The story of Alice in Wonderland is a classic that has been reinvented over and over through the decades. Alice is a young girl who finds herself in a strange world ruled by imagination and fantasy. Alice approaches Wonderland as a courageous anthropologist, but maintains a strong sense of noblesse oblige.
The tension of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland emerges when Alice’s fixed perspective of the world comes into contact with the mad, illogical world of Wonderland. Wonderland functions as a symbol, but nothing clearly represents one particular thing. The symbolic fullness of Wonderland is generally contained to the individual occasion in which they appear. Often the symbols work together to convey a particular meaning.
Alice’s fundamental beliefs face challenges at every turn, as she experiences the toll of stress brought on my time as well as reoccurring references to death. There is a sense of time and stress that is put upon Alice when she enters and travels through Wonderland, affecting her emotionally and physically. It is odd for such strong and mature subjects such death and stress related to time to be incorporated in a children’s story. Comparing the original version, Lewis Carroll’s novel Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass (1865), and a later version, Walt Disney’s Alice in Wonderland (1951), there are many similar as well as drastically different examples of the conjunction of time, stress, and death.
The factor of time and stress that is put upon Alice when she enters and travels through Wonderland clearly affects her emotional and physical state. In Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass death is a constant underlying menace. Lewis Carroll states in the introduction of the novel “To read the Alice books is to plunge into a world of narrative distortions and nonsensical explanations”, ensuing the themes of the story to be that of irrational and challenging. Alice goes through moments where she faces death, narrowly missing it in some cases. Continually finding herself in these situations suggests that death lurks just behind the ridiculous events of Alice’s adventures in Wonderland as a present and possible outcome. An example is when the Mock Turtle sings a song about turtle soup. An eerie thing for someone or something to be singing about, but the Mock Turtle doesn’t show his fear in his possible future, which provides as an instance where death is introduced, but not in a frightening or sorrowful manner. Death appears as well in the first chapter when the narrator mentions that Alice marvels that after the fall down the rabbit hole she would think nothing of falling off of the top of her house, much less down the stairs, even though the narrator reminds us that both falls would most likely kill her. Alice takes risks that could possibly kill her, but she never considers death as something possible. The Queen of Hearts provides for us another instance where Alice is confronted with death. The Queens obsession ordering beheadings indeed frightens Alice, yet she still proceeds through Wonderland with courage that she will be unharmed.
Over time, she starts to realize that her experiences in Wonderland are far more threatening than they appear to be, insinuating that time is a key factor in Wonderland that relates to her stress and emotional levels.
In the first chapter when Alice is faced with the dilemma of becoming the right size to pass through a door, she is presented with a means in which to grow and/or shrink in order to continue on her journey. She becomes frustrated with the satiation that it is taking a lot of time and effort to overcome, and cries, resulting in a pool of water forming. Quickly finding a way to shrink in size, Alice found herself “a good deal of frightened at the sudden change, but very glad to find herself still in existence.” (Carroll)
Alice realizes how the pressures of time lead her to a change in her emotional state, consequently putting her in a state of panic. Striving to stay afloat in a sea of tears she believes that she “shall be punished for it now, by being drowned in my own tears!” (Carroll) The relationship of time causing emotional stress on Alice resulted in an action that brought attention to the possibility of death. Time has also affected not only Alice, but the Mad Hatter as well. By time stopping still at six o’clock, the Mad Hatter and March Hare are trapped in a perpetual teatime. The Mad Hatter, the March Hare, and the Dormouse are stuck carrying out an endless thread of pointless conversations. Alice has to adjust her own perceptions of time when she discovers that Time is a person and not merely an abstract concept. She realizes that not only are social conventions inverted, but also the ordering principles of the universe are turned upside down. Not even time is reliable, a stressful and unpleasant notion. As she proceeds throughout her journey, Alice continues to encounter problems that cause her to react with extreme emotion or reason. Her attitude quickly changes from calm and easygoing to short-tempered and grumpy numerous times in the novel because she either cannot make sense of a situation or she simply fails in her efforts to do something that aids her in her journey. Many of these problems are attributed to the strain of time, whether she is trying to keep up and eventually meet up with the white rabbit, or whether she is situated in an event where stress and frustration grows by the second.
