The first example of film technique we were shown was in the short film, Bunny. This short film did a good job of showing the contrast between light and dark as a representation of life and death. Death is represented by light and the messenger of death is this moth that is attracted to the light and is bothering the bunny. The most interesting part of this video is the fact that death is not perceived in it's dark, sad state but instead is shown as a means of the bunny being back with her deceased husband whom she has missed for years as seen in the fresh paint behind their wedding photo. This video also symbolically utilized the oven to represent this means of transformation for the bunny to enter death. The film utilized the crane camera angle with the bunny doing household chores so one could see how monotonous her work was and how dark and dreary her apartment and life were. Overall this film utilized symbolism as well as film elements to get across the point of death as something that isn't so bad.
The second example we were shown were a couple scenes from the film, Harold and Maude. First scene we were shown is a very interesting scene where after Harold frightens the house guest it cuts to him nodding and grinning at the camera and as he looks to his mother she gives him a deathly glare which he then just looks down at the ground as if he had just been scolded. I think the most important film element of this scene is the non-diegetic music in the background that was happy and exciting and didn't stop when he looked disappointed. The second scene we viewed was when Harold and Maude were together and they went to the flower patch. This is important because it shows that from a distance all flowers look the same but when up close they are different, much like people are. They then show a very similar motif by showing a military graveyard from a distance where all of the graves look scarily uniform but when up close all have different names and lives.
The third example we watched was the film Norfork, which is a story of a dying town paired with a dying boy along with these bizarre angel figures. The first scene we are shown was the coffin atop the car with the mountains in the background signifying the death of two things with them leaving the town and the coffin being atop the car. The second scene is with the house splitting in half and the angel is their enticing the man to jump the gap. This scene contains a really good contrast between light and dark in the dark home being split open with the light colored snow entering.
The fourth example we saw was clips from the film, Paris Texas. The overarching theme is the lack of connection among people and is shown in three main ways. The first way they show this is in the concept of transportation; the very beginning is the main character walking around and it shows a point of view shot for the viewer to see how far he has traveled, they then have an overarching concept of travel to show that people stay moving as opposed to connecting. The first time that the main character really connects is ironically in the back of his truck talking to his son. The second broken connection is between the main character and his wife which then causes her to leave their family. The third example is when the main character finds his wife in a brothel and the only way the can communicate their issues that they've faced in the marriage is by turning away so that they aren't facing the other. This film interestingly used a series of single longer shots as a means of building suspense.
The fifth example is from Pink Floyd's video album, The Wall. The Wall is a symbolic wall that represents separation between others which harms communication. This video album was designed for symbolic imagery to be a form of protest with things like war when everything turns into crosses to signify death and the education system by showing all the kids becoming toys made in a factory which results in the kids destroying the factory. The part that stuck out to me is the lawyer portion when he was literally a butthole. One of the things that Pink Floyd is trying to show in these videos is not only that the government puts bricks in this metaphorical wall, but we also do as consumers.
The final example we were shown was scenes from the film Cabeza de Vaca. This is a story of a native american trying to escape an island that has been taken by spaniards. The first symbol made in the film that we saw was the lizard tied to a post in the center of the circle who as it moves it gravitates more and more to the center. This is made to represent axus mundi meaning control of the world showing that we are represented by the lizard and the more we fight the closer we inevitably get to God. The main character later resists owning slaves which shows the overall premise of the film is that there is no difference between a spaniard and a native american being that they come from the same creator and that it is offensive to faith to own slaves.
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