Prince Charming on the white Skateboard?

Once upon a time in the very center of the city of Utrecht there was a dirty den of junkies. The place represented the dark kingdom of druggies and bums, but with the arrival of skateboarders it has turned into the magic never-never land with amazing oval constructions called ramps. The whole story would become a pro-skating fairytale with the happy end if the place was not the private property of the Utrecht Municipality that enforced “hooligans” to abandon the place. Nowadays the battle for the right to own the place between light forces of skateboarders and dark of junkies still continues. I fortunately got the opportunity to visit the fairyland and to find out why in the contemporal fairytale princes ride skateboards instead of white horses.

 

 

Nowadays in the consumption obsessed society it is hard to believe in fairytales, princes and evil forces. However, the passionate and creative spirit of skateboarding makes you to change your original point of view and to see the things in a completely different, up-side-down way: forbidden property may not be even more associated with illegal access but seems to be a tempting hidden castle. The place I am talking about is closed from the regular eye and has a big sign “No Entrance” in front that clearly states that the access is highly forbidden. Nevertheless, a narrow range of people know the secret loop-hole to get into the illicit territory, and I had the opportunity to meet one of them. These people call themselves skateboarders. Lot’s of rumors and discussions go around about this subculture, but the most attractive one is that these street guys are the “prince charmings” of the modern generation.

 

I found my “prince” trough the wide chain, which is popularly called “the friend of the friend of the friend of mine”. His name is Derk Klijton and by short characteristics of my friends he was “a cute lad who speaks good English”. I was intrigued, as I have never meet representatives of this wild street subculture in my entire life.

 

He offered to meet in the center but when I arrived to the place I couldn’t recognize my interviewee as in the diameter of 200 meters there were no guys wearing baggy trousers, gang caps or had long uncombed hair. Hating to wait, I angrily started to dial Derk’s telephone number, as in my opinion princes are never late. The melody of somebody’s phone sounded just next to me – I turned my head and saw a very trivial looking guy at whom your glance never delays for more then a couple of seconds. A typical Dutch teenager, millions of whom you see everyday walking along the streets – commonplace cloth of some cheap popular label consisted of light jeans and formless sweater. His face was even more ordinary, the face that you forget in a couple of hours. But the special feature was his eyes: deep blue they had some warm flame inside.

 

The single detail that showed his connection to skateboarding was an old board tied to the back of the bike that I’ve noticed only afterwards. I was so inattentive because of disappointment His look, his clothes, his odd smile just were wrong – he didn’t look at all like prince, and from the first impression he definitely was not charming.

 

 

It was an uncomfortable moment when he kissed me three times, and proposed to show me the legendary place, where one can skate without the fear of get caught by police. Furthermore, to my surprise it was not hard at all to start the conversation with him, as he turned out to be very talkative and obsessed with telling peculiar details about his life. I was so occupied with all of his life stories, that I didn’t note at all how we found ourselves in front of the high iron fence with a big table “No entrance”. He looked around and pushed the hurdle. Something has squeaked and the massive lattice has moved, creating a small passage. Derk easily wiggled through the passage, showing that it was far not the first time he was there and gently helped my hand. I remember my last time climbing under fences was on the play ground, but something wild and at the same time magic was in penetrating into the prohibited territory.

 

The way my interviewee helped me, how gently he helped me to climb under fence, made me to look at him from the other angle, thinking that maybe I was too judgmental. Nevertheless, my excitement and positive emotions disappeared at once, when I looked around and faced the place where I’ve found myself after the heroic clamber. Maybe this could be considered the magic never –never land, but in the kinky, dirty and sarcastic version of the fairytale. Abandoned piece of ruined railway reminded a thicket of scary woods which Little Red Riding Hood had to pass, but with pieces of graffiti on the walls, cigarette- butts, trash cans and revolting mountains of garbage that created nauseating smell, making your entire body tremble. My companion noticed my aversion and tried hard to help me walking, trying to distract me with funny legends about that place. Probably we walked for 3 minutes tops, but that time seemed for me to be infinity.

 

 

 So, after that heroic campaign through “jungles” of neglected cesspit I’ve found myself in front of hundreds of meters covered by cement, that skateboarders call “The Yard”.  This territory had some kind of channels made for unknown purposes that striped the whole perimeter. In the middle of that bondless structure could be traced the scents of princes on boards: chaotic constructions erected from all kinds of subsidiary material. The place didn’t remind a white castle or a glorious field of battle, but something supernatural was in it.

 

 

There were already two guys skating and despite my skeptical mood I must admit that it was fascinating. My escort, probably feeling guilty for all the troubles I had  to suffer gently saw me to highest stair –bridge over the channel and put his rather dirty sweater for me to sit on. The gesture was simple, but it seemed to be so sweet, that my all snobbish anger had immediately disappeared. He asked me to enjoy the performance and left me as a spectator over the channel. If not unsustainable cold, this whole thing would seem to be some kind of romantic: water is flowing under, forbidden property in the center of the city, youngsters on the boards perfectionalizing tricks.

