Most recent public comments by Jing Zhang https://nowcomment.com/users/12986 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30609?scroll_to=339769 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30609?scroll_to=339769 Thu, 14 May 2015 23:23:31 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30609?scroll_to=339767 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30609?scroll_to=339767 I think a good film does not depend on its length at all. One Second to the Next teaches the public a lesson on how to be a responsible driver in 30 minutes. Fri, 15 May 2015 12:04:26 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30608?scroll_to=338879 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30608?scroll_to=338879 Since these people are not so wealthy, they tend to make the best combination. They may care more about getting a delicious, optional, and convenient meal rather than a delicate and healthy one. They pay attention to the cost and benefit tradeoff so much that they are easily attracted to "super size" because it is more worth-it. I think eventually it comes to the problem of purchasing power and sufficient knowledge of health. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:47:03 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30608?scroll_to=338878 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30608?scroll_to=338878 When a cashier asks for super size, it sounds like a reminder of a better, more economic option. McDonald's deliberately sets the price and makes it highly acceptable, so that customers are willing to pay for the larger size with no big sacrifice in money. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:47:03 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30608?scroll_to=338877 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30608?scroll_to=338877 I would not want to watch a documentary full of "reasonable," daily, and normal activities. I think Spurlock is really brave and innovative. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:47:03 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30608?scroll_to=338876 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30608?scroll_to=338876 I hope fast food chains like McDonald's can come up choices with better nutritious quality rather than seducing customers going for larger sizes and becoming addictive. McDonald's uses a very small markup to attract people going for super-size, and by doing so the company appears to be purely profit-oriented. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:47:03 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30608?scroll_to=338875 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30608?scroll_to=338875 I believe the film directly contributes to McDonald's decision of eliminating "super size." Since consumers are sometimes not aware of their ordering decision, getting rid of "super size" is beneficial to healthy-eating. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:47:03 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30608?scroll_to=338874 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30608?scroll_to=338874 Spurlock's thesis is clearly delivered right at the beginning of the film. Hence, as a viewer, I focused more on the process of his physical and emotional changes rather than the result - because the result was no surprise. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:47:02 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30607?scroll_to=338256 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30607?scroll_to=338256 The reviewer seems to disrespect the notion of fakery and considers trickery as more inferior than the real. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:47:01 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30607?scroll_to=338254 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30607?scroll_to=338254 Orson Welles is giving credits to forgery artists and introduce their artistic values to audiences. Reality is transient, so original art pieces are forgeries of reality. The separation of real (original) and fake can be unnecessary sometimes. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:47:01 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30607?scroll_to=338252 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30607?scroll_to=338252 It leads back to the debate of real and fake from Nanook of the North: the hunting scene set-up. Aren't the re-creations of fake events make the events real because they are actually happening in front of cameras? The reviewer keeps contradicting himself makes his readers bring a perspective to the film that we hope to solve the contradictions by watching the film. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:47:01 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30607?scroll_to=338250 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30607?scroll_to=338250 He is an experienced director who has the ability to play with film genres, and he knows people certainly will have fun discovering F for Fake especially since he told us it is fakery right at the beginning. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:47:00 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30607?scroll_to=338249 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30607?scroll_to=338249 Welles' confession makes F for Fake out of the documentary mode, and Welles is not restricted to the responsibility of documentary filmmakers that he has to present truth. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:47:00 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30606?scroll_to=336325 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30606?scroll_to=336325 Sontag may believes that her visuals are powerful enough to elicit viewers' emotions and sympathy on empty lands. Without a guiding voice, I did feel a little lost in context at the beginning, but it adds up the sense of lost tremendously as I focus entirely on what is being showed on screen. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:57 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30606?scroll_to=336320 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30606?scroll_to=336320 Being a writer with many publications makes Sontag values personal message as a very important element of films. She wants her idea and creativity to be recognized directly from Promised Lands instead of people regard the film as an mutual reflection of Israel. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:57 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30606?scroll_to=336315 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30606?scroll_to=336315 The film fits the documentary genre, but Sontag "considered it her most personal film" because it is derived from her previous works on literature and politics. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:56 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30605?scroll_to=336217 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30605?scroll_to=336217 After all, the documentary is a work of art. If it is informational and entertaining, then accepting the documentary's point of view means the review agrees with how the film delivers the true situation. