Chapter 10 of The Art of Watching Films by Joseph M. Boggs and Dennis W. Petrie discusses the importance of acting, the goal of the actor, and how to "become the character." Heath Ledger certainly aced in each of those areas in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight. The first paragraph of the chapter explains that when we consider going to a movie, we don't care who directed the movie, we care about who is in the movie. It's so true. If I like an actor or actress enough, I will go see the movie no matter what. The paragraph goes on to say that the work of an actor commands most of our attention, which is also very true. Hearing about Heath Ledger's preparation for joker and his death prior to the films release had many people thrilled to see the movie. Sadly, Batman (Christian Bale) wasn't the center of attention this time.
Chapter 10 also explains the goals an actor has in a movie. It reads "The ultimate goal of any actor should be to make us believe completely in the reality of the character." Ledger certainly did his homework to become the evil, horrifying villain in this movie. I believe Ledger put himself in the shoes of the villain so he could act out the role perfectly. Every time I see the movie, his creepy laugh gives me the goosebumps. I think that is amazing that an actor could do such a thing. The article "Film Review: The Dark Knight" by Sukdev Sandhu stated "It's rare in a blockbuster of this kind for the superhero to be only the second most important character." I agree, but I think it was for the best! Ledger had the ability to really relate to this character and he did so in a magnificent way. When describing the other actors in The Dark Knight, Sandhu said "None of them, in charisma or in sick, slick calculation, can hold a candle to the joker." The article also discussed Ledger's make up in the movie. "It focuses attention on his eyes which, when they're not gleaming with diabolical relish, are glazed, mournful, impossibly tired and old." Every time the joker explained how he got his scars, I took a better look at his make up and realized how much it added to his character.
Chapter 10 went on to discuss how to become the character. It reads "If an actor's goal is to obscure his or her own personality and to become another person on the screen, the actor must learn to behave reflexively and naturally as this new character." I think that Ledger acted so well with this personality, it almost seemed as if it was his true self! The article Ledger could earn a posthumous Oscar Nod compiled by Times Wires expressed the feelings of many people who worked with Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight. Director Christopher Nolan said "Working with Heath was absolutely marvelous. I think it's a real testament to his extraordinary ability that, when people see this film, they are so struck by the monstrous nature of this character." I believe that many people felt that way about Ledger's role. Nolan continued to say, "But anybody who knew him knew that he was utterly the opposite to that. I've worked for a long time with the performance, putting it together. It's very gratifying to me, at this point, to see that people are receiving it very much the way he intended it to come across." This goes to show that Ledger did have a very different personality from the joker, but was able to alter his own personality into something gruesome and scary.
Maggie Gyllenhaal, who played as Rachel Dawes in The Dark Knight, explained that the scene she did with him was very scary and full of tension, but had a blast shooting it with Ledger. Gary Oldman (James Gordon in the film) said "Whatever Heath channeled into, he's found something quite extraordinary. It's arguably one of the greatest screen villains I think I've ever seen." All of the cast Ledger worked with seemed to have the same views on his performance as the joker. I imagine that many viewers were astonished to see his acting talents in The Dark Knight.
The Dark Knight is an amazing movie with great sound effects, action, and wonderful actors and actresses playing the difficult roles. It was great to see two Oscar wins come out of the movie including Best Supporting Actor for Heath Ledger. I felt that all of the actors in this movie did a great job of relating to their characters with Ledger's performance being the most outstanding.
Times Wires, comp. "Ledger could earn a posthumous Oscar nod." 17 July 2008. Google. 22 Mar. 2009 http://www.tampabay.com/features/movies/article700901.ece.
Sandhu, Sukhdev. "Film Review: The Dark Knight." 12 Dec. 2008. Google. 22 Mar. 2009 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmreviews/3557106/Film-review-The-Dark-Knight.html.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Slumdog Millionaire
2008's Slumdog Millionaire was an excellent film that provided a huge reality check for the United States. The article From Slumdog to Top Dog read "Being a hit in North America doesn't guarantee the same reaction in India." At first, I could not believe how the people of India would not be proud of this film, but then as I continued to read I understood their views much better. The article quoted Shikha Goyal, a public relations executive, saying "You can't live in Mumbai without seeing children begging at traffic lights and passing by slums on your way to work." He continued to say, "But I don't want to be reminded of that on a Saturday evening." Therefore, I understand why some people in India did not appreciate the movie very much. On the other hand, this movie showed Americans what it is like for millions of people in India. I had no idea how bad it was, and to see young children dealing with the horrible conditions was unbelievable!
The article also explained that director Danny Boyle could have chosen English speakers to play the slum children but he wanted the "real thing." Boyle said "We'd been working in the slums, and we'd ask local people, 'Would you play this part?' 'No problem,' they'd say. Then, the local people that were asked to participate questioned whether they should do their "Amitabh" look or "Shah Rukh Khan" look. Boyle responded "No, do your own look." I am glad Boyle had this attitude because it made the movie very realistic.
The beginning of Slumdog Millionaire was an eye opener of what the poverty of India is like. We see that when young Jamal Malik (Ayush Mahesh Khedekar) and his brother young Salim (Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail) were late for school and beaten with The Three Musketeers book that was being read in class by their teacher. In the United States, teachers can barely touch a child without a report being filed. We also see Jamal going to the bathroom in an out house. I was saddened to see the conditions in which a child has to use the bathroom. Once Jamal heard talk of his hero Amitabh Bachchan arriving he became very excited but then realized he was locked in by his brother. We quickly realize how much this means to Jamal as he takes out the picture of his hero and jumps through the hole into the pile of excrement.
