Wong Kar-wai Interviewed on The Treatment

Hello i would like to introduce Wong Kar-wai. He is a Chinese filmmaker, scriptwriter and is said to be an auteur due to many of his films being aesthetically unique, emotionally profound and very stylistic. Almost all of his works acquired critical acclaim such as Ashes of Time, Days of Being Wild, ChungKing Express, and In The Mood For Love. I would like to talk about an interview i heard that aired on august 28,2013 on a talk show called The Treatment.

Based on the interview Wong Kar-wai seems to view himself as an outsider. He seems to like to depict things in a romantic way and give a different perspective on things in life and life itself other than the major socially accepted view of life. In the interview he talks about how he moved to Hong Kong from Shanghai when he was five years old and how there was a major language barrier and even a very different atmosphere which changed his impression of life. He was always into martial arts and the discipline and code of ethics he saw withing martial arts particularly kung fu. I was shocked to here that many of his scripts are short and incomplete leaving room for improvisation.

The interview is centered around Wong Kar-wai's latest film called The GrandMaster, but many of the questions asked by the host relate to more than just the film. For example Wong Kar-wai was asked about a scene from The GrandMaster that takes place in a brothel in which  he uses high and low camera angels that make the women in the brothel seem superior to the men as if they are judging the men Wong Kar-Wai stated "The audience may not be conscious about that but its the habit of the way we look at people". In most cases the prostitutes would be the ones being judged but the camera angles show you a different perspective that is never really talked about.

Another thing he said about costumes and the role they play in movies stood out to me. If you have ever seen a Wong Kar-wai film you may have noticed the detail put into the costumes used in the films and the effect they have on what the audience perceives about the characters in the film. A costume can carry alot of meaning to it "A costume is not just a costume its not something that makes the actors look good or the actress look beautiful in a way its part of the character" as Wong Kar-wai stated it draws attention from the audience either consciously or subconsciously and can affect our impression of the character.

The last thing i found extremely interesting about the interview was when Wong kar-wai said "I wanted to especially at a time like this when china has went through this rapid changes I can see there's a lot of traditional value that's forgotten and in fact the so called modernization of china cannot simply be like adopting western values, its time for us to go back to our roots and rediscover some of theses values". This seems to reflect his own childhood as well as the movies he makes that tend to have both eastern and western culture in them.

I think that all though most of his interview was focused on The Grandmaster, Wong still had many valuable things to say. As he talked about his childhood he brought up how he thinks there is a paradise lost that makes people long for certain things and how that can makek people into outsiders. He talks about how the cultural clash in china has affected him and how that has shaped his way of thinking and allows him to create such stylized works that seem almost real even if they are fictional. His films contribute to the film world in so many ways but cinematography, uniqueness, romance, the psychological aspects that evoke resonant emotions are a few of the main things that make Wong Kar-wai a very noteworthy, and almost necessary to the film industry.    

John Travolta

John Joseph Travolta

•  American Actor/Singer/Dancer

•  Born February 18 1954  (Age 59), Englewood, NJ

• Youngest of six children born to Helen Travolta and Salvatore Travolta 

•  Attended Dwight Morrow High School, dropped out at age of 16

• Moved to New York Where he made his debut in an Off Broadway production called Rain

• Then joined the Broadway cast for the musical Grease and the musical Over Here!  

• Welcome back, Kotter John Travolta's claim to fame

•  Gained international fame from the films Grease and Saturday Night Fever

•  Saturday Night Fever nominated for an Oscar, Grease nominated for Golden Globe

•  The 1980s Travolta had a bunch of poor career choice which almost ended his acting career 

• Pulp fiction revived his acting career, nominated for an Oscar

•  Acting career categorized by many highs and lows

• Most notable films Grease, Saturday Night Fever, Pulp Fiction, Hairspray, Get Shorty

•  Won 40 awards and has been nominated for another 35

• Get Shorty-Golden Globe, World Film Favorite Henrietta Award, Battlefield Earth-Razzie award for worst actor/picture/screen couple (anybody sharing the screen with him)