 

 

My trembling hands showed me that I was watching the whole “skateboarding spectacle” for quite some time. Fortunately, at the moment I thought I started to cover with ice, Derk had finally come around to answer my ticklish questions. He was so prudent, that he brought with him some dirty jackets, for me not to turn into an icicle. Before starting our interview he asked a minute and greedily swallowed the coke like he’d never drunk before. However, his drinking process was followed by a belch and a phrase “I am a man”. I don’t know what was more hilarious – his last phrase, instead of an excuse or him proudly glazing at me like he committed some heroic act, that has to be praised for.

 

 

He spitted right next to me, so I could smell his unsustainable odour of sweat. Nevertheless his tiredness didn’t cover his impatience as he without delay started the narration about the fascinations of skateboarding. As it turned out Derk was skating for more than 5 years. His story of love affair with the skateboard started at the age of 14, when little Derk was “a shy nerd” who once found himself in a skate shop, full of pictures of “cool” guys, courage enough to fall and to perform the breathtaking tricks. From that day on the little insecure boy faced his fears mixed with passion and started his endless relationship with a piece of wood that rolls. He had never regret about that day, which magically changed his life, as by his words, skateboarding has taught him to enjoy the life and freedom. “Surfing on the earth” became for him not a commonplace hobby, a mean of transportation or even an art, like most people assume, but a lifestyle that let him to feel free. He confessed that skateboarding allows him to throw out the anger, instead of keeping it insight, and to run away from everyday routine and just be with yourself.  

 

In his opinion, all the amazing bonuses of skateboarding make him more attractive to the girls. For being more assertive, Derk quoted for me the interview of skateboarder’s girlfriend who told that guys obsessed with skating are better in bed. He became so excited by this topic that he went into telling me the details of his relationships searching for support and understanding. However, to my question whether he’ll ever change a board for a girl he reacted aggressively and explained that his relationship with his “horse” is much longer then those with girlfriends. Moreover his skateboard has never cheated on him, never asked for “closeness” and has never ever created all that drama of the series “you don’t love me anymore”. He became so agitated by his memories that after a livid with rage monolog about ex-girlfriends he exclaimed, ”Nobody mess with my board!”.

 

However, he was calm again in a minute and full with enthusiasm to teach me skating. He insisted that I have at least to stand on the board. However, the class lasted till the end of the day, followed by my falls, screams and thrill. 

 

On my way back, I didn’t notice the garbage, the smell and my dirty white shoes, and even abrasion on my knee – I was occupied with the thoughts about this unusual youngster. Maybe we are raised in old-fashioned conservative way believing that princes have to be intelligent heroes with no demerits and maybe because of these we don’t notice the care and the passion of those who are right next to us. Maybe intelligence and heroism have to be changed to care and danger in the new millennium? I reminded all those miserable details that happened during last couple of hours, when Derk was so thoughtful and sweet and asked myself a question that I couldn’t answer by now: “Can it really be true that skateboarders are the new modernized version of princes charming?”

Visiting a social Coffee Pot

Starbucks is “The place” that symbolizes cultural imperialism, Americanization, mass production, and dumping competitive attacks. Nevertheless, for the majority of Americans, outlets of this brand are “third place” – besides home and work – to spend time . According to the CEO of this mega-franchiser, people who line up for coffee aren’t there just for energetic potable, but for the romance of aroma experience and the feeling of warmth and community.  

 

Coming from the former soviet country and being passionate with Hollywood movies I’ve been to Starbucks many times: I attended it together with heroes of commercial movies, desired it in advertising and experienced it in anti-globalists works like “No logo”. Unfortunately all of the above were imagined trips and I was impatiently waiting to find myself in the destination for all coffee-fanatics. In my lifetime scenario I imagined my first visit to Java Mecca somewhere in a mega polis like New York to enjoy its scrumptious gustation on to work. In the real life, I’ve had my first “branded coffee”
 in the Schiphol airport in the surrounding of screaming and hurrying people and the squeezing voice that denoted announcements.

 

You will not believe it, but I’ve found my first Starbucks by amazing aroma, that could be sensed meters from the destination. Guided by the scent of coffee beans I found myself in front of a shop with big letters “StarBucks”.  But the place was wrong. There was no sense of warmth, no praised high wooden design – it looked like a cheap take-out outlet. Where were those happy people, close community and superb atmosphere? Nothing could remind me of the magic place seen on the screen except for logo of twin-tailed mermaid that was posted literally everywhere starting with cups and finishing with toothpicks. But my disillusionment had just started.

 

Paying no attention to unappetizing and out-of-date brownies in the showcase, I ordered a liquid with evoking name “Impanema Latte”. When I finally got a sacramental paper cup with au fait logo I could not withstand to the arousing scent of coffee beans. All ready to sense enchantment fluid, I brought the mug to the lips, closed my eyes and the next moment I remember myself bevel from disgust. The “thing” that I’ve just swallowed was not latte; it was not coffee at all – rather then delicious sensation of coffee beans the beverage had a repellent taste of camel pee. Disappointed and angry I left the coffee house and generously gave my “cherished” latte to a junky sitting on the floor of Schipol.         

