Through The Eyes: 2013

Miyerkules, Oktubre 9, 2013

MOWELFUND

Better days are yet to come. Greater things are not yet done.

A day so good to remember, a day full of fun and aspiration. Yeah! I enjoyed this day not because I'm with my blockmates but because I have learned and discovered something new that would help me whenever I pursue entering the field of film. The museum consists of the history of film, where it started, and who are the people behind the great films in the Philippines. It's so good to go back, look and and see again the films you have watched before like Enteng ng Ina mo which is my favorite film during my childhood days.

And wow! Because the founders of the Mowelfund are Dolphy,FPJ and Joseph Estrada which these people are very good actors also in their time. It's nice seeing so many pictures of FPJ,I really like him when he was still alive, he's a very good action star.

It's nice going back to the past where the film is alive and powerful, where the many films were being produced. It's goo to see the old equipments that is used before in the field of cinema, like the cameras, editing machine which if you look at it, it's very hard to used. I just wonder how better the people before than todays. But I believe the film indutry will not end today, it will rise again and will go back to the days were it is alive in the Philippines. There are still days that is coming, greater things will be done in the coing years. The Philippine cinema will not stop here but will start again and rise up by the help and works of our generation!

MULHOLLAND DRIVE

A film so hard to get through. A film so hard to understand. A film deeper than the sea. A film that would set your mind wider.

Mulholland Drive is a 2001 film directed by David Lynch. This film is full of dreams and fantasies. My own understanding is that the first part of the film is only a dream of the real Diane Selwyn wherein she is dreaming that she is Betty Elms which is very charming, successful woman and wants to be a famous actress like Camilla. Those scenes are just fantasies of Diane Selwyn where she used Camilla to be Rita which is a fictional character.

The director used so many symbolism in the film that caused the audiences to roll their minds so they can get the story of the film. This is really a headache but a very good film, an amazing story and artistic narration.

The real story is that in the first part Camilla is already died, She was killed by Diane Selwyn who as hurt and deressed because of what Camilla did to her. She is really desperate to be with Camilla because she really loves her but because of so much depression, she made a decision to kill her and that situation leads her to a very miserable life. The cowboy only shows there for some symbolism which he said to Diane that it's time to wake up and the blue box was used to escape from the dreams and fantasies of Diane, it was used to get away in the illusions. The key also symbolizes the death of Diane because in the other part of the film, the cowboy told that if she already saw the key then it's the end. And the old man and woman symbolize as Diane's conscience and it leads her to death.

This is a film like no other, full of mysterious atmosphere. It contains conspiracy and intrigue. A love story of two woman but the director make it to the point that is very complicated by only giving clues and showing symbols for the people to think deeper and used their own perception on looking to the story.

A film so nice. A film you can't resist. A film that would give you a headache. A film full of symbolism. A film that would set your mind wider. Must watch!

Martes, Setyembre 24, 2013

EASTERN PROMISES

Eastern Promises is a crime thriller film. The film contains brutal or bloody violence, there’s some graphic sexuality or nudity, drugs, alcohol, smoking and intense scenes. In the beginning, the film showed already a brutal scene which leads the audiences to be more focus and be excited of what will happen next.

The story is about the London midwife who investigates the death of the 14 year old girl because of child birth, she used the diary to know her families. But the diary is written in Russian so she ask her uncle to help her. When her uncle revealed the content of the diary, the dark secrets of Semyon which the midwife asked his help also and his son, Kiril. At first, they’re suspecting Kiril as the one who raped the 14 year old girl but later on the truth prevails, that thae father of Kiril, Semyon, is the one who raped the girl, he’s old. At the end of the story, Nickolai is their driver, is the one who help the midwife for the baby to survived because Semyon and Kiril set up him so that he will be the one to be killed.

The script is somewhat structured intelligently in a way that it has a humorous dialogue. The director directed the film in an observant and stylized way yet confrontational because he doesn’t underplay or exaggerate what happens. I read in some articles that violence is part of his style as a director. Maybe his fans will definitely appreciate this film. Yet, some audiences will definitely squirm at what he shows only because he wants to reveal the brutality and motivation of what is going on.

