Fruitvale StationFruitvale Station, written and directed by Ryan Coogler, and released by the Weinstein Company in 2013, is a "bio-pic", which follows the murder of Oscar Grant. To provide a brief background, Oscar Grant was a 22-year old man who was shot and killed on New Year's Eve of 2008 by Johannes Mehserle, a Bart Police Officer at Fruitvale Station located in Oakland, California. Although Fruitvale Station raises many moral and ethical concerns throughout the entirety of it's film -- police brutality, excessive violence portrayed by individuals of power, power dynamics, etc. -- I feel Fruitvale Station is relevant, especially today, as it is one of the first cases (and films) to show witnesses utilizing his or her gadget, whether cell phone or hand camera, to document scenarios, such as the one detailed above. Throughout the film, the audience can gage the importance of Oscar's phone as it is his primary way of communicating with his family, his girlfriend and his friends, and as it becomes more of a character than an object throughout the latter half of the film. Once Oscar, Oscar's girlfriend and Oscar's friends embark on the Bart to begin their New Year's Eve festivities, the audience watches Oscar's two friends video tape two females kissing one another as the clock strikes midnight. Not only is this significant due to the fact that is it foreshadowing an outsider looking into somebody else's personal world via the lens of technology, but it is also significant, as this is how so many individual's communicate and connect with one another today -- via sharing videos, content, social media, etc.
As the night progresses and as tensions rise, Bart Police Officers locate and escort Oscan and his friends off of the train and onto the cement of the train landing. After the Bart police officers aggressively and violently push and violate Oscar and his friends, Oscar attempts to pull out his cell phone to record what is happing and what will continue to happen. The police officers demand Oscar put's his phone away immediately. Additionally, the women Oscar met at the grocery store, who was also on the Bart with Oscan and his friends that evening, also attempts to record and document the harm the police officers were implementing that evening. Unfortunately, the train pulls away before the lady from the grocery store can capture any more footage. The notion of documenting via gadgets is extremely paramount, as today, cell phones capture everything from present-day police brutality, historical protests, confrontations, abuse, etc.
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Her: Does the iPhone Equate to iSolation?Her, directed and released by Spike Jonze in 2013, is a romantic scientific film, following Theodore Twombly (played by Joaquin Phoenix) as he begins a friendship, ultimately escalating into relationship, with his new operating system (OS), Samantha (voice played by Scarlett Johansen.) Her addresses broader social and technological themes such as intimacy via technology, virtual sex, sex surrogates, friendship, isolation, etc. I feel although Her beautifully documents so many of these powerful themes, the topic of isolation is paramount to address. Throughout the film, the audience witnesses Theodore spend more and more time with his OS, Samantha, and less and less time with his friends. Although, at the moment, Theodore appears to be happy solely interacting with just a voice, as the computer-software system of Samantha makes their relationships feel extremely personalized, I feel he is simply pushing himself further away from the realities of society. Cinematically, the majority of the film, is Theodore exploring the world alone, with just the voice over narrative of Samantha in the background. To piggyback off this, I also believe, that as Theodore spends more time with Samantha, the harder it is for him to communicate with humans in real time and space. For example, Theodore is extremely quiet and uncomfortable when his female friend attempts to show him her mini-documentary; Theodore cannot maintain a smooth conversation with his blind date without it ending poorly; Theodore has a hard time maintaining eye-contact with his ex-wife when they meet in person, and lastly; Theodore cannot physically be intimate with Samantha’s potential sex surrogate.
I feel these issues are important to address today as Theodore’s addiction to his technology, phone, operating system, etc. is not far off from where society stands in relation with their technological gadgets in 2017. In almost all of the shots where Theodore is out in public, the audience views all other civilians interacting on their personalized OS, as well, instead of interacting with one another or even appreciating their surroundings. To me, this resonated a little too much with how much my friends and peers spend on his or her differing screens. I feel, Her, does a phenomenal job at portraying what our futuristic world may look like, in a short amount of time, if we, as humans, do not come to realize the importance of human interaction and lesser our daily amount of time of isolation. To Die ForGus Van Sant’s mystery mockumentary, To Die For, spotlights the eager weather analyst, Suzanne Stone (Maretto), and documents her career and personal journey as she attempts to make her way into the television and film community. To summarize, Suzanne Stone, recently married to Larry Maretto, is a dedicated and overly-eager woman, who utilizes her beauty and charm to constantly get her way in attempts to enter into the entertainment industry, even if that means misleading her three student friends, Jimmy, Russel and Lydia, to committing a crime.