Walt Disney’s Alice in Wonderland was created many years after the original in an animated film format. Although the novel incorporated images sporadically through the story, Walt Disney’s version is strictly visual which results in minimizing the amount of personal imagery and reasoning otherwise needed in Lewis Carroll’s novel. There are many differences between the two, structurally speaking, but Disney’s Alice in Wonderland still provides occurrences that spotlight the motifs of stress, time, and death. It seems as thought in Walt Disney’s Alice in Wonderland, Alice is less struck by danger and threat, which can lead to death. Her curiosity and intrigue in Wonderland is greater than the possible fearful outcomes of her actions. In the novel Alice notes that after the fall down the rabbit hole she would think nothing of falling off of the top of her house, much less down the stairs, even though the narrator reminds us that both falls would most likely kill her. In the film Alice shows no concern to her plunge down the rabbit hole. She even bits her cat goodbye instead of yelling for help. Rather, she interacts with the objects on the journey down and is intrigued. Later, when Alice wants to pass through the door to follow the white rabbit and cries from her failing attempt, she does not tell herself that she should drown in her tears as punishment. Instead, in the film Alice is not afraid and less stressed about the situation. She even removes herself from the safety of the glass bottle to satisfy her curiosity of the Caucus-race. Although the stress of time is constant in both texts due to the White Rabbit as well as the Mad Hatter at teatime, the film includes some examples of time and stress that are not included or dedifferentiate from the novel. For example, when Tweedledum and Tweedledee find Alice while she is walking through the woods they first confuse her, but then grab her attention with offering to tell her a story. Alice is once again intrigued and listens to their story of the walrus and how he ate the clams, referencing death. After the story however, Alice wishes to be on her way but Tweedledum and Tweedledee will not excuse her. Wanting to be on her way and wishing to catch up with the White Rabbit, Alice grows impatient that time is wasting so she sneaks away from the two. Alice experiences the effects of time stress again towards the end of the film when she and the Queen of Hearts begin a game of croquet. In Carroll’s novel, Alice’s anger grows when the flamingo’s neck becomes limp and the hedgehog unrolls itself. It is impossible for her to play, but the Queen insists that she proceeds. Afraid that at any moment the Queen will give orders to have Alice’s head cut off, Alice asks the flamingo “Do you want both of us to loose our heads?!”. When the flamingo shakes its head and says “uh-huh!” Alice’s patient’s runs out and her anger increases. Here, the presence of death is starting to frighten Alice even though there is still a silliness that the flamingo seems to retain which makes the idea of death in the film not so serious. In the novel, Alice actually starts to laugh at the flamingo and the hedgehog when they start to misbehave. She seems less concerned about the risk of decapitation and more amused with the game and all that it was made up by.
Throughout the novel Time provides constant reminders that it can punish those who have offended it. Alice desires meaning, order, coherence, and sanity, quickly realizing that Wonderland is nothing of the sort and that she continuously will be faced with factors that breed stress, anger, frustration, and threats of death. I find it interesting that Lewis Carroll would include death as a reoccurring threat or outcome in the novel (as well as Disney’s Alice in Wonderland). As I read, I noticed that Alice would often make many ties to her own actions and death. It seems as though she is not afraid of the notion of an end, but rather accepting of it. Although, a constant, death seems to never fully follow through. Either it is just a thought or the act of death really does occur but is quickly dismissed with immortality. Also, the pressure of time and its accompanying factors of anger, frustration, and stress is a constant and strong motif that I also found important within these two texts. Alice, as well as other characters, seems to really be affected by time. It inhibits, delays, and/or stresses Alice and her journey through Wonderland, at times leading to her loss of temper and will to continue her efforts to make sense of things.