 

By Langston Hughes one has to hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken winged bird that cannot fly. This expression is too exaggerated in my case, but it has a grain of truth, because disappointments can ruin the mood and the dreams, at least for the rest of the day. Being an optimist I am still dreaming of sipping a delicious Starbucks latte while rushing through New York crowd – maybe there the taste is different. But by now I’ve decided never again to become a victim of cleaver cinematography, manipulative screenwriting and misleading advertising.

 

Penetration into Coffee society

If you woke up one day and found yourself in the land of wooden shoes and tulips, there is no reason for xenophobia, take a deep breath and be prepared to view the world from the “natives’” point of view. Because 99.9% of the HU population is Dutch, the outcast of “non-cloggies” has no choice but to Dutcheralize themselves!

While researching for tricks to “Dutcheralize,” I wandered through the school corridors, counting the amount of coffee machines. They seemed to be everywhere and I felt they were a cornerstone, a countrywide pride, just like the Museum of Heineken in the center of Amsterdam. Why coffee, is it just a drink? Well, it is not that cut and dry, because for Dutch people, coffee is a national obsession. A cup of coffee marks all goings out and comings up. It is a liquid used around friendships, funerals, birthdays and office life pivots. To give you a better idea with statistics: the average Dutch person swallows 165 liters of this “stuff” each year. It is the essential lubricant of ‘gezelligheid’ (coziness).

In the Netherlands and at FCJ in particular, coffee is served black and strong enough to double the pulse rate. Milk coffee is tolerated, but is considered to be al- most another kind of drink. In the native language it is called koffie verkeerd, literally “coffee wrong”. Let’s not forget about the fundamental accessory to a Dutch coffee; biscuits that come with every mug as a mandatory addition to a few sugar cubes and a napkin. The rule of thumb dictates a fixed ritual; coffee in the morning, also at 11 am (with one cookie), during lunch at 3 pm (with one cookie), after dinner and at 8 pm. (with one cookie). The Dutch nibble through more biscuits per annum than any other nation in Europe. The only reason they are not on the top of the coffee consumption league is the fact that some- where, someone must be recycling used coffee beans.

In the “Lonely Planet” guide to the Netherlands, it is noted that coffee for Dutch is a way of taking a break from the burdens of hard work. The local Café is a communal sitting room; cozy, smoky and packed with people who left their own living rooms empty and pristine. You don’t have to search long for a place like this, on the faculty of FCJ “Stef ’s” is the symbol of the java melting pot.

The primary requirement for entry to “Café Society” is an opinion. Armed with at least one opinion, a Dutch person can while away a whole evening locked in endless verbal battle over a cup of coffee, or as the evening progresses a slim glass of beer. While debating with “cloggies,” it is necessary to use national idioms to add spice to a discussion. A suitable way of calling someone crazy is to tell him “you have been hit by a windmill.”, and if a “cheese head” is getting too personal, ask him to mind his own business by using the expression: “keep your clogs off the ice” (blijf met je klompen van ‘t ijs). If you are currently struggling to survive the fl at land in Northern Europe and the HU in particular, immerse yourself in the Dutch society by turning into a coffee maniac, even if the java beverage is not your favorite item on the menu. Let’s raise our mugs!
Written for the school magazine “The Neo Times”, December 2007

Holly tolerance

We can write as many Holocaust memoirs as possible and have as many memorial days as we want, to mourn 6 million victims of the Second World War – but it would be a waste of time, if we wouldn’t learn any lessons. It is amazingly surprising that after the horror of World War II anti-Semitism is well being and alive. I contacted the president of the European Region of the World Union for Progressive Judaism – Rabbi Awraham Soetendorp to get the answers why does anti-Semitism still take place in the Netherlands.

 

If you happened to visit a football match in the Netherlands and you happen to be a Jew, it would be impossible to enjoy yourself. During the match you will undoubtedly hear the shushing sound of leaking gas reminding of gas chambers and “exciting” slogans like “Yahud, yahud, Dirty cancer Jews”. But when you will ask Dutch people about it, they would consider it to be “nothing to do with Jews”, and start explaining long stories about football club Ajax. But is it just football or it is something deeper then this?

Statistics reveal shocking results of the current state of discrimination against Jews in Holland:

·         15% of the Dutch population harbors strong anti-Semitic views

·         During the Second World War, 74% of the 140,000 Dutch Jews were murdered, the highest percentage than in any other Western European country

·         The report on European anti-Semitism published by the European Monitoring Center on Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC) in 2002 showed :”the Netherlands witnesses rather serious anti-Semitic incidents such as numerous physical attacks and insults directed against Jews and the vandalism of Jewish institutions (synagogues, shops, cemeteries)”

·         On the national Memorial Day for the victims of the Second World War commemorative ceremonies are disturbed year by year. In one area in Amsterdam, de Baarsjes, youngsters shout, “Jews have to be killed,” about twenty times during the two minutes of silence in memory of the dead.

