So, my first post was all about my self-centred reasons for creating a blog. But now lets talk about you. Why are you here? And, again, this is pretending that anyone will ever actually read this. But, let's pretend. Odds are you know me, since it's very unlikely that you stumbled upon this page by accident. So, since you know me, what are you hoping to get out of this? Deep insights into the meaning of life? Satisfy your curiosity? Just another dose of me? Maybe that's what you choose to believe but, just like I'm denying the real reason I'm writing, you're probably just denying the real reason you visited. You're here to satiate your voyeuristic tendencies. Yeah, that sounds dirty, because, as a society, we've been taught to equate voyeurism with peeping toms, up-skirt cameras, and illicit sex. But that's not what it's about. Voyeurism is just fulfilling a basic human desire to watch and understand another human in order to attempt to gain an understanding or insight for ourselves. Watching TV (especially reality and talk shows), reading fiction or biographies, or just sitting at the mall and watching the people pass as you finish your coffee - it's all voyeurism. And the sooner you come to terms with that fact, the more you'll get out of those activities (even your up-skirt cams, you pervert).
But, let's shift the focus back to me. More specifically, to my film studies course. Now, I watch a lot of movies. A lot of movies. And I've never really had a problem deciphering what the director was trying to say, why he chose certain shots, angles, filters, etc. So, when I finally got to pick a complementary course to finish my degree, I opted for film studies. I've enjoyed the course, hearing different people's opinions and ideas on various films. But there is one thing which I cannot stand. Occasionally we'll look at a film that the director, at least as far as I'm concerned, wasn't trying to make any type of statement, yet we'll analyze it and be expected to find "meaning". A good example of this it George Melies Trip To The Moon from 1902. You've seen at least part of this film, whether you know it or not. Everyone has. But if you don't know which film I'm talking about, I've included the YouTube recording below. Take the time to watch it. It's only ten minutes and worth the time, if only to say you've fully experienced this important piece of film history.
Now, I'll be the first to admit that, for its time, this was a revolutionary film, if not in terms of story then in terms of visual effects. Melies used his background as a magician to create some very entertaining scenes. But we spent 80 minutes in class dissecting what he was trying to ""say". He wasn't trying to say anything! It was 1902 and film was a novelty. He merely created a showcase for his optical trickery! He didn't show the rocket landing on the moon twice (once hitting the Man in the Moon's eye, then again landing on a rocky landscape) to demonstrate his control over space and time, he did it so he could include the gag of the rocket hitting the Man in the Moon's eye and still ensure the unsophisticated audiences of the early 1900's would understand the men had made it to the moon. He did it because there was no such concept as "continuity editing" (showing things in the order they happen, as though the entire film was taking place without interruption). The alien hanging onto the back of the rocket does not symbolize slavery!
I have no problem believing that many directors carefully choose angles, framing, actor placement, shot order, etc. to create a very specific message. I know this to be true, both from talking with directors, watching or listening to interviews, and occasionally it's just so blatantly obvious. But this is not always the case. A lot of times they're just there to make a movie. This was certainly the case at the turn of the 20th century. It doesn't help anyone to sit around and try to invent meaning where there is none. It's a fruitless exercise.
So I guess that's the first rant I've treated you to here. It certainly won't be the last. In the meantime, check out this Smashing Pumpkins video for Tonight, Tonight, which was heavily influenced by Trip to the Moon.
Sleep well,
DTE
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