The other day I was watching the tail-end of a news cast and when it was over I decided to flip the channels to see if anything interesting was on. I very much despise television as a whole, but I do enjoy many shows on the travel channel such as No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain or Samantha Brown. Neither of those shows were on unfortunately, so I stopped on a decent movie I had already seen and pressed the mute button because I needed to make a phone call. After the call I had forgotten I had the t.v. on and decided to check my email. I stuck on my headphones, selected shuffle on my music player, and carried on my daily Internet habits.
After a quick stop by Lifehacker, I noticed a flash out of the corner of my eye beyond my computer screen and realized the what is was. I sat there and watched the remainder of the movie without sound. In combination with the lyrics and gentle tones of the music that was playing, I created my own set of stories by observing the ever changing facial expressions the characters in the movie displayed. As the songs changed, the stories changed. They say most of our communication is non-verbal, but I would definitely say that words are required to gain the most understanding of what is being said. Otherwise, we are left with a dried-out piece of clay left unsculpted.
This can make for some interesting inventions, but you have to be careful in social environments, especially when someone is talking to you. I sometimes find myself concentrating too much on the expressions and loose track of what is being said. Mastering both visual and verbal forms of expression will help in the overall understanding from one person to another.
Showing posts with label film. Show all posts
Showing posts with label film. Show all posts
2/08/2009
11/18/2008
My Favorite Films
Before Sunrise and Before Sunset have got to be my two top favorite movies. Surprisingly, I identify more strongly with the latter despite it being the sequel. I first saw them about four years ago. Actually, after seeing Before Sunrise I didn't have any idea that there was a sequel. I remember seeing a movie (I think it was An American Werewolf in Paris) with Julie Delpy and later researching what other movies she was in. I've never been a huge fan of Ethan Hawk or even romance films, but I thought I'd give it shot. I was not disappointed. I think I watched it a few times in a row.
Shortly after seeing the first one, I discovered there was a sequel. It's really quite fascinating, the films were made nine years apart, which corresponds to the time the two characters in the film spend apart. The differences in their appearance also reflect that, which make it that much more believable.
Since then, I've seen quite a few chick flicks and not many have compared. I suppose I'm a bit of a fan of bittersweet endings, so that has something to do with it. Movies such as Lost in Translation and Once come close.
I watched them both again yesterday, one after the other and they are still just as good as when I first saw them. I repeated the last twenty minutes of the sequel several times because they were so precious. Every single strong feeling they had, repressed for nine years, comes spilling out in a single car ride.
*****Warning*****Spoilers*****
I wouldn't call them gripes, but there are a few issues that I wish to expand upon. During the car ride, there's a moment when Celine (Julie Delpy's character) starts shouting and asks the cab driver to pull over. All throughout the movie, after spending about an hour together, she didn't once raise her voice in frustration. What's stranger is that Ethan Hawk's character Jesse didn't actually do much talking leading up to the point where she became so distressed. She basically talked herself into the moment where she almost jumped out of the car and ran away. I suppose I find this odd because I'm not very familiar with mood swings such as these. I could definitely see where she was coming from, but I don't understand her sudden need to repel Jesse after just spending so much time with him in a calm environment. I suppose it all to do with peoples personality and how they deal with strong emotions.
After thinking about it a bit, it makes more sense, but what I didn't quite understand after first seeing it, is why she was so mad. It almost seemed as if she was expressing animosity towards Jesse, when in fact it was her own problem. Jesse was the one who was stood up. He was the one who flew all the way to Paris only to find out she wasn't going to be there. He's the one who should be mad, and yet he's the one being yelled at. All the time leading up to this point, she didn't seem to be all that upset for not meeting him after that six month period. Earlier in the film he even asks her, "oh, why weren't you there" and she responded nonchalantly with "Oh, well my grandmother.."(her grandmother died either that day or shortly thereafter). Of course later in the film she confessed that she had been concealing some things, like the fact that she remembered they had sex. So this might be part of the reason she threw a little tantrum, it was an explosion of pent up feelings.