 Filmography

		1975 The Tenth Level John 1975 The Devil's Rain Danny 1976 The Boy in the Plastic Bubble Tod Lubitch 1976 Carrie Billy Nolan 1977 Saturday Night Fever Tony Manero 1978 Moment by Moment Strip Harrison 1978 Grease Daniel "Danny" Zuko 1980 Urban Cowboy Buford 'Bud' Uan Davis 1981 Blow Out Jack Terry 1983 Staying Alive Tony Manero 1983 Two of a Kind Zack Melon 1985 Perfect Adam Lawrence 1987 Basements Ben 1989 Look Who's Talking James Ubriacco 1989 The Experts Travis 1990 Look Who's Talking Too James Ubriacco 1991 Shout Jack Cabe 1991 Eyes of an Angel Bobby 1991 Chains of Gold Scott Barnes 1992 Boris and Natasha: The Movie Himself 1993 Look Who's Talking Now James Ubriacco 1994 Pulp Fiction Vincent Vega 1995 Get Shorty Chili Palmer 1995 White Man's Burden Louis Pinnock 1996 Michael Michael 1996 Phenomenon George Malley 1996 Orientation: A Scientology Information Film Himself 1996 Broken Arrow Maj. Vic 'Deak' Deakins 1997 Off the Menu: The Last Days of Chasen's Himself 1997 Mad City Sam Baily 1997 Face/Off Sean Archer/Castor Troy 1997 She's So Lovely Joey Giamonti 1998 A Civil Action Jan Schlichtmann 1998 The Thin Red Line Brigadier General Quintard 1998 Junket Whore Himself 1998 Primary Colors Governor Jack Stanton 1999 The General's Daughter Warr. Off. Paul Brenner/Sgt. Frank White 1999 Our Friend, Martin Kyle's dad 2000 Welcome to Hollywood Himself 2000 Lucky Numbers Russ Richards 2000 Battlefield Earth Terl 2001 Domestic Disturbance Frank Morrison 2001 Swordfish Gabriel Shear 2002 Austin Powers in Goldmember "Austinpussy" Johann van der Smut (Goldmember) / Himself 2003 Basic Tom Hardy 2004 Ladder 49 Captain Mike Kennedy 2004 A Love Song for Bobby Long Bobby Long 2004 The Punisher Howard Saint 2005 Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon 3D James Benson "Jim" Irwin 2005 Be Cool Chili Palmer 2006 Lonely Hearts Elmer C. Robinson 2007 Wild Hogs Woody Stevens 2007 Hairspray Edna Turnblad 2008 Bolt Bolt the Dog 2009 The Taking of Pelham 123 Benard Ryder 2009 Old Dogs Charlie Reed 2010 From Paris with Love Charlie Wax 2012 Savages Dennis
		Trademark Comedy/Musical, Dance scenes Married to actress Kelly Preston with which he has had three children His oldest son Jett died from a seizure (April, 14, 1992-January, 2, 2009) Made eight albums and had many singles Believes in Scientology  Airplane pilot with two aviation awards and also a business aircraft brand ambassador

Cinematography: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Cinematography: The Diving Bell and Butterfly

 

Overall look 

The overall cinematographic look of this film is created by high key lighting that plays on a feeling of optimism , dutch camera angles that leave the viewer feeling lost and confused, point of view that creates such a small narrow confined frame, camera movement  that gives a feeling of uncontrollable expression and long takes that make you feel frozen, frustrated and anxious. The overall look conveyed is extremely focused on life and expression of art through the act of living.

Images

The movie occasionally cuts to scenes of Bauby's dreamlike thoughts of his life, in a scene were bauby recounts  his life as a string of near misses we see many images of his family but the two most important images are of bauby in a diving suit and glaciers as they break apart into the ocean . The suit shows bauby as if imprisoned inside an immobile exoskeleton condemned to a life of inaction.

The Glaciers breaking into pieces and falling into the sea show us all the things bauby has lost. He shows feelings of remorse as he reminisces pessimistically  " Today my life feels like a string of near misses...". The old looking footage seems to portray his hazy and confusing mind state, as well as remorse, the glaciers breaking also seem to mimic tears he cannot produce.

Shot lengths

Many of the shots are long take shots as the story is centered around Bauby, through a first person point of view in which the camera is suppose to mimic Bauby's eye. The scenes in this film are comprised mostly of long take shots occasionally interrupted by images and short take shorts. Just as the images above which were part of a long take shot comprised of many images.

Shot type

The shot types used range from extreme close up to long shots mainly from a point of view shot. The extreme close up was used to show the emotion and emotional closeness of others to Bauby. 

While the long shots are suppose to make us feel more detached as if Bauby is going to die or finally be set free from a cocoon an turn into a butterfly.

Camera angles

The most used shot in the film is point of view shot and the camera angles are usually low camera angles. Many of the scenes primarily show  Bauby in a state of hopelessness and powerlessness along with confusion portrayed by a dutch angle. 

There as well are a few times when the camera angle is eye level, this usually happens with the mother of Bauby's children Celine. The eye level seems to shows as if Celine is one chracter who truly cares and tries to understand Bauby's condition, someone who sees  him as an equal.

Both characters seem to be looking at each other in a dutch angle as if they both are confused and can sympathize.

Both looking at each other eye level angle and no longer is either confused.

Composition

In the film the rule of thirds is applied in a few scenes which seem to show optimistic fervor, in almost most of the scenes the rule of the thirds is broken in order to create emotional tension and feelings of anxiety. This is used in order to create the feeling of uncertainty that we feel for Bauby and if he will recover from his stroke.

Camera movement

In the film the camera movements are mostly confined to moving dolly and tilt and pan shots to create the feeling of being paralyzed just as Bauby was. Yet there is certain times when the camera moves around more freely and seems to be omniscient and shows excitement or seems to mimic the movements of a person excited to be around Bauby.

Cinematography style

The cinematography calls attention to itself in a scene where Bauby is talking about his motionless travel notes and he is constantly portrayed from different camera angles and there is much camera movement. He is in a state of freedom and I believe this is intentionally shown to express and convey that state of freedom. The style of cinematography is very expressionistic and remarkably artistic.

