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Ethics in filmmaking
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Avatar the motion picture throws you into a rich world, with diverse characters who clash over cultural and socio-economic issues. At the heart of the story is a former Marine named Jake Sully, who falls in love while on an alien planet with a woman from a race of people called the Na’vi. The character whom he falls in love with is an alien for which he sacrifices his whole way of life to be with. By way of his experiences with the Na’vi, he begins to adopt a new worldview, which can only be described as Pantheism. A pantheist believes God is part of nature and souls are one with all things around them. This viewpoint is expressed early in the movie after Jake was rescued by his love interest Neytiri. In the scene, tiny glowing organisms begin to surround Jake whom Neytiri refers to as “Seeds of the sacred tree…very pure spirits” (Cameron & Cameron, 2009). The tree she refers to plays a very import role in their Pantheistic worldview, because it represents Eywa their deity, a goddess who makes up all living …show more content…
This is a principle of pantheism in which one must overcome themselves, ethics and what they understand in order to become one with one. In this case the one is Eywa. This theme of seeing is carried out throughout the movie and relates to seeing what is real when it comes to animals, people and the world. Neytiri, the love interest of Jake Sully is the daughter of Mo’at, the spiritual leader of her tribe. She believes that “a network of energy, flows through all living things. All energy is only borrowed and one day you have to give it back” (Cameron & Cameron, 2009). She is positioned to follow in her mother’s footsteps as the spiritual leader and interpret the will of Eywa. This view of life allows for no repercussions from a theistic God who will one day judge them for their immoral
Sula and Nel came from very contrasted families. Sula's mother was widowed, and "had a steady sequence of lovers, mostly the husbands of her friends and neighbors"(42). She did not have many woman friends, because most of them disliked her for her attitude towards her relationships. Growing up in an environment where her mother had so many different men taught Sula that "sex was pleasant and frequent, but otherwise unremarkable"(44). Nel's mother on the other hand, strived to be the pillar of the black community. She was a woman who "won all social battles with persistence and a conviction of the legitimacy of her authority"(18). She was a woman who tried her hardest to fit into an ideal social mold, and she taught her daughter the 'right' way to live.
Due to frozen funds, she was unable to finish her degree at university, and this has made getting a job difficult and frustrating for one used to a lavish lifestyle bordering on royalty. Najwa soon swallows her pride, and begins working for Lamya, an affluent Egyptian who mildly resembles the Najwa of prosperity. Having been surrounded by servants growing up, Najwa thrives in this position, and is able to move in the shadows, unnoticed and with low interference with her employers. As talented as she is as a servant, she is aware this is a position she would not have been proud to take in the past. She details how she “knows them intimate ways while they hardly no me,” proving how easily replaced and forgotten she is in this job (83). Lacking fulfillment, Najwa remembers the Muslims reciting their daily prayers, and the fulfillment they pulled from worshipping Allah. This sense of belonging and importance defiantly beckons for Najwa, who graciously answers the call. Najwa tightens up in her faith, and begins to admire the devoted Muslim, Tamer, that is the brother of her employer. It’s a stark contrast to the Najwa before the coup ever occurred. Najwa then very much cared about her image, and chased fulfillment in school and social circles. Now more mature, Najwa’s focus has completely shifted due the hardship and circumstances brought upon
This type of connection can allow a person to persive their souroundings unaffected by other people and things. In the film TRPF through the use of repetition in the quote “They make me sick, these people, they make me sick” shows how Molly is being forced to try and connect with the white people ways which re-instates her sense of true belonging to her family and Jigalong. Her natural connections at Jigalon including the connection Molly has with her spirit animal (the eagle), has shaped Molly’s identity to Belong to Jigalong. In the scene where Molly dreams about her spirit animal (the eagle) at Moore river shows how the symbolism of the eagle strengthen’s this belonging. Molly’s identity is being altered at Moore river and she stays true to her natural connections at Jigalong.
Throughout this course, we have seen a number of films that are quite different. These films are diverse in their subject matter ranging from the drama of American Beauty, the political and action based nature of Three Kings, the science fictional social statements on technology presented by Blade Runner, to the fragmented and contemporary techniques of experimental Memento. However, I would argue that all of the above mentioned have been linked by an unsuspecting thread, and I am going to demonstrate what that thread is here. These films have been tied together by a theme, of which I have written in past analyses of some of these films, and I choose to bring that theme forward again. I do so because I believe that this particular notion is at the bottom and the most imperative in all of these stories. The notion, which I am referring to, is that the world is what we make of it; that bad things, and good things alike, happen to us, but our ultimate view of the world as a good or bad place is determined by our choice to perceive it as one or the other.