I just realized that I've spent that last few paragraphs trying to figure out and explain a woman's emotions. And there you have it, the difference between men and women (generalized of course). She did actually care, so much so as to have spend the last nine years of her life regretting what could have happened. She went on and on about how she poured all of her romance into that one night they spent together. Than afterwords became numb and unable to connect again. To me, this was just a long winded way of saying that for those nine years, she hadn't felt for another person what she felt for Jesse that one day.
In a sense, we all have that one person who we compare everyone else to. It may not be your ideal mate, but it is a person in your life you have either dated or befriended who you've identified with on a deeper level than anyone else. It may be a collection of people, a handful, or even just a few. We use this as to gauge new people we encounter. If you're lucky, you'll find someone who goes off the scale. Hell, you're lucky even if someone comes close. This may or may not be true, but from what I know... and from personal experience, we spend an abundant amount of time thinking about this person. Even if you are in a relationship... you might even be somewhat happy with it, but if this person rates even a 9/10 on your mental scale, you can't help but fall victim to the constant flood of thoughts of what could have been, what could be, and if you're willing to repress these thoughts for the sake of your current relationship.
Shortly after seeing the first one, I discovered there was a sequel. It's really quite fascinating, the films were made nine years apart, which corresponds to the time the two characters in the film spend apart. The differences in their appearance also reflect that, which make it that much more believable.
Since then, I've seen quite a few chick flicks and not many have compared. I suppose I'm a bit of a fan of bittersweet endings, so that has something to do with it. Movies such as Lost in Translation and Once come close.
I watched them both again yesterday, one after the other and they are still just as good as when I first saw them. I repeated the last twenty minutes of the sequel several times because they were so precious. Every single strong feeling they had, repressed for nine years, comes spilling out in a single car ride.
*****Warning*****Spoilers*****
I wouldn't call them gripes, but there are a few issues that I wish to expand upon. During the car ride, there's a moment when Celine (Julie Delpy's character) starts shouting and asks the cab driver to pull over. All throughout the movie, after spending about an hour together, she didn't once raise her voice in frustration. What's stranger is that Ethan Hawk's character Jesse didn't actually do much talking leading up to the point where she became so distressed. She basically talked herself into the moment where she almost jumped out of the car and ran away. I suppose I find this odd because I'm not very familiar with mood swings such as these. I could definitely see where she was coming from, but I don't understand her sudden need to repel Jesse after just spending so much time with him in a calm environment. I suppose it all to do with peoples personality and how they deal with strong emotions.
After thinking about it a bit, it makes more sense, but what I didn't quite understand after first seeing it, is why she was so mad. It almost seemed as if she was expressing animosity towards Jesse, when in fact it was her own problem. Jesse was the one who was stood up. He was the one who flew all the way to Paris only to find out she wasn't going to be there. He's the one who should be mad, and yet he's the one being yelled at. All the time leading up to this point, she didn't seem to be all that upset for not meeting him after that six month period. Earlier in the film he even asks her, "oh, why weren't you there" and she responded nonchalantly with "Oh, well my grandmother.."(her grandmother died either that day or shortly thereafter). Of course later in the film she confessed that she had been concealing some things, like the fact that she remembered they had sex. So this might be part of the reason she threw a little tantrum, it was an explosion of pent up feelings.
I just realized that I've spent that last few paragraphs trying to figure out and explain a woman's emotions. And there you have it, the difference between men and women (generalized of course). She did actually care, so much so as to have spend the last nine years of her life regretting what could have happened. She went on and on about how she poured all of her romance into that one night they spent together. Than afterwords became numb and unable to connect again. To me, this was just a long winded way of saying that for those nine years, she hadn't felt for another person what she felt for Jesse that one day.