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:56 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30605?scroll_to=336216 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30605?scroll_to=336216 Political figures have responsibility to U.S. citizens (sense of decency), and political parties should realize that they should serve their country rather than their personal interests. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:56 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30605?scroll_to=336204 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30605?scroll_to=336204 The editing techniques can also expand the dramatic effects of the hearing. Also, broadcasting a congressional hearing itself is a theatrical move. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:56 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30605?scroll_to=336203 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30605?scroll_to=336203 Without addressing claims of Communist subversion, the review is purely targeting the film. He does give informative background information to help us better understand the film though. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:56 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30605?scroll_to=336202 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30605?scroll_to=336202 By mentioning Starr, the audiences walk into a prescribed perspective set up by the reviewers. They will associate the "bizarre elements" from Starr’s investigation of Clinton with McCarthy. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:56 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30604?scroll_to=327522 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30604?scroll_to=327522 The Way We Live is a semi-documentary, so it struggles between pure documentary films that represent reality and authenticity and feature films with character acting and planned dialogue. The article says that "many local people were confused by the proposed scheme for rebuilding their town." Therefore, the subject could be objected by local audience, and the film would not generate much profit. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:47 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30604?scroll_to=327520 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30604?scroll_to=327520 Craigie did not impose too much of her own ideas. Rather, as the director, she served as "an interpreter" and conveyed the experts' (architects, the town councilors, and politicians)plans for rebuilding Plymouth. The plans of the experts were delivered in a very practical way with the scenes of professional presentations. On the locals' side, Craigie brilliantly managed the effect of character acting versus the real-life issues. Even though "the locals" in the film were fictional characters and played by actors, they effectively elicited sympathy towards the postwar problems they were facing. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:52 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30604?scroll_to=327518 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30604?scroll_to=327518 Also, urban planning is the focus of the film. It involved and encouraged urban sprawl that might be hard to accept by the audience at the time. The reconstruction would demand heavy labor and intensive use of money. These could cause a lot of pressure on the citizens. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:54 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30604?scroll_to=327516 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30604?scroll_to=327516 At the end of The Way We Live, people who have lived and experienced life after war are motivated to rebuild their own city as it is their home. The focus on the "youth power" represents people gather up for their own bright future. In Triumph of the Will, the mass marching shows German people's belief and faith in Hitler. They march for their leader but not for the future of themselves. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:47 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30603?scroll_to=322017 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30603?scroll_to=322017 The everyday life scenes picture British nation with a positive and optimistic spirit that the people keep the country functioning during hardship. The mix of quiet scenes and the manic ones creates intensity so that it adds stronger audiovisual effects to the documentary. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:38 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30603?scroll_to=322016 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30603?scroll_to=322016 The "handling heavy precision metal" scene emphasizes that women is powerful and supportive during the war. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:38 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30603?scroll_to=322015 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30603?scroll_to=322015 The factory sounds, steel works, and lunch concerts represent British people's positive attitude during wartime. Those sounds create a city symphony that says: despite the tragic war, there is still hope and development of the country. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:43 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30603?scroll_to=322014 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30603?scroll_to=322014 Listen to Britain is an observational political documentary rather than a straight-forward propaganda. Jennings' argument on the war is quiet and underlying on the presentations of the common British people's lives, business, work, and entertainment. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:38 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30602?scroll_to=321183 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30602?scroll_to=321183 Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:33 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30602?scroll_to=321170 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30602?scroll_to=321170 In Triumph of the Will, Riefenstahl had many shots capturing the crowd listening to Hitler's speech. The shots show their dedication and belief in their nation. Same in Why We Fight, there are many jump-cuts showing people's preparation for the war. Their moves tell their inner thinking. They devote themselves to their country's victory. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:33 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30602?scroll_to=321169 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30602?scroll_to=321169 Capra has made films that range from the concept of proto fascism to collectivism. Even though his films have a political sense, each one introduces different ideas. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:33 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319888 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319888 We cannot judge a film is right or wrong as there is no right or wrong answer to an ethical Gordian knot. Even though I see this film as a publicity tool for Hitler, we cannot say the film is wrong or bad. When a film directly speaks about politics, it is hardly a pure documentary anymore. The "profound meaning" that the author points out is that the film leaves people to judge with their own opinions. