Helvetica was in terms of subject matter a rather interesting film. Like most people, I don't pay a whole lot attention to all the different fonts used in advertisements. Not consciously, anyway. I had no idea there was such a universal font used with so many corporate ads, logos, etc. Admittedly, after the film I started noticing the differences throughout the world. Even now that I have somewhat reverted back to my usual state of mind, I still occasionally see differentiating font designs. I feel that the dilemma presented in the film that deals with the lack of new ideas via font design sort of applies to the art world in general. There seems a stop on the progression of style and originality. It's a frantic thought that there may be no more room for progress in art.
As far as the film itself goes, I felt a little bored as time progressed. I personally do not take much interest in graphic design or electronic and digital media in general.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Monday, October 4, 2010
In responce to Decasia
In general, I am a little divided on what I feel about this movie. It was a very powerful film that certainly served its purpose in evoking emotional response, though I do not think I would be able to watch it again for a very long time. The most blatant theme of the film- the decay of film- alone made my feel like balling up inside. There was something about watching something (though not alive in the traditional sense) die for a solid hour that just sucked the life out of me; as the film progressed I felt myself growing cold with perpetual chills.
I do feel that the Morrison drew out some of the sections a little too much, though. The first part of it (from the beginning to the first reappearance of the spinning man) was done perfectly. This is the bit that really engraved itself in my mind. Just the imagery of spinning things (the man, the carnival rides, the school children walking in circles) created a sort of purgatorial feel to it. The fact that cycles never end by definition combined with the decaying mood of the overall film gave me a sense of hopelessness. That somehow the film was never going to end, that the reel would just keep turning and turning and turning, never altering it's speed. I felt that this portion was just pure genius. It was almost as if Morrison created an entirely new emotion. One which I never wish to experience in the way I did, but a new one none-the-less.
The next sequence of events seemed to draw on too much. There where some scenes that where really well done (such as the boxer, the miners or the man climbing the ladder) but otherwise I felt Morrison lost the emotion he and the composer created in the first half. As the film drew to an end it did pick it's pace back up a little bit. Specifically I felt the scene with the airplanes and the parachutes was especially powerful. That feeling of hopelessness returned but in a different manor. The airplanes seemed to simply just be suspended in space, unmoving and lost in some sort of infinite void. When the parachutes approached the ground, I felt not a sense of grounding but a sense of ending. As if while in the air, the objects exist in a meaningful way but once on the ground they were no longer the same objects.
Overall, I do not think anyone should see this film. Artistically, it was one of the best I have ever seen. But I don't think anyone should need to experience the intensity of emotions I felt while seeing it.
I do feel that the Morrison drew out some of the sections a little too much, though. The first part of it (from the beginning to the first reappearance of the spinning man) was done perfectly. This is the bit that really engraved itself in my mind. Just the imagery of spinning things (the man, the carnival rides, the school children walking in circles) created a sort of purgatorial feel to it. The fact that cycles never end by definition combined with the decaying mood of the overall film gave me a sense of hopelessness. That somehow the film was never going to end, that the reel would just keep turning and turning and turning, never altering it's speed. I felt that this portion was just pure genius. It was almost as if Morrison created an entirely new emotion. One which I never wish to experience in the way I did, but a new one none-the-less.
The next sequence of events seemed to draw on too much. There where some scenes that where really well done (such as the boxer, the miners or the man climbing the ladder) but otherwise I felt Morrison lost the emotion he and the composer created in the first half. As the film drew to an end it did pick it's pace back up a little bit. Specifically I felt the scene with the airplanes and the parachutes was especially powerful. That feeling of hopelessness returned but in a different manor. The airplanes seemed to simply just be suspended in space, unmoving and lost in some sort of infinite void. When the parachutes approached the ground, I felt not a sense of grounding but a sense of ending. As if while in the air, the objects exist in a meaningful way but once on the ground they were no longer the same objects.
Overall, I do not think anyone should see this film. Artistically, it was one of the best I have ever seen. But I don't think anyone should need to experience the intensity of emotions I felt while seeing it.
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