In a sense, we all have that one person who we compare everyone else to. It may not be your ideal mate, but it is a person in your life you have either dated or befriended who you've identified with on a deeper level than anyone else. It may be a collection of people, a handful, or even just a few. We use this as to gauge new people we encounter. If you're lucky, you'll find someone who goes off the scale. Hell, you're lucky even if someone comes close. This may or may not be true, but from what I know... and from personal experience, we spend an abundant amount of time thinking about this person. Even if you are in a relationship... you might even be somewhat happy with it, but if this person rates even a 9/10 on your mental scale, you can't help but fall victim to the constant flood of thoughts of what could have been, what could be, and if you're willing to repress these thoughts for the sake of your current relationship.
1/23/2008
My Birthday
So today is my birthday. I've decided to spend it by myself; thought maybe I'd drive around town, stop by some coffee shops and/or libraries, to think a bit. Exactly a year ago I believe I was asleep in my dorm room after a heavy night of drinking, dreaming, and dreading my early morning calculus class. Now I'm here at a Panera Bread, out of school, writing about whatever comes to mind. I was born twenty two years ago. Seems like a long time, but it's really not in the grand scheme of things, naturally. Some people graduate college at my age; me, I've barely completed two years. I'm honestly not worried about it though. Once I do complete whatever it is I end up completing, I'll probably be doing the same thing for the rest of my life, so what does it really matter if it takes me several more years.
I guess I've been at a lack of things to write about lately, mostly because it seems that I've been writing in circles, covering the same damn topic, only with different words, not really getting anywhere. Of course I probably would have expanded on whatever it was that I was trying to get across if I had gotten some responses. I wasn't expecting any though, of course, but it is the main reason why I'm posting blogs on the internet. Perhaps if I was talking about sex, I'd get more attention. It's not that I want or enjoy attention, I'm just curious to see if anyone feels the same way I do. Curiosity of course is often confused with the verb: to care.
So instead of running in circles, I think maybe I'll start posting movie reviews, since I watch at least five movies per week. And I'll start right now. I'll probably only write about the ones that I liked, although I might throw in a comment or two on how much I disliked a movie I had high hopes for. First up, a dual review!
Adrift in Manhattan ***.5
This is one of those films with several separate, yet intertwined stories, although not as many as Paris Je Teim, which all come together at the end in a dramatic easter basket with a bow on top. Although a bit unbelievable at times I really enjoyed this film. I am almost convinced that movies need an unbelievable aspect to them in order for them to be at least somewhat successful. I honestly don't feel like writing a summary of the film so I'll just point out what I liked about it. I suppose the main thing I liked about it was the silent communication and understanding that went on between the two main characters. A lot of the story followed a quiet young photographer taking photographs in a park who stumbles across a somewhat somber woman on a bench about fifty yards down from him. As he starts to take photos of her, he becomes somewhat obsessed, and eventually follows her home. And now I'm doing exactly what I said I didn't want to do: write a summary. Anyway, he takes pictures of her in her home from across the street and captures emotional moments with his camera and later sends them to her anonymously. Although frightening, these pictures point out to her exactly what she feels mostly strongly about, and eventually leads to her solution, hence the silent communication.
Ira & Abby ****
Yet another film set in Manhattan. I am glad I make it a habit to watch the entire movie, despite it having a horrible beginning. I know many people who will turn the movie off because it started off bad. The beginning of this move was so very cliche and unbelievable, "oh my god I can't believe I rented this movie" kept running through my head. As the story progressed though, I liked it more and more, and by the end up of it, I had a smirk on my face and continued to think about it throughout the ending credits. As I listened to the music that played whilst I mused, I was reminded of the Ratatouille soundtrack and the wonderful story that went along with it. I enjoyed this film for a number of reasons, but mostly because of the underlying themes: marriage is meaningless, and love (unconditional/true) is just an illusion. Cold hard theme's indeed, but true..in my opinion. Although these ideas are somewhat depressing for those who haven't accepted them, they were portrayed in a very very hilarious way. For example: every single character in the film saw a shrink and towards the end of the movie all of the characters and their shrinks came together in one room and had a maelstrom of a discussion, throwing around random insults and subtle bouts of philosophy in an attempt to explain their feelings. Although still early, this is my favorite movie so far in 2008.
