And now for something completley different.....

            Silly, goofy, eccentric and flat out insane, these are the words used to describe director Terry Gilliam. Terry Gilliam is one of the few directors considered to be an auteur of film. His visions of the present, past and future are unique and vivid in the way they depict realism. Terry Gilliam’s visions of realism cannot even be described as realism, it is magical realism. He creates worlds in which the audience feels engulfed by surreal images, bright colors and unique camera angles. Terry Gilliam didn’t get his start in film though; he got his start back in 1969 when he joined a comedy troupe by the name of Monty Python.

            Terry Gilliam was the only American of the Monty Python group and he didn’t contribute much to the acting. What Gilliam was best known for was his unconventional animations. Gilliam was the one who created the bizarre animations that gave Monty Python its unique look and feel. During the television series Gilliam didn’t act much except for his famous part as one of the men in the Spanish Inquisition. It wasn’t until the movie Monty Python and the Holy Grail when Gilliam’s love for film started to show. Gilliam co-directed the film with fellow Python member Terry Jones. Monty Python and the Holy Grail was a huge success and made the Python’s an international hit, which gave Gilliam the opportunity to make his first film, Jabberwocky. Gilliam wrote and directed Jabberwocky which gained critical success but did not earn much at the box office. Gilliam’s next film, Brazil, became his masterpiece. Brazil is Gilliam’s most acclaimed film and is one of his four films that are in the Criterion collection. 

            Gilliam’s use of dutch angles, wide lenses and low angles give his films a unique look that make his movies instantly recognizable. He has directed three actors that were nominated for their roles; Brad Pitt for Twelve Monkeys, Robin Williams and Mercedes Ruehl for The Fisher King. Ruehl won for Best Supporting Actress. Gilliam was also nominated for best original screenplay for his film Brazil, unfortunately he did not win. Terry Gilliam was actually J.K. Rowling’s first choice to direct Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone but the studio turned down her request saying they wanted a more family friendly director. Brazil may be Gilliam’s most critically acclaimed work but his most famous is his film Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas didn’t receive much critical acclaim but the film has influenced many young directors and musicians. Most recently the band Avenged Sevenfold based their music video “Bat Country” off the film. The creators of South Park, Tray Parker and Matt Stone, said they owe a lot to Terry Gilliam for his contributions to animation. Terry Gilliam may not be the most influential or well known filmmaker or Python member, but his art has had a significant impact on our culture.

Francis Ford Coppola

         

    Many names come to mind when discussing Post-classical film making. Names like George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen and Robert Altman, but one stands out amongst them all; Francis Ford Coppola. Francis Ford Coppola is renowned as one of Hollywood’s most influential and celebrated filmmakers. He is often considered to be the epitome of a group of directors known as the Young Turks. His films have had a significant impact on American cinema. Francis Ford Coppola is best known for his works such as The Godfather, The Godfather Part II, and Apocalypse Now. Not only has Coppola been an influence with his directing, he has made a significant impact with his writing and producing. Before Coppola gained fame from his Godfather movies, he won his first Academy award alongside Edmund H. North for Best Original Screenplay in 1970 for co-writing the film Patton. Over the years the opening scene from Patton has become iconic and has been mimicked by other artists such as South Park, Johnny Knoxville, The Carol Burnett Show, Little Shop of Horrors, Sesame Street and Boston Legal.

            Francis Ford Coppola would not gain true cinematic success until two years later when he directed The Godfather, his near three hour long epic which followed the Corleone family. To this day, the original Godfather is considered one of cinemas greatest milestones. This film would get Coppola an Academy award for Best Original Screenplay, which he shared with Mario Puzo and two Golden Globes for Best Directing and Best Screenplay. Marlon Brando also won an academy award that year for his portrayal of Vito Corleone, which he refused to accept. The Godfather is ranked third behind Citizen Kane and Casablanca on AFI's 100 Years....100 Movies list. Although The Godfather is honored as one of cinemas greatest achievements, it is not without controversy. There is a scene in which animal rights activists highly object to in Coppola’s film in which a real severed horse head is in the bed of one of the characters. Coppola stated that the head was sent to him from a dog food factory and so thus the horse was not killed specifically for the film. This is not the only time one of Coppola’s films has been attacked by animal rights activists. In Coppola’s masterpiece, Apocalypse Now, a water buffalo has its head cut off as part of a ceremonial act put on by a local tribe. The American Humane Society gave his film an “unacceptable” rating.

          Coppola’s impact on film is not only through his writing, but through his producing as well. Coppola has produced many films including; American Graffiti, Frankenstein, Sleepy Hallow and Marie Antoinette. Coppola’s influence can be seen throughout American cinema and popular culture. George Lucas (a long time friend of Coppola) even stated that he based the character of Han Solo off of Coppola. Coppola’s nephew is the famous Nicholas Cage and Coppola befriended Jim Morrison in California and later used his band’s song “The End” at the beginning and end of Apocalypse Now. Francis Ford Coppola will always be an inspiration for years to come and we all are looking forward to what is coming next from this controversial and brilliant filmmaker.

