Short of the Week: Night Mayor by Guy Maddin (Note: You will need to watch this film on the National Film Board of Canada’s website: http://www.nfb.ca/film/night_mayor/)
I do appreciate "Night Mayor" as an art form, but the way the film was displayed is not my personal taste in style and aesthetic. The few things I did like about this film, however, was the consistency with the story line, I never felt lost or confused as to what was going on, unlike the awkward camera movements and objects constantly obstructing an audiences view(the flasshes of white noise and discombobulation of stars) which was confusing. I liked the way the story was told as a narration of this family working with thier father. And third, I like that this film did not seem to adhere to any film makers' "rules". There was never a still camera shot, barely any dialogue between characters, even though the film was black and white, there was no indication of proper lighting. Would this style be considered one made up of "dutch shots"? One thing that did appeal to me was the tone of eccentricity and slight psychological uneasiness given off by the father. To me, its a way to grab the audience and help them pay attention to see if the characters are about to do something completely mental. Did you notice that when the faher, with his foreign accent, says "Night Mayor" it sounds very close to "nightmare"? Like I said, if I Had made this short film with this concept, I would have done it a completely different way, the style is not at all something I like, but I do appreciate it and I agree it was an interesting take on the story.
This short kept me interested even though it seemed a bit too in-depth for me. I really liked the introduction of his family and how his children would voiceover as well. One of the funniest things was how his children would say how he was obsessed with the sky and the stars because that had the "answers for all the questions". This goes with astronomy and how we, human beings, are truly made of stars. The black and white works well with this short because it makes it as basic as possible and the audience can focus more on the acting, lighting, and plot. In order for me to really understand what was going on I had to watch this about three times...But since this film is everywhere I could be looking too much into it.
Experimental-type films that have a plot fascinate me. Because I have listened to experimental/psychedelic music in the past, like Boards of Canada and Animal Collective, I think it helped me understand this film a little better.
This film was pretty interesting, but it was very unusual and definitely not my style of film. It had that old-experimental/science documentary feel to it with a little bit of creepiness. I've seen a couple of films like this that are black and white and have that hazy imagery with tons of different images flashing around quickly, it definitely fits that niche market.
The big concern i have is that it felt a little boring and slow moving. I think it's just the way the style of the short film is, but it kind of seemed like nothing really happened. Sure, the man made a great scientific breakthrough, but the way the setting never really changed and the fact that the only dialogue in the short was his monotone voice-dub over the entire time made it feel very slow and boring. But I do tip my hat to the idea of the words "Night Mayor" sounding very identical to the word nightmare, this added to the creepiness of the film I think Guy Maddin was trying to achieve.
It was interesting but confusing at the same time. The use of Black and White was fun though seeing what the time period was. I would have enjoyed it if it had gone a little faster. It seemed to go off on tangents, although there could have been meaning for them but i was to busy trying to figure out what the first on was. It wasn't bad it just could have been done a different way in my opinion. Again I could have missed it it but did it really explain what the father's relationship to his kids was like? It seemed to tell two different story's with the kids. overall it wasn't terrible just seemed like it could have used some work.
It is so experimental film that totally different from all the films I had ever seen. The pictures followed the music, exhibit the secret and a little bit scared for me. They use some camera noise and several pictures overlap to express the story. I didn't watched this kind of film before. I would like to say he is the pioneer of this kind experimental film.
I found "Night Mayor" to be an interesting and complicated film. I had to watch this film a couple times to try and understand what was going on, because of the unique/ experiment method in which the story was told. I felt like at times there was a disconnect between the voice-over, and the images being shown in the film. Perhaps that was to express the delusions and strangeness of the Inventor. This made the story confusing at times. I found it very interesting that the director chose to shoot this in black and white, when they could have just as easily shot in color. I suspect this was done to go with the setting of the film, as it was set in 1939. Regardless, I found it to be a very interesting stylistic choice. Overall I enjoyed the film. I found some of the images to be a bit disturbing, and the style of the film to be a bit outlandish, but I appreciated the uniqueness of the storytelling.