What’s intriguing about the incisions of death and time and stress in both versions isn’t so much the constant reminder of the two, but how a girl experiences them at such a young age. Alice’s involvement with adult situations is peculiar because she cannot possibly understand the sadness and weight of death. Also, it is very unlikely for a young girl to be affected by the constant ticking of the clock. Growing older and the development of responsibilities go hand in hand, as does the pressure to attend to all those responsibilities. Alice is at too young of an age to be involved in such engagements and should not feel the frustration of time, yet does. Both Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass as well as Walt Disney’s film Alice in Wonderland have the constant motifs of time, stress, and death that give the classic story its eeriness as well as its strong and powerful message.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
cinematography in the sevens
The Sevens
Magnificent seven by John Sturges, and Seven Samurai by the talented Akira Kurosawa both focus on a few themes closely related to each other. Revolving around small town villagers and farmers trying to prevent their crops from being stolen by bandits, as it is every crop season. Both films are shot, as your average classic western movie would be. Portrayed is our classic hero staring danger right in the eye, fearlessly taking on the adventure thrown in the direction of our main characters. In both Magnificent seven and Seven Samurai, parallels can be drawn between many characters in the film. The storyline subjects/ forces the camera to maneuver itself so that the viewer is able to Focus on not just the interaction between the villains and the heroes but the backdrop of these scenes.
In both movies we are presented with real western inspired shots. Because the fighting scenes are so frequent it adds to the cinematography of each film. The Western genre, particularly in films, the director continuously must portray the conquest of the wilderness, the subordination of nature in the name of civilization and or focus on the confiscation of territory/ grown goods in many other cases.
A clear parallel can be drawn between magnificent seven and seven samurai’s introduction and conclusion scenes. In the first scene we have the villain on horseback riding into town to confiscate the villagers fresh grown products. However in both of these introductions the viewer can only the silhouettes of our villains, we are left with the feeling of mystery. Only the battle scenes are clear and show the mountainous landscape. We know this after witnessing the first two “battle” scenes there are many resemblances between these three films, its reliance on tradition to overcome tribulation and the use of ceremonies and rituals all help add to the one theme that surfaces in both stories; its beautiful landscape.
Because these two films can also be looked at as a borderline coming of age story as well, the western theme plays along with that idea. In one case we have the traditional Western film, drawing automatic focus to men as power figures the gun fighter/ hero/ villain and woman as an object of commodity, or as an item to only be used for the maintenance of structure and order within the household.
In shots displaying our main Females in both Magnificent seven and seven samurai are generally in the foreground of an desert shot, to draw focus upon their beauty and striking facial features. We saw this in Magnificent seven when we are first introduced to the village woman.
These two evolved western films allow us to picture what it would feel, and look like living and fighting as a cowboy in the west. This, I'm sure, is the exact feeling John Sturges and Akira Kurosawa wanted to inflict on the viewer while watching Seven Samurai and Magnificent Seven.
LC
Magnificent seven by John Sturges, and Seven Samurai by the talented Akira Kurosawa both focus on a few themes closely related to each other. Revolving around small town villagers and farmers trying to prevent their crops from being stolen by bandits, as it is every crop season. Both films are shot, as your average classic western movie would be. Portrayed is our classic hero staring danger right in the eye, fearlessly taking on the adventure thrown in the direction of our main characters. In both Magnificent seven and Seven Samurai, parallels can be drawn between many characters in the film. The storyline subjects/ forces the camera to maneuver itself so that the viewer is able to Focus on not just the interaction between the villains and the heroes but the backdrop of these scenes.
In both movies we are presented with real western inspired shots. Because the fighting scenes are so frequent it adds to the cinematography of each film. The Western genre, particularly in films, the director continuously must portray the conquest of the wilderness, the subordination of nature in the name of civilization and or focus on the confiscation of territory/ grown goods in many other cases.
A clear parallel can be drawn between magnificent seven and seven samurai’s introduction and conclusion scenes. In the first scene we have the villain on horseback riding into town to confiscate the villagers fresh grown products. However in both of these introductions the viewer can only the silhouettes of our villains, we are left with the feeling of mystery. Only the battle scenes are clear and show the mountainous landscape. We know this after witnessing the first two “battle” scenes there are many resemblances between these three films, its reliance on tradition to overcome tribulation and the use of ceremonies and rituals all help add to the one theme that surfaces in both stories; its beautiful landscape.