·         The movie  Goodbye Holland by the Dutch moviemaker Willy Lindwer, that dealt with the considerable Dutch collaboration with the Nazis during the war as well as with the discrimination against the returning Jews to the post-war, democratic Netherlands  was completely censored under the threats of law suits with Dutch famous politicians.

 

 

·         At least once a year in Holland, synagogue walls are marked with graffiti, and Jewish cemeteries are occasionally desecrated. As far as the latter is concerned, the perpetrators are usually extreme rightists.

·         One former senior Dutch cabinet minister once told: “If I were a Jew, I would not want my children to grow up here. I would tell them to emigrate to the United States, Israel or Australia. In view of the present mood and developments in the Netherlands, Jews should realize that there is no future for them here as they will continue to be less and less welcome.”

 

There is an opinion that tolerance stimulates crime. By present 2008 Dutch government hadn’t publicly acknowledged assistance of Dutch bureaucracy in the preparatory stages of the murder of Dutch Jews. Furthermore, the government also continues to misinterpret the post-war discrimination in the Netherlands. The problem is that Jews represent only about 0.2% percent of the population, and discriminating against them is sometimes rather difficult because many are so assimilated that they cannot be easily recognized as Jews, even by other Jews. When encountered with the questions about anti-Semitism Rabbi Soetendorp rejected to answer as he told that it is ”dirt that mucked by the press”

By Dutch journalist Manfred Gerstenfeld “For quite some time museum of Anna Frank served as the symbol of Dutch benevolence. However, the myth of Good Dutch, at least in Jews eyes, is being diminished. On of the reason – Holly tolerance”. Dutch citizens close the eyes and justify the cruelty covering with the mask of the “Freedom of speech”. “We have the freedom of speech, that has the variety of interpretations. -says Rabbi Soetendorp-. But on the other side we have the right of not being offended. And there is a huge tension between these two terms.  I think that in most cases dubious freedom of speech is a “Crowd behavior”. So we should not isolate anti-Semitism from the general problem in the society.”

We are told to love our neighbors as ourselves. Nice concept, but how to implement it when in our blood runs the poison of anger, when jealousy and hatred in most cases become the compass and reasoning of actions and when the animal planet is not a TV program anymore, but a harsh reality. How do you bring a person to love, not just tolerate, but accept, respect and do not judge? Encountered with this question Rabbi Soetendorp smiled:  “You have to exercise your soul like you exercise your body. And when you exercise to run a marathon, the hour per day is not enough! So exercise your soul, have the education, and love the one who is next to you, no matter what is the color of his skin, or in which God he believes in”

One thing you can’t recycle is wasted time

A characteristic of the creative commercial is an ability to appeal to consumers, to catch their attention and to get inside their minds. This is the conventional belief that most advertising people, both creative side and account side, are suppose to know. Nevertheless easy to say then to execute real advertising plan since continuous conflicts exist between the advertising executives responsible for sales effectiveness and the creative people viewing the potency as the outcome of creativity. There is no clear distinction between these two aspects of proficiency: some creative commercials are effective, some effective ads are creative, other ads are neither creative nor effective. Despite the general controversy in application, cinematic attributes can hyperbolize the impact on potential consumer, even not being creative in core. The following scenario of the commercial will depict literal combination of above-mentioned effects.

Following the rules of cinematography the first scene is meant to introduce the central figure. In the establishing shot the viewer beholds a middle-aged man who dashes through the crowd on the street of a metropolis. It is raining, so slow fall-offs create the impression of the overcast.  The outfit of the man is unexpressive and represents an ordinary beige trench coat that you can buy for 80 dollars in the nearby department store. The costume creates a conjecture of a “corporate” worker, but who probably doesn’t hold a high position as his clothes are too crummy and common. The make-up of the actor, that is exposed in the consecutive close-up also provide us with subliminal cues: the man is in a hurry, because of red, flurried and perturbated face. The actions of the hero endorse our assumptions: he canters, runs, crams and pushes through the surrounding crowd obviously in a rush. Hustling protagonist plunges into the entrance of subway and the next shot embodies a dark mise-en-scene of cryptic staircases with underexposed background. By the diegetic sound of leaving trains the viewer subconsciously apprehends the place of action.

The next shot is critical for the disclosure of our narrative, as in this episode the creative aspect of the commercial is unveiled. The male lead sprints to the closing doors of leaving train and here is when the art of cinematography comes into action. The man forced his way through the closing doorways of a subway, while his twin in the next shot didn’t manage to catch the train, and for the purpose of clear comprehension the shot becomes black and white. The function of this episode is to render to the viewer two possible scenarios of the same personage, for whom 2 seconds played the fatal role. Colors carry its symbolic meaning – scenes of happiness and hedonism are delineated by warm, ardent and highly-outspoken visual aspects, while those of ruin of bad luck and sadness usually come in dark colors. The scene of bifurcation of the person with the effect of color alteration exaggerates and evokes the outcome of narrative.

