Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Reading 1 Response Questions
1. In section 9, Walter Benjamin discusses the effects than can be achieved through manipulating film. He gives the example that "A jump from the window can be shot in the studio as a jump from a scaffold, and the ensuing flight, if need be, can be shot weeks later when outdoor scenes are taken."
Is some of the performance and nuance lost when an actor can no longer act in the moment or has to spread that moment over days or weeks? Has the performance of the actor been diluted in today's films that rely almost entirely on manipulating the film and are shot on green screens?
2. In section 12, Benjamin, on progressivism, states that "The conventional is uncritically enjoyed, and the truly new is criticized with aversion." He adds "Individual reactions are predetermined by the mass audience response they are about to produce." Do people need artists to tell them what to like, or do they inherently like what they want to?
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Going with the radical opinion here, yes I think that 'aura' of the original performance is diluted from having that metaphysical, 'week by week' process. Typically, why most movie award systems have such different categories : acting, cinematography, etc. More often than not, how 'strong' a performance is allowed to be is dependent on how strong a film director lets it be.
ReplyDeleteMy thought behind the second question is that 'the customer is always right'. Artists are special kinds of contributors to the mental health of society. Forcing an audience to believe something against their will is not always healthy. What they like is what they will like. It is part of the job of an artist to cater to that demand of the social zeitgeist and see where their own identity fits in it all.