Steven Spielberg directed this film in a very dark and serious style, woith opening scenes depicting a slaveship in the year 1839, the slaveship "La Amistad".
Throughout the better part of this movie we do not understand the language of speech being spoken, but, like the movie "the Passion of the Christ", we are involved with the other senses we posses, the senses of sight and visible/invisible sound.
The main character, Cincul, was used to create a vision of his and other African's kidnappings, torture and responsibility thus leading to his position as the leader of the group of 44 Africans brought to court.
Like other movies, we see a movie like this as part of the U.S. History and wonder whether or not it tells a true story. Steven Spielberg does a wonderful account of making us think that it is a part of our history. We see the use of Presidents throughout the latter half of the movie and understand the civil discourse of the period in time. We know slavery caused a civil war, but do we, as non-historians, understand what events sparked its inception? Its answer could easily be told in this day by referring to the art of "googling" the internet. For argument's sake, let us not rely upon the internet to open our minds to the fictionality or non-fictionality of the movie "Amistad".
We know after and during watching this film that Steven Spielberg's use of all the elements of film-making such as subject matter, casting, setting and set design and narrative structure all pull together to create a masterpiece. With such a grave topic as slavery, I didn't find it hard to believe that this was director by Mr. Spielberg. As I am not an expert in our social makeup within the U.S. I cannot say how many African Americans must have been triumphantly touched by his depiction of the treatment of slaves. He addessed such ideas with the Lawyer's(Mathew Mconehey)argument asking, "...are they merchandise, like cattle or other livestock..or were they born slaves? This is not an argument about who they belong to, it's an argument about where they were born."
The courage to address the issue brought ultimate faith in, not our justice system, but in the character of humanity. The seriousness of this movie stirred an emotion in whomever were lucky enough to watch it. At some point in our lives we are all faced with issues or choices where we look up and say with same meaning as Cincul stated with his first words of English, "Give us, us Free, Give us, us Free".
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Elizabeth: review
In the movie, "Elizabeth", starring Cate Blanchett as Queen Elizabeth, bastard daughter of King Henry VII, the moviegoer is embraced by color and lighting in every scene. In this movie, color and lighting are what make this movie a period movie of the Victorian era, we are not left guessing during what time or what land this movie takes place.
During the reign of Elizabeth's half sister, Queen Mary, the scenes are notoriously darkly lit. It is during this part of the movie where we experience uncertain times of the current Queen's health status and the uncertainty of her half-sister's determination of whether or not she is to live or die. The time portrayed in the movie is a time of religious upheaval between the Catholics and heathen Protestants. (I do not mean I feel this way about Protestants;it is the expression the Catholics have for the Protestants during this time and Queen's ruling).
We see the scenes change, subtly, towards a lighter feeling after the death of Queen Mary, beginning with the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth. The scenes are active with stillshots including all which could give us a better understanding of this time period's grandeur, from the intricately designed and detailed dresses of the Queen to the massive Cathedral and castle columns.
I found the final scenes in the movie to be the most impactive of the film. Queen Elizabeth finds herself to be judged as a woman and with that being a weakness, re-defines herself by cutting her hair, stating "I have become a virgin" and stripping her natural beauty away towards an emotionless, cold "Virgin Queen". The following and final scene is her grand entrance as the newly defined Queen, face painted ghostly white, lips a frightening red and non-revealing regalia. The special effects applied to this final entrance is the Ironic use of color with softened, blurred auras surrounding the Queen. This irony is defined and realized by the communication Queen Elizabeth had at the feet of the blessed Virgin Mary after she had her traitors heads cut off and posted on sticks for all the kingdom to see.
I found this movie to be very serious with very little whimsy or humor. It is a story told to those of us who have never experienced the Victorian age and none the less, of a country ruled by a woman suffering from the types of judgements all women seem to face, to this day, in all parts of the world. It is with great awe at the end of the movie we find out Queen Elizabeth ruled for 40 years during what she defined as "The Golden Age" as "The Virgin Queen".
During the reign of Elizabeth's half sister, Queen Mary, the scenes are notoriously darkly lit. It is during this part of the movie where we experience uncertain times of the current Queen's health status and the uncertainty of her half-sister's determination of whether or not she is to live or die. The time portrayed in the movie is a time of religious upheaval between the Catholics and heathen Protestants. (I do not mean I feel this way about Protestants;it is the expression the Catholics have for the Protestants during this time and Queen's ruling).