The ensuing story consists of disclosure of the consequences devolving around the same man depicted in different screenplays. The next scene debunks the colorful scene of the hero making a brilliant presentation for his fellow colleagues that is followed by exciting applause. The scene is followed by black and white paraphrase of the unlucky personage who takes a taxi, and got stuck in a traffic jam.  The next monochrome shot bespeaks his late arrival to work. The man is flushed and tired finally reaches the office and see the room where the colorful twin made the presentation before. The room is empty – dark, fast fall-offs, underexposed background thus creating an unpleasant feeling of deserted room. Mise-en-scene overstates the impact, as scattered papers on the round table in the center testify the passed meeting.

The next shot is also a part of epopee of about bifurcation of the heroes: the setting represents a crowded lounge of a restaurant, where a beautiful, all dressed-up woman in the center table is waiting for her date. The next moment we grasp a colorful scene of arrival of the main character: he gently kisses the woman and presents her a flower hidden in the noted above beige trench coat. He takes a place in front of her and hey-key lightning of scene magnify their felicity. The scene is followed by identical setting of the restaurant in black-and-white version but now the restaurant is empty and the woman is indignant whilst checking her hand watch all the time. Tired of waiting she grabs her coat and leaves the restaurant. The next moment the central personage arrives and finds no one waiting for him, but waiters cleaning the tables.

The last episode is palpable, as it shows reunion of the two leading men: the black and white fragment features the black and white hero opening the door and entering the flat by using close-ups and middle shots of key-hole, table where the man throws keys and the bed on which the he falls down. The subsequent shot embodies the same actions of the same character, but in color and with the difference that the man’s face is shining with happiness. The protagonist goes to bed, where on the other end lies his black and white-copy and the light goes off…  The closing colorful shot illustrates the complete central personage, who wakes up in the middle of the night and reaching to touch his hand to find the stylish watch on his arm. The commercial ends with words, pronounced by the voice-over: “2 seconds can change you life. Keep the time. The brand of the watch”.

The implementation of the commercial became possible of literal editing, that gave liberties with space-time continuum. First of all the main aspect that makes this commercial creative and artful is the delineation of the same man that was possible only because of of-line editing. Secondly, free placement of shot made us flexible in time. The commercial is made of hundreds of fragments stuck together, that means that images we are viewing are constantly and instantaneously changing. But it is not disorienting, as the viewers are not conscious of the fragmented nature of film for the reason of continuous editing and cine-literacy of viewers. The film needn’t to show all the way the ride in the metro, the arrival to work, the whole presentation, as we automatically conclude because of narrative structure. The graphic matching was a main tool to create the parallel story.

Edits are frequent, constantly presenting us with changing visual images, but the non-diegetic sound is continuous, carrying over from one shot to the next and so helping to connect the images and provide continuity between fragments. The background music provide the viewer with sound motifs which contribute to their engagement with the narrative and aid a sense of completeness. The extra dimension that the sound creates is the mood of passing time. Meanwhile diegetic sound (that belongs to the world of film) adds vividness and realism to the shot, in the interim off-screen diegetic sound gives subliminal cues to the action place, (e.g. when the man is running down the stairs we don’t need to see the trains to conclude that he is in a subway, as the characteristic sound provides us with visual guidelines).

The abovementioned commercial has to win many Effie’s, because of interesting representation of the story, cinematographic effects and most importantly creativity, as we don’t know till the end what is the commercial about. Brilliant implementation gives us a filling that we watch a movie instead of a misleading 30-seconds advertisement. But the language of film is only a tool to reach effectiveness, to make the potential consumer to identify himself with the central character and to conclude that if he will not wear the advertised brand of watch he will be late and unlucky during all his life. The commercial described above proves that creativity can successfully go hand in hand with efficiency in order to reach the main goal of ad’s existence: “get to the heart and mind of the customer”.

 

All Time classic

In every woman’s wardrobe there is hidden a key to a successful show up in the society, an item that became the epitome of timeless fashion. It is the answer to your every “What should I wear to…” question from cocktail parties to class reunions. It is the style of life. It is the emblem of exquisite taste. It is everything that you need and nothing that is above the line. The Duchess of Windsor characterized this “dress to impress” better then anybody: “When the little black dress is right, there is nothing else to wear in its place.” Whether it’s a Dorothy Parker-style “gownless strap” or a full-blown, taffeta meringue, little black dresses are some of the most versatile items of clothing you will ever own – and can be dressed up or down. Timeless and classless, they have survived every fad on the fashion roller-coaster – from Coco Chanel and Audrey Hepburn to Elizabeth Hurley and Siena Miller.

This frock is not a piece of texture or material anymore, it the symbol of elegance, always associated with Coco Chanel, the woman credited with inventing almost every aspect of chic. It makes perfect sense that the little black dress would be a product of Chanel’s flapper era. Besides being black, the couture’ defining characteristic is being sexy without being revealing, something flapper style perfected.

