Evaluation

On the whole, the use of a blog was an effective tool in documenting my research findings. In many ways the blog enabled me to edit and submit my research easily in the form of posts, where I could type my research findings and could modify the posts at any time. As well as this, the blog was a visual tool where I could voice my opinions on the films and the issues within British comedy films.

Generally, I found the blog was an easier alternative for the project, as I had experience setting up and using blogs in my A level Media Studies course and could be set up fairly easily, with the use of an email address and personal information needed to set up a blog.

In contrast to writing an essay, the blog was an effective way of posting research, as well as images and videos, which could be analysed and be more interactive. Most importantly, the use of the side bar showed the posts which I created throughout the project and also showed the journey of the project from beginning to end .The use of features such as the spell checker, tools for image and video posting, as well as the preview link were useful, as I could look at the research post before I could publish the post and edit the text or images in the post. The use of comments enabled anybody to comment on my post, which was useful for feedback.

The ability to edit posts enabled me to change information and learn about public opinion in the form of articles from online newspaper sites such as The Guardian, The Daily Mail, as well as reviews from newspaper sites and specialist review websites. By accessing this information, I could comment on public opinion and how the public receive British comedy films. In the earlier posts, I included historical research on comedy and the various types of comedy such as screwball, slapstick and other types. As a result, I learnt about how forms of comedy developed over the years, from silent comedy to comedy film which included sound and comical sight gags.

Though, the blog did have some problems, in that posts that were deleted seemed to disrupt the flow of the blog. In some cases, the embed codes for the Youtube video url links did not work when the posts were published. At times, the blog seemed to be more time consuming due to the constant updating and additions of information in various posts. In terms of the research, some of the texts were not accessible, which made it difficult for me to analyse them and link my research such as facts with the scenes from films such as East is East.

Generally, the blog was a more effective and interactive way of conveying my research to a wider audience. The blog also developed my skills, as I was able to condense and edit information fairly easily, through the use of the preview link. In addition, my organisation skills were developed through the use of the blog, as I could edit and post information in order, from when I started the project to the concluding stages. Unlike any essay, the blog was a more personal format, as I could customise the blog with additional features such as quotes, dates, games and other features which made it informative and entertaining. The fact that the blog was public enabled my supervisor to check the blog at any time, which was convenient.

From the beginning of the project, I focused on the types of comedy and issues within a specific decade. Alongside this topic, I researched from books and websites, particularly looking at the history of comedy films. As the project progressed, I decided to narrow my research down to focus on issues in British comedy film between 1985-1995, which was beneficial for me, as I was able to look in depth at specific films which included issues that reflected public opinion. In many ways, my research skills developed, as I had to explore the historical issues in that decade and had to find revelant texts which included the issues which I would focus on.

However, I found that the research into a specific decade was too limited in terms of research and was insufficient, in that I could not find enough texts which explored issues such as technology and crime. Therefore, I decided instead to concentrate my research on specific issues in British comedy film, which proved to be successful. As a result of my decision, I research closely to texts and issues, such as The incompetence of the police, Religion and Immigration and found facts and statistics to back up my points. From researching, I learnt that comedy films are intended to reflect the public's hidden fears and use humour to dumb down serious issues such as terrorism.

On the whole, the project was successful , as I was able to show my passion for comedy films and was able to analyse specific films such as Four Lions. The fact that British comedy films use humour to mock specific issues in society, made me reluctant to explore this in a project, as these issues such as immigration have affected me, as my family have migrated to Britain and have experienced Britain in the decade of mass immigration . If I was to do the project again, I would improve on research, as I could have researched into British comedy film institutions and how they advocate the messages and issues in the films.

As well as research into institutions, I could have conducted an interview on the public, which would gather an opinion of what people think of issues in British comedy film. By being organised, I could have dedicated time to specific issues such as immigration and could have researched in depth on the issue and incorporate research from articles and questionnaires on issues in comedy film. Consequently, there would have been a strong link throughout the project if I organised the project carefully.

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