Many people talk about the power of film, and I was struck by this ‘power’ just last week whilst watching Paul Greengrass’s magnificent ‘Captain Phillips’. Based on the true story of the hijacking of Captain Phillips’ ship off the coast of Somalia, the film is a thriller with tension levels off the scale. Tom Hanks, in the title role, gives a phenomenal performance and Barkhad Abdi’s portrayal of Muse, the Somali pirate captain, was so good he won this year’s BAFTA for Best Supporting Actor – pretty amazing, as this was his first film role.
As a family, we felt we’d all been on a journey through watching this film. We were all completely immersed by its tension and characters. We talked afterwards about what made it such a ‘good’ film, and here are some of our responses:
‘The character acting was
brilliant – I was totally sucked in by them...
The tension never stopped...it was gut-wrenching.’
‘The way it was filmed,
with the different camera angles and immediacy, made it feel like you were
there, in the action, which made it even more tense... It was emotional, and I felt for the totally
believable characters.’
So, as a result of
watching that, I started thinking more about the power of film and why we love
it so much, whether it’s film, digital video etc... Pharrell Williams’ 24 hours of ‘Happy’, his
recent music video phenomenon which you can view on YouTube, really does make
you ‘happy’. His idea to film 24 hours
of people dancing to his track through the streets was clever, was no doubt a great
publicity stunt, and it’s really addictive viewing. The song and the dancers lift your spirits,
making you want to get up and dance. I
love the variety of dancers, their own interpretations of being ‘happy’ through
their dance moves, and the response and interaction of the public to those
being filmed. It shows how smiles and
happiness are contagious, and although I’ve only watched a few of the films
uploaded, this one is my favourite so far, particularly the two tuxedo guys at
the 20 minute mark. They are amazing!
So just what is the power
of film? Kodak say:
‘Film has the powerful
ability to accurately emulate mood and tone, bringing a story to life. Because
film sees light much the same way as the human eye, the captured image feels
natural and real.’ (From: http://motion.kodak.com/motion/Products/Customer_Testimonials/The_Power_of_Film/index.htm#ixzz2ucwuDKzT)
So, film creates another
reality for us. I think its power lies
in its ability to transport us...to show us a whole new world, different from
our own, but one which, at the same time, appears real. Film can show us other people’s stories (and
we all love other people’s stories, don’t we?), and things we haven’t or
might never experience. Film, therefore,
opens up other possibilities.
Personally, film has
always loomed large in my life. As a
child, I remember my dad filming with his cine camera when we were on holiday,
at birthdays, at Christmas, and at Easter, when we’d go to the annual London
Harness Horse Parade in Regent’s Park. I
used to love that. I remember film
nights at home, where we’d get out the projector and the roll-down screen, and
watch footage from holidays past and recent, and we’d laugh... We have hours and hours of film, all full of
memories, things we’d forgotten and people that are no longer with us. The power of these films, then, is that they entertain,
they evoke memories, and in some way, they restore to us those we have lost. They are priceless and I love them.
(Captain Phillips image from: etstop.com)
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