Because these two films can also be looked at as a borderline coming of age story as well, the western theme plays along with that idea. In one case we have the traditional Western film, drawing automatic focus to men as power figures the gun fighter/ hero/ villain and woman as an object of commodity, or as an item to only be used for the maintenance of structure and order within the household.
In shots displaying our main Females in both Magnificent seven and seven samurai are generally in the foreground of an desert shot, to draw focus upon their beauty and striking facial features. We saw this in Magnificent seven when we are first introduced to the village woman.
These two evolved western films allow us to picture what it would feel, and look like living and fighting as a cowboy in the west. This, I'm sure, is the exact feeling John Sturges and Akira Kurosawa wanted to inflict on the viewer while watching Seven Samurai and Magnificent Seven.
LC
Fight, Fight, Fight!!: Combat in the Seven's Films
Fighting seems to be the most primitive and natural means of settling conflict. It is often said that a person feels the need to engage in some sort of physical violence when they do not have enough skill in language to express their anger verbally. But just as a picture has the ability to speak a thousand words so does a clenched fist. Since fighting is something so innate in human kind and it normally involves very little dialogue, it ends up translating quite legibly into film. Even though physical confrontation is not often acceptable in day-today life, it seems to be much more acceptable for characters to act out violently in movies. This could be because on screen brawls normally translate in a way that is universally understood. The fight as a universal symbol of communication is especially prevalent in Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai (1954) and the films it inspired John Sturges’s Magnificent Seven (1960) Ramesh Sippy’s Sholay (1975). Interestingly enough even though all of these are drawn from the same source, the conflict in each of these is portrayed quite differently.
The fight scenes in the film Samurai Seven seem to be so reminiscent of traditional Japanese culture. In one of the films opening scenes the viewer is presented with a scene that sets the bar for how we should view the samurai for the rest of the film; one of the seven samurai, Kyūzō, is seen dueling with a man. While the fights intentions initially seem to be for sport, Kyūzō’s challenger insists that if the match were being fought with real swords that he would surely win. After Kyūzō calmly remarks that his sword would kill him, his opponent challenges him to a real duel. He is promptly killed at the hand of Kyūzō’s skilled sword. This scene is done rather beautifully. The symmetry within the shot is enhanced by the films black and white aesthetic. As the two men battle, we are plagued by the silence that alludes to the death of Kyūzō pompous adversary. The only sounds we here are the pitter patter of their feet as they approach one another and the occasional grunt on behalf of the deceased. One strike from Kyūzō’s sword and the man fell silently to his death. I feel like the respect that the two men had for one another, even during this battle was something so connected with Japanese culture and history. Moreover, it creates a sharp contrast between the way combat is portrayed here and its spawn that came a mere six years later, The Magnificent Seven.
The first distinction I made between the fight scenes in Seven Samurai and Sholay lie in their individual mise en scène. For one, The Magnificent Seven has a much more modern aesthetic despite only coming four years after Kurosawa’s film. Further, its worth noting that the films color as opposed to black and white somewhat changes the tone of the movie. This ultimately gives the viewer the sensation that are watching an old western film which in conjunction with its orchestral score gives us a more relaxed feel even if the most tense of scenes. Their settings vary greatly which also changes the over all feel of the movie and how the viewer is expected to be affected by the action. While in Seven Samurai the fights are normally handled in the most dignified of manners on the Samurai’s behalf the battles is much less realistic and tense. For instance when one of the seven, Chris Adams, shoots town intruders in the arm, the man barely emotes when he is struck by the bullet. Obviously, the scene would be much more gruesome in real life. However, I feel that this illusion is set up not to depict reality like in Samurai Seven but to introduce a heroic illusion of the seven from the very beginning. Further, it also seems that even though the conflict is parallel in both films the way they are enacted physically is very different. In Seven Samurai the fight are a lot more focused and serious whereas in Magnificent Seven the fights appear to be much more theatrical. Sholay takes the theatrical element a step further not just throughout the piece but in a way that is specifically visible in their combats.
