iPad Play Date

The first aspect of the grass I noticed was its ability to independently sway. This creates a rather mezmorizing effect on the user. I began to impose my will upon the grass as I swirled my finger across the screen. I created targets, zig zags, and several words throughout the play time. This quickly became monotonous until I discovered you could actually stretch the grass to an unnatural degree. I thought the inclusion of this quality to the game almost cheats the user out of the experience. The purpose is to relax the user, stretching the grass switching the purpose to entertainment. Overall my impression of the game was a mediocre attempt to lull the user into an eco related frame of mind.

The meditation game is in complete contrast to the norm of apple contraptions due to its speed. Instead of completing actions quickly, the game forces the user to limit motion in order to succeed. This contradiction goes against the general argument that the "technology generation" won't be able to slow down and appreciate what's around in the real world. Ironically, the graphics of the game are far from anything realistic. The background of the game did nothing to relax me, it actually contributed an irritation factor.  The mountains and desert are similar to the old technology of video games. The clouds shifted every so often refusing to let me ignore the annoying landscape. Technology forcing me to slow down to appreciate this artificial scenery seemed hypocritical, not to mention the slowed pace of the game was initially irritating. However, once I played for a long span of time the challenge of keeping still overcame the boredom. The guru floating in the middle of the screen was an interesting addition. Not only did it give a subject to the game, it provided a soothing bouncing image to zone out on. Focusing on the floating guru actually led me to fail the game several time. So where he may have been a motivator to meditate and relax he acted more as a distraction from the game. After I closed my eyes, ignored the game completely, and forced myself to actually meditate it was an effective game. Ultimately the graphics had the opposite effect on the user as what was intended.

This stealthily placed camera, although a cool way to access nature from a distance, is a contradiction of its purpose. The cam is supposed to reveal an untouched and pure view of nature and wild animals. By placing the cam in nature we have disturbed the original environment even if in a small way. On the other hand, this is a very unique perspective on the eagles and their nest and doesn't seem to be disrupting the environment.

También La Lluva

The film Tambien La Lluva connects the making of a judicial film with the horrific plot of present day conflict. Interspersing scenes of Sebastian’s film about Columbus amidst the water wars of Bolivia allows the viewer to better recognize the similarities between the events. This link is emphasized as the line between fiction and reality is erased in a pivotal point during the sacrifice scene in the Columbus movie. Hatuey (aka. Daniel) uses his last moments of life to denounce the Christian faith and motivate the crowd of indigenous people to fight against their control. The scene up to this point has used long takes to let the emotion of the action sink in. There were also several rack focus shots. This served to shift between the moral and cultural divide between the Christian priests and generals and the struggle of the indigenous characters. Finally, one of the most striking shots in the scene is a low angle shot of the thirteen crosses. The angle, for me, implied an innocent perspective. This could be meant as a view from a child’s eyes or an indigenous spectator. From this perspective the viewer becomes overwhelmed with feelings of confusion and injustice towards the Spaniards. The viewer is then jolted back to reality as the scene cuts to a shot of the director, Sebastian, congratulating the crew with a megaphone. This low angle, three quarter shot emphasizes his power over the set and actors and makes the viewer feel he is on top of the world, both metaphorically and literally on top of a hill. As the Columbus scene ends a government vehicle pulls up and policemen begin to arrest Daniel for crimes in the water wars. The natives of Bolivia, still dressed as natives of 500 years in the past, attack a modern day car. A policeman initially drags Daniel into the frame as if the past is being forced to confront the present. The group of supporters for Daniel run into the frame from left to right, bursting through the natural order of events. The cuts become quicker as the tension of the action of the scene builds. The viewer sees the last native escape and then it cuts to a long take of Sebastian and Costa. The length of the shot expresses the awe of both the characters and the viewer as the irony of reality fully sinks in.

The Cave of Forgotten Dreams

The documentary, The Cave of Forgotten Dreams, is primarily told from the judicial rhetorical pattern. However, the director’s decision to add a postscript that changed to a deliberative focus created a fiery controversy. The postscript, as suggested in the Vanity Fair article Are We Really As Weird As Werner Herzog’s White Crocodiles?, Herzog presents the alligators as a metaphor for humans in an ever changing climate. Herzog’s ending metaphor suggests that although we should appreciate the past for its beauty we should mainly focus on ways to adapt to the world’s current issues. If it was Werner Herzog’s intention to motivate or persuade the viewers of this documentary to act somehow it is my opinion that he made the ending too disconnected from the rest of the film. If it was his goal to point out an interesting quality of human nature then he succeeded and the swift subject change almost becomes a summary of what he learned from his experiences within the cave and while making the documentary.

Many aspects of the film, such as the long shots of the landscape and the interviews conducted in the wild, attribute to the eco-friendly theme. Long shots were taken by helicopter of the beautiful area surrounding the cave. These images work to remind the viewer of a past where nature was primarily undisturbed. The footage of Werner Herzog and his camera crew along with a few scientists slowly exploring and mapping out the unknown in the cave allows the viewer to rediscover that forgotten time. The handheld filming style, although required for their initial filming, clearly benefitted the impact of the first exposure to the cave, allowing the viewer to be further immersed in the surreal situation. The strength of this effect fills the mind with thoughts of a symbiotic state of nature and pushes the current environmental threats momentarily out of the viewer’s memory. This sets up an intense contrast to the first image of the postscript – a nuclear power plant. It’s location, not far from the newly discovered cave, is fairly ironic. The entire film shared images of beauty and a nature yet to be tampered with by the modern day. In contrast, the postscript revealed that the modern day was only a stone’s throw away. The image of the nuclear plant is used to throw the viewer bluntly back into reality. Although the film sends the message of appreciate the past, the postscript adds an ethical element to our existence. The sudden jolt to and from contradictory ideas may be construed as Herzog’s attempt to motivate the viewer to readapt to the problems that are in the present. 