The casting is unique which the audiences can remember who they are because of the way they act and they can show their personality as an actors and actresses of the film. I like how Semyon acts, the grandfather who shows sweetness and kind to everyone but also has a violent dark side because at the first place you will not think that he is the one who raped the girl. Kirill also shows how bad he is, the way he is drunk, and how he is being attached to Nickolai. Nickolai is also good in a way that you will be confused if he is really bad or good, because he shows sometimes that he wanted to help Anna but he is killing people. And of course, Anna, the midwife who is really desperate to find the truth, she is a good actress, her performance is very powerful because she drives the film’s plot and getting people to try and figure out what’s going on.

Eastern Promises is a wonderful film. Though it is a violence film but still the director didn’t fail to get the audience think the way he thinksEastern Promises is a crime thriller film. The film contains brutal or bloody violence, there’s some graphic sexuality or nudity, drugs, alcohol, smoking and intense scenes. In the beginning, the film showed already a brutal scene which leads the audiences to be more focus and be excited of what will happen next.

Eastern Promises is a wonderful film. Though it is a violence film but still the director didn’t fail to get the audience think the way he thinks.

Lunes, Setyembre 2, 2013

P.S. I LOVE YOU

After watching the movie, I can probably say that it is an amazing love story that show what love truely should be like. While watching it took a long journey. I felt the pain, my heart breaks so much. I can feel what the characters can feel. The story is wise, corny lines, silly jokes, tear-jerking scenes. It's just so perfect.

An American girl fell inlove with an Irish boy and then they got married. But the bad thing is, the Irish guy died. Oh no! end of the story. Okay, just kidding. But that's just thee beginning.

So this girl had a total breakdown about the loss of her husband. She seemed to be insane like no longer taking a bath, messy rooms and no longer eating. He died of a brain tumor.so the letter contain plans that the late husband made for the girl. How to move on with her life, go out, meet new people, take a vacation, find a job etc etc.. but that's one of the best parts about the movie.I felt myself holding back tears as each letter was narrated.

Here's the simple summary of the film.
Holly Kennedy is beautiful, smart and married to the love of her life - a passionate, funny, and impetuous Irishman named Gerry. So when Gerry's life is taken by an illness, it takes the life out of Holly. The only one who can help her is the person who is no longer there. Nobody knows Holly better than Gerry. So it's a good thing he planned ahead. Before he died, Gerry wrote Holly a series of letters that will guide her, not only through her grief, but in rediscovering herself. The first message arrives on Holly's 30th birthday in the form of a cake, and to her utter shock, a tape recording from Gerry, who proceeds to tell her to get out and "celebrate herself". In the weeks and months that follow, more letters from Gerry are delivered in surprising ways, each sending her on a new adventure and each signing off in the same way; P.S. I Love You. Holly's mother and best friends begin to worry that Gerry's letters are keeping Holly tied to the past, but in fact, each letter is pushing her further into a new future. With Gerry's words as her guide, Holly embarks on a journey of rediscovery in a story about marriage, friendship and how a love so strong can turn the finality of death into a new beginning for life. Written by Orange

The Smurfs 2 in 3D

The real thing is, I didn’t watch the first smurfs movie. Last August 8 2013, it’s my birthday. I’m cryin’ all day because of some problems and then I called my bestfriend to tell him my problems and then he asked me to go with him in SM San Lazaro so that I can be happy for that day. He said that he will treat me and we will watch movie. And when we came there’s a long line of people, then we went there and see what’s that. They are buying tickets for Percy Jackson which we are planning to watch but then since the line is very long, we went to other cinemas, and we stopped there, The Smurfs in 3D, we have not yet tried using eye glasses or watching 3D, it’s really funny. So we finally bought our ticket, we asked the cashier if how many is watching then she said there is 9 people inside. Oh no! But we said it’s okay. And then I just realized it’s for kids.

This movie is really for kids and those people who love the smurfs TV show. But some of my friends told me that it improved than the original one. But the real thing, it is the worst movie I’ve ever watched. It’s so boring really for kids. I can’t say anything. I never expect Avatar-like or Pixar like CGI from any movie, but these are terrible for a live action animated film! The story is wise but this is just a passable movie that single-digit-aged viewers can enjoy. Shameless product placement,Strained plot contrivances, toothless humor are filled in this overstuffed plot. I don’t know, I’m not being too harsh but it is really what I think of the movie. But I want to say that the characters are cute, those blue skinned smurfs are adorable. Good voice and the human characters give their good acting pretending that smurfs are acting with them. The jokes or comedy scenes are not funny, really not even the children inside the cinema, there's no sense of humor.