It's funny how I viewed these films so closely together because they share many things in common. First off, the most obvious, they're both set in Manhattan. Second, and most impacting to me, each film had a character with the same viewpoint on life: you can be perfectly content living life with a mediocre job that pays the bills, without really having any major plans and/or life goals. Much like a monk, you can find happiness leading a simple life, and that is what I identify strongly with.
I guess I've been at a lack of things to write about lately, mostly because it seems that I've been writing in circles, covering the same damn topic, only with different words, not really getting anywhere. Of course I probably would have expanded on whatever it was that I was trying to get across if I had gotten some responses. I wasn't expecting any though, of course, but it is the main reason why I'm posting blogs on the internet. Perhaps if I was talking about sex, I'd get more attention. It's not that I want or enjoy attention, I'm just curious to see if anyone feels the same way I do. Curiosity of course is often confused with the verb: to care.
So instead of running in circles, I think maybe I'll start posting movie reviews, since I watch at least five movies per week. And I'll start right now. I'll probably only write about the ones that I liked, although I might throw in a comment or two on how much I disliked a movie I had high hopes for. First up, a dual review!
Adrift in Manhattan ***.5
This is one of those films with several separate, yet intertwined stories, although not as many as Paris Je Teim, which all come together at the end in a dramatic easter basket with a bow on top. Although a bit unbelievable at times I really enjoyed this film. I am almost convinced that movies need an unbelievable aspect to them in order for them to be at least somewhat successful. I honestly don't feel like writing a summary of the film so I'll just point out what I liked about it. I suppose the main thing I liked about it was the silent communication and understanding that went on between the two main characters. A lot of the story followed a quiet young photographer taking photographs in a park who stumbles across a somewhat somber woman on a bench about fifty yards down from him. As he starts to take photos of her, he becomes somewhat obsessed, and eventually follows her home. And now I'm doing exactly what I said I didn't want to do: write a summary. Anyway, he takes pictures of her in her home from across the street and captures emotional moments with his camera and later sends them to her anonymously. Although frightening, these pictures point out to her exactly what she feels mostly strongly about, and eventually leads to her solution, hence the silent communication.
Ira & Abby ****
Yet another film set in Manhattan. I am glad I make it a habit to watch the entire movie, despite it having a horrible beginning. I know many people who will turn the movie off because it started off bad. The beginning of this move was so very cliche and unbelievable, "oh my god I can't believe I rented this movie" kept running through my head. As the story progressed though, I liked it more and more, and by the end up of it, I had a smirk on my face and continued to think about it throughout the ending credits. As I listened to the music that played whilst I mused, I was reminded of the Ratatouille soundtrack and the wonderful story that went along with it. I enjoyed this film for a number of reasons, but mostly because of the underlying themes: marriage is meaningless, and love (unconditional/true) is just an illusion. Cold hard theme's indeed, but true..in my opinion. Although these ideas are somewhat depressing for those who haven't accepted them, they were portrayed in a very very hilarious way. For example: every single character in the film saw a shrink and towards the end of the movie all of the characters and their shrinks came together in one room and had a maelstrom of a discussion, throwing around random insults and subtle bouts of philosophy in an attempt to explain their feelings. Although still early, this is my favorite movie so far in 2008.
It's funny how I viewed these films so closely together because they share many things in common. First off, the most obvious, they're both set in Manhattan. Second, and most impacting to me, each film had a character with the same viewpoint on life: you can be perfectly content living life with a mediocre job that pays the bills, without really having any major plans and/or life goals. Much like a monk, you can find happiness leading a simple life, and that is what I identify strongly with.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)