Nanook of the North - Article

The article describes the film in detail, and discusses many holes and background data. A lot of the film was apparently fake, such as Nanook's wife not actually being his. Other things, such as the filmmaker asking the Inuits to use spears and knifes rather then guns, which they actually used. A lot of the footage seen was staged, such as the creation of the igloo. Only one side was made, as the camera was far to big to fit inside there, and also the scene were the family emerges from the canoe: they would usually not be travelling all together.

Triumph of the Will

The film was made to show Germany's power and wealth after Hitler's success. It showed Hitler attending and participating in many parades, giving speeches to boost moral and look powerful. It was made to shock and frighten the Allied forces after the first war who were still scrambling around. The great depression was sinking in, and the stock markets were crashing. Countries were borrowing money of each other, including Germany, who had to refund countries such as France for the damage they did in the first war. They seemed, in the film, to be mobilizing, strong, with many foot-soldiers and good living conditions, even though they had scarce money.

Censorship Questions

1) What themes are shared by the Censors over time?

- Nudity themes are still censored though lifted higher. Some R16’s and R18’s contain Nudity/Sex Scenes today, while, say, 20 years ago, more “hardcore” sex scenes were featured in lower ranking censors

- Blood/Gore/Violence were seen in the past also, and are still shared at the same ratings

2) What differences can you see between them?

- Heavier nudity/sex scenes were seen in the past, while less nudity appears in the present, due either to the era or the over-protectiveness of our children.

- Violence/Blood/Gore is seen more often now, and though it was used in the past often, the actual scene was either left out or covered up, so you wouldn’t see (Scream, for example) a violent attack, only the victims reaction or an onlookers reaction. But now, films such as the Saw Series, Hostel and other popular horrors, you get to see every bit of detail inflicted upon the victim

3) Why do you think that protecting children from harm is such a strong theme? It pays to remem­ber that when the first Film Censorship Act was written, a boy was considered to be an adult at 16, and many people between the ages of 12 and 16 were already working, either in a job, or at home.

- Exposing children to violent films, such as Hostel, can not only inflict personal scars upon them, but leave them to ponder what happened, easily linking them to a violent future.

Hiding Scene (Out of the Blue)

The scene I choose was the scene after the father is shot, when the three girls are hiding under the table.

The scene is pretty terrifying and powerful, because it’s taken from the three girl’s point of view as David walks into the room. It happens just after he kills the father, so the film has already gripped you. Since the film is very slow, David slowly walks into the room. It’s not sudden, he doesn’t fly in and start shooting everyone, and he just slowly walks in. Since it’s taken from the girls (or one of the girls) point of view, it makes you feel like you’re actually there, and it’s happening to you, since it’s a New Zealand film and so close to home. Their father (and step father) has just been shot, right in front of their eyes. Their terror is shared with the audience with this technique. As he gets close to the table, the tension rises to the point of extreme, even giving you the false idea that he will walk away in a moment, until he ducks down and shoots them. One of the girls somehow gets away, with only getting shot in the stomach. The dead silence is now replaced with the girls breathing and footsteps as she runs, and a ringing sound, the volume of these effects higher than usual. I think this is a very prominent scene as it shows her escape, but also the anger and frustration of David, showing he’s willing to kill anyone. The sound effects used as the girl escapes is really great, as it’s what she hears at the time, he breathing and footsteps, and the ringing could be linked to either the sound of the gun or her sudden shock. Again, the terror is shared with the audience without them even knowing, the girl has now seen her father, sister and soon-to-be step sister shot and killed, the terror is intensified.

Into the Wild - Flashback Scenes

Complete a reading of the sequence exploring its place in the film. You should describe, explain and analyse its significance in the film. You must use examples to support your examples to support your arguments

The scene shows Alexander travelling, but with a narration by his sister and flashbacks of photos. His sister talks about how his father was secretly still married to his first wife, and had had another son after Alexander had been born. Flashbacks of photos are show of Alexander and his sister young, and she spoke about how their parents were hiding his father’s secret family. This caused Alexander confused, and angry, and pretended he didn’t know with his sister. It’s a very significant scene as it shows parts of Alexander’s young life, starting with a flashback of him being happy, washing his car after he just bought it, and basically being a bit silly. Another very prominent part is when his sister states “it completely changed his childhood” as Alexander buries old books he was taking with him, just as he buried his old life, showing a split effect.

Into the Wild - Points and City Scene

How does this scene fit into the film?

- Shows he doesn’t fit into society, after seeing if he did.

- Show his change as a person

- The city (at night) gives off a bad impression to him. Its dirty, violence, loud.

What would it be like without it?

- If the scene was extracted from the scene, his change in personality would be missing. It shows how he tried to enter society, get a room at a homeless shelter etc

- You would have wondered why he didn’t go back to society, as he flashed back to reality at his death.

Why is it so important?

- It shows how he doesn’t fit in, how his attempt to re-enter society gave him a bad impression, showing a reflection of him in society and what his parents wanted

The scene shows Alexander Supertramp (Chris McCandless) re-entering society, by visiting a nearby city. He tries to fit in, visiting a homeless shelter and staying there. Realizing the city is violent, abusive and loud; he sees himself what his parents wanted him to be, rich and successful. The wilderness is more accepting, and he quickly leaves to return. This is a significant scene, mainly the part of envisioning himself in the bar, as his successful self “belittles” him but doing a demeaning hand jester towards him, showing how more successful he is. He is lonely, society, where people are, is not accepting as much as the wilderness, as much as he missed it. All the shots show as he walks through the city are negative, bad aspects of the city. The music is slow and sharp, with frames abruptly stopping and freezing on something, or quickly cutting away to a different part. At the beginning of the scene, where Alexander emerges from the small pipe, it’s more of a drastic rebirth, the first thing you see on the walls is graffiti, the city is a dull chrome and Alexander is skinny, dirty and weak. What he hopes for is acceptance but his eyes don’t see it

Review on "Into the Wild"

Review on “Into the Wild”

Though I missed out on the first part of the film, it really captured my attention. The film was different from a normal film; it had random flashbacks and flicks in time, so the film wasn’t really in order. It was hard to pick up, but interesting and unique. Everything pieces together at the end, and even though the main character dies of starvation, it was almost like he wanted to, as though dying in the wild was better then returning. Before dying though, he had an image of his family; of him returning to them as if he never got poisoned, like a sort of release. The whole movie is narrated by his sister, so it’s all pointing towards to direction of his death during the start, as if he had lived he would be narrating himself. This gives the audience the edge, basically telling him he dies (and people knowing the story would know anyway). The film is a maze of memories, directing you to the final path, but at the same time drawing you into his world and hopelessly wishing he survives.

Apple Scene

In the apple scene, he states “you’re the best apple ever”, implying it’s the best thing that’s happened to him, like a new beginning. Every time he takes a bite, it changes to a new statement, with the apple getting smaller each time, slowly stating how good it is. He is seeing everything all over again, with new eyes, like being reborn into the world. He’s not surrounded by his old life; he can admire the beauty around him and fully see it. Everything is uplifting and new