The film this week was Saving Private Ryan. Directed by Steven Spielberg, the film was highly influenced by the photography of Robert Capa, a war time photojournalist.
Robert Capa was a extremely daring photographer whos pictures of the D'Day landings are incredibly atmospheric.
Saving Private Ryan was a film that tried to capture the same feel of the D'Day landings: The gritty air and the movement in particular echoed Robert Capa's photography with the entire first scene being filmed with hand-held cameras. Sections of the film were also put through a monochromatic bleaching process which made it feel much colder and "other worldly".
The sound really adds to the feeling of depth within the film. While I was watching it I noticed that the camera would show you something visually such as rain falling in a puddle followed by a soldier marching through it: at the same time the sound would be very clear and distinctive and it really helped you feel all the other senses that a film can not usually give you such as the feel of the mud and the temperature of the air.
The way in which the captain has his hearing affected by the explosions around him opens him up to truely assess the situation and what horrible things are going on around him. By removing the sound, the visual horrors that are in front of him are exaggerated.
There were many close ups of seemingly unimportant things but it really helped you to get dragged into the world that the film presented you with. It is a technique I have noticed in many films but I feel that it was expertly done in Saving Private Ryan.
This technique was greatly improved by the ways in which shots were given a more 3D feel. I noticed that the air always seems to be filled with either smoke, or soil, or debris from explosions. This gave your eyes a clear indication of how far objects were away.
I have found that this is also evident in some games. When used effectively it produces a similar effect to the one I mentioned earlier, you get a greater feel for how the environment smells, tastes, and feels. A good example of this is Assasins Creed.
There was another picture that stood out to me in particular from the whole film. Sillouetted figures walk through the night in front of what appears to be like a storm but is in fact distant explosions.
Sillouettes can be very powerful things, I have seen that they are often used to symbolise people that you should be afraid of. Sometimes they can be used to represent a group of people whos character can be determined without seeing their faces. It is clear in the above shot that these people are soldiers simply by the formation that they walk in.
Indirectly I dislike the bleached out effect that the visual directors of this film decided to adopt. Mostly because it has influenced many games to look drab and has encouraged them to use way too many tersiary colours.
I was surprised at how emotional Saving Private Ryan was because I had not seen it in such a long time. This was heightened by the way in which you learn more about each of the soldiers inbetween battles. Each and every one of them tells the others very personal things about themselves, reinforcing the bonds of brotherhood at war ( a central theme to the film).
I was very impressed that the characters are not made out to be invincible macho men, but that they are shown as quite the opposite. As grown men who cry out to their Mamas when they are wounded and cry when they are scared. Their fragility greatly improves their attractiveness as human beings rather than mythical creations. The tendency with film is to glorify violence and revenge rather than show how ugly it truely is. The alpha male of the film is Tom Hanks' character who despite being a leader has his weaknesses. He is simply a school teacher who has become a soldier. He is shown to have a shakey hand which could represent a greater weakness.
I don't think that games could take the same approach successfully. I realised this when playing COD World at War recently. The horrific gore just becomes entertaining in a sick way and doesnt discourage you from glorifying it but instead desensitizes you to it. I think that it is a real shame that people don't even bat an eyelid when somebody is shot in a film anymore. Death should never be taken as a casual thing, or even as a form of entertainment, staged or real.
This has ended up being a very long blog. Mostly because I really love this film. There is so much more I could say along the themes of religion in this film and religious symbolism, or further artistic choices that were made. Such as the sea running red, or the reference to living life well. I won't go any further however... I feel i may be time for bed. I must be getting old...
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