Sholay has quite a few vibrant and exciting moments; we are stimulated visually at moments like the festival of colors and our thirst for adrenaline is satisfied by a battle breaking out on the train. The battle between Veeru, Jai and Thakur Baldev Singh and those terrorizing them was so much more action packed. Moreover, it is the first of the three to incorporate modern movement in and how a fight in motion could be toyed with. The fight on the train is just so poignant because it sets up an interesting dichotomy between those on the train and those mounted on hourseback. Further, we see Jai and Veeru prove themselves worthy fighters in the film and as warriors to be feared.
-johanna
The fight scenes in the film Samurai Seven seem to be so reminiscent of traditional Japanese culture. In one of the films opening scenes the viewer is presented with a scene that sets the bar for how we should view the samurai for the rest of the film; one of the seven samurai, Kyūzō, is seen dueling with a man. While the fights intentions initially seem to be for sport, Kyūzō’s challenger insists that if the match were being fought with real swords that he would surely win. After Kyūzō calmly remarks that his sword would kill him, his opponent challenges him to a real duel. He is promptly killed at the hand of Kyūzō’s skilled sword. This scene is done rather beautifully. The symmetry within the shot is enhanced by the films black and white aesthetic. As the two men battle, we are plagued by the silence that alludes to the death of Kyūzō pompous adversary. The only sounds we here are the pitter patter of their feet as they approach one another and the occasional grunt on behalf of the deceased. One strike from Kyūzō’s sword and the man fell silently to his death. I feel like the respect that the two men had for one another, even during this battle was something so connected with Japanese culture and history. Moreover, it creates a sharp contrast between the way combat is portrayed here and its spawn that came a mere six years later, The Magnificent Seven.
The first distinction I made between the fight scenes in Seven Samurai and Sholay lie in their individual mise en scène. For one, The Magnificent Seven has a much more modern aesthetic despite only coming four years after Kurosawa’s film. Further, its worth noting that the films color as opposed to black and white somewhat changes the tone of the movie. This ultimately gives the viewer the sensation that are watching an old western film which in conjunction with its orchestral score gives us a more relaxed feel even if the most tense of scenes. Their settings vary greatly which also changes the over all feel of the movie and how the viewer is expected to be affected by the action. While in Seven Samurai the fights are normally handled in the most dignified of manners on the Samurai’s behalf the battles is much less realistic and tense. For instance when one of the seven, Chris Adams, shoots town intruders in the arm, the man barely emotes when he is struck by the bullet. Obviously, the scene would be much more gruesome in real life. However, I feel that this illusion is set up not to depict reality like in Samurai Seven but to introduce a heroic illusion of the seven from the very beginning. Further, it also seems that even though the conflict is parallel in both films the way they are enacted physically is very different. In Seven Samurai the fight are a lot more focused and serious whereas in Magnificent Seven the fights appear to be much more theatrical. Sholay takes the theatrical element a step further not just throughout the piece but in a way that is specifically visible in their combats.
Sholay has quite a few vibrant and exciting moments; we are stimulated visually at moments like the festival of colors and our thirst for adrenaline is satisfied by a battle breaking out on the train. The battle between Veeru, Jai and Thakur Baldev Singh and those terrorizing them was so much more action packed. Moreover, it is the first of the three to incorporate modern movement in and how a fight in motion could be toyed with. The fight on the train is just so poignant because it sets up an interesting dichotomy between those on the train and those mounted on hourseback. Further, we see Jai and Veeru prove themselves worthy fighters in the film and as warriors to be feared.
-johanna
Monday, November 9, 2009
Skeuomorphs!
Skeuomorph or Skeuomorphism is a term used in the history of architecture, design, and archaeology. It refers to a derivative object which retains ornamental design cues to structure that was necessary in the original.[1] Skeuomorphs may be deliberately employed to make the new look comfortably old and familiar,[2] such as copper cladding on zinc pennies or computer printed postage with circular town name and cancellation lines. The word derives from Greek, skeuos for 'vessel' or 'tool' and morphe for 'shape'.[3]
And thanks to Wikipedia here are some examples.
