Art of the Cinema: Exit Through the Gift Shop

Let me begin by saying that this documentary was awesome. I loved all the street art, and if I could afford one of those pieces I would definitely invest in one. I especially loved the Space Invaders work; he was awesome.

In the other hand, I can see how people could think it’s possibly fake but since I’m not too familiar with “street art” or “graffiti”, I definitely think it was real. I think that if Banksy and Mister Brainwash came to an agreement to prank viewers with this film it would have taken a long time for them to be able to catch enough footage to pull it off. Reiterating what Germain Lussier said in the article on slashfilm.com, it would take decades for them to be able to capture enough footage to pull this off. On the comments below the article there were people talking about how they had heard/seen a lot of Mister Brainwash’s art around Hollywood, so that makes me believe that the documentary is definitely real.

The film is wonderful and I loved it but once again, I can see how people could think that Banksy is just messing with us. How could they think it’s a fluke? Well, It just seemed too good to be true in some parts, like how him and Mister Brainwash met, etc. but even so, if the documentary isn’t real it never felt as if I was being deceived while watching the film.

Art of the Cinema: The Thin Red Line

I’m going to start off by saying that director Terrence Malick's work in this movie was brilliant. The movie Thin Red Line proves that there doesn’t have to be a plot in order for the film to be excellent. He takes his time and lets the film unfold in a slow pace that forces viewers to appreciate both the scenery of the movie and the narrator’s deepest thoughts and feelings. The Thin Red Line definitely challenged its audiences, because not only do you have to be extra patient for 3 hours, but you also have to deal with the fact that it’s a war, and these horrifying things actually happened to our soldiers. Although, I am not a huge fan of war movies (Saving Private Ryan) …I thought this film was great, and Wilick did a fantastic job. It was beautiful and painful to watch at the same time, but isn’t that what we want? We don’t need a specific plot so we can “guess” or “predict” the outcome – which you can do in certain movies. During many scenes, I felt like I was there and that’s when you know the director did a good job. Not only do directors want viewers to relate to movies (which in this case, I obviously couldn’t), but they also want you to feel like you’re a part of it…like you’re in those scenes. This movie did that for me, and that is why it’s a great film because I’m almost positive that everyone else would agree with me once they’ve seen it.

Art of the Cinema: Pan's Labyrinth

I believe Guillermo Del Toro chose for the base of this film to be during a real historic event so that people would have an easier time understand why Ofelia had to “get out of reality” and join the fantasy world. He wanted us to have a bit of sympathy for her, and to realize that sometimes when you’re in a tough position and having a hard time dealing with things, there are different ways certain people can escape from that. Ofelia was having a difficult time understanding why her mother had to marry this evil man, and although her mother claimed she was “lonely”, Ofelia was saddened by the fact that her mom still chose this path. Both worlds the visible reality and the invisible reality needed to be portrayed in order to tell the story effectively. While in her fantasy world, she also made the mistake of breaking a rule and was punished for it, but then given the opportunity to make up for it by finishing another task.

My favorite part of the Psycho-Analytical reaction to the film article was: As she learns in the end, it is only by facing that bleak reality that she realizes that the difference between right and wrong, fact and fiction comes from an inner place of self-transformation, a harmonization, a self-sacrifice. It is a philosophy not just for Ofelia, but also for the entire human race to learn. This is definitely a lesson to all of us, and it teaches us that by being selfless, you can be rewarded greatly.

Art of the Cinema: Week 1/26 : Violence & "Robocop"

I remember watching only parts of Robocop when I was around 9 or 10 and not being interested in it at all because it was so gory. And my mom, a single mother, was never one of those parents to say, “no, you can’t watch that, it’s too violent.” I just chose not to watch it on my own because I have blood and violent movies. She always allowed me to watch whatever I wanted and listen to all types of music. Back to Robocop though, as I was sitting there watching the movie I definitely had to turn away a few times because some of the shootings and the violent things that kept happening frankly were too disgusting for my liking. I do like when movies look realistic, but the shootings and the acid pouring was too brutal for my eyes. Although, I think Robocop fits into the category of movies that consist mostly of Realistic Horrific Violence, it does have a little bit of “fun” violence in it also because deep down you truly are cheering for the protagonist to get revenge. Even though the movie was made so long ago, it definitely sets a great example of how graphic movies STILL are. I think Robocop consists of horrific violence but that’s truthfully not a big deal anymore. People watch this movie now and they see someone getting shot up or something exploding and they’re like “oh my god, that’s so cool” …it really isn’t a huge deal and they’re not too shocked about it.