There isn't necessarily a whole lot I have to say that hasn't already been said in class, but I thought I might reiterate a few thoughts.
I found this movie very interesting, while at the same time rather boring. Which is part of the reason it interests me even more. The structure of the film, most specifically the editing and shot framing, was unusual. The use of close shots was far greater than most films and yet the shots pulled back often enough to give the viewer a sense of space so that one didn't feel congested, or confused about where the action was taking place(in the sense of a general space). So, I found the film technically impressive, that is the technical aspects of the film were very well done. But, the story seemed lacking to me, and I made a mention of this in class. It just seemed that there wasn't much creative input towards strengthening a deeper understanding of character. The movie seemed to encapsulate the events that took place and then to not move much deeper than that. To me, the film didn't create a main character that was any more fleshed out than that which one would assume from watching the original newscasts. I found this disappointing and an aspect that made for a lacking storyline.
So, I liked the film. The technical aspects were very well done(which I discussed in class), but the script was lacking(not that it wasn't well written, everything that was there was well done, but there just wasn't enough there).
-cait davis
7 comments:
I wasn't too sure how to start a new folder so I'm putting my blog for primary in this one. So much has been said about good night and good luck that it would be pointless for me to comment. I'll just start a new topic. I had seen clips from primary before but never watched the whole piece in its entirety. What can I say, I liked it. The camera work was great and kept me interested (this can be expected when one has pennebaker holding a camera for your film.) Drew makes good documentaries that let the story play out themselves, and still mangages to use tricks of the film making trade to add suspense and tension to what may seem like a fairly boring topic. It really goes to show how good the film makers are when when they could make something as meaningless as a wisconsin primary seem as important as a presidential debate. Originally I thought the movie was about th whole democratic primary and not just one part. BUt it didn't matter because it was still captivating either way. Good film, great documentary filled with a lot of information and hilarious irony.
I found myself wishing that Good Night and Good Luck had either been a straight up documentary, or that it had used more devices of fiction filmaking than it did. As it was, I found it lacked as both an illustration of a historical moment in time, and as a compelling story. Now, it looked great and was well-acted and I really liked the camerawork and all of those elements, but both during the film and at it's conclusion I found I didn't care very much about the fate of the characters, nor did I find that I had a much better understading of or interest in the ridiculousness of McCarthyism. I kept thinking about Woody Allen's "The Front" while we were watching this - and even though I dislike Woody Allen, I found that that film really illustrated the tension of the times, the very real fears, the censorship, the corruption, the complete abuse of political power and the power of language and accusation to ruin someone's life in a much more real and compelling way than GNGL. There are so many parallels between the language, jargon, and actions of McCarthy and our current government post 9/11 that it almost seems impossible that Good Night and Good Luck would feel flat - but at the end of the film I found that I wanted more - more facts, more details, more carefully composed tension - more reasons for me to really care about the "characters", or what happened at the time.
Some people could see this film as being boring, but that is what makes the movie so interesting. Life is not always full of surprises and action. If anything, real life can be a lot of moments that we would think as meaningless if they were on screen. The film was very interesting because we did not only see the important aspects of what was going on, but we also so some of the moments of the characters just waiting for something to happen. An example would be when the characters are waiting for the husband and wife to return with the newspapers. The characters just sit in the bar silently. In most movies, this scene would at least have some dialogue, but Good Night and Good Luck took the direction that was closer to real life. People do not always feel like tlaking when they are waiting for important news.
I agree with Mike Votel in that this film is exciting because we end up waiting for something to happen, anything, to happen just as the Murrow and his team did. No, there aren't huge scores and explosions and a plot to carry you along...what we have in GNGL is real and honest. That's what makes it stand out.
I agree that Gnight Gluck was both boring and good at the same time. There arn't any surprises but there is some moral conflict that makes you root for the main characters. I also wonder how the film would have turned out if it was in color. I think the movie was good the first time watching because it hypnotizes the viewer by drawing you into a different world, almost like a fantasy movie, where the images and aesthetics is enough. But, watch a second or third time and charm wears off. If this were a real documentary shot exactly like it is, then it would probably be very unifluential.
In GNGL, it seemed that the idea of panning around with all the different characters to see their reaction to the events surrounding them would make for a great movie that spoke more about the people then the event itself. While GNGL tried to focus on a few single characters, we never really got a chance to connect with them except in the bar scene when they are waiting for the newspapers with the reviews of the show. The silence in that scene spoke more about their emotions then the rest of the movie.
I'm glad that this film came out when it did. Its sad to believe that a lot of people these days dont really understand where our country comes from and some of the things that have happened in the past. Im glad that Clooney made this film and brought this issue to the forefront of hollywood beacuse it is similar to the situation today. It is interesting how as a society we always think that what we are going through now is so hard and unique but maybe all we need to do is look 20 or 30 years back. Good Job Clooney.
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