We see the scenes change, subtly, towards a lighter feeling after the death of Queen Mary, beginning with the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth. The scenes are active with stillshots including all which could give us a better understanding of this time period's grandeur, from the intricately designed and detailed dresses of the Queen to the massive Cathedral and castle columns.
I found the final scenes in the movie to be the most impactive of the film. Queen Elizabeth finds herself to be judged as a woman and with that being a weakness, re-defines herself by cutting her hair, stating "I have become a virgin" and stripping her natural beauty away towards an emotionless, cold "Virgin Queen". The following and final scene is her grand entrance as the newly defined Queen, face painted ghostly white, lips a frightening red and non-revealing regalia. The special effects applied to this final entrance is the Ironic use of color with softened, blurred auras surrounding the Queen. This irony is defined and realized by the communication Queen Elizabeth had at the feet of the blessed Virgin Mary after she had her traitors heads cut off and posted on sticks for all the kingdom to see.
I found this movie to be very serious with very little whimsy or humor. It is a story told to those of us who have never experienced the Victorian age and none the less, of a country ruled by a woman suffering from the types of judgements all women seem to face, to this day, in all parts of the world. It is with great awe at the end of the movie we find out Queen Elizabeth ruled for 40 years during what she defined as "The Golden Age" as "The Virgin Queen".
The Passion of the Christ evaluation
The sounds characterized in the movie, The Passion of the Christ, are used to create a plot of terrifying pain and suffering. In the opening scenes we see money, but we hear it as well,as Judas betrays Jesus by giving up his position. This movie refers and is a good example of Chapter eight in our textbook, Sound Effects and Dialogue.
With the movie acted out in Latin, you would think one could only understand the movie if he or she were reading the subtitles-ha-quite the contrary in this case. If there were no subtitles one would easily be able to understand the movie's pace, cause climax and all the other elements of an incredible and incredibly told story.
What have you in interest to such a film in which one cannot understand the language being used? For those who would rather experience a film and its story by engaging other senses than sight alone, The Passion.. is one which envelopes one with its use of sound and intensely expressed dialogue. When I watched this movie, I thought of experiencing the opera and how it so related to relying upon other senses to understand the story being told. I might add, that not only did this movie and the opera tell a story, it evoked my innermost emotion and sensitivity towards suffering. Never has a movie touched me so deeply than did this one, crying like the sobbing teenage girl who just lost her lifelong canine companion to cancer, her best friend and only being who was told every secret she had without casting judgement. I felt the emotion of our Christ in both his physical pain and his mental pain, in writhing, sobbing, whimpering agony, the visible sounds.
The sounds of insanity give us an idea of what Judas is experiencing in his torment of what he has done to the saviour. It is the silence from the mocking boys chasing him out of town which brings attention to the dead lamb, a symbol of his guilt in the undeniable slaughtering about to happen to Jesus Christ. These sounds give us a sense of texture. The sounds of the crowds also give us an idea of the timeperiod in the last 12 days of Jesus' life. These period piecing sounds tell us of how the government deals with matters of social dilemna, through the reaction of the crowd.
Throughout this film the use of sound has depicted an idea to not only see with our eyes, but listen from the heart as it is the profound effect this film intended for the viewer. For instance, when we see our saviour being beaten with no sound we cringe because of the sight but when we post the sound of the flesh being torn from Jesus' skin to the man doing the beating, calling out the number of times he is flogging Jesus, it adds this element of hatred and sympathy; hatred for the flogger happily beating Jesus to shreds and sympathy, in its purest nature for Jesus trying to survive his torture.
With the movie acted out in Latin, you would think one could only understand the movie if he or she were reading the subtitles-ha-quite the contrary in this case. If there were no subtitles one would easily be able to understand the movie's pace, cause climax and all the other elements of an incredible and incredibly told story.