Look! How adorable Smurphette is, it's Katty Perry's voice. Gargamel is back, he's a good actor.

All said and done however, while there is nothing disagreeable about this movie, there's nothing very remarkable about it either.

Un Chien Andalou (short film)

Un Chien Andalou is a short film that we watched last Wednesday. I and my classmates are very focused on watching the film because from the start it was really interesting and we are aiming to understand what the movie has something to tell. But until the movie reached its end, no one understand the film.

A short film that you can't understand what it is trying to show or to convey to the audiences. It took me long before I understand some scenarios in the film. I was shocked, and felt that I don't want to watch the film anymore because of the beginning of the story, the eyes were cut. That's filty, it's a film that you don't want to continue. But as the film goes by, the story do not revolves around it. There's no sequence in the story. Maybe because it doesn't have dialogue, a silent film that the audiences can't really understand. But I think the film is about desperate, passionate and even appeal to murder. There is also a sexual violence in a way that a man is holding the boobs of the girl which he imagine that the girl is nude.

They mostly used sexual symbolism which things represent male phalllus and the moon there represents virginity. The cutting of the eye is the girl's dream it symbolizes evil which is looking at another person lustfully or comitting adulltery like what the man is doing to the girl, he's holding her boobs then imagining that she don't have clothes which can be classified as adultery. And the box which contains a hand, we can see that in the middle section but also in the end, it was shown. Thhe director is trying to give symbols so that the audiences will think of a deeper meaning. They show symbolism many times with the same,, but they didn't show the meaning again and again where the viewers were really trying hard to find the message of the film.

But even I didn't understand the whole film, only few stories I got but still for me it's a good film because it challenges you to think deeper and give your own understanding from the start up to the end because you will be more focused and will surely enjoy this kind of film.

TRAINSPOTTING

Trainspotting is a film about drug addiction. And the story revolves around it. At the beginning of the story, a man dive into Scotland’s dirty bathroom and the viewers are exposed to the mysterious world of the drug users.

This film reflects the works of the society but a film about joy in conniving and surviving, in connecting with the audiences with its own effective style. Trainspotting focused on the main character’s drug addiction, its causes and effects and even sex and violence. It is bout characters who are tossing away their lives by using drugs. They are broken, unemployed and they fill the void in any way that they can do, by stealing, shotting the dogs, watching the porn videos, having sex and even killing the heroin. For me, it’s a film that people would not want to watch because of the theme. But this film really shows the real happenings in our society. It shows the life of a person under the influence of drugs.

Trainspotting is a film combined with a humorous and yet, the reality. It’s really hard to imagine a movie about drugs, a black comedy but very engaging to the audience because the story is presented lightly. The script is delivered in an intelligent way but a funny one. It shows the reflection of the real deal between the consequences from taking drugs and the pleasure it gives the people. I think this film is good because I can feel the feelings of the characters. In camera angles, I can remember when the camera is following Renton’s hands while injecting the drugs in his veins, it makes me feel the pain and also afraid but yet excited of what will happen next or what would he feel. I can also remember the dolly shot, when they were running in their town and the camera tracks them down, it makes me feel the same, I want to ran fast with a fast heart beat pounding.

For me, the best part of the film is the end, I think other people will also agree to me. When Renton is walking toward the camera with a happy face, I also felt the happiness because of his willingness to change and to have a new life. I think it shows that he now overcome the drug addiction and can be considered as a success. It also informed us that he chose life.

Trainspotting achieved to engage the people. It also helps the people to understand what drugs might bring in their lives. And I’m looking forward that all of the people will choose what Renton chose, a life!

The New Hollywood and Independent Film making

The new hollywood directors were revamping American Films but then a young generation of film directors from Hong Kong came and revised the traditional genres and other creative methods in the film industry. Though it is not really unified movement but still it influenced the cinematic style and storytelling of the world of filmmaking in the 20th century. During the silent era, Shaw Brothers is the most powerful studio and owned theaters throughout East Asia.

Most of the protagonists in this time are lack of goal oriented. And they have the common setting like drinking in the cafe, it's like you already kknow what you expect in the story. This is called the New Wave film, but it end easily. Some of the New Wave director's shot are cheap and quick than what the reigning directors did. They also lack in their financial needs but still the young directors helped each other to reduced the financial risks on some companies but the French industry helped the New Wave through ditribution, exhibition and eventually production.