Eco-Sonnet

The wind whips against your face as you stare.

His face lights up with power and purpose

In response, never bothered by the air.

Every twist and turn wears at his surface.

He is an eco-friendly powerhouse

And rises stoically above the trees.

He may dare to perturb some flying grouse,

But for Luther his services save fees.

You can see him spinning from the highway,

You can see his white glisten from the grounds.

You can watch him tower even sideways,

He works hard to barely make any sounds.

However, the wind turbine knows it’s unique,

And his appearance is up for critique.

The Cove

I found The Cove to be a compelling depiction of the slaughter of a species. It is the combination of the spy and horror genres that creates a powerful and persuasive balance within the film. The spy aspect adds significant suspense to the action. It allows the viewer to experience the footage through “characters,” or the six people carrying out the mission. This unique perspective can be best expressed through the thermal and infrared shots of planting the cameras and speakers. Instead of just watching the action through impersonal narration and a cold lens, the shaky, hand-held camera along with the inverted black and white heat signatures enables the viewer to feel intensely connected to the action and immersed in the scheme. This style also includes the genuine nervous whispers and code of the crew, only adding to the situation’s tension. On the other hand, the horror genre aspect illuminates the suffering and murder involved in the situation. Scenes without dialogue in them, in this instance, were the most moving. Cold images ranging from bloody water and fishermen jabbing at barricaded dolphins to the faces of indifferent representatives or security guards spoke volumes about the conditions and severity of the problem. Another effective technique put to use in this aspect of the film was the use of typed facts appearing on the scene. They were used either over a particularly gripping scene or on a blank, black background. The white text plays into the cold, unfeeling attitude created earlier regarding the fishermen or the companies that perpetuate the act of capture and slaughter. A final tool used to fuel the horror story is the report about mercury poisoning. There were old shots of deformities and death from previous instances of mercury poisoning along with images of young children consuming the contaminated meat. This is used to expose a new level of corruption in the industry and show the relevancy of the issue to humans – that is if they weren’t already compelled to act out of compassion for the dolphins. The balance of the two genres made a convincing argument and powerful call for action. 

Wall-E Review

The title Wall-E highlights the plot through a robot’s perspective. The viewers are already anticipating the main character and the focus of the film. Some alternate titles might serve to shift the focus of the film. Titles such as "The Axiom" or "Buy’n’Large" would put more emphasis on the human aspect of the film. The argument could be made that shifting the focus in this way would emphasize the responsibility of the humans to act in order to solve the obvious issue in the film. However, the message is almost more powerful throughout the film because it is from an "outside" perspective. Wall-E's purpose is to serve the human race and therefore is severely impacted by their decisions. On the other hand, he is not responsible for their decisions and problems. This gives the viewer a true, unbiased view of the situation.

The first images of the film are of a normal wide shot of Earth and slowly zooms in to expose a desolated and deserted world. Accompanying the opening images is a song from the musical Hello Dolly “Put On Your Sunday Clothes.” Opening with this cheerful song and slowly morphing it to sound defective or broken is an effective tool to highlight the dismal situation. 

The opening credits set the tone as a futuristic film. The font, the same as is used for the name Wall-E, reflects Wall-E’s role on Earth as an advanced technology. This contrasts the reality of the state of the plant along with Wall-E himself, who is in fact beat up and the only one left of his kind. The viewer is also prepped to expect incorporation of impressive technology. This is consistent with the film in that we later journey along with Wall-E and E.V.E to the Axiom and all it's luxuries.

The last images of the film are of the population of the Axiom beginning to farm and revegetate the Earth. This move to action and attempt to better their society seems to be the primary the moral of Wall-E. These shots are eco inspiring because they encourage the viewers to protect the Earth from destruction by human irresponsibility and waste. 

The closing credits outline the reconstruction of Earth to “former glory.” The scenes work through evolution of humanity starting from the status of cavemen to the reintroduction of species such as fish and finally wrapping up with the rediscovery of technology like sailboats. The story that plays out as the reverse of the story within the actual film. The movie Wall-E shows the regression of human progress to a vegetative lifestyle while the closing credits illustrates a rebirth of humanity and a rediscovery of Earth and it’s treasures.

The opening scene reveals a literally trashed Earth. This is horrible, non-livable condition of Earth motivates the viewers to take more eco-friendly actions. The viewers are again shown the importance of care for the Earth during the scene that the captain is talking to the plant. He says, “You just needed someone to look after you that’s all.” This was a major turning point for the captain as he recognized his role in repopulation the Earth now that it is life sustainable. The third scene that argues for the importance of eco-friendly action is the ending scene. The images of farming and talking to the children added a new spin on the argument. The scene argues that teaching the next generation the value of preserving the planet is essential to the Earth's success. 

The eco-friendly message of the film would be lost on elementary school students. They would only retain the humor from the silly cartoons. College students would certainly perceive the message. However, it is doubtful that these students would question or discuss the issues brought up by the film.  Finally, the message would be grasped by parents but not necessarily discussed with their children, who may be too young to comprehend the depth of the film.