What have you in interest to such a film in which one cannot understand the language being used? For those who would rather experience a film and its story by engaging other senses than sight alone, The Passion.. is one which envelopes one with its use of sound and intensely expressed dialogue. When I watched this movie, I thought of experiencing the opera and how it so related to relying upon other senses to understand the story being told. I might add, that not only did this movie and the opera tell a story, it evoked my innermost emotion and sensitivity towards suffering. Never has a movie touched me so deeply than did this one, crying like the sobbing teenage girl who just lost her lifelong canine companion to cancer, her best friend and only being who was told every secret she had without casting judgement. I felt the emotion of our Christ in both his physical pain and his mental pain, in writhing, sobbing, whimpering agony, the visible sounds.
The sounds of insanity give us an idea of what Judas is experiencing in his torment of what he has done to the saviour. It is the silence from the mocking boys chasing him out of town which brings attention to the dead lamb, a symbol of his guilt in the undeniable slaughtering about to happen to Jesus Christ. These sounds give us a sense of texture. The sounds of the crowds also give us an idea of the timeperiod in the last 12 days of Jesus' life. These period piecing sounds tell us of how the government deals with matters of social dilemna, through the reaction of the crowd.
Throughout this film the use of sound has depicted an idea to not only see with our eyes, but listen from the heart as it is the profound effect this film intended for the viewer. For instance, when we see our saviour being beaten with no sound we cringe because of the sight but when we post the sound of the flesh being torn from Jesus' skin to the man doing the beating, calling out the number of times he is flogging Jesus, it adds this element of hatred and sympathy; hatred for the flogger happily beating Jesus to shreds and sympathy, in its purest nature for Jesus trying to survive his torture.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Cider House Rules Eval
Clearly evident was the evidence in Cider House Rules that the movie was dramatic. The creation of such a movie underlyingly routed and re-routed your mind to believe the movie could be about a controversial topic, while it took your mind towards another route, believing that the main character's perception of the world was auspiciously naive'.
The scenes took me to a place in history, when abortion was viewed not as it is of current day. Although it was not legal, it was also not a major gradation in moral flaws to have such a procedure performed; there was no emphasis on the subject to project it as so.
The hairstyles worn, make-up and costumes were all selected to emphasize a time in our past of war, possibly WWII. The lighting was primarily natural or appeared to give that type of effect. When outdoors, the sun brightly lit up the apple orchards, fishing dock and car scenes. But when indoors, the lighting was rather dark, as if natural lighting was the most affordable means of light for the characters within their element.
The institutionalization portrayed a place dramatically different than what one might perceive of an orphanage, so the feeling we have is sympathetic towards the children and staff who work hard to make it the happiest place a child could be, in his or her situation. We see the raw emotions of the staff caring for such downtrodden children from the time they awake until they lay their little heads to sleep at night. Regardless of the situation, the rules of St. Clouds, the orphanage, is keeping the sanctity of its occupants preserved through structure and positive thinking and feeling, "aren't we happy for Fuzzy? Yes, Fuzzy found a home...good night Fuzzy".
The ideal of rules fit for the inhabitants is made towards the end of the movie, when the rules are finally related to the occupants of the Cider House. The rules did not pertain properly to the humanity of the workers, there was no sense in their meaning. In life, if the rules are not indicative to the cause and are not established from within, chaos can ensue. This thought is described best at the near end of the movie when Mr. Rose says on his deathbed, "Sometimes you have to break some rules to put things straight". This statement carries over into every crack and gulley in our lives when determining how we can make the best of our situation, and sometimes, rules must be tested, analyzed and re-ruled in order for an element to function properly.
The scenes took me to a place in history, when abortion was viewed not as it is of current day. Although it was not legal, it was also not a major gradation in moral flaws to have such a procedure performed; there was no emphasis on the subject to project it as so.
The hairstyles worn, make-up and costumes were all selected to emphasize a time in our past of war, possibly WWII. The lighting was primarily natural or appeared to give that type of effect. When outdoors, the sun brightly lit up the apple orchards, fishing dock and car scenes. But when indoors, the lighting was rather dark, as if natural lighting was the most affordable means of light for the characters within their element.
The institutionalization portrayed a place dramatically different than what one might perceive of an orphanage, so the feeling we have is sympathetic towards the children and staff who work hard to make it the happiest place a child could be, in his or her situation. We see the raw emotions of the staff caring for such downtrodden children from the time they awake until they lay their little heads to sleep at night. Regardless of the situation, the rules of St. Clouds, the orphanage, is keeping the sanctity of its occupants preserved through structure and positive thinking and feeling, "aren't we happy for Fuzzy? Yes, Fuzzy found a home...good night Fuzzy".