The problems arosed. Expensive studio projects failed miserably, some television stopped bidding for pictures which pay high prices. But the producers fought back. They produced counter culture films aimed at young people. The most popular and influential were Dennis Hopper's low budget Easy Rider (1969) and Robert Altman's MASH (1970)

Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Francis Coppola and other directors were known as movie brats. Most of them had gone to film schools. All of them have the knowledge on doing very good movie. Even those who did not attend the film schools are admirers of the Hollywood Clasical tradition.

French Impressionism and Surrealism

During the silent era, most of the films are silent, it means without dialogue. But the French created two things for changing the Classic Hollywood Style. These are Impressionism and Surrealism. For better understanding, Impressionism is a practice in the film industry where it express or develop one's subjective response to an actual experience which give a very good style within the film industry but Surrealism give largely impact outside the film industry.

An Impressionist's Film

Because of the World War I, the French Film industry started to fall, many film studios were used for wartime and the production films were abrupt but the French film industry never gave up by that time, they regained their audiences and viewers by acting like the Hollywood style and production. Some directors that are mentioned in the article believe that a cinema is an art that can be compared to music, paintings and even poetry. But a cinema should should stand up for itself.

A film can be considered as Impressionist if the presence of these characteristics are there, the psychological narrative, subjective camera work, and the editing. It is also called as Impressionist because of its interest in narration that concerns to character's psychological depth and consciousness. It does not fall on physical behavior but more of internal or inner actions. It focus on depicting the character's dreams, flashbacks, memories and other mental states.

According to David Bordwell, Impressionist films used irises, masks and superimpositions that function as traces of characters’ thoughts and feelings. The subjectivity of camera work was present to characters’ perceptual experience. With coordination of its editing the film became more impressionist style and show more a psychological narrative as the film edited with rhythm. This was also the time when technological innovation was developed of new means of frame mobility.

On my own understanding of what Surrealism is, I think it focus on how they will confused and give a shocking effects to their audiences. They are anti- narrative and it attacked casuality itself. In my observation, I think it is a non continuity story, it's hard for me to understand the sequence of the film.

The Impressionism and Surrealism may be a little bit confusing but still they marked on the film industry which helps the industry to be more productive and these movements will still remain in the life of every people who knew and watched an Impressionist and Surrealist Films.

A Surrealist's Film

Linggo, Setyembre 1, 2013

Adarna by Dulaang UP

Adarna is a well known Filipino tale that gives a high impact to the Filipinos. And it can also be considered as one of the most loved tales in the Philippines. The Dulaang UP, as they are now at their 38^th season, they perform Adarna. They show the life of Don Juan, the youngest of the three princes in the story. They take their journey to find the mystical bird called Ibong Adarna to cure their father who is sick who is the king of Berbanya. Don Juan faced so many challenges like he encounters with sage men and beautiful princesses and stuggles that would test his courage and mettle.

UP Diliman’s Adarna is somehow pragmatic and unique in a sense that they used shadow play or puppetry. They perform with a story telling device like the figures that is being projected in the crafts paper. The set design is simple but it is amazing in a way that they used craft papers and bamboos to show the magical creatures in the play.

I also like the interpretation of the Ibong Adarna, they used 7 beautiful actresses as well as those who can sing with their different colors to represent the 7 colors of the Ibong Adarna. They also used multiple actors, Don Juan is represented by 3 actors maybe it’s for the purpose of more fluid performance. Even they used different actors in one character, the play still move forward smoothly. Their costumes are almost the same, they wear black shirt and black pants but the others like the Ibong Adarna, they also wear some colorful clothes for the representation of the mystical bird. The script of the play is also good because they came up with the words that the audiences can understand easily and can relate too. And there is also some comedy that the audiences can involve their emotions and can understand what the play needs to portray.

The actors performed well and even there are some flaws, they can still continue the show and go back to what’s happening in the story. The deliverance of the message didn’t fail and they achieved the goal they want, to engage the people in the play and to feel what they feel which is very important for the theater plays.

But I believe that even their play is a very successful one, there are still things to work on. They only lack on the more colorful costumes but all in all it’s good. It’s worth to watch and very entertaining.