Alfonso Cuaron

Rosebud

The Golden age of film is rich with actors, actresses, directors and writers that have influenced modern cinema and reshaped our views of film today. Sometimes it can be hard to just pick one out of a sea of so many worthy artists, but one always sticks out in the mind of every film buff, Orson Welles. Orson Welles is to cinema as Mark Zuckerberg is to the internet. Very few directors have had the impact and opportunities Welles has had. Welles was given the offer of a lifetime, a fully funded film in which Welles had full control and final cut privileges. This film would later on become renowned as one of the best films of all time. Unfortunately, like most great films, Citizen Kane didn’t get the recognition it deserved until later on. Citizen Kane was the first film to experiment with things such as deep focus and low angle shots. Welles chose cinematographer Gregg Toland because he knew that they both were known for there experimentation, Toland with film and Welles with theater. Toland later said that he had found the perfect partner to “test and prove several ideas generally being accepted as radical in Hollywood”. Welles and Toland even dug trenches in the set to shoot the famous scene when Kane meets Leland after he has lost the election. Welles wasn’t just innovative with his ideas of how a film should look but how the story of the film should be told. Welles took the regular linear storytelling format and flipped it on its side. This opened up a new realm of possibilities for film later on. Later biographical films such as Lawrence of Arabia showed the characters’ whole life before the film would begin, just as in Citizen Kane.  Even Christopher Nolan’s film Memento borrows from a Welles like narrative style. The number of modern day directors that are fans of Welles and have been influenced by him is astounding. Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Michael Mann, Ridley Scott, Francis Ford Coppola, Bryan Singer, Stephen Frears, Brian De Palma, John Frankenheimer, Tommy Wiseau, the Coen brothers, Sergio Leone, Luc Besson and many others have all admitted being influenced by Citizen Kane. I myself have been influenced and inspired by Welles, its hard not to be impressed by such an amazing actor and director whose contributions are endless. The most famous homage to Orson Welles takes place in the final shot of the film Raiders of the Lost Ark by Steven Speilberg in which the camera pans over the government warehouse which is homage to the final scene of Citizen Kane. Steven Speilberg is such a fan of Citizen Kane that he spent $60,500 on the Rosebud sled, but later refused to help Welles fund a film that he was working on. Speilberg even once said that "Rosebud will go over my typewriter to remind me that quality in movies comes first”, he must have forgotten about this when filming the most recent Indiana Jones film. Orson Welles will always be remembered as an amazing actor, director and writer. From his radio broadcast that startled a nation, to his innovative story of the destructive powers of wealth, he will forever be known as one of the greatest artists of the Golden age of cinema.
Citizen Kane-Pinky and the Brain

Silent Films

Today actors, artists and moviegoers have it a lot easier than in the early years of film. Film today is complex but at the same time rather simple compared to how film was created when the industry was still in its infancy. Silent films required a certain level of finesse that later was lost when sound was introduced. Silent films had to keep audiences intrigued and captivated by a plot that could only be told through short snippets of dialogue given by title cards and supported by usually a solitary piano. They also had to convey emotions, actions and sounds without the use of sound. This is why early films such as Metropolis, The General and Le Voyage Dans la Lune seemed very theatrical and overacted. Silent films also didn’t utilize different cuts or angles as much because they hadn’t developed the language yet. Most early filmmakers were theater actors or directors that basically filmed a stage performance in long continuous shots. It wasn’t until directors like Fritz Lang and G.W. Griffith came along and saw the real potential of film. Silent film suddenly became more of an art and we starting seeing directors use techniques like shutter speed, tinting and even early rotoscoping techniques. Most of the elements of silent film have been lost since the induction of sound because narratives could move forward easier. Some elements of silent film remain today; a good example is Ridley Scott’s revolutionary film Blade Runner which was even inspired by Fritz Lang’s Metropolis. Even one of the skyscrapers in Metropolis becomes the inspiration for the precinct building that is now part of what is considered one of the most memorable scenes in modern cinema. In the film the main character spends a lot of time silently thinking and Ridley Scott uses light, dust and smoke to convey his emotions and move the story forward. Ironically, both Blade Runner and Metropolis met the same fate. They were both misunderstood and were edited by the companies that distributed them to make them more audience friendly. Just a few years ago Ridley Scott released the final directors cut of the film and later this year we will get to see the full cut of Metropolis, two movies that suffered the same fate. Many noir films borrowed heavily from silent films, using light and music to create ambiance. There is still one thing that modern cinema still holds onto from the era of silent films, music. Music is key in any movie that you see, so whenever you hear a movie soundtrack, just remember that silent films are responsible for the development of that soundtrack. Silent films are now considered archaic but we can still see their influence in today’s cinema. Comedies and musicals still use the theatrics of early silent film and Pixar’s recent movie Wall-E was practically a silent film for the first half. We will never see a resurgence of silent film but we will continue to see the influence of directors like Fritz Lang, Buster Keaton and G.W. Griffith.

The Things of My Dreams

This is a little poem I wrote that I thought I'd post. Be sure to check out more of my writing over at DeviantArt. Just go to scratch25.deviantart.com to see more of my musings.


The Things of My Dreams


Leonardo Da Vinci and Galileo Galilei
These are the things that stay with me
These are the things inside my dreams

Thinkers of their day and age
Inspired hope and fear and rage
Their ideas provide me with much assuage

People fear that which is strange
Free thought today is called deranged
Lets hope those ideas will interchange

Until then I can only dream
Of Galileo Galilei
And all these things inside my dreams

My first Blog

So I guess I'm a blogger now.....