free as a dream
——Analysis of "Birdman"
"I want to be as free as a dream and as strong as the sky. On this winding road, I want to experience the meaning of life..."
"Birdman" is based on William Wharton's novel of the same name, and tells the story of Al trying to help his little birdman regain his memory and escape from the hospital after the war. Just like director Alan Parker's style, this film also reflects the director's anti-war and criticism of social issues, but the director uses more artistic techniques to successfully present to us his yearning for the pursuit of freedom and peace.
Flying in the Sun - Accuracy of Light
The control of the light in the film is precise and accurate. At the beginning of the film, the whole picture is in a dark and cool color system, and a beam of side backlighting through the glass window clearly depicts Birdman's feet, hands and face, along with his eyes towards the window, and this The beam of light is especially important. With the promotion of the Tyndall effect, this beam of light seems to have become a ray of hope for the freedom of life in the outside world. easier to understand. In the film, there are more birds and Al in the cell. They appear in the same room more than once, and the light at this time comes through the central window, and most of it shines on Al. Birdman is on the opposite side of the light - the dark place, which creates a very good setting for El's image - to wake up and save the birdman, and escape from the predicament together; the birdman has always been confused and abnormal. Or the appearance of a timid setting, doesn't this just reflect the great trauma caused by the real society and the war, and reflects the director's intention on the side. The giving of light also shows that Al is the guide who leads Birdman to pursue his dreams, so that the audience's visual attention will be unconsciously placed on Al to highlight his importance to Birdman. push. Not only that, the soft natural light, that is, the setting sun, shone on El and Birdman in the form of backlight. This was the second time Birdman flew over the garbage heap, which made his silhouette stand out clearly. It shows a sense of aesthetics, and it can also show that even though the dream of birdman flying is dangerous and out of reach, in his opinion, the dream of flying is always as beautiful as light, and he still has faith in his heart. For another example, at the end of the film, Al and the Birdman are hugging each other in the room, the same beam of light, it only shines on the bed, that is behind them, and what Al is waiting for is to leave the Birdman and send him to the madhouse. , This beam of subtle and precise light reflects the embarrassment and helplessness of the two of them, but just when El was alone and muttering to himself, the birdman spoke! The lens also gave the birdman a special feature, and the light hit the birdman's face. The light at this time played the role of giving hope to the birdman and El, so that the birdman who originally lived in the dark corner can also live in the dark corner. Re-chasing your dreams under the light. It can be said that the accuracy of light plays a very important role in the setting of characters.
Break free from the shackles of reality - the tightness of composition
A clever composition can pave the way for the relationship between the characters throughout the film, making it easier for the audience to understand the character settings. For example, in the film, in the shot of Al smoking a cigarette under the rain, a framed composition is used to frame the pillars in front of the house, enclosing Al in it, forming a sense of closure, so as to highlight Al’s birdman at this time. He was in a state of confusion and trouble, unable to help Birdman to return to normal helplessness. Compositions such as these appear when Birdman is quarreling with his father and when Al and the doctor are talking. They use framed composition and parallel composition to separate the relationship between the two people with door frames, highlighting the contradiction between the characters. , the side reflects that people's minds have been affected to a certain extent in the repressed social environment at that time, so as to highlight the director's theme. In addition, the film is repeatedly interspersed with views through the grid, forming the shadow composition of "X", the audience's sight is blocked by the grid, and it can also reflect the difficult situation of the characters from the side, such as Al and the doctor talking, It also includes the shadow of the grid shooting on the birdman, which can fully reflect the embarrassment of people and is a response to the harm caused by war to people. The closeness of the composition allows us to better understand the relationship and situation of the characters.
The ending of the film makes good use of the open-ended composition, and the ending is unexpected, reasonable, and neat, making the audience smile. The director's production ended like this to let the audience have a more positive understanding of the theme of the film itself, not only against war but also a praise for those who work hard to keep chasing dreams, and a tribute to the friendship between Bird and Al, even though Bird People may seem abnormal, but the heart dedicated to chasing dreams is eternal.
That's right, yearning for freedom, being strong and never giving up, just to experience the meaning of life.
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