of a course. For information on how the scholarships work, please visit our Scholarships page.
You can see all current and past courses here.
If you have a question that isn’t answered in the FAQ or course description, please email us at [email protected].
