The Shop on Main Street The Shop on Main Street is a 1965 Czechoslovakian film, based on Obchod na Korze written by Ladislav Grosman. The film was directed by Ján Kadár and Elmar Klos, along with music composed by Zdeněk Liška. Set in the year 1942 during World War II, Hitler has conquered nearly the entire European continent, and Slovakia was one of the many German controlled state where Nazi laws were enforced by fascist guards. Overall, this simple, dramatic, yet powerful anti-war film highlights the moral perplexity brought by the anti-Semitic laws in Slovakia, as well as their implementation upon the Jews. Unlike the short film Night and Fog, a very powerful anti-war message is channeled to its viewers without using brutal, violent, …show more content…
In particular scenes, Tóno wanders around town, in those moments the camera is viewed through his perspective. This technique binds the audience further. Even though the camera pans around the city, it usually draws back to Tóno. There are countless times Tóno stares into shop windows, mirrors, and reflections . Aside from the camera viewing scenes of town such as wide shots, top views, and various angles, the focus is more on Tóno. For example, when wakes up from sleep (ceiling view), when he has a dream (gauzy, white, bright), gets drunk (camera gives 360-degree view of room spinning). There is intensity and focus on facial expressions displayed, since many of the internalized conflict is displayed outwardly (intense facial reactions). The camera shifts from a light and bubbly mood to darker tones as viewers are drawn into Tóno’s moral crisis. When Tóno ultimately decides whether to assist Mrs. Lautmann escape or be offered to the Guards, consequently killing Mrs. Lautmann. Tóno “break the 4th wall,” by directly staring into the camera, again to connect the
War is seen as a universal concept that often causes discomfort and conflict in relation to civilians. As they are a worrying universal event that has occurred for many decades now, they posed questions to society about human's nature and civilization. Questions such as is humanity sane or insane? and do humans have an obsession with destruction vs creation. These questions are posed from the two anti-war texts; Dr Strangelove by Stanley Kubrick and Slaughterhouse Five written by Kurt Vonnegut.
Often, we find ourselves facing dramatic events in our lives that force us to re-evaluate and redefine ourselves. Such extraordinary circumstances try to crush the heart of the human nature in us. It is at that time, like a carbon under pressure, the humanity in us either shatters apart exposing our primal nature, or transforms into a strong, crystal-clear brilliant of compassion and self sacrifice. The books Night written by Elie Wiesel and Hiroshima written by John Hersey illustrate how the usual lifestyle might un-expectantly change, and how these changes could affect the human within us. Both books display how lives of civilians were interrupted by the World War II, what devastations these people had to undergo, and how the horrific circumstances of war were sometimes able to bring out the best in ordinary people.
Even though the films “Battleship Potemkin”, “From Here to Eternity” and “Saving Private Ryan” are all movies based on military life during war time the variation in time periods and culture made each film very different. These differences did not take away from the impact the films had on their audiences at the time or the messages they were each trying to covey. The Horrific images and hear wrenching scenarios helped to evoke strong emotions and patriotic feeling from audiences allowing film makers to pass along their truths. Thru these films we are magically transported to several dark periods in the world history and left to experience the pain, fear, isolation and ultimately the triumph of these soldiers’ lives.
Prideaux, T. "Take Aim, Fire at the Agonies of War." Life 20 Dec. 1963: 115-118. Rabe, David. "Admiring the Unpredictable Mr. Kubrick." New York Times 21 June 1987: H34+
Political communication—communication with a political purpose about human interaction—takes many different forms including novels, poetry, music, television, and film, which all have their distinct advantages and disadvantages in communicating with the public. Although some political communication intends to enact or drive social changes, some political communication seeks to maintain the status quo. The film medium, which is the subject of this paper, has a much broader mass appeal than other medias and often changes the viewer’s original beliefs and perceptions when he or she experiences over an hour straight of visual indoctrination of only one view.
The war takes a heavy toll on the soldiers who fight in it. The terror of death will infest the minds of soldiers...
I must say that this film is very traumatizing. There are some images in this film that will be burned and scarred into my mind for as long as I live. I have seen many holocaust films, but no one was as near as dramatic and depicting as Night and Fog. However I did like the theme of this movie. It is very sad but yet realistic. Our minds are murky and dull. We tend to only remember the important situation in our lives. Yet we don’t remember the importance of our own history. I say OUR history be cause we all are human beings on this earth. Whether we believe in Allah, Jesus, Jehovah, or whatever higher power, we are all one race, and that the human race. It is very sad to know that human beings were treated and slaughtered just because of an ideology of superiority complex. Al though the Jewish people were massacred I learned that we must always keep a sense of hope in order to assure our own survival. When I saw in the movie the moments where there were journals that read about favorite foods and important dates, my heart was filled with sadness. Not because these victims didn’t have this to eat but because of the false illusions that they had to dream in order to stay sane.