German Expressionism (1919- 1926)

As I read the German Expressionism from the book of Film Art and Film History, I think German Expressionism is a film of the world of light and shadow. At the start of the World War 1, German's film industry is not that good. Most of their theaters are full of American, French, Italian and Danish Films. German films are quite have a little showing. German film industry focused on three genres. The internationally popular adventure serial, featuring spy rings, clever detectives, or exotic settings. They also concentrated on sex exploitation cycle which topics are about homosexuality and even prostitution. By this time, the last type of film is financially successful. And I think because of the film The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari(1920), the German film rise up again and created a sensation in Berlin and then in United States, France and other countries. German Expressionist films are more of a storyline matched the visuals in terms of darkness and disillusionment. It usually shows a mood and featuring a charactersfrom a corrupt underworld crime. It can also be describe like the Film Noir like the used of words and the genre. Knowing that Expressionism is the movement in the fine arts that emphasized the expression of one’s inner self and their angst rather than solely being realistic and fanboyish about the world and life. At this point the Caligari film shows the Expressionist stylization functions to convey the distorted viewpoint of madman.

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari

But when the Expressionism became an accepted style, still the filmmakers didn't motivate Expressionist style as the narrative point of view of mad characters. Instead, Expressionism functioned to create stylized situations for fantasy and horror stories.

Biyernes, Agosto 30, 2013

Understanding the Classic Hollywood Style

Classic Hollywood Style is the term used in the film history. According to Wikipedia, Classical style is fundamentally built on the principle of continuity editing or "invisible" style. That is, the camera and the sound recording should never call attention to themselves (as they might in films from earlier periods, other countries or in a modernist or postmodernist work).

I think, it is a style in a cinema . It follows a set of rules on how films are supposed to be put together. These rules are unspoken; they are just basic common knowledge to the film creators and expected from the film viewers. In the video that I have watched, there are different films that was shown. There are films that no sound, but if you watch it on a movie house or something, there is someone who is playing an instrumental music and the other one is comedy which is even there is no verbal interaction, you will understand easily

The style of classical Hollywood style, as elaborated by David Bordwell, has been heavily influenced by the ideas of the Renaissance and its resurgence of mankind as the focal point.

Thus, classical narration progresses always through psychological motivation, by the will of a human character and its struggle with obstacles towards a defined goal. The aspects of space and time are subordinated to the narrative element which is usually composed of two lines of action: A romance intertwined with a more generic one such as business or, in the case of Alfred Hitchcock films, solving a crime.

Time in classical Hollywood is continuous, since non-linearity calls attention to the illusory workings of the medium. The only permissible manipulation of time in this format is the flashback. It is mostly used to introduce a memory sequence of a character.

The Classic Hollywood Style is formulatic. It doesn't matter who the star is, who the director is, or who the writer is. Most mainstream films you see will have this lay out. Even though this may be the first time you have heard it called by name, you expect to see it in the theaters. It has been around since the birth of cinema, and it will most likely exist far into the future.

Mood of Pessimism, Fatalism and Menace

FILM NOIR

Film noir refers to a to a series of downbeat, gritty crime and action movies made in the 1940s and 1950s. This film uses a shadowy, moody visual style that was inspired by European movies of the 1920s. According to Corin, a filmmaker and film critic, film noir are tales of survival. The film noir style also have the "femme fatale." Voluptuous, scheming, and usually smarter than the male characters of film noir,these bad girls became an icon of the genre. Many a film noir plot hinges on the actions of a double-dealing, razor-sharp female character.

The term "film noir" was invented by a French film critic. In their time, these distinctive movies were just considered thrillers, suspense pictures, or crime melodramas. By the end of the 1940s, this eerie style was the standard for Hollywood's depictions of the world of criminals, cops, and private eyes.

The setting of film noir is somewhat large and oppressive city , it is filmed in dark and dusky conditions to create a moody atmosphere. The common subjects of noir films include murder investigations, heists, con games, and mostly innocent men or women wrongly accused of crime.

The film noir style also enabled Hollywood filmmakers to tackle tough subjects, such as corruption, addiction, and moral decay. Hollywood movies were required, by the Production Code, to punish wrong-doers and praise lawmen. The film noir style hid, in its shadows, a world that wasn't about good and evil. Its heroes are often fallen from grace, and its villains often have a seductive appeal. Good guys can go bad, and bad guys can develop a conscience in the world of film noir. You might say film noir is in the eye of the beholder, but some things, at least from my perspective, are essential. Foremost, a noir is black and white. This goes to the heart of the genre. That may seem obvious but there have been a number of films made in color, which have tried to emulate noir style.