Blog #6: Music from Agora

 

I am a huge fan of the Italian composer Dario Marianelli. His film scores have been nominated by Academy Awards for Pride & Prejudice, Atonement, and Anna Karenina (all Joe Wright's films). It was in Atonement that he won the Oscar for Best Original Score. In Agora, it was no exception. Marianelli's uniqueness enhanced the drama in the film. The whole soundtrack is marvelous! But the ending scene is the most emotional. I've never thought that Alejandro Amenabar (Tesis, The Others, Mar Adentro) and Dario Marianelli would make a great team. 

If you are loking for a beautiful soundtrack (Dario Marianelli), a great cast (Rachel Weisz, Oscar Isaac, Max Minghella), a fantastic direction (Alejandro Amenabar), a controversial theme (religion, feminism) and a great art direction, watch Agora.

*Note: There is a minor whitewashing. You'll see as soon as you watch the film!

Blog #6: A Different Culture (Water)

 

I was 16 years old when I saw Water for the first time. I blamed my mother, because I was traumatized for a week. Chuyia's childhood was unexpected for me (it was the first Indian film that I saw). I didn't know the cultural differences between Mexico and India. Child marriage! Sati! Suicide! Child abuse! No wonder why I was mad at my mother. But I enjoyed the technical elements of the film, such as soundtrack, cinematography, and art direction. I don't regret watching Water at that age. I realized that I am lucky to have the life that I have. In some countries, people don't have a proper way of life.

Blog #5: Special Effects from Tokyo!

If you have seen Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Science of the Sleep, and Be Kind Rewind, you probably noticed the visual effects that Michel Gondry used. He is not a big fan of CGI. He thinks himself as an illusionist (not the GOB type though). If you don't believe me, check this out!

This scene is from the film Tokyo! It was disturbing the first time I saw his short film. I was thinking: how did Gondry do it? I've never found my answer, because there is no video explaining how he did it. There is an interview about his short film Interior Design, but it is in French. Please, check his films! He is an old school filmmaker.

Blog #5: Emotional Music (Tsotsi)

As soon as I start watching Tsotsi, I couldn't stop thinking about Slumdog Millinaire. Both films have similar elements: tough childhoods, male characters, poverty, and music. The music in Slumdod Millionaire is fantastic! A. R. Rahman knows how to please our ears. I was surprised that Tsotsi and Slumdog Millionaire has almost the same opening scene. I couldn't find the opening scene of Slumdog Millionaire on Youtube, but if you own the movie, please check it out!

In Tsotsi, I couldn't stop crying when Tsotsi find redeems himself by returning the baby to the parents. The song is beautiful! It definitely adds emotion to the scene. There is no dialogue, just music. What a powerful scene indeed. Despite the fact that the film has many songs, the one that has no lyrics are the ones that I love the most. The whole soundtrack represents South Africa. 

Part 1: Paikea & Mulan

"And he came on the back of a whale. A man to lead a new people. Our ancestor, Paikea. But now we were waiting for the firstborn of the new generation, for the descendant of the whale rider. For the boy who would be chief"

- Paikea, The Whale Rider

Whale Rider is a film that kind of breaks gender stereotypes. In the film,  the  Maori tribe is waiting for the boy who will become their leader. Unfortunately, for them, Pai is a girl and she won't be accepted in her tribe. There is patriarchy in her tribe, and Pai's grandfather doesn't accept her. As a viewer, take the side of Pai, because I am a woman in society where there is still patriarchy. Pai is a strong female character who is willing to be the leader of her tribe, but her grandfather  denies her. Pai is very persistent, a true example for us, women. 

In a way, Pai and Mulan have so much in common: they fulfilled a role meant to be fulfilled only by men. These two characters are passionate, persistent, and strong. They both broke gender role stereotypes, which is something that we, women, need nowadays. In both stories, the character's own cultures are patriarchal. Coincidence? No, I don't think so. Once in a while, there are a couple of films that depict strong female characters. For instance, Imperator Furiosa from Mad Max: Fury Road came by surprise. Women were extremely happy that Furiosa and Max were equals. But some men were not so welcoming to the fact that a woman could be strong and smart. 

It is incredible that, nowadays, there are feminist, or gender egalitarian films that show children that women and men are equals. Mulan and Whale Rider are excellent examples for children; these two films taught me, after all, that women have the ability to be leaders and  warriors.  Pai and Mulan will stay forever with me. And I am positive that I will show these two films to my children.

Blog #3: Paikea: A Progressive Character in a Traditional Society (The Whale Rider)

"And he came on the back of a whale. A man to lead a new people. Our ancestor, Paikea. But now we were waiting for the firstborn of the new generation, for the descendant of the whale rider. For the boy who would be chief"

- Paikea, The Whale Rider

Whale Rider is a film that kind of breaks gender stereotypes. In the film,  the  Maori tribe is waiting for the boy who will become their leader. Unfortunately, for them, Pai is a girl and she won't be accepted in her tribe. There is patriarchy in her tribe, and Pai's grandfather doesn't accept her. As a viewer, take the side of Pai, because I am a woman in society where there is still patriarchy. Pai is a strong female character who is willing to be the leader of her tribe, but her grandfather  denies her. Pai is very persistent, a true example for us, women. 

In a way, Pai and Mulan have so much in common: they fulfilled a role meant to be fulfilled only by men. These two characters are passionate, persistent, and strong. They both broke gender role stereotypes, which is something that we, women, need nowadays. In both stories, the character's own cultures are patriarchal. Coincidence? No, I don't think so. Once in a while, there are a couple of films that depict strong female characters. For instance, Imperator Furiosa from Mad Max: Fury Road came by surprise. Women were extremely happy that Furiosa and Max were equals. But some men were not so welcoming to the fact that a woman could be strong and smart. 

It is incredible that, nowadays, there are feminist, or gender egalitarian films that show children that women and men are equals. Mulan and Whale Rider are excellent examples for children; these two films taught me, after all, that women have the ability to be leaders and  warriors.  Pai and Mulan will stay forever with me. And I am positive that I will show these two films to my children.

Blog #3: Transition from "The Lovely Bones" (2009)

"I wasn't lost, or frozen, or gone... I was alive; I was alive in my own perfect world"

- Susie Salmon, The Lovely Bones

Peter Jackson is a well-known filmmaker. Just think about the trilogy of The Lord of the Rings, and The Hobbit. Beautiful films that have outstanding visual effects. But the one that struck me the most was The Lovely Bones. The scenes when Susie Salmon is in that dream-like place after she was murdered are so powerful to me. When I saw this film in the movie theater, I was mesmerized. My favorite scene from the film is the one where Holly is showing Susie the special place where they can be safe and do what they want. The transition from one scene o another is magical. That place has different environments, weather, and landscapes. It feels like I am in my dreams. I bet you know that feeling. It is an abstract feeling or emotion.

When I read the the novel The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold, I was wondering how Susie's own world looked like. I imagined her world as La Patagonia, which is a real region located between Argentina and Chile in South America. Why did I imagine Susie's own world as a real place? Simple. Because when I saw The Motorcycle Diaries film directed by Walter Salles, I thought that those place where Che Guevara visited with his friend were just visual effects, you know, fake. It turned out that those places where real, existent. I became obsessed with South America: Los Andes and La Patagonia are by far the places that I want to explore in depth. So, I wasn't surprised when I saw the film that Susie's own world resembled South America.