    

The Black Film

 And I didn't get the money And I didn't get the women.

Film noir a period in film history; yet so much more. Said to have lasted from the 1940s to the 1950s, film noir was a take on the darker side of human nature. Most of theses films were B-movies which were low budget films usually paired up with main attractions in a double feature. "Great noir posses the question, why me" stated filmmaker Errol Morris, he continued by stating "...the very dark answer that is provides, an almost unacceptable answer, for no reason, for no reason at all". This statement I think sums up film noir, the very basic question of why me and being unable to stop one self from spiraling downward knowing that your doomed to fail. We can clearly see this illustrated in the film Double Indemnity, a film about an insurance salesman (Walter Neff) that had an okay job, a successful man none the less bored. Falls for a woman or more likely is seduced by a woman that wants to acquire accident insurance for her husband without him knowing, he refuses to be a part of this scandal. Eventually he is inevitably drawn in by his misconceptions of love, fortune, and the many thrills he thinks he will encounter. The film answers the question in the very beginning, as the main character is recording his confession to the claims manager  and as should be the answer is FOR NO REASON AT ALL.

Here is part of the opening scene that answers the question.

Another main characteristic of a Noir is the use of a femme fatale, or dangerous woman. Scholar Janey Place said "Shes very smart, very powerful and shes extremely sexual". This is a good depiction of the femme fatale (Phyllis) in Double Indemnity. Phyllis is portrayed as powerful when first presented she is shown from a low camera angle mean while Walter is shown from a high camera angle. She is an extremely sexual character this is seen in the way she walks, the way she talks, and her desire to get rid of her husband because he ignores her desire for affection and any form of sensuality. This is the reason she is a typical femme fatale with one single exception presented at the end of the film, which i will leave to everyones own personal conclusion. "... she uses her sexuality to get what she's after and what she's after is not the man in the picture hes another tool" stated by Janey Place. Though Phyllis seems to be stupid, its an act to get Walter to believe she cares for her husband and wants to get him insurance for his well being. He sees right through this act but she insists it to be true, until finally she changes her strategy and seduces Walter. Phyllis remains a step ahead of Walter the whole time until the very end, were she confesses that she never loved him and she used him until the moment she couldn't go through with killing him. This is a matter of personal opinion on why she didn't kill him but it doesn't detract from here being the perfect example of a femme fatale.

The anti-hero with an inescapable doom and the femme fatale were two archetype characters very commonly associated with film noir. Although the real defining factor for film noir was the mise-en-scene that was created by the lighting, the camera angles, and locations. The lighting was usually low key lighting which created a big contrast between light and dark. In Double Indemnity this type of lighting is created to make the audience perceive the light as good and the dark as evil. This would mean everyone has darkness or evil inside which can be attributed to everyone shadow. As I stated before Phyllis is being portrayed from a low camera angle which creates an image of her as someone superior, perhaps someone you would  put on a pedestal. The camera angle being used allows for a certain type of deep focus that creates many objects and obstacles, making the scene seem inescapable for the anti-hero. The locations used to shoot usually were real places not a studio set, making the film seem more real and raw.

 In the first picture we see the lighting is comprised mostly of light with a few dark spots. Which can be interpreted as a scene were there is mostly good which heavily out ways the presence of evil.

In the second picture there are many shadows present and the most evident one is of Walter who is about to walk in the room. The surrounding shadows and other objects seem to enclose this space with the only way out blocked off by the shadow of Walter

Here in the third picture there is almost no light in the room. The feeling we get is dark and evil and Phyllis  elaborates on how there both rotten and based on the lighting we begin to perceive that the darkness means how corrupt and rotten they have become compared to the scene in the first picture. As well as the camera angle finally shows Walter in a position of power over Phyllis.

When you walk on the train tracks at night you feel as if everything is dark and you feel as if can see nothing besides the people with you and the train tracks. Maybe many people haven't walked the train tracks at night but this scene definitely feels real, which adds to the overall scene of reality that film noir tries to present.



In the end noir isn't the same without the black and white film, there have been films called neo noir films which are shot in color. The addition of color detracts from the shadows which ends up creating a different environment, perhaps more loneliness than claustrophobia. In Chinatown by Roman Polanski the story is by all means the same type of story in noir films. The story is about a Private investigator who is determined to see his case through to the end. The private investigator is an anti-hero because he tries to work around the system lies to cops and  resorts to violence even when it comes to women. He slaps Evelyn the femme fatale around in order to get information from here all for the sack of his work.

In the ending scene from Chinatown we can clearly see how Chinatown is depicted as a very dark and evil place. The location chosen was the neighborhood of Los Angeles, Chinatown and the surrounding buildings all have resemblances to actual Chinatown in Los Angeles.  The shadows are the most evident in this scene and the camera angles and deep focus are present in the interactions of all the characters in the scene. The music in the background that starts playing when the main character walks away from the camera along with the credits all resemble aspects of classic noir films. This film seem to have asked the question why me and the response seems to have been for no reason at all, thus in my own opinion makes this noir. Neo noir has many resemblances to classic film noir, yet there will always be differences of opinion as to whether it is noir or not.

So in conclusion