From: "Lita Coucher" <lita_coucher-AT-hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: too long or too fast?
Date: Wed, 31 Jan 2001 08:11:03 -0500


I agree that with the arrival of the internet culture, attentions spans are
shorter and greedier...more in less time.

That said, I have a question of my own related to tempo.  I just saw "Ran"
for the first time last night.  I noticed that while the film overall moved
at a slower pace, the tempo of individual scenes varied from very, very slow
to very, very quick.  I get the feeling that this was meant to mimic the
pace of war (wait for battle, then over quickly), which shaped the Samurai
lives.  Any thoughts?
Jenna
----- Original Message -----
From: rutger h cornets de groot <cornets-AT-yahoo.com>
To: <film-theory-AT-lists.village.virginia.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, January 30, 2001 8:47 PM
Subject: too long or too fast?


> It seems that the worst thing that can be said about a
> movie nowadays is that it is too long or to slow. For
> years, I used to object to that notion, simply because
> there are many excellent movies that are long and
> slow. Seeing some of these classic movies again for
> the second or third time, however, I find I have to
> admit to a certain kind of discomfort. They actually
> *do* take long! And I am not just talking Bergman or
> Antonioni here, I'm talking Taxi Driver, The Shining,
> and many other great movies that had me poised on the
> edge of my seat when I first saw them. Paradoxically
> said, I can't keep up with that pace anymore. If you
> can't believe me, go check for yourself.
> It's not that these movies are no good anymore, they
> can still be watched and enjoyed. They're great
> movies. It's just that you can't make movies like that
> anymore. There is a need for speed.
> Last night at the Film Festival in Rotterdam, I've
> found that this need for speed has brought about a new
> way of film making altogether. In Miike Takashi's
> latest, the action packed 'City of Lost Souls',
> virtually every scene is interrupted, even before we
> know what's going on. Men approach each other, they
> take out their guns, start shooting and <CUT!> it's
> time for another scene again. It's like we don't even
> want to know anymore.
> The style of shooting and editing is called Manga and
> it's very much like Oriental cooking: a lot of
> preparation and only a few seconds of actual cooking
> in very hot oil. I will admit that I liked it a lot.
> It is wild. It's like a drug. But I also regret not
> being able to appreciate the old tempo anymore. And I
> am wondering where this is going to end. How fast can
> we go? Soon, we'll wind up having an essentially empty
> screen, a blur, a painting. Then, finally, time, that
> silly factor that cinema is so dependent of, will play
> no role anymore.
> Comments?
>
> ====> APROPOS - Rutger H Cornets de Groot, Writer, Translator
> English-Dutch Freelance Translation Services
> Essays on Film, Art, Literature, Philosophy
> a p r o p o s
> http://sites.netscape.net/aproposr/apropos
> cornets-AT-xs4all.nl / cornets-AT-yahoo.com
> "The quality of a good translation can never be captured by the original".
>
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