You may ask the question: but why black dress and more importantly, why little? Well, the outfit has been elevated to legendary status due to its practicability. It’s always appropriate, which is really just a side effect of it being consummate chic. Because it’s now a class of garment in its own right, it has even more power to transcend conventional dress codes than it did to begin with. Wearing it you may be slightly overdressed, but you will look sophisticated, not prudish. Or for some you might be underdressed, but on any body type it looks hip. The little black dress is the gear that looks good no matter what. How come – is there is some kind of mystery in the seam, or maybe it is tailored with a magic needle?

Karl Lagerfeld, as the main representative of Chanel house and an expert in stylish female panoplies lit the box of vagueness by disclosing the construction of the LBD. According to Mr. Lagerfeld a standard voguish version is generally a variation on a sleeveless shift. It is never overly tight, though it may have a fitted bust. It skims the figure rather than clinging to it. As hemlines change, the hem of the little black dress rises or falls with the times, but it always hovers around knee length. However, the demure cut of the body of the wear doesn’t imply that it has to be conservative. On the opposite, during the centuries, paying no attention to sex-idol trends, the little unrevealing of skin at the neck or shoulders served as a symbol of tasteful desire. While it typically leaves the arms bare, it does not expose anything as obvious as massive cleavage or the full length of the wearer’s legs and this is what makes it mysteriously chic.

 

As the Christmas party invitations begin to arrive, the annual question of what to wear arises. But really, the choice is obvious. Shop windows along the high street may be as shiny as disco balls, awash with beads, sequins, gold Lurex and silver lamé, but leave the razzle-dazzle to the Christmas tree. We -ladies of any age and social income- swoop past the tempting magpie offerings and head for the one rail that has been colonized by fashion’s classic Little Black Dress.

Touch of Evil

According to Ingrid Bergman “No form of art goes beyond ordinary consciousness as film does, straight to our emotions, deep into twilight of the soul”.  The point that Mrs. Bergman stresses is that every shot consists of combination of things that create the effect on the viewer – these things seem to be too obvious and humans are so accustomed to them, so they process them subconsciously. The goal of an author is intentionally combine physical elements within the shot, so the desired impact on spectator is achieved. That is when function of mise-en-scene comes into action – literally “placing on scene” that effectively determines mood or relationships between elements in the diegetic world.

 

The Orson Welles “Touch of Evil” is classified as film Noir (literally black film), that pursues the trend of ‘darkness’, downbeat and black theme. The trend was used mostly in detective and crime movies – so we can automatically identify Welles’s movie connected to crime, knotted plot, private eyes and femme fatale. Though many critics argue that film noir is mostly the mood, “Touch of evil” essentially ended the era of film noir and established darkness and mystery as a genre. Film noir has a large aspect of specific cinematic attributes, that are mostly expressed in mise-en-scene of the film, specifying the secrecy of the genre.

 

To establish the mysterious mood of the film, the author used low-key lighting schemes producing stark light/dark contrasts and dramatic shadow patterning. Fast falloffs apply high contrasts upon the set and characters in order to disguise identity and retain mystery, like for example in the opening shot two men are lighted just enough to identify the silhouettes and basic features. Chiaroscuro lighting applies shadows to comment on a character’s psychology: such as blocks of shadows, hinting an unrevealed “dark side” of two walking man, and clearly lightened face of the man who is hiding under the bridge, contradistinguishing “goodness” of the character. The action takes place at night that is very typical for the genre to exaggerate peril and riskiness. Predominantly black background highlights the general atmosphere and predisposes the viewer to expect a secretive and enigmatic case/siene  to take place.

 

The setting of the movie is consistent with the genre and represents urban lanscape in the context of “maze”. Grotesque bridge somewhere on the edge of the city, smoke, incomplete constructions and installations on the background position the cabbalistic setting, that not only gives us a sense of place of action, but also actors’ state of mind, the mood and the atmosphere of the episode. Abandoned warehouse where dust hangs in the air, dripping water, sharp walls -a perfect blend of form and content, where the desperation and hopelessness of the situations is reflected in the visual style, which drenches the world in shadows. The whole atmosphere of the surrounding suggests that some secret has place between the shown personages, which is further confirmed by their movement and actions.

 

In the opening shot we see two men in long trench coats, suits and fedora hats looking like hard-boiled detectives or private eyes, cops, gangsters, government agents, petty criminals, or just plain Joes. Their outfit suggests that the action takes place in the United States in the post war period 1950-60. The proximity of characters implies that they have good or dependant relationship and probably they have a shared discharge. The costume identifies not only possible traits of characters, but also underlines detective genre of the movie.

 

Film noir tend to revolve around heroes who are more flawed and morally questionable than the norm, often fall guys of one sort or another. The characteristic heroes of noir are described by many critics as “alienated“; in the words of Silver and Ward, “filled with existential bitterness.” Under the bridge we see the man, who probably falls under the abovementioned archetype, because of his costume and position within the scene.   Human eye first aligns on white spots, so the white short of the man immediately catches our attention. Dominant contrast that is achieved through a juxtaposition of lights and darks makes the viewer’s eyes go toward the brightest object in the scene – and to spot the hero and his action. The man’s face is smeared in fuel and dust that with the combination of his movement gives us the impression that he struggles to survive or discovers a tangled case. Because we react psychologically to the position and proximity of objects, we can conclude that the presence of the “hero” is not desirable, as he hides, dodges, lies low and follows the gentlemen on the bridge.