1. Decorative stone features of Greek temples such as mutules, guttae, and modillions that are derived from true structural/functional features of the early wooden temples,
2. Injection-molded plastic sandals that replicate woven strips of leather,
3. Various spoke patterns in automobile hubcaps and wheels leftover from carriage wheel construction,
4. Famously, fake woodgrain printing on thousands of modern items of plastic, Formica, or pressboard furniture,
5. Fake stitching in plastic items that used to be made of leather or vinyl and actually stitched together,
6. Tiny, non-functional handles on small maple syrup jugs,
7. A fiberglass boat with striations made to look like wood planking,
8. 80's Handheld LCD games translated into virtual LCD games. ex. http://www.skeuomorphgames.com
9. Non-functional air intake grille on the new (electric) Chevy Volt,
10. Elaborate lacing on children's Velcro-secured shoes,
11. Bowsprits mounted on the bows of steamships (which, having no sails, require no rigging),
12. Almost all of the digital depictions of buttons, sliders, dials, and other mechanical controls (which immediately suggest their functions to mechanically experienced users) on the buttonless surface of the iPhone and iPod Touch,
13. Jiggling needles of the tachometer and speedometer gauges at startup on the digital screen display in modern semi truck cabs,
14. Fake colonial window pane frames trapped between the large, twin glass panels of modern sealed energy-efficient windows,
15. Impressive, large-diameter concentric assemblages of black and silver "hardware" encircling the tiny objective lenses on most consumer-grade digital still and video cameras.
And a few of my own that I can think of are lights shaped like candles that my mom uses for Christmas, those starbucks coffee containers that are plastic but are made to look like the disposable ones, the option that your phone can been when you push a number to dial..like in the old touchtone phones. Im sure ive seen a bunch even in the last hour, but those are the ones I can think of off the top of my head, haha.
- steph
And thanks to Wikipedia here are some examples.
1. Decorative stone features of Greek temples such as mutules, guttae, and modillions that are derived from true structural/functional features of the early wooden temples,
2. Injection-molded plastic sandals that replicate woven strips of leather,
3. Various spoke patterns in automobile hubcaps and wheels leftover from carriage wheel construction,
4. Famously, fake woodgrain printing on thousands of modern items of plastic, Formica, or pressboard furniture,
5. Fake stitching in plastic items that used to be made of leather or vinyl and actually stitched together,
6. Tiny, non-functional handles on small maple syrup jugs,
7. A fiberglass boat with striations made to look like wood planking,
8. 80's Handheld LCD games translated into virtual LCD games. ex. http://www.skeuomorphgames.com
9. Non-functional air intake grille on the new (electric) Chevy Volt,
10. Elaborate lacing on children's Velcro-secured shoes,
11. Bowsprits mounted on the bows of steamships (which, having no sails, require no rigging),
12. Almost all of the digital depictions of buttons, sliders, dials, and other mechanical controls (which immediately suggest their functions to mechanically experienced users) on the buttonless surface of the iPhone and iPod Touch,
13. Jiggling needles of the tachometer and speedometer gauges at startup on the digital screen display in modern semi truck cabs,
14. Fake colonial window pane frames trapped between the large, twin glass panels of modern sealed energy-efficient windows,
15. Impressive, large-diameter concentric assemblages of black and silver "hardware" encircling the tiny objective lenses on most consumer-grade digital still and video cameras.
And a few of my own that I can think of are lights shaped like candles that my mom uses for Christmas, those starbucks coffee containers that are plastic but are made to look like the disposable ones, the option that your phone can been when you push a number to dial..like in the old touchtone phones. Im sure ive seen a bunch even in the last hour, but those are the ones I can think of off the top of my head, haha.
- steph
Friday, November 6, 2009
Samurai at the Met!
Hey everyone, I was roaming about the Met today and saw a new exhibition that opened. Its all about Samurai, their attire, weapons, and more. Unfortunately I couldn't spend much there so I didn't get the full experience. I would definitely recommend going and seeing it for yourself!
Here's the website..
http://www.metmuseum.org/special/se_event.asp?OccurrenceId={F8E9ACA7-5B17-471F-9394-D298E7E53159}&HomePageLink=special_c2a
-steff
Here's the website..
http://www.metmuseum.org/special/se_event.asp?OccurrenceId={F8E9ACA7-5B17-471F-9394-D298E7E53159}&HomePageLink=special_c2a
-steff
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