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:32 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319750 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319750 The film captures the moments of Nazi Germany that have great value for storing history for the future. She is successful as a documentary director. However, the topic she worked on could not escape from politics. The way she dealt with the camera angle gave Hitler a sense of superiority, so on the other hand, I think she was part of the Hitler's publicity as well. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:32 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319748 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319748 Triumph of the Will is a powerful propaganda of Nazi Germany and the controversial leader Hitler. The author is using the word "dangerous" to describe the "power of the media" because the participatory power of documentary film can influence our believe of what is true and what is right. When the crowd in the film believes in Hitler in their heart, I almost thought that was the right thing to do. The shots present Hitler as a dedicated leader to his country. The power of the media is that media expand the film's argument to a broader audience. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:31 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319705 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319705 The word is perfect for the sequence because Hitler is landing from a plane. So "transubstantiated" has a literal meaning that is describing his action, but more importantly it has an implied meaning telling that Hitler is seen as the lord of the country. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:31 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319704 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319704 Hitler's speech elicits the audience's emotional stimulus by saying that they are the power and future of Germany, so the crowd follows him and admire him without a valid reason. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:31 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319273 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319273 However, contemporary generations have a more objective perspective towards what happened during that time. I was impressed by Hitler's persona and his leadership influence on his German people, but I cannot help thinking he is forcing his people with his ideology. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:30 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319270 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319270 The way the German people looked up to Hitler in the film amazed me. They did not need to explain to me in words how convinced they were by their leader. Their eyes were telling me their inner voice. Especially the children because children cannot easily fake behaviors and emotions in front of the camera. The jump shots between Hitler's speech and the audiences' reaction is the most motivating element out of the mass ritual sequences. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:30 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319269 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30601?scroll_to=319269 Triumph of the Will has a strong German nationality sense with the absolute focus on Adolf Hitler. The film speaks to me as a powerful piece of propaganda, so while I was watching it for the first time, I was too attracted by what is shown in the film rather than how the film is shown. Given the fact that the film content is very appealing to us future generations, the background information about Riefenstahl reminds me to appreciate the film from a documentary perspective. It also emphasizes feminine power as I am impressed that the director is a female. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:30 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=315862 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=315862 Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:25 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=315142 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=315142 After the frames, people translate them with their personal associations. "24 frames per second" are 24 chances that elicit imagination of the world that films present. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:21 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=315121 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=315121 The editing makes me feel like watching "surreality" since the visual effect of the images projected is reinforced. The editing tells me that certain reality, such as the self-moving camera, is created rather than merely represented. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:21 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=315111 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=315111 The camera differs from other machines in that other machines are elements within the reality, but a camera is the tool that captures the reality. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:21 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314947 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314947 The "alive" camera scene conveys surrealism because camera should be operated by people. When the film shows the camera moving, the film surpasses reality, which creates surrealism. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:21 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314946 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314946 The shots associate with each other in a sense of promoting motions of a major Russian city. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:21 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314945 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314945 Man with a Movie Camera breaks the conventions by filming with a free style that elicits free interpretation from its viewers. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:21 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314944 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314944 There are many actions repeated on screen for several times, and the music follows closely with the repeated action by playing the same note, which creates a motif. I really enjoyed watching the film. It is a masterpiece. However, I imagine the film will be hard to watch without the accompany of the musical score. At some point I even thought the shots were supplementary to the music score. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:21 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314913 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314913 I would divide the film into three parts. The first part focuses on functioning machinery, which represents the development of a country in the middle of being industrialized. The second part displays many athletic moves, and the camera focuses on human. The slow-motion editing technique emphasizes human spirit. The citizen is the most important element of a city. The shots of athletes deliver the human power of the country. The third part is the street cars moving forward. It is through out the entire film. The shots of the street cars tell that the city is always lively and moving forward. The organizing pattern of the shots makes me feel the love of the director towards his city and country. He must really love his city so that he captures daily motions as an work of art because those daily moves are the pulse of the city. