Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Hero

Zhang Yimou's film "Hero" stars Jet Li playing the protagonist Nameless. Nameless has set to kill the Kingdom of China's three greatest threats: Broken Sword, Flying Snow and Long Sky. The three have vowed to assassinate the King of Qin. The main plot of the film takes place within the royal palace while Nameless has a conversation with the King. Through flashbacks , Nameless tells his of journey where he single handedly defeated all three of the great assassins in order to save his beloved country.

"Hero", known in China as "Ying Xiong" was the most expensive Chinese film when released in late 2002. This vast budget can be see in the stunning visual effects throughout the film. Each dramatic fight scene is beautifully designed and appears more of work of art than Hollywood action scene. Bright, bold colors are employed throughout the entire film. They are used to stress certain objects during the flashbacks. The vibrant colors are further used to distinguish the one characters perspective from another.

Unity is one of the main underlying themes throughout this film. Nameless has sacrificed his life in order to unify his nation. This idea can be apply to modern day China, as well as all other nations. In order to succeed, a nation must be unified and work together to find prosperity.

Amores Perros

Amores Perros is a drama of three storylines all interconnected in some way, shape or form to dogs. The first story is of Octavio and Susana who are brother and sister-in-law, yet begin to form a relationship which later becomes complicated due to dogfighting. The second story is of Daniel and Valeria. Daniel works for a magazine and has a happy family, but leaves them to live with Valeria, who is a model. The third storyline is of El Chivo, a dirty homeless man who consistently appears throughout the film in various circumstances.

The film, with these three storylines, almost seems like three different films. Each of the separate stories has their own aspects of misc-en-scene and camerawork. For example: Octavio's storyline from the opening of the film shows a frantic pace, very similar to his passionate and impulsive behavior. On the other hand, the scenes with Daniel and Valeria are much more subdued and slow-paced, similar to their lifestyle.  When the stories do intertwine though, these differences become blurred and the film styles mesh together creating a mixture that feels natural. Yet when the characters' stories then separate again they return to their original states.

This film says a lot for both globalization in Mexico and the lack of it as well through the different stories. Octavio brings a very local flavor to the mix, with a lower class family and dogfighting lifestyle. Valeria and Daniel bring a very globablized appeal, due to her supermodel status and their understanding of things in the outside world. When these two worlds collide conflict ensues though. El Chivo has a grasp on globalization that few know about. This, in fact, makes him a very complex character, keeping the viewer guessing at his real intentions for the majority of the film.

Monday, April 6, 2009

Amélie

Based in Paris, we are introduced to the odd yet lovable Amélie Poulain through a gruesome birth scene. However, despite this starkly realistic start, the film evolves, through Jeunet’s wizardry with the camera, to a whimsical and heart-warming romance comedy. Even in her youth, Amélie has a strange fascination with all things out of the ordinary, and this fascination lives on as she grows up under her anti-social father. However, Amélie’s story doesn’t really begin until she uncovers an old box of childhood keepsakes hidden in her apartment. This catapults her into a frantic search for the unsuspecting owner. Loving the sense of accomplishment and unacknowledged praise and adoration felt from returning the gift, Amélie sets off to perform more philanthropic deeds. It is on this adventure that the charming Amélie falls in love, but she must learn to love herself before she can love anyone else.

Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s quirky filming techniques shine through in this oddball modern-day fairytale. “Amélie” is reminiscent of Jeunet’s other works “Delicatessen” and “The City of Lost Children” but not nearly as dark as these two previous films. Similar to “Delicatessen”, the viewer is introduced to a variety of peculiar characters upon which the story builds. Throughout the entirety of the film, the fragmented stories are played out in this nonlinear work. Jeunet employs saturated colors to highlight the cast of eccentric characters and sepia tones help to emerge the viewer in the dreamy and fanciful world of “Amélie”. This refreshing film breaks the mold of the typical romance comedy and is definitely worth the watch.