Film, Music and Remediation

During the first seminar presentation, a lot was going through my mind, especially examples. Transparency in film is a very interesting topic, and the discussion of whether a film like Cloverfield (2008) with a hand held camera was more transparent than say a comic book feel movie like Sin City (2005) really made me think about realism in films and whether or not they in fact make me feel like I am part of the movie or just watching it. Being a fan of realism, I was shocked to find it so hard to think of any movie that did this. The first movie that I thought of was Memento (2000) where the main character is trying to avenge the death of his wife; however he has lost his ability to create new memories since the incident. Working backwards throughout the movie, the audience is thrust into the life of Leonard as we are unaware of the backgrounds of the characters, just as Leo is due to his lack of memory. As the movie progresses we slowly learn the motives behind the characters, and are drawn into more of a realm of irony as we know more than the main character. Starting off, this movie is a prime example of transparency in film, but works its way back to the audience realizing they are watching from the outside.

Next, the group brought up Music and Remediation where they discussed concerts. A week or so ago, when I was at home, with my media, a lovely TV in HD, I watched the Justin Timberlake concert for HBO. I have never been to a real concert, but I was able to identify how much of a production the entire evening was. From fireworks, to shots on the stage, to costume changes, the production was not solely about the music, it was a show people wanted. Justin Timberlake would dance, play piano and sing after explaining to the crowd how he could swear and do tequila shots on stage thanks to HBO. In our world today, I don’t think someone getting up on stage and simply singing is enough any more. We crave the fireworks, the dancing, even the feeling that we can swear because the network airing this, is somewhat “rebellious”. We want the most for our money, how much media can we get with our one ticket?

From here, the idea of MTV and mindless teenagers came up. I wish this could have developed into a bit more of a discussion, however I shall do this here. Josie and the Pussycats is a satirical comment on today’s MTV driven mindsets that youth, among others are consumed with. The notion of young adults buying what they are told is cool, thinking what they are told and even just living exactly how the hegemonic mentality is expecting them to. For those who thought they were too cool to see this movie, check it out. It does a very interesting job of playing with subliminal messages in music poking fun at endorsements, and especially product placement. In every scene there are at least 50 companies, which actually did not pay to be there. The creators of the film used all the products without getting the companies to pay for the placement. Through the music in the film, the major companies input messages such as “Orange is the new Pink” or taking it the step further, implanting ideas of what brands are the new cool ones, causing people to purchase items they might not necessarily buy. I know most people thought of this movie as a joke, exploiting certain actors, however you really have to give it a chance. It does a great job at poking fun of the industry as the huge subliminal message at the end, was simply about one character being cool and that everyone should be like them. If you have not already seen it, check it out.

Overall, this presentation gave me a lot to think about, and I hope you check out some of the ideas that I have brought forward. If anything, you have some new movies to watch.

Josie and The Pussycats. Dir. Elfont and Kaplan. 2001. Marc Platt Productions.
Memento. Dir. Christopher Nolan. 2000. Newmarket Capital Group.