I didn't really enjoy the film. I kind of understood what was going on after a while, but I could see why the film would be confusing to someone else. They mainly told the story through narration and pictures. I appreciate that they tried to tell the story in a different way and experimented. However, I personally wasn't intrigued. In films, I think that yes, you should tell the story in a creative way, but you should also make sure that the story being told is clear and easy to follow.
"Night Mayor" was definitely unlike any other film I had seen before. They broke numerous rules that we have discussed in class, but there was a purpose for this. Breaking the rules, along with shooting in black and white with odd lighting, some quick cuts from one shot to another, the narration, and the music all created a creepy, mysterious feel. But like I said, all of this was intentional. They were going for a creepy feel and succeeded. I really didn't care for the film, but I do respect what they did and how they did it.
I found the imagery of this film to be very fascinating, dark and claustrophobic all around. The very frenetic editing was also used to great effect, leaving the viewer on edge throughout the film. I appreciate any film that experiments and avoids falling in line with the typical formulas and conventions we often see; this was no exception.
Additionally, there’s something about the soundtrack that gives this the feel of a classic horror or sci-fi film. Almost reminds me of frankenstein, particularly as the telemelodium ‘comes alive’. There also seems to be a depth of ideas here, all of which may not be readily apparent upon the first viewing, that may be worth analyzing. Then again, it may have all just been for stylistic effect, but this was an intriguing effort regardless.
The into of the film reminds me of the scenes and shots of the Twilight Zone. The majority of the shots include medium, and wide angle. The effects with the cutaways are more visual than any short film that we have seen.
The whole premise of the story is about a guy and his children sending out the sights and sound of the Aura Borealis. Evidently the main character figured out a way to communicate video over the telephone line.
I think it is funny that the Canadian government has military signals, and had to force the company out of business. This short film takes me back to watching other short films when I was a kid with my dad. Those films were the Twilight Zone, which were almost identical to the shots and sounds of this short film, Night Mayor.
I do appreciate "Night Mayor" as an art form, but the way the film was displayed is not my personal taste in style and aesthetic. The few things I did like about this film, however, was the consistency with the story line, I never felt lost or confused as to what was going on, unlike the awkward camera movements and objects constantly obstructing an audiences view(the flasshes of white noise and discombobulation of stars) which was confusing. I liked the way the story was told as a narration of this family working with thier father. And third, I like that this film did not seem to adhere to any film makers' "rules". There was never a still camera shot, barely any dialogue between characters, even though the film was black and white, there was no indication of proper lighting. Would this style be considered one made up of "dutch shots"? One thing that did appeal to me was the tone of eccentricity and slight psychological uneasiness given off by the father. To me, its a way to grab the audience and help them pay attention to see if the characters are about to do something completely mental. Did you notice that when the faher, with his foreign accent, says "Night Mayor" it sounds very close to "nightmare"?
ReplyDeleteLike I said, if I Had made this short film with this concept, I would have done it a completely different way, the style is not at all something I like, but I do appreciate it and I agree it was an interesting take on the story.
This short kept me interested even though it seemed a bit too in-depth for me. I really liked the introduction of his family and how his children would voiceover as well. One of the funniest things was how his children would say how he was obsessed with the sky and the stars because that had the "answers for all the questions". This goes with astronomy and how we, human beings, are truly made of stars. The black and white works well with this short because it makes it as basic as possible and the audience can focus more on the acting, lighting, and plot. In order for me to really understand what was going on I had to watch this about three times...But since this film is everywhere I could be looking too much into it.
ReplyDeleteExperimental-type films that have a plot fascinate me. Because I have listened to experimental/psychedelic music in the past, like Boards of Canada and Animal Collective, I think it helped me understand this film a little better.
This film was pretty interesting, but it was very unusual and definitely not my style of film. It had that old-experimental/science documentary feel to it with a little bit of creepiness. I've seen a couple of films like this that are black and white and have that hazy imagery with tons of different images flashing around quickly, it definitely fits that niche market.