As stated above, Suzanne, is obsessed with “making it” on screen. Contradictory to her ultimate actions throughout the narrative of the film, Suzanne states, “You really are not anyone in America if you are not on TV… On TV is where we learn about who we really are. Because what’s the point of doing anything worthwhile if nobody’s watching? And if people are watching, it makes you a better person.” Ultimately, Suzanne “makes it” on television as she gets investigated for the suspected murder of her innocent husband, Larry. Suzanne, throughout her interviews, basks in the spotlight as she discusses her husband’s falsified death via television and lies as to why she believes he was murdered; she blames his death on her two male student’s delinquency and claims they introduced him into the drug world, which ultimately killed him. Although Suzanne’s story and image were aired after her lay-husband’s death, does this equate her with being a celebrity? Or being on television for the right reasons? In what way could Suzanne even attempt to justify that her television debut made her a “better person”? Suzanne’s student Lydia, questions Suzanne and her television theory by asking: “Suzanne used to say that you're not really anybody in America unless you're on TV... 'cause what's the point of doing anything worthwhile if there's nobody watching? So, when people are watching, it makes you a better person. So, if everybody was on TV all the time, everybody would be better people. But, if everybody was on TV all the time, there wouldn't be anybody left to watch, and that's where I get confused.” To Die For, released in 1995, examines grander philosophical questions regarding media, television debuts and the concept of celebrity. Is media, considered a helpful or harmful medium, today? Is being placed on screen the only way to be seen or heard? Does the media world then only attract negative attention, negative stories and negative individuals? Does everyone have these same intentions regarding the media and the news? At what point is it going too far to “make it on television?” Is appearing on screen worth killing someone or dying for? Today, this plethora of questions is paramount to think about as humans are utilizing screens and differing forms of media for almost all aspects of his or her daily lives. Additionally, in 2017, the media community has recently been dealing with how to decipher what is truthful and what is a lie, and with what is “fake” news verse what is “real” news, etc. Amy Amy is a documentary based on the hardships and successes of the renowned musician, Amy Winehouse. This docu-film was released in 2015 and invited Winehouse fans and music lovers in general to understand how her musical talents and career gave her life, but ultimately, also brought her to her own death. In my opinion, on the one hand, this film has a clear main protagonist – Amy Winehouse. One the other hand, I believe this film has many antagonists: her parents, Blake Fielder-Civil (her long-time lover and ex-husband), alcohol, drugs, etc. Although I knew of Amy Winehouse and her music, after watching this film, I felt I had a better understanding of not only Amy’s life story, but also why Amy’s life ended in the tragic way it did. Personally, the most striking and appalling aspect of this entire film, to me, was the affect her parents had upon her upbringing, her decision making, and ultimately, her life’s outcome.
Through my personal upbringing, stories and my education, I have come to believe that how an individual is raised, and depending on his or her relationship with his or her mother or father, has a tremendous impact on how he or she sees and views the world. Therefore, I believe, if Amy’s mother and father had operated differently, perhaps, Amy’s life could have operated differently, as well. To be specific, at around the age of 15, the documentary explains that Amy had confessed to her mother about her “new and brilliant diet” – Amy would eat whatever she wants and then throw it all up. Her parents, even after knowing about the beginning stages of her bulimia, did not address or handle her body image issues at all. This trend of parental neglect, unfortunately, did not get any better throughout her life. Amy’s father, Mitchell Winehouse, left a lasting and disgusting taste in my mouth. I believe he had the largest impact on Amy’s mental and physical disabilities. To be specific, even after Amy had appeared to be in a state of mental and physical distress (she had recently left rehab), Mitchell continued to push her to fly abroad to perform. When it came time for Amy to perform, she appeared so wasted that she could not even get the words out to sing. Additionally, when Amy and her family decided to retreat to their favorite island for a family get-a-away, Amy appeared extremely distraught when she realized her father had invited a filming crew to join them. At one point throughout this traumatic series of scene’s, the audience sees Amy arguing with her father over why she must take a picture with some fans; she asks her father why it is not enough for them to go on a vacation without a film crew. Mitchell responds by saying the film crew is there to obtain footage for a new series about being Amy’s father. During this series and throughout the entire film, Amy explains that she solely wanted her father’s approval – I believe this may have been why she also yearned for her lover’s affection and approval, Blake, so deeply. The Social Network What does it mean to be successful, today? Can an individual be successful in his or her professional life but not in his or her social or intimate life? Is success generated by an individual’s salary or how much money he or she makes? Does success result from how many years of schooling you attended? Can success be categorized by how many “Friends” or “Followers” one has on his or her differing social media accounts? Can one only become successful by being “an asshole?”
