Category Archives: Film

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Talented button jockey Jabob T. Swinney (he of the excellent thing we called Quentinnitus) sez  of this nifty montage:

Quentin Tarantino is the master of the extreme close up and utilizes the technique for a variety of reasons. The shots are often used to convey the gravity of a particular situation or the manipulative strength of a character’s vice. Some express power, some express weakness, and others just simply look cool. Here is a look at Tarantino’s masterful use of the extreme close up throughout his feature film career.

MORE: Video Essays: Quentin Tarantino and Jonathan Demme’s Use of Close-Ups (Rope Of Silicon)

biotv

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An intriguing side-by-side juxtaposition of the first and last shots of fifty five films by Jacob T. Swinney set to ‘Any Other Name’ by Thomas Newman. To wit:

What can we learn by examining only the first and final shot of a film? This video plays the opening and closing shots of 55 films side-by-side. Some of the opening shots are strikingly similar to the final shots, while others are vastly different–both serving a purpose in communicating various themes. Some show progress, some show decline, and some are simply impactful images used to begin and end a film.

Full listing here.

highdefinite

The Great Wall posterScreen Shot 2015-03-19 at 15.27.00

For your consideration.

Tadhg O’Sullivan writes:

I have a new film – The Great Wall – premiering on Monday at 6pm as part of JDIFF. Based on a Kafka short story it was shot across eleven countries over the last year and looks at borders, exclusion and power in Europe. Using Kafka’s mysterious ‘The Building of the Great Wall of China’ as narration, the film is a timely and very cinematic look at how the continent protects its own interests….