A true war story is never moral. It does not instruct, nor encourage virtue, nor suggest models of proper human behavior, nor restrain ...
This book is definitely a piece of writing that helps open our eyes to the ugliness that is going on in the world today. Chris Hedges' central message is to stop hating and start learning how to love. This book is a deep, personal reflection on many wars by an award-winning journalist. Every civilian, military member, and political leader should undoubtedly read this book. War skews reality, dominates culture, seduces society with its heroic attributes, distorts memory, and supports a cause, and allures us by a constant battle between death and love.
When civilians look at the men and women in the military, they think of strength, courage, and freedom. When those same men and women get out, civilians should treat them with respect, honor, and dignity. In their own minds however, it may be a different story. A loss of strength, a lack of courage, and a never-ending battle within that keeps them all but free. In the music video “Wrong Side of Heaven”, FFDP successfully argues that homeless veterans and veterans with PTSD need assistance. Through the use of visual aspects, literary devices, and symbolism, FFDP shows that their music video holds a strong argument.
The difficult association between the occurrence of war and storytelling is told through the eyes of Tim O’Brien; he explains that a true war story has a supreme adherence to offensiveness that provides a sense of pride and courage commonly found in storytelling. “The thing about a story is that you dream it as you tell it, hoping that others might then dream along with you, and in this way memory and im...
The initial interaction between Lucy and Cheng Huan at the store creates an interesting dynamic of uneven attraction. Objects and figures within the frame emphasizes this fact, such as an unconscious Lucy in the center. The organization of objects, and set-pieces in the shot is referred to as the setting. As an integral component in mise-en-scene, setting helps locate the actors and even control how the story is. The one-sided adoration prevalent in this scene exemplifies the possible alternative motivations behind Cheng’s kindness. In these shots, Lucy’s face always points towards the camera so that the audience can see both characters clearly, and while Lucy sleeps, Cheng stares at her with considerable intensity. By acknowledging his lust, many of his actions can be interpreted in a completely different way. At (46:22) Cheng ...
The three narratives “Home Soil” by Irene Zabytko, “Song of Napalm” by Bruce Weigl, and “Dulce et Decorum Est” by Wilfred Owen all have the same feelings of war and memory, although not everyone experiences the same war. Zabytko, Weigl, and Owen used shifting beats, dramatic descriptions, and intense, painful images, to convince us that the horror of war far outweighs the devoted awareness of those who fantasize war and the memories that support it.
War is cruel. The Vietnam War, which lasted for 21 years from 1954 to 1975, was a horrific and tragic event in human history. The Second World War was as frightening and tragic even though it lasted for only 6 years from 1939 to 1945 comparing with the longer-lasting war in Vietnam. During both wars, thousands of millions of soldiers and civilians had been killed. Especially during the Second World War, numerous innocent people were sent into concentration camps, or some places as internment camps for no specific reasons told. Some of these people came out sound after the war, but others were never heard of again. After both wars, people that were alive experienced not only the physical damages, but also the psychic trauma by seeing the deaths and injuries of family members, friends or even just strangers. In the short story “A Marker on the Side of the Boat” by Bao Ninh about the Vietnam War, and the documentary film Barbed Wire and Mandolins directed by Nicola Zavaglia with a background of the Second World War, they both explore and convey the trauma of war. However, the short story “A Marker on the Side of the Boat” is more effective in conveying the trauma of war than the film Barbed Wire and Mandolins because of its well-developed plot with well-illustrated details, and its ability to raise emotional responses from its readers.
War has always been inevitable throughout the history of the world. The outcomes can differ greatly; it’s usually either a win or a loss. Wins or losses are just definite statements, but photos can represent these statements. Alfred Eisenstaedt’s “V-J Day in Times Square” shows an American sailor kissing a young woman right in the middle of Times Square, despite their surroundings. This iconic photo was taken after the U.S. declared victory over Japan in World War II, and was published in Life magazine a week later. John Gap’s (III) photo shows a young girl being consoled at a soldier’s funeral in a local high school gymnasium, later to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery. This humble photo was taken during the war still raging in Afghanistan, showing that these types of losses happen quite often, as there are no iconic photos for Afghanistan compared to the photo shot after the win over World War II. Unlike its counterpart, this photo was published only at a local level on a website. Both these photos show a soldier being dismissed to go home from war. Although the two photos share that common factor, the scenario in which the soldier comes home differs greatly. Through these photos, Albert Eisenstaedt and John Gaps III help evoke pathos and give the observer a sense of the pride and the devastation felt of a home coming from war using photographic elements such as framing, focus, and angles.