“The Five Obstructions”- Lars von Trier and JØrgen Left

Movie Response:

This video took me a while to warm up to. I’m not sure if it was the concept of the film, the way the film was shot, or the dialogue, but it was a harder film for me to find interesting. One thing I did enjoy was that you did not realize you where watching one of the obstructions the whole time. It felt like they were taking you through all the different ones, then at the end you realize it is all one large obstruction, with the ultimate purpose of discovering JØrgen Left and in turn Lars von Trier. As much as I liked the trickery of the film, I wish they had allowed the viewer to come up with that conclusion on their own, leaving some of it to mystery and confusion. However, also as we discussed in class, Lars von Trier does not like any film ever made and therefore tries to break the rules of films, trying to make something that is “crap” and it ends up being wonderful. Because of Lars von Trier’s attitude towards film making I could understand where he would want to take away the mystery and the viewers opinions, because that is what good films do, and he wanted to make a bad film. I think the film has a lot to say about the original film “The Perfect Human” and the creator JØrgen Left. The obstructions’ intent was not to create a new version of “The Perfect Human,” but were in fact a way to observe the man who first created and idealized “the perfect humans” and his outlook on what was perfect. I found the obstructions themselves to be a little dramatic and at times inappropriate. I don’t enjoy work that has a lot of nudity and sex in it, even if they are talking about human nature. Overall though, I thought it was a very interesting film and the concept behind it was creative and exciting. Therefore, much to Lars von Trier’s disapproval, I found this to be a very good film.

“Meshes of the Afternoon” by Maya Deren and Alexander Hammid

Movie Review:

I found this video to be very captivating not only technically, with its camera work, angles, and movement, but also psychologically, and all the questions it had the viewer asking. The camera work and editing was very interesting with its chopped and repeating scenes. They also used camera movement to insinuate earth movement, which I found to be very successfully done. The film itself could have several meanings, all to be determined by each individual viewer. It creates questions such as, what really is reality, is any of this reality, is this about a love lost, or is this about memories lost? Even questions about the ending such as, who killed who, did she kill herself in order to keep herself from killing him, or did any of this even happen. I believe the questions this video stirs is an example of why it is a good film, and it is successful in the sense that it keeps the mystery of the unknown and allows the viewer to draw their own conclusions or theories. 

Silent Movie Reviews

Movie Responses:

“Emak Bakia” by Man Ray

I found Man Ray’s “Emak Bakia” visually aesthetic and mentally stimulating. I find it interesting that this film was made in 1926 and was ahead of its time, because I still feel that it is relevant to art today, even ahead of art today. To make a piece of art that can withstand a century is truly remarkable. I enjoyed the abstract qualities of this video. I liked how it made you question what you where seeing and leaving it open to interpretation from the viewer. I believe, as I said in class, that I would have enjoyed watching it without sound first, because I found the music to easily sway my feelings. I do believe the music fit the video well, but I believe there were parts I would have felt differently about if there were no music. I also felt a dream-like quality over the video, only bringing in reality with the shot of the daisies and the car driving down the road. I believe Man Ray was an artist who allowed the viewer to observe the work and create his or her own opinions and feelings about his work. Overall, I really enjoyed this video and this style would be an approach I would take to my own work in video.

“The Man with the Movie Camera” by Dziga Vertov

This video was a little harder for me to get into. I’m not sure if it was because of the movie itself or because we watched it right after Man Ray’s silent film that I loved so much. However, I would agree with our feelings of this video shared in class. I do believe this video was made for propaganda use. The way it starts in a theatre, where you would see a short propaganda film, and concludes in a theatre, sets the stage for this film. It allows the viewer to see a “happy” Russia, with workers smiling, babies being born, technology booming, everything to ensure Russia is the place to be. I did enjoy Vertov’s filming with the repetitive use of a similar line. The line of the theatre chairs, matched the line of the baby cribs, and the line of the houses. All of these technical qualities, aesthetic qualities, and advertising qualities, let to an interesting propaganda film.

“Un Chien Andalou” by Luis Brunnel and Salvador Dali

I think for me, this film was my least favorite of the videos we have watched this far. This film started off very interesting with the interpretation of the moon getting sliced in half to a woman’s eye getting sliced in half. My first thought was that I hoped that was a cow’s eye, or at least someone who was already dead. Which just seems gruesome. The film itself was hard to read and follow, but I think that was the point of it. I think that the film was made to confuse the viewer and make them feel they were in this “dream” state of confusion. Dreams are not supposed to make sense, and I believe that is why this video does not make sense. There were a lot of repeating elements within the movie, and people and items were ending up in other areas of the film. I also believe this film may have hinted at the idea of death, and life and love after death. All the ideas I gathered from this video however, are vague and not definite ideas, but I also believe that was the intent of the creators.

“Mothlight” by Stan Brakhage

I really enjoyed this film by Brakhage. I think it ranks number 2 of 4, in my book. I liked the abstract quality and fast moving pace. I think if you watched it too much it might give you a little bit of motion sickness though. However, I found his way of interpreting moth wings and light very interesting and beautiful. I think you could stop this film at anytime and have a great piece of wall art. I’m not sure what his message with this film was. I think that it could be easy for debate. It could be talking about how something that would not be looked at as beautiful is beautiful in the right light, or that science can be art. There are so many possibilities, but I think whatever the original intent it could be easily changed by the viewer. Overall, I really enjoyed this film and I am considering finding the slides that I like and turning them into artwork for myself.