The ideal of rules fit for the inhabitants is made towards the end of the movie, when the rules are finally related to the occupants of the Cider House. The rules did not pertain properly to the humanity of the workers, there was no sense in their meaning. In life, if the rules are not indicative to the cause and are not established from within, chaos can ensue. This thought is described best at the near end of the movie when Mr. Rose says on his deathbed, "Sometimes you have to break some rules to put things straight". This statement carries over into every crack and gulley in our lives when determining how we can make the best of our situation, and sometimes, rules must be tested, analyzed and re-ruled in order for an element to function properly.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
The Dark Knight
Editing the movie "The Dark Knight" was a work of art in itself, with sequences of shots enveloped by creative lighting and sound. The special effects created by the editor made the movie characteristic of the movie's title, dark. The portrayal of the Joker by Heath Ledger was indeed evil. On the website, www.cinematical.com, written by Erik Davis on January 28, 2008, the author indicated how Heath Ledger hid himself away for about a month to work himself into his character role. In this account it was stated that Heath died of suicidal causes but on www.wikipedia.com it was stated his death was accidental.
I was particularly amazed at the use of color in the film. Paired with the trickery of make-up and the Joker's costume the surrealistic use of color amplifies the devilish qualities the Joker portrays. The Dark Knight is certainly not emitting any type of ambience, either through light or sound.
As for sound, the dialogue side of sound, Batman's voice is gruff and mysterious while the Joker's is evil and relentless. This has been obviously modified but adds dimension to the film. The three dimensional sound is created by layers of background city noises, explosions, spoken and almost whispering tones, all of which are blended and synthesized so well that one becomes relentlessly ambushed by the need to stay involved in the film, as though the watcher is not that at all. The watcher also plays a role in the film, the watcher IS Batman or the Police Commissioner or any other role opposite whom the camera is focused upon. As Batman speaks to the Police Commissioner, the watcher IS the Police Commissioner. The sound speaks to the one watching the movie.
I was particularly amazed at the use of color in the film. Paired with the trickery of make-up and the Joker's costume the surrealistic use of color amplifies the devilish qualities the Joker portrays. The Dark Knight is certainly not emitting any type of ambience, either through light or sound.
As for sound, the dialogue side of sound, Batman's voice is gruff and mysterious while the Joker's is evil and relentless. This has been obviously modified but adds dimension to the film. The three dimensional sound is created by layers of background city noises, explosions, spoken and almost whispering tones, all of which are blended and synthesized so well that one becomes relentlessly ambushed by the need to stay involved in the film, as though the watcher is not that at all. The watcher also plays a role in the film, the watcher IS Batman or the Police Commissioner or any other role opposite whom the camera is focused upon. As Batman speaks to the Police Commissioner, the watcher IS the Police Commissioner. The sound speaks to the one watching the movie.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Amelie-Evaluation
The set/locations in which the movie Amelie takes place are mainly limited to three sets: an apartment complex, a train station and a small cafe'. The sets are limited as to not distract from the already quirky characteristics of the primary characters but to reflect upon those characteristics. The setting gives us an idea of how the characters live their lives and how the Conflict interrupts the very scheduled atmosphere, the same day-after-day attitude in Amelie's life.
I feel the train station location was chosen specifically for how train stations tend to contain a wide variety of passer-bys. It is an ideal place for Amelie to meet someone by chance yet someone who could be considered her soul mate. Amelies apartment was also chosen as an ideal location as it represents, pretty much, all who Amelie is. The colors used, furniture, lamps and other items distinguish Amelie's quiet silliness.
The costumes chosen reflect a very ordinary, but not frumpy, individual. She is classic like Audrey Hepburn, clean but not diva. The director has allowed us to see Amelie as a very likeable individual, someone whose appearance we would hope our daughters would mimic. The costumes chosen were very liveable and the actors seemed comfortable in who they were and the character they portrayed.