ReplyDeleteThe big concern i have is that it felt a little boring and slow moving. I think it's just the way the style of the short film is, but it kind of seemed like nothing really happened. Sure, the man made a great scientific breakthrough, but the way the setting never really changed and the fact that the only dialogue in the short was his monotone voice-dub over the entire time made it feel very slow and boring. But I do tip my hat to the idea of the words "Night Mayor" sounding very identical to the word nightmare, this added to the creepiness of the film I think Guy Maddin was trying to achieve.
It was interesting but confusing at the same time. The use of Black and White was fun though seeing what the time period was. I would have enjoyed it if it had gone a little faster. It seemed to go off on tangents, although there could have been meaning for them but i was to busy trying to figure out what the first on was. It wasn't bad it just could have been done a different way in my opinion. Again I could have missed it it but did it really explain what the father's relationship to his kids was like? It seemed to tell two different story's with the kids. overall it wasn't terrible just seemed like it could have used some work.
ReplyDeleteIt is so experimental film that totally different from all the films I had ever seen. The pictures followed the music, exhibit the secret and a little bit scared for me. They use some camera noise and several pictures overlap to express the story. I didn't watched this kind of film before. I would like to say he is the pioneer of this kind experimental film.
ReplyDeleteI found "Night Mayor" to be an interesting and complicated film. I had to watch this film a couple times to try and understand what was going on, because of the unique/ experiment method in which the story was told. I felt like at times there was a disconnect between the voice-over, and the images being shown in the film. Perhaps that was to express the delusions and strangeness of the Inventor. This made the story confusing at times.
ReplyDeleteI found it very interesting that the director chose to shoot this in black and white, when they could have just as easily shot in color. I suspect this was done to go with the setting of the film, as it was set in 1939. Regardless, I found it to be a very interesting stylistic choice. Overall I enjoyed the film. I found some of the images to be a bit disturbing, and the style of the film to be a bit outlandish, but I appreciated the uniqueness of the storytelling.
I didn't really enjoy the film. I kind of understood what was going on after a while, but I could see why the film would be confusing to someone else. They mainly told the story through narration and pictures. I appreciate that they tried to tell the story in a different way and experimented. However, I personally wasn't intrigued. In films, I think that yes, you should tell the story in a creative way, but you should also make sure that the story being told is clear and easy to follow.
ReplyDelete"Night Mayor" was definitely unlike any other film I had seen before. They broke numerous rules that we have discussed in class, but there was a purpose for this. Breaking the rules, along with shooting in black and white with odd lighting, some quick cuts from one shot to another, the narration, and the music all created a creepy, mysterious feel. But like I said, all of this was intentional. They were going for a creepy feel and succeeded. I really didn't care for the film, but I do respect what they did and how they did it.
ReplyDeleteI found the imagery of this film to be very fascinating, dark and claustrophobic all around. The very frenetic editing was also used to great effect, leaving the viewer on edge throughout the film. I appreciate any film that experiments and avoids falling in line with the typical formulas and conventions we often see; this was no exception.
ReplyDeleteAdditionally, there’s something about the soundtrack that gives this the feel of a classic horror or sci-fi film. Almost reminds me of frankenstein, particularly as the telemelodium ‘comes alive’. There also seems to be a depth of ideas here, all of which may not be readily apparent upon the first viewing, that may be worth analyzing. Then again, it may have all just been for stylistic effect, but this was an intriguing effort regardless.
The into of the film reminds me of the scenes and shots of the Twilight Zone. The majority of the shots include medium, and wide angle. The effects with the cutaways are more visual than any short film that we have seen.
ReplyDeleteThe whole premise of the story is about a guy and his children sending out the sights and sound of the Aura Borealis. Evidently the main character figured out a way to communicate video over the telephone line.
I think it is funny that the Canadian government has military signals, and had to force the company out of business. This short film takes me back to watching other short films when I was a kid with my dad. Those films were the Twilight Zone, which were almost identical to the shots and sounds of this short film, Night Mayor.