"beDevil" a film of ghost stories

beDevil, directed by Tracey Moffatt in Australia, is a collection of three cultural based folk/ghost stories. Though I did not enjoy the film at all, it was a very artistic attempt at creating a cultural horror film. The stories mix together the tales Moffatt was told as a child, those from her Irish-Australian background in merger with her Aboriginal background.

The use of color is extremely important to the film. Each story has a clear focus on a thematic color and each frame is fully saturated with some vibrant colors. The first story is about a child who is, seemingly, possessed by the ghost/spirit of a deceased GI who lays at the bottom of a swamp. The main colors of this section are very earthy and brown. This symbolizes the impact of war and the bleak color left after complete destruction. This is highly contrasted with scenes of narrators living in the present who are recalling this story. They have quite lively green and blue colors, this only seems to differentiate between the world of today and the world where the story is taking place. The second story is of the weird happening of a home which is situated next to a railway, the spooky thing is that years ago a bling girl was killed on the tracks by an oncoming train. Here the colors are extremely purple, this seems to enhance their solitude, which can increase the eeriness. The vibrant purple symbolizes the darkness in which the family lives and their separation from civilization. There was also heavy usage of orange. This, to me, seemed to symbolize the hotness of their location along with the hotness of a train engine as it is in motion traveling at rapid speeds. The third story was of a couple, who had many problems, and their haunting of a tenants building. In this section, red clearly dominates the screen. This is a simple symbol for both the passion and rage the two lovers felt for each other. 

In beDevil, color is a huge symbol for either characters emotions or the circumstances of a location. This is one of the big reasons why I would consider this to be a art film. Its use of color is important and extremely prominent to the films deeper themes.

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas an Adaptation

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is one of many book adaptations that has been extremely successful. The narrative plays out in a similarly confusing and psychedelic fashion, as the book was written in. Replicating the mood felt in the book is one of the most important things about adapting a book into a film, and Fear and Loathing is a, nearly, word for word duplication. The mise-en-scene is one of the most astounding aspects of the film. The costumes and locals resemble those which are read in the book perfectly. This is helpful in formulating its filmic integrity, through which the amazing story of "the American Dream", which Hunter S. Thompson is so infatuated with, can unfold correctly. The things that happen prior to the camera's are turned on, mise-en-scene, goes far deeper than just authentic costuming and sets. Johnny Depp, who portrays Thompson, was extremely good friends with the writer in real life, in fact he lived with him in his home in Kentucky for several months. It was during this time that he, in everyday life, began to dress like him, talk like him, and pick up his mannerisms. Once the camera is turned on it seems as if the exact characteristics of Hunter S. Thompson, written in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas have jumped out into the body of Johnny Depp. Many other aspects of the film work extremely well with this great portrayal in order to replicate the mood one receives from the book. Many of the camera angles and movements create a very jarring and confusing experience, much like how many have described life with Hunter S. Thompson to be like. The colors are vivid and pop out at the audience which recreate the psychedelic experience of life with Hunter S. Thompson. There is insane animation and image distortion which simulate the effects of LSD or ether, thus fully submerging the audience in the same "search for the American Dream" described so thoroughly by Thompson. Even the use of voice-over narration allows the audience to feel closely connected with the actual book.
To me the film Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is one finely linked with authenticity and spectacle. The movie is just as fun as the book and equally entertaining if the viewer had no experience with the book. Authenticity and spectacle are important to focus on when filming an adaptation. It allows for all types of audience members, even the die hard novel fans, to enjoy the narrative and feel completely submerged in the plot. Needless to say this is one of my favorite movies.

Chungking Express

I always find it fun comparing foreign films to the blockbuster "hits" we have in America. Chungking Express, directed by Wong Kar-wai uses cinematic elements in a very fast paced and interesting way for the first narrative, suddenly, rapid cuts and manipulation of visual motion take become less prevalent in the second narrative. This is clearly done purposefully; each type of editing forms the moods for the specific narrative.

The first narrative involves chase scenes, gun fights, and drugs, thus the editing mirrors the intensity of the action. Rapid cuts during the chase scenes allow only brief glance at who the people are and their location. This recreates the feelings of the protagonist as he is, mentally and physically, going through the same disruption. The image is blurred and, it seems, in some hybrid state of slow motion and fast motion. This furthers confusion in the narrative and the mind of the audience. I feel this relates back to the themes of the first character Qiwu. He seems both in a state of hating his lost love and desiring nothing more than to have her back; it is reflected in the way the editing elements and cinematographic elements work in unison. Both techniques put together create a confusing sequence. Qiwu does not know what to do with himself without his lover May, and this is exaggerated by the harshness of his job. The audience easily relates to Qiwu because they see him in both difficult/challenging mental and physical states. Much of the reason for the audience's adept understanding of Qiwu comes from the visual, instead of the audio.

The second narrative slows down quite a bit, this could be because it is now a story about a man who falls into love instead of out of it. There is not really any mixed fast and slow motion, and there are no cuts that are extremely rapid. The story has become much more relaxed because of this change in techniques. This eases the audience's minds and cools down the rapid pace of information. I feel this allows the audience to analyze the emotions and subtle looks that characters give.

This style of separating sections of the story by clearly different cinematic techniques is very effective and helps the audience understand that there are now two different narratives working together in the same single film.