So, this past week at school was movie week, in which we had a bit of downtime (and when I say downtime, I don't mean it was relaxing or any less stressful than any other week lol! 'Relaxing' and 'not stressful' are not words that you will find in the 'Prairieview dictionary'!) It was, however, a time to have a bit of fun with fellow PVers and enjoy (or not, as some cases may be) some photo-related movies. As always, there was a catch, and this catch is what you are now reading! We had to write a review on each of the movies we watch and blog them!
So, here goes, here are my reviews for the three movies I watched!
O' Brother Where Art Thou?
Now I think I was only one of few who didn't really enjoy this movie! Maybe it was for the fact that I don't have a crush on George Clooney, find it hard to understand the amazingly thick southern American accents that each character adopted, or just simply because I found the story line quite boring, but either way it just wasn't, as we english say, 'my cuppa tea'!
The thing that I did find interesting about this movie was the way in which it was shot and processed. Having watched a short interview on the 'dvd extra's footage', it was explained how the colour balancing on the movie was changed on every frame to give it the mood and atmosphere the director/producers wanted. The whole movie was very much on the yellow side of the colour scale, with lots of warm tones, which I thought really emphasised the heat. This was especially effective, I found, in the opening scene, where it faded from black and white, into colour as the scene progresses. In this scene, there is a chain gang of convicts working outside and the colour balancing really adds the sense of how hot, tiring and uncomfortable it would have been for them.
So, on the whole, the most compelling aspect, for me, with this movie, was the cinematography and the general look of the film.
Pecker
Second movie of the week, was Pecker. Probably one of the weirdest and most random films I've ever watched! Words can't really describe this movie, other than "I Love You more than Kodak!" BEST line in the entire movie! Only a passionate photographer could 'love someone more than kodak!' Maybe I should try that line on my boyfriend, perhaps "I love you more than Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop" would be enough to show my affection! Because let's face it, in today's photographic industry with digital taking over the world, Adobe products are pretty much the equivalent love for a digital photographer, to Peckers love for Kodak film!
As much as I found this movie extremely random, I did find a lot of good moral points within it, from the fact that money and fame can ruin someone's passion and also ruin a lot of other things in people's lives, to the fact that there is a thin line between art and photography capturing the 'truth' and what is simply perceived as the truth! It raised awareness to the fact that as a photographer, you have to be careful with who you are taking photos of and where these images are being used, and whether of not you have the subjects consent to publicly display the images, as this could have consequences (and not always good ones!).
Overall, I think this film portrayed the passion that some people show for art and photography and how sometimes this passion is used for good, and other times, just to exploit people.
One Hour Photo
My favourite movie of the week!! I had seen it before, as I own in on DVD, but I think it's a fantastic film, therefore, I found watching it again very enjoyable!
In general, it is a very creepy film, and certainly would make you think twice about taking your film to be developed at a one-hour place, like Walmart or Shoppers, just incase you found out that you are being stalked by the extremely lonely guy that does all your developing! Overall for me, I find this film less creepy and more just really sad! Sad to think that someone could be that lonely that they revolve their life around watching someone else's life unfold through their family photos.
I also find it very interesting the way in which the scenes are filmed and the producers choice of lenses and colour balance. For example, I think that the way in which the scenes with Robin Williams character 'Si', on his own, are filmed with a long lens, creating a shallower depth of field and therefore, isolating him as the point of focus in the 'frame' is a really good way to reflect the emotional state of the character and really depicts his loneliness.
Asides from the creepy, yet sad story line, I think this movie also represents how much photography can mean to some people, but also that typically, for most, photos only ever capture positive and happy moments, the good memories, never the negative things in life. Is photography therefore, really a true representation of what's happening in people's lives? I find this film raises questions about certain morals and situations, that's for sure.
Until next time...
Katy