I felt that the storyline for Slumdog Millionaire was incredible. When I heard about this movie it seemed obvious to me that a low income 18 year old was just trying to get out of poverty by winning some money on the game show "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" However, we eventually find out in the movie that Jamal Malik (Dev Patel) is making himself public hoping for his lost love, Latika (Freida Pinto), to see him on TV.
I really liked how this film went back and forth with the police questioning Jamal and the flashbacks of his life and the show itself. Right away, I thought that Jamal had won the million already and was being questioned on how he did it. We later see that this questioning occurred before his final appearance on the show with the million dollar prize on the line, and because the host thought that Jamal had to be treating. The police were brutal as they were trying to get Jamal to speak up, but the fact was, he was telling the truth. Jamal had to relive his horrible past through answering questions he'd rather not have to think about.
The politics and religion of India are very complex and difficult for many Americans to understand. The movie, in its early scenes tells us a lot about not only the poverty of India, but the religious conflict between Hindus and Muslims along with the corruption and crime in the slums. The re-enactment of a time when Hindus attacked a Muslim neighborhood shows us how Jamal's mother was brutally killed. Jamal and his brother witnessed other horrible deaths during that attack, which left them orphans.
As the article Coke, Benz avoid gritty 'Slumdog' roles points out, not everyone is comfortable with these images of poverty and despair. Both Coca-Cola and Mercedes-Benz refused to allow their brands to be shown in "slum" scenes. However, Mercedes-Benz had no problem with its image in the more upscale neighborhood scene. I don't believe these companies reacted in this way because they refused to accept that poverty exists in India, but it was a cold marketing decision on their part. Now with the great success of the film, perhaps companies may learn to take a better look at these opportunities.
Mumbai's extreme poverty is shown in gritty detail throughout Slumdog Millionaire with effective close-ups of the characters revealing the strong emotions running through the movie. From Jamal's blank stare when taking questions from the game show host to the look of horror on his brother Salim watching as another orphan's eyes are destroyed to make him a better begger, not much is left to our imagination. The fast paced action combined with the pulsating Indian music kept me on the edge of my seat through a lot of the movie. I understand that these are classic examples of "Bollywood" films.
At the time I was watching the Academy Awards, I was suprised how well Slumdog Millionaire did. However, after watching the film I was not suprised at all with its eight Oscars. I enjoyed the movie because of its great story and acting, but also because it taught me so much about another culture.
The article also explained that director Danny Boyle could have chosen English speakers to play the slum children but he wanted the "real thing." Boyle said "We'd been working in the slums, and we'd ask local people, 'Would you play this part?' 'No problem,' they'd say. Then, the local people that were asked to participate questioned whether they should do their "Amitabh" look or "Shah Rukh Khan" look. Boyle responded "No, do your own look." I am glad Boyle had this attitude because it made the movie very realistic.
The beginning of Slumdog Millionaire was an eye opener of what the poverty of India is like. We see that when young Jamal Malik (Ayush Mahesh Khedekar) and his brother young Salim (Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail) were late for school and beaten with The Three Musketeers book that was being read in class by their teacher. In the United States, teachers can barely touch a child without a report being filed. We also see Jamal going to the bathroom in an out house. I was saddened to see the conditions in which a child has to use the bathroom. Once Jamal heard talk of his hero Amitabh Bachchan arriving he became very excited but then realized he was locked in by his brother. We quickly realize how much this means to Jamal as he takes out the picture of his hero and jumps through the hole into the pile of excrement.
I felt that the storyline for Slumdog Millionaire was incredible. When I heard about this movie it seemed obvious to me that a low income 18 year old was just trying to get out of poverty by winning some money on the game show "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" However, we eventually find out in the movie that Jamal Malik (Dev Patel) is making himself public hoping for his lost love, Latika (Freida Pinto), to see him on TV.
I really liked how this film went back and forth with the police questioning Jamal and the flashbacks of his life and the show itself. Right away, I thought that Jamal had won the million already and was being questioned on how he did it. We later see that this questioning occurred before his final appearance on the show with the million dollar prize on the line, and because the host thought that Jamal had to be treating. The police were brutal as they were trying to get Jamal to speak up, but the fact was, he was telling the truth. Jamal had to relive his horrible past through answering questions he'd rather not have to think about.
The politics and religion of India are very complex and difficult for many Americans to understand. The movie, in its early scenes tells us a lot about not only the poverty of India, but the religious conflict between Hindus and Muslims along with the corruption and crime in the slums. The re-enactment of a time when Hindus attacked a Muslim neighborhood shows us how Jamal's mother was brutally killed. Jamal and his brother witnessed other horrible deaths during that attack, which left them orphans.
As the article Coke, Benz avoid gritty 'Slumdog' roles points out, not everyone is comfortable with these images of poverty and despair. Both Coca-Cola and Mercedes-Benz refused to allow their brands to be shown in "slum" scenes. However, Mercedes-Benz had no problem with its image in the more upscale neighborhood scene. I don't believe these companies reacted in this way because they refused to accept that poverty exists in India, but it was a cold marketing decision on their part. Now with the great success of the film, perhaps companies may learn to take a better look at these opportunities.
Mumbai's extreme poverty is shown in gritty detail throughout Slumdog Millionaire with effective close-ups of the characters revealing the strong emotions running through the movie. From Jamal's blank stare when taking questions from the game show host to the look of horror on his brother Salim watching as another orphan's eyes are destroyed to make him a better begger, not much is left to our imagination. The fast paced action combined with the pulsating Indian music kept me on the edge of my seat through a lot of the movie. I understand that these are classic examples of "Bollywood" films.
At the time I was watching the Academy Awards, I was suprised how well Slumdog Millionaire did. However, after watching the film I was not suprised at all with its eight Oscars. I enjoyed the movie because of its great story and acting, but also because it taught me so much about another culture.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
