Crooklyn

Started by godardian, January 21, 2004, 01:54:29 PM

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godardian

January 21, 2004, 01:54:29 PM
Does anyone else have the Crooklyn DVD? I'm noticing something strange that must be intentional, but I'm wondering what it is: During the portions of the film that take place in Virginia, at the aunt's house, there's something going on with the lens that makes everyone look very compressed and elongated. I'm assuming this is a stylistic choice and not a disc oddity, and I'm sure any of the many A/V club tech-heads here will be able to tell me what he's done (I'm assuming it's an unusual lens he's using) to make it appear this way. And maybe any theories as to why... (I have my own, but I'm curious to hear them).

Anyway, I think this is my favorite Spike Lee film. Er, "joint."
""Money doesn't come into it. It never has. I do what I do because it's all that I am." - Morrissey

"Lacan stressed more and more in his work the power and organizing principle of the symbolic, understood as the networks, social, cultural, and linguistic, into which a child is born. These precede the birth of a child, which is why Lacan can say that language is there from before the actual moment of birth. It is there in the social structures which are at play in the family and, of course, in the ideals, goals, and histories of the parents. This world of language can hardly be grasped by the newborn and yet it will act on the whole of the child's existence."

Stay informed on protecting your freedom of speech and civil rights.

MacGuffin

#1
January 21, 2004, 02:03:28 PM
Quote from: godardianDoes anyone else have the Crooklyn DVD? I'm noticing something strange that must be intentional, but I'm wondering what it is: During the portions of the film that take place in Virginia, at the aunt's house, there's something going on with the lens that makes everyone look very compressed and elongated. I'm assuming this is a stylistic choice and not a disc oddity, and I'm sure any of the many A/V club tech-heads here will be able to tell me what he's done (I'm assuming it's an unusual lens he's using) to make it appear this way.

It was intentional. Lee shot that portion with an anamorphic lens, meaning it was shot at a wider aspect ratio and 'squeezed' to fit in a smaller one.

Quote from: godardianAnd maybe any theories as to why... (I have my own, but I'm curious to hear them).

My thinking was that is was supposed to represent the girl's isolation and the strangeness of being with a different area and family.

Quote from: godardianAnyway, I think this is my favorite Spike Lee film. Er, "joint."

It's definitely his most personal, written by his brother and sister. That family, especially the father, is supposed to be his family.
"Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art." - Andy Warhol


Skeleton FilmWorks

godardian

#2
January 21, 2004, 02:45:59 PM
Quote from: MacGuffin
Quote from: godardianDoes anyone else have the Crooklyn DVD? I'm noticing something strange that must be intentional, but I'm wondering what it is: During the portions of the film that take place in Virginia, at the aunt's house, there's something going on with the lens that makes everyone look very compressed and elongated. I'm assuming this is a stylistic choice and not a disc oddity, and I'm sure any of the many A/V club tech-heads here will be able to tell me what he's done (I'm assuming it's an unusual lens he's using) to make it appear this way.

It was intentional. Lee shot that portion with an anamorphic lens, meaning it was shot at a wider aspect ratio and 'squeezed' to fit in a smaller one.

Quote from: godardianAnd maybe any theories as to why... (I have my own, but I'm curious to hear them).

My thinking was that is was supposed to represent the girl's isolation and the strangeness of being with a different area and family.

Quote from: godardianAnyway, I think this is my favorite Spike Lee film. Er, "joint."

It's definitely his most personal, written by his brother and sister. That family, especially the father, is supposed to be his family.

That explains everything... yeah, my thoughts on the reasoning are pretty much what you say, that Brooklyn is the "real," normal, everyday place, and there's something unreal about being in Virginia compared to that...

I like the relaxed flow of the movie- this would be where "episodic" could be meant as a compliment- and Alfre Woodard is an excellent actor. I'd love to see more of her in better movies.
""Money doesn't come into it. It never has. I do what I do because it's all that I am." - Morrissey

"Lacan stressed more and more in his work the power and organizing principle of the symbolic, understood as the networks, social, cultural, and linguistic, into which a child is born. These precede the birth of a child, which is why Lacan can say that language is there from before the actual moment of birth. It is there in the social structures which are at play in the family and, of course, in the ideals, goals, and histories of the parents. This world of language can hardly be grasped by the newborn and yet it will act on the whole of the child's existence."

Stay informed on protecting your freedom of speech and civil rights.

Ghostboy

#3
January 21, 2004, 02:48:22 PM
He does the same thing in He Got Game once or twice.

Ravi

#4
January 21, 2004, 04:43:52 PM
Quote from: GhostboyHe does the same thing in He Got Game once or twice.

Wasn't that in the flashbacks?

The anamorphic lens scenes in Crooklyn didn't work for me.  It would have been enough to show the strangeness of the house to the little girl with the actions, dialogue, body language, etc.

©brad

#5
January 21, 2004, 08:33:58 PM
i love crooklyn. i love watching the little kids just sit around the house and sing and fight and stuff.

funny, i just watched summer of sam today, and lee used the same technique a couple of times. (i forgot how powerful that movie was, wow.)

godardian

#6
January 21, 2004, 10:55:28 PM
When I mentioned Woodard above, I meant "better movies than the ones she seems to get stuck in most often," not "better movies than Crooklyn."
""Money doesn't come into it. It never has. I do what I do because it's all that I am." - Morrissey

"Lacan stressed more and more in his work the power and organizing principle of the symbolic, understood as the networks, social, cultural, and linguistic, into which a child is born. These precede the birth of a child, which is why Lacan can say that language is there from before the actual moment of birth. It is there in the social structures which are at play in the family and, of course, in the ideals, goals, and histories of the parents. This world of language can hardly be grasped by the newborn and yet it will act on the whole of the child's existence."

Stay informed on protecting your freedom of speech and civil rights.
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