#benfowlie

[allielee03]

Buga-what?

This was another one of my least favorite films at CIFF; I was confused at several parts about what was going on, and I felt like everything was dramatized because there was nothing serious filmed. They all talked about all of the chaos that was going to happen and was happening, but we never saw any of it. I felt like we were watching a boy trying to get famous in a crazy town who isn’t even that good at magic, and a crazy old man who attached himself to this boy so he can get famous as well. I really don’t even understand why the old man was included in the film; yes, he was funny, but he brought nothing to the story other than to make us laugh at times and just make us utterly confused about what he is saying and doing the rest of the time. The storyline was jumpy as well. I guess I would have liked to see some more truth and other sides to the story, because I felt like most of it was made up or dramatized for the film. A as I said, we never saw anything on film that the people were discussing even though the filmers were there when it was all happening. 

[allielee03]

I finally know who General Tso is!

The Search for General Tso was a very interesting, creative, and informative film. It was never dull or boring, and it didn’t just tell you where General Tso chicken came from, but it took you on a journey to figure this out; that was what I liked the most about the film. We were brought around the world, saw the different cultures and histories, and saw the histories of how these cultures were brought into our own. The filmmaker did a very good job at relaying this information; I think if it weren’t presented in the way he presented it, the film could have been simply informative, but not interesting. I think his idea to find the origin of this favorite American dish was ingenious, and is great knowledge for Americans to know!

[allielee03]

Culture Shock

The Iron Ministry did a very good job at immersing you into the ways of the Chinese railway. The blackout at the beginning of the film was an awesome way to set the mood of the film, and it was a little suspenseful because the entire theatre was dark and you were just waiting for something to happen

I think the filmmaker’s other techniques were good in some ways, but not in others. For instance, the way he just filmed most of the time without talking to people and always had the background train noises be all that you heard made you feel like you were there on the train, but got a little boring at times. However, when he was talking to people, it kind of broke the “feel” of the film; you no longer felt like you were there on the train because it is apparent that there is someone behind the camera, but it also held your interest a little more.

I also liked how the filmmaker got up close and personal; he was invading the space of the other people on the train, but they didn’t even care. It just shows how everyone on the train is so packed in together that they no longer have a personal space, and you have to learn to be okay with that if you want to be on the train.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIQTx67YGpU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HM9kBxF6im8#t=13

Finally, the fact that there was no storyline made you a bit lost at times, but kept a sort of air of mystery and left you wanting more information. For example, I kept wondering, why do people have carcasses on a train? And why are there so many people on this train, isn't that a fire hazard? There are people sleeping on the floors, why do they allow this?

  Overall, the film was a bit slow, which made it seem longer than it was, but it was a big eye opener and really immersed you into their culture.

[allielee03]

Okay, maybe my childhood wasn't that bad...

Waiting for August had an incredible storyline, and I think the filmmaker did a great job at revealing the life of lower class Romanians. I loved how the filmmaker just followed the children and let their story play out naturally instead of including herself by interacting with them; it gave the film a much more realistic feel. I think she included the perfect amount of emotion, and included enough about their lives to give us the perfect snapshot without being too invasive and detailed. I also liked how she stepped back and filmed from a distance when the children were interacting with their friends and other people outside of the home; it helped with the realistic and unobtrusive feel. Finally, the fact that the film was personal and close to home for her made it feel much more important to me; she was indirectly telling us a story about things she saw or experienced in her life, and wanted to share this with the world, which was sweet. It made me appreciate how hard those mothers work and the things that they give up just to give their children better lives. This made me appreciate the life I had as a child, because even though I consider my childhood pretty rough, my dad didn't have to give up so much to give my brother and I the lives we had. At least he was always around when we needed him, and we could be kids instead of raising ourselves. 

Photo: A little bit of music before Waiting for August

[allielee03]

Heroes are created when bravery ensues

Point and Shoot was a great film for its storyline; Matt’s story was absolutely incredible, and the filmmaker introduced him to the world as the hero he always wanted to be. The filmmaker’s technique in doing this was great. I liked how he first introduced Matt as an awkward man and child through his interviews and home movie clips, and then used a combination of his go pro videos and interviews to develop the change of his character. The filmmaker did a great job with showing Matt’s metamorphosis into “manhood”. I loved the scene where Matt was trapped in the war prison, because the use of animation reflected his confusion and delirium after months of being trapped in there. It really showed you how his thoughts were changing. I also liked how the animation was blurry when he was hit in the head, like he was fading in and out of consciousness. I also liked how he used the interviews to supplement the go pro videos, so you had a storyline to go off of, but he didn’t do this so much that it made the videos seem incomplete; it was all continuous. I think the film completely served its purpose: to show the world Matt’s story and fulfill his childhood dream of being a brave and adventurous man that every boy can look up to. 

[allielee03]

Friday Night Lights!

Photo of the pavilion of lights outside of the Friday night party. I had a good time listening to some music and talking to filmmakers and other students around the campfire!

[allielee03]

If you ever need a good nap...

Desert Haze was one of my least favorite films at the festival; the scenery was beautiful, but the storyline was a bit hard to follow, and the film was very slow. I think the problems that she was unveiling in the western US were interesting, but they jumped around a lot, and I didn’t really understand the significance of certain scenes. Her intentions were good; I think she was trying to show the west in a very different, untraditional way. When people think of the west, it is usually cowboys and gun slaying, like old western films. You never really think of the problems that were discussed in this film, and you don’t really think of the fact that people in the west lead normal lives that aren’t that different from our own.