The concept of “success” is a multilayered topic (as questions reveal above), which cannot be answered with a simple “yes” or “no” answer. The Social Network is a dramatic film, which details how Harvard student, Mark Zuckerberg, overcame being dumped by his long-time girlfriend, Eric Albright. In retaliation, that night, Zuckerberg creates a social application titled “Facemash,” which, ultimately transforms into the billion-dollar Internet and social phenomenon, “Facebook.” Yet, with all of Zuckerberg’s financial and social successes, trials and tribulations also came about. Therefore, I believe The Social Network is a fascinating piece to close-read in terms of examining one of the world’s most successful individual’s conversations, relationships and successes, in order to deconstruct if someone must be an “asshole” to order to truly succeed. As portrayed in The Social Network, in 2003, Zuckerberg’s girlfriend dumped him, while the two of them were getting drink together. In The Social Network, the script reads similar to this: M: “And yes, I got nothing wrong on the test.” E: “Have you ever tried?” M: “I am trying right now.” E: “To row crew.” M: “To get into a final club; to row crew, are you like, whatever, delusional?” E: "Maybe, it’s just you say two things at once and I am not sure which one [comment] I am supposed to be aiming at.” M: But you have seen guys who row crew, right?” E: “No.” M: "Well they are bigger than me, they are world class athletes and a second ago you said you liked guys who rowed crew so I assumed you had met one.” E: "I guess I just meant I liked the idea of it, you know, the way a girl likes cowboys." M: “OK" E: "Should we get something to eat?" M: "Would you like to talk about something else?" E: "No! It is just since the beginning of the conversation about finals club, I think I may have missed a birthday….” ——— M: “I want to try to be straight forward with you and tell you that I think you might want to be a little more supportive, If I get in [to a finals club] I will be taking you to the events and the gatherings and you would be meeting a lot of people you would not normally get to meet.” E: “You would do that for me?” M: “We are dating.” E: "Ok, well I want to try and be straight forward with you and tell you that we are not anymore.” M: “What do you mean?” E: “We are not dating anymore, I am sorry.” M: “Is this a joke?” E: "No! It is not!" M: ”You are going to introduce me to people I would not normally have the change to meet? WTF... What is that supposed to mean?" M: “Wait settle down!” E: ”What is that supposed to mean?” ——-- E: “I am going back to my dorm" M: “Wait, wait, is this real?” E: “Yes!” M: "Ok, then wait! I apologize!" E: “I have to go study” M: “I am sorry, I mean it” E: “I appreciate that, but I have to go study.” M: “Come on, you don’t have to go study. You don’t have to study, let’s just talk.” E: "I can’t!" M: “Why?" E: "Because dating you is exhausting, it is like dating a stair master!" M: "All I meant is that you are not likely to, currently; I was not making a comment on your appearance. I was just saying that you go to BU. I was just stating a fact, that is all. And if it seemed rude then of course, I apologize." E: "I have to go study." M: "You don’t have to go study." E: "Why do you keep saying I don’t have to study?" M: "Because you go to BU! … Want to get some food?" E: "I am sorry you are not sufficiently impressed with my education." ——-- E: "I want to tell you something: you are going to go through life thinking that girls do not like you because you are a nerd, and I want you to know from the bottom of my heart that that won’t be true. It’ll be because you are an asshole!" Here, Zuckerberg’s everyday conversations with Erica Albright appear condescending, but he also then becomes an even less-socially acceptable version of himself, when she calls him out and no longer stands for her mistreatment: Zuckerberg asks “Is this real?” He cannot believe this is happening to him. Throughout the conversation, Zuckerberg continues to upset Albright, and ultimately, attacks her education. She then retaliates by letting him know that, although he may be very successful in the near future, he will never win intimately as he is nothing less than “an asshole.” I find Albright’s last line in this scene a watershed moment as this is the first time she stands up for herself and no longer accepts his unmannerly tone. Here, although Albright concludes the conversation in a firm way, she is not viewed as the villain in this scene – her actions are only a counter-reaction to Zuckerberg’s hurtful ways. Lastly, I find it fascinating to analyze whether Zuckerberg became “an asshole” as a post-reaction to all of his successes, but, this scene and other scenes of him interacting with his peers, show that the “ass-hole-ness” came before the mega-successes from Facebook. TangerineTangerine, a film directed by Sean Baker, recorded entirely on three differing iPhone 5 cameras, spotlights a transgender woman who earns her living by being a sex worker. Tangerine follows her as she discovers her pimp boyfriend has not remained faithful to her during her month-long stint serving time in jail. Baker utilizes human hands in a very dynamic way throughout Tangerine. Not only are human hands one of the most vulnerable aspects to transgender individuals, but hands are also a powerless body part, as they are utilized in almost all aspects of life and therefore, commonly shot in cinema. To be specific, the opening scene of Tangerine shows two transgender women reconnect in a doughnut shop after not speaking for a month. In this particular scene, the two women’s hands are visually captivating; Sin-Dee Rella and Alexandra overly use their hands to appear extra animated as they discuss the past month they have spent apart from each other. During this conversation over a doughnut, Sin-Dee Rella learns the truth from Alexandra and states: “Bitch, that estrogen has been kicking in. The only thing that has not broken down is these fucking arms. Everything else on my body looks good!” In multiple scenes throughout the film – hands being portrayed on bus stops; hands being emphasized on the steering wheel of cabs; hands being personified while flirting with makeup and drugs, etc. – hands appear to become the equivalent of another character, as they are spotlighted to such a obvious extent. I feel hands became a staple in Tangerine, as they are universal to all humans. Hands also become important in the dissection of the creation of Tangerine, as stated above, this film was shot solely on three differing iPhone 5 cameras. The beauty of this shooting technique is not only does it allow the director and creative to physically become “hands-on” while filming, but it also invites other inspired individuals to partake in the “Do It Yourself” (DIY) mindset while shooting, etc. |
Hayley AlperinSenior at Emory University, Media Studies major, Archives |
Photo used under Creative Commons from IQRemix