 

The sharp movements of the “hero” also create the dominant contrast to those slow and unhurried of the two men, so the viewer’s eye will try to trace his actions with close attention. The position of actors is also conspicuous within the shot, because of psychological weight – men on the bridge are situated on the top characterizing power and dominance, while the man under the bridge with his actions: taping the conversation, tries to break his entrapment.

 

To stress the literate composition of mise-en-scene within the movie and more importantly the function it plays, I would like to quote Charlton Heston – “Touch of Evil, of course, was made by one of the great directors and in greatest manner, combining every detail to create an awesome Impact on the viewer. If it is not Citizen Kane, it has been listed not far behind Kane in the list of Welles’ films”.

Red Light or Bright Orange?

Colors go beyond the ink and represent a euphonious pattern of non-verbal communication, that sometimes worth millions words.  It is essential for audio visual communicators to keep in mind how the eye and the mind perceive certain colors and the color meanings we associate with each color. Quentin Tarantino being arguably one of the most influential film makers understood power of colors that is why the scenes of film “Pulp Fiction” carry so ample emotional value.

 

Besides creating psychological reactions colors can also enforce physical processes that trigger perceptions and associations. The most famous color, which has such a magical supremacy, is red. From ancient times it was wide known that red can raise blood pressure and panic fear. Mr. Tarantino has found more meanings and applications of this prevailing color and used it for different purposes, creating desired effects.

 

The genre of gangster bravado dictates the presence of murder, danger, violence and aggression. The director had chosen to hint the audience about the genre with the presence of the red color.  In the scene where we see for the first time Jules and Vincent to go “to work”, the single bright red car stands right in the middle of the scene to cue the viewer about the bloody pool that is going to take place further. On the way to Marvin’s apartment the danger is alerted by presence of red objects in the mise-en-scene: red couch in the lobby, red plastic pail in the corner, red exit signs on the doorways. Even when we visually get into apartment the director hints us to the murder by showing a close up of bloody red ketchup of tachuna burger.

 

One of the most popular meanings of red color is passion, love, heat, desire. To express the sizzling sexual milieu, majority of film makes use shots of bedrooms, concupiscent of actors or open sexism. Pulp fiction has a careful and original representation of desire, by using just the colors of mise-en-scene. The scenes of passion take place around Mia and Vincent.  The first scenes of the date don’t immediately introduce the heroine, but rather her full blown red lips in the style of Marylyn, that signal to the viewer about sexuality of the woman. While talking the beautiful pictures of contrasts between white teeth and sharp and playful tongue that clearly underline candent sexuality. As the date evolves the favorite objects of Mr. Tarantino, red autos, immediately strike that there is something going on or will be going between Vincent and Mia. As the heroes find themselves in a restaurant with a very “unsexy” name (Jack Rabbit Slam), the signals of infatuation continue – red uniforms of the clerks, red walls, red food server, red costume of the performer, red lips of Marylyn, red car, serving as a dining cab, even the red cherry on the top of Mia’s milk shake – a clear sign of seduction. Red napkins, red dishes, red round on the floor during the twist- all this small and smartly analyzed and positioned in order to reach desired sexual apocalypses.

 

 

 

From the ancient days red symbolized power. In the scene when Butch is being told by Marcellus Wallace that he must lose his next fight in the fifth round, Tarantino does nothing with the camera except leave it on Butch’s face for over a minute. This is very boring but does serve a purpose. Traditionally shots that stay on a character’s face are meant to get the viewer to concentrate on that character and think about what that character is feeling or thinking. Here the audience sees a traditionally type cast heroic actor being told what to do and being paid off to do it. Tarantino leaves the camera on him so that the audience is forced to consider how powerful Wallace is and how washed up Butch is. But the power of the scene is created by the background. Red light surrounding the hero not only serves for the purpose to refresh the shot and create vivid atmosphere, but also highlights Butch, so the viewer can concentrate. The scarlet spread glow creates the mood of power, surrounding the still and powerful siluete of Marcellus and the pod4enenie of Butch. Without the red light the scene would seem tedious and would not reach that fatal effect.

 

Intense and speed is the effects that can be created by the red as well. Tarantino uses red car to speed up the actions and add intensivity and aggression. This symbolism serves for the different purposes, but to my mind the main and the guiding is to create color constellations and subconscious vividness of the movie. Red cars, moving on the background of field of actions are unnoticeable, but the trained eye can spot hundreds of them passing by. In the very first scene of breakfast 4 red cars on the background swash through the window in order to create color assemblage with the red sofa and the depth of field. But this is nothing, comparing to 22 red chasing runabouts in the scene of Vincent and Jules driving around the city. The effect adumbrating murder highlighted by other red objects as fire department, red billboards , red traffic lights, red manikins in the shop, red alert on ambulance or police autos.  The interesting thing is that the red spot appears with special frequency: every 5 seconds, so not to noise the perception of viewers.