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:25 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314794 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314794 A metropolis absorbs its residents, so when he is recording the city, he himself is recorded at the same time by the city (or the city's residents). The cameraman is not a character. He represents a part of the soul of the city. Mon, 09 Feb 2015 18:48:47 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314790 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314790 Intuitively, it is like a shot jumps from a point of time to another later point of time. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:20 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314787 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314787 Surrealism applies when Vertov's camera works as an human eye that is witnessing the city. The film is not telling a story, but it enables us to picture ourselves in the city with our own stories flashing around. Isn't it in modern society we all associate ourselves with the surroundings? The film makes me feel that I am participating into a Russian city with Vertov. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:20 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314785 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314785 Man with a Movie Camera contains many shots that do not interact with each other, so those shots do not necessarily form a scene. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:20 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314783 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314783 "The stage play" sounds more planned-out while Vertof's new style induces "free-associating." This new style is more documentary especially when the film is capturing daily activities compared to the traditional stage play. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:20 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314780 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30600?scroll_to=314780 Since film audience has accustomed to an average shot length (ASL) of 11.2 seconds, the quick cuts from Man with a Movie Camera cause trouble of comprehending the meaning behind shots. This is why Ebert brings up Harry Carey's advice -- in order to keep track with the director, audience needs longer shots to digest. Vertof's use of short shots is revolutionary although it receives criticism. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:20 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=314191 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=314191 Performing applies to not only actors when we have intentions about how we want to be viewed. In this sense, we are our own directors as well. The notion of acting creates another challenge for documentary film especially when its participants are aware of the camera. They can form particular characters for themselves, so potentially they have influences and even controls on the "realities" the documentary aims at showing. Therefore, realities are "admittedly assisted" by both filmmakers and participants. When viewers have doubt about people in a documentary are acting, the film will be very disappointing and losing significant value. Fri, 06 Feb 2015 12:39:17 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313420 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313420 Yes. Documentary film is a more demanding film genre due to the nature of documenting and also the trust and expectations film viewers have. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:16 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313414 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313414 Flaherty made "conventionally beautiful" films later on, but Nanook of the North makes unforgettable. It makes Nanook real. The courage and humanity that the film delivers remain valuable, inspiring, and touching over decades, and these factors are harder to capture than simply making a film "conventionally beautiful." Therefore, Flaherty and his work are successful. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:16 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313400 The actions, such as hunting, contribute to describing the Inuit spirit. In Ebert's words, the details will fade away as "what shines through is the humanity and optimism of the Inuit." The hunting sequence is staged to show how Nanook is trying to survive, and authenticity is achieved when the film presents and delivers Nanook's spirit. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:16 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313064 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313064 The biographical mode is the best way because it is very touching, reflecting the true lifestyle of a group that is unfamiliar and vanishing. Especially when it centers around one person, I feel like I am there witnessing Nanook and getting to know him as I watch the film. Flaherty does present a story, but that story is not as typical as a narrative. The story tells about the sense of being Inuit Eskimos and how they lived. The story delivers inner feelings. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:15 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313061 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313061 There are no faked actions in front of the camera. The hunting sequence means to show how brave and simple Eskimos are. The spirit is the key, not necessarily if they really hunted a walrus or seal. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:15 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313049 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313049 Therefore, this film from the 1920s is precious enough to be a masterpiece. In 1920, there should also be less commercial pressure on filmmakers to make profits out of their production (I assume), so Nanook of the North contains great artistic and historical value despite the methods of the director. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:15 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313040 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313040 Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:15 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313037 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313037 The word "realities" is the goal that every documentary film aims at achieving. However, documentary film is just another genre of film production. As long as it is an work of art, there are pre-arranged efforts that assist realities. The prearrangements include editing, cutting, sounding techniques, etc. Ebert mentions the "decades-old debate." I think he is on the director Flaherty's side because Ebert admits there are facts that reduce the authenticity of documentary film in general. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:15 -0500 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313031 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30240?scroll_to=313031 It makes Ebert's review more closely tied to the documentary, therefore it attracts readers' attention. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:15 -0500