‘High Rise’ (2002) Gabrielle Russell
The main aim of the d. was to evoke huge emotion in a short amount of time; we have suspense, utter despair, compassion, and fear. Whilst the baby fails at falling you are left with a sense of sadness in the knowing that this has happened several times in real life. The main focus is on the neglecting of young mums, a lack of support caused this very real situation, alongside post natal depression. I personally dislike the film purely because of the unpleasant emotions it creates and its content which is too close to reality for comfort. I think it’s fairly successful in dealing with its subject matter, it is very hard hitting, however, it fails to inspire you to do something about it, instead leaving you with a very negative experience. The pure emotion it managed to create within such a short space of time stood out for me. The films form related to its content by created a very bleak and sombre atmosphere, the mise en scene evoking a life of despair. I thought the sound was very successful in building up the story and in portraying the feelings of the character, I also thought the location was successful; being left all alone up high in a tower block showing isolation and fear.
‘Gas man’ (1998) Lynne Ramsey
The aim of the d. was to evoke a sense of social reality, set in a specific time, a specific place, with a main focus upon the northern lower class. I disliked the film not for its form or content, but due to the bleakness of northern lower class life being portrayed, with no real ending or conclusion. The film was very successful in dealing with its subject matter because of the use of realism that evokes a real sense of time/place/social class, the documentary style adds to the sense of realism. The development of the characters stood out to me; from childlike innocence, portrayed through the car in sugar and “there’s no place like home”, to a realisation that life isn’t always as it appears. The films documentary form and the grittiness of the filmic style compliments it’s subject matter by portraying the grim up north. I thought the fact that it was shot from day night added a certain mood which was successful in complimenting the films narrative which was another successful element. The sound was fairly raw which added to the feeling of the film.
‘Love me or leave me alone’ (2003) Dwain Hopkins http://1linereview.blogspot.com/2010/01/love-me-or-leave-me-alone-2003.html
The theme of the film is that of the hardships of love, with an aim to portray a story. I disliked it as the narrative seemed week and dwindled into not a lot, finding it hard to understand its purpose, portraying a cruel depiction of love. You find irritation as the female character deserves better and shouldn’t accept being treated like that, however, this isn’t resolved and the characters leave in the exact same situation they found themselves in at the beginning of the film with no real development, therefore lacking point. The film was unsuccessful in dealing with its subject matter in the way that there was no resolution. However, it is successful in the way of portraying the stupidity of love. The films form, being dark and grey, relates to their dark and grey relationship. The establishing shots worked well as did the irritation of the male character. The sound was used appropriately with long silences throughout.
All of the films are trying to create a sense of realism, dramatizing something that could happen in real life focussing on domestic issues. Is ‘issues’ an unhelpful term? Drama is conflict. These films are also all British; whilst each is different they do evoke a sense of place.
‘Skin deep’ (2001) Yousaf Ali Kahn
The aim of the film is to let the viewer experience the life of a Pakistani boy who faces his identity, with themes of racial violence within lower class white British estates. I’m in two minds when it comes to liking the film; on one hand it is well filmed with strong characters, giving a sense of what it was/is like, offering a different perspective and verisimilitude, on the other hand, it is quite hard to watch, leaving you with an unpleasant experience. It is successful in dealing with its subject matter with believability and a sense of reality, however, it is very in your face and over the top throughout, perhaps this is a restriction of short films. The lighting stood out to me being quite moody throughout. I thought the use of reflection in water and mirrors was successful in portraying the characters identity crisis, moreover, the use of water and when he tries to shave his skin off, shows his desperation to cleanse his skin colour to white so as to avoid racial hatred and to fit into society. A depressing idea that this fear, caused by society, has leaded him to want to change who he really is. The sound works well, filled with expletives and as aggressive as the film itself.
‘Tango’ (1981) (Polish) Zbigniew Rybczynski
The aim of the d. was to create an innovative animation with a focus on the repetition of life. I liked the film it was abstract and technically impressive, moreover, finding interest in the way that the brain tries to work out the action on screen. The subject matter of repetition and life was successfully portrayed; in fact it is quite literally evident as all the characters repeat the same action on screen, its form allows this literal translation of the content. It is interesting how all these actions could have happened in real life and yet there is no contact between characters, relating to the title tango. The repetitive classical music adds to the piece, showing off the complex juggling of life.
‘Salary man’ (2002) Jake Knight
The aim of the d. is to portray the mundane repetition of life, with themes of the corporate world and isolation despite the vast quantity of people. I liked the film, having a nice concept; is there a point of working in the corporate world if you have no life to enjoy. The film was successful in its subject matter, portraying a sense of place and the shortfalls of the Tokyo metropolis. The vanishing points used throughout the film stood out to me, sometimes using more than one, so as to give a never ending feel adding to the repetition. This for therefore relates to its content, moreover, repeating the same scenes amplifies the repetition. Therefore, the use of vanishing points is a successful technique used by the film maker. Another technique that worked well was the full circle narrative, starting at the end and ending at the start, this is appropriate as it adds to the repetition; even something out of the ordinary and potentially exciting in that world happens again. The white city noise low key sound adds to the film, with the single voice over making plain the feelings the film evokes.
The aim of the d. was to create a sense of being given new life and the immediate effects on the surrounding environment, with a central theme of rebirth. I liked the film; it was short but sweet, with a touch of modern day surrealism. The brief was to depict the concept of rebirth, which has several definitions; this one is that of revival, therefore successful in dealing in its subject matter. The lifting up of the flag stones digitally, stood out to me showing off the effects on the surrounding area of the rebirth, amplifying the action. Therefore, the form of this film relates to its subject matter. The bright colourful overwhelming light after he was brought back to life was a successful technique in depicting the rebirth element. I also liked the extreme close up slowly zooming in in crisp HD on the deathly still face, whilst this was a successful technique, it causes confusion in context as he closes his eyes; an unrealistic death; either this is to add to the surrealism or it is showing that there is life still left in his eyes. The sound is minimal gradually building adding warmth to the film.
All these films make you consider what is the difference between documentary and drama? The point of this exercise is to show that there will always be questionable elements of film; boundaries are not set and you can choose to break them. By making films you are opening yourself up to criticism as a film maker.
No comments:
Post a Comment