 

The passion of Tarantino for red cars exceeded the simple use of real motto objects. In the drug dealer house the attentive watcher can notice the picture of the red motorcar that creates the color constellations with the red shoes. The identical picture can be noticed in the toilet of Jack Rabbit Slam restaurant that can be discerned the minute when Mya skittishly glides to ladies room. The imagination of the director even transformed the dining tables in the abovementioned restaurants in the notorious automobiles.  

 

Mary C. Taylor, a famous watercolor artist once told that “using color is like walking a tight rope; one must achieve a perfect balance between what the color wants to do and what the artist wants to do, or all is lost”. I think that in the film Pulp Fiction Mr. Tarantino and red color came to the mutual understanding in order to create a rich pattern  

 

Gangsters Bravado

If you claim to have even the slightest characteristics of a film enthusiast, there is no way that you could have missed hearing or reading praises of the film Pulp Fiction.  A lot of us guess why this movie is so genius and provocative? To my mind director’s ability to find humor and absurdity in even the most horrible situation is the amazing part. Knowing Pulp Fiction to be  by far the most-critically hyped movie in recent memory, the last thing I wanted to do is to be a conformist and fall into step with every other analyses that was written. That is why in the following essay I would like to concentrate on the single episode “Vincent kills Marvin”.

Writer and director Quentin Tarantino has one and a major strength – dialogue. In most movies, the dialogue is designed to cue the next dramatic plot twist. But Pulp Fiction‘s characters talk about completely random subjects, things that any two people might talk about, and in these conversations the characters come off as being amazingly real, free from the Hollywood gloss of most films. In the abovementioned episode we are faced with one of these talented tricks – two gangsters are discussing life while driving a car. Their costumes contrasting with those of other heroes depict Vincent and Jules as professional criminals. What is remarkable, that Tarantino doesn’t describe these hit-men as one-side killing machines, but rather as humans, vulnerable to real life problems. The costume also serves for contradistinguishing personages: looking like twins there is the rule of thumb that siblings are total opposites as we further conclude from the discourse.

The scene takes place in a car – though we don’t see it in the shot – we can assume that it is a traditional gangster car –most probably a Cadillac. The car  is obviously moving but we can hardly see a twilling background. Don’t be fooled by the first impression, it is not a real pass-along milieu – it is “rear projection”, usually used to combine foreground action and actors in conversation, with a background often shot earlier, on location. But why in this scene we can’t spot unreal background, like we do in other movies? The secret hides within the lightning – foreground full of slow–falloff illumination followed by high key background lightning that makes us to concentrate on characters, rather then on location. From the actions and words of actors we assume that act takes place at noon – to maintain realism of setting traditional Hollywood three point lightning is used with fill light positioned just in front of the heroes. The lightning is interrelated with cinematography, so shallow focuses in combination with close-ups add and direct extra-attention to one of the heroes in the scene. Marvin, on the background, seems barely noticeable- as the film stock forces us to pay close attention on the cornerstone dialogue between Vincent and Jules. A camera lens has an aperture that controls how much light passes through the lens and onto the film. In the scene the background is overexposed to emphasize the shocking murder in the midday.The abomentioned tricks make the viewer smile rather then horrified , and this is what makes the scene memorable.

Cinema is an art of selection and Mr. Tarantino highly selected the cinematographic attributes within the movie. “Profilmic event” that is created by frames, establishes relationship between a camera and an object. Because of a poor mise-en-scene in described episode, we can conscientiously concentrate on association of camera with a persona. Shot scales, the same height of camera and characters, standard and medium close-ups – all these scaling and framing cinematographic effects visually proximate us with heroes. Different angle of framing enable us to concentrate only at one personage at a time, overviewing the consequential reactions of others during the development of the plot.

Though there are no establishing shots, with the tricks of editing viewers get a clear understanding that the action takes place in the car. How come that the quick transitions, lack of establishment of settings and a chaotic change of close-ups don’t make us confused, but rather represent a consistent narrative with a clear cause-and-effect relationship? To begin with, the axis of action has a special continuity, meaning that that the position of camera never crosses an imaginary line, widely known in editing as the 180 degree rule, so the viewer is not disoriented in the overall space where the action takes place. Furthermore there are no jump cuts as the camera position obeys 30 degree rule that we accept as viewing the scene from another point. One doesn’t have to measure a shot with a straightedge to spot the literacy of editing grammar; he can conclude it by not being lost and not experiencing movement to the new vantage point within a shot.

Pulp Fiction‘s got everything going for it. From top to bottom, the performances are dazzling, the dialogue is crackling, and the story never hits a lull. The language of film was intelligently spoken by applying rules of cinematography, editing and mise-en-scene. Tarantino’s twisted mix of the ludicrous, the horrifying, and the hilarious manages to be incredibly entertaining and, most of all, funny.

 December 2008

Made for Audio-Visual Communications