The lighting for the movie was more Harsh & Direct than it was Soft & Diffused. I would consider it High Key Lighting. Every scene seemed to be brighter than what natural light could provide, less shadows than what would occur in our natural world. THe director was, by lighting the movie in the manner it was lit, enforcing a statment of semi-fantasy, a story somewhat believable yet on the brink of unbelievable. The light was so dramatic that it effectively achieved the element of giddiness, gaiety in which the onlooker wants to participate, maybe step into the scene.
I feel the train station location was chosen specifically for how train stations tend to contain a wide variety of passer-bys. It is an ideal place for Amelie to meet someone by chance yet someone who could be considered her soul mate. Amelies apartment was also chosen as an ideal location as it represents, pretty much, all who Amelie is. The colors used, furniture, lamps and other items distinguish Amelie's quiet silliness.
The costumes chosen reflect a very ordinary, but not frumpy, individual. She is classic like Audrey Hepburn, clean but not diva. The director has allowed us to see Amelie as a very likeable individual, someone whose appearance we would hope our daughters would mimic. The costumes chosen were very liveable and the actors seemed comfortable in who they were and the character they portrayed.
The lighting for the movie was more Harsh & Direct than it was Soft & Diffused. I would consider it High Key Lighting. Every scene seemed to be brighter than what natural light could provide, less shadows than what would occur in our natural world. THe director was, by lighting the movie in the manner it was lit, enforcing a statment of semi-fantasy, a story somewhat believable yet on the brink of unbelievable. The light was so dramatic that it effectively achieved the element of giddiness, gaiety in which the onlooker wants to participate, maybe step into the scene.
Monday, March 1, 2010
A Beautiful Mind Evaluation
In the beginning of "A Beautiful Mind" directed by Ed Harris, Russell Crowe plays John Nash and is, although transparently nervous and skiddish, of sane mind.
The title would lean one to thinking his character posessed some sort of "beauty" in his nature. Ironically, this tendency only appears towards the end of the movie. Russel Crowe's depiction of John Nash is that of a hard, focused Princeton University student, adamantly and suffocatingly striving more to find a doctoral topic of distinguishability rather than partaking in the normal social functions of Graduate life. This inability to socially mix in with others is clearly evident at this point, and from there, begins to emerge a complexity of the Human Relationship.
As I became more intrigued by Joh Nash's gift of code-breaking, it became increasingly difficult to see how the character became so schizophrenic and intertwined in his own internal conflict. During this time, the story was told in John Nash's perspective and you see the evolution of his turmoil. It is not until his diagnosis and reveal of his mind-altered world, by John's wife, does the viewer begin to grasp how his initial stress of determining his Doctoral theory began to weigh upon his subconscious mind.
It is this weight which caused the schizophrenia and became the center, thematically of how the characters would respond to each other. The husband/wife relationship's outcome was based upon whether the wife stayed with the husband and how the doctor would face his schizophrenia in order to proceed and/or succeed.
Whereas the multiple issues and conflicts create a theme surrounding the fight and survival of the human spirit even if it is one's own (schizophrenic) tendencies which create the conflict, and the universality of it.
The title would lean one to thinking his character posessed some sort of "beauty" in his nature. Ironically, this tendency only appears towards the end of the movie. Russel Crowe's depiction of John Nash is that of a hard, focused Princeton University student, adamantly and suffocatingly striving more to find a doctoral topic of distinguishability rather than partaking in the normal social functions of Graduate life. This inability to socially mix in with others is clearly evident at this point, and from there, begins to emerge a complexity of the Human Relationship.
As I became more intrigued by Joh Nash's gift of code-breaking, it became increasingly difficult to see how the character became so schizophrenic and intertwined in his own internal conflict. During this time, the story was told in John Nash's perspective and you see the evolution of his turmoil. It is not until his diagnosis and reveal of his mind-altered world, by John's wife, does the viewer begin to grasp how his initial stress of determining his Doctoral theory began to weigh upon his subconscious mind.
It is this weight which caused the schizophrenia and became the center, thematically of how the characters would respond to each other. The husband/wife relationship's outcome was based upon whether the wife stayed with the husband and how the doctor would face his schizophrenia in order to proceed and/or succeed.
Whereas the multiple issues and conflicts create a theme surrounding the fight and survival of the human spirit even if it is one's own (schizophrenic) tendencies which create the conflict, and the universality of it.
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