The strongest symbol in Their Eyes Were Watching God is the pear tree. The pear blossom is a representation of Janie, as she is a young girl blooming into a woman during a spring afternoon. Hurston explains this symbolism at the first of the chapter, describing Janie as ìa great tree in leaf with the things suffered, things enjoyed, things done and undone. Dawn and doom was in the branchesî (Hurston 8) Janie then lies beneath the tree, observes the bees pollinate a blossom, and ex...
Toni Morrison’s Sula is a story about how 2 girl’s differing beliefs affects their life. One of the 2 girls, Nel Wright, believes in living with order, and that one must do everything they are expected to do. Her friend, Sula Peace, prefers a freer lifestyle, and believes that one shouldn’t let society’s expectations of them weight them down. In this society, women who do as they are expected to, i.e. get married, have children, etc.., are seen as good, while women who strays from the norm are seen as evil. Nel tries her best to stay ‘good’ in other people’s eyes, this resulted in her living a very false life. She loses her individuality when she marries Jude. At the end of the book, Sula and Nel’s grandmother, Eva, causes her to face the truth and accept that she is in fact not as good as she think she is. Nel thinks that if others see her as
For Nel and Sula, and all their trials together, they last because of their deep friendship. The concept of evil is raised in their friendship. Despite their different views on what evil is, Sula and Nel reconcile in the end, as Nel realizes that what ultimately matters is their friendship. At the end of the novel, Nel feels a sense of sorrow. However, she realizes that "all the time, I thought I was missing Jude" (174), when in fact she was missing Sula, her closest friend for almost her whole life. Ignoring her opinion about Sula's actions with Jude, she longs for the Sula saying, "We was girls together. O Lord, Sula, girl, girl, girlgirlgirl", a cry with "circles and circles of sorrow" (174). Nel realizes that what mattered wasn’t really how she and Sula differed but rather it was the strength of their friendship which overcame any conflicting conceptions of evil that they might have had.
...he environment in which they are set, while still representing the on-going struggle for physical and idealogical control. Both deal with the opposing parties presented in the films, the Na’vi and indians, as they pose as threats to the desired balance in social order. Eventually, these threats are resolved and dealt with in different ways, but nevertheless achieve the goal of restoring balance and tranquility once again to the society. Films like The Searchers and Avatar, continue to address cultural issues and the results of disparity between groups. However, by continually demonstrating that through embracing certain perspectives and principles these differences can be resolved into positive outcomes, these films project the audience’s and filmmakers’ actual desire to conform any outside threats that could endanger the established conventions of everyday life.
Also he finds his place in his daughter’s life and how he is finding where he stands in the world and in his daughter’s world. This is unique for the father to show so much compassion because not all fathers can be like this and care so much. Along with this, we notice some imagery and metaphors being use, as well as imagination. When it says “I remember I thought you looked like an angel, wrapped in pink, so soft and warm, you’ve had me wrapped around your finger, Since the day you were born”, also “Chase your dreams but always know The road that will lead you home again”, both showing imagery and imagination because you are imaging a father holding his daughter is his arms looking at her. Along with this, you see her growing and moving on by seeing that if anything happens, home will still be home at her father’s house. We
One familiar universal symbol shared between creation myths would be the connection of the three worlds. These connections can come in many forms and shapes, such as trees, bridges, and even ropes. In the Genesis, the tree of life symbolizes the connections between the three worlds. The three worlds are heaven, earth, and the underworld. “…The tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.” (The Holy Bible, Genesis 2.9) The myth of Genesis is established around the tree of life, both literally and figuratively. This tree, is generally in the focus of the myth, and in most cases resembles a connection between the three worlds; heaven, earth, and purgatory. How does a tree connect the three worlds? The spindling and
When people vote the most famous Hollywood movie in 2009, most of them pick the movie, Avatar. Over 40 million people watched the movie. Some people like the Avatar because of the beautiful graphic design and showing a wonderful planet. However, others see the movie as a racist movie. Why? In Race Relations Light Years from Earth, Mitu Sengupta, the author of the article, assumes that Hollywood shows patterns to market their films that could produce stereotypes such as race and gender stereotypes. The “White Messiah” stereotype can be seen in the Hollywood movies. The best example of the “White Messiah” movie is Avatar. Avatar is a racist film because Jake Sully, a former U.S. Marine in the movie, stands for native aliens and fights against the U.S. army like a “White Messiah.” This means white characters always save nonwhite characters from dangers. Some people might say that Hollywood helps directors to develop and create better movies; however, Hollywood movies are still stuck in simplistic roles and
Avatar is a futuristic film where a paraplegic Marine named Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) takes his dead brothers place to become an Avatar on the world Pandora. He starts by collecting Intel for the military but then soon becomes part of the indigenous people the Na’vi and in the end fights to take Pandora back. There are a couple of powerful moments that are loss if watched in black and white and a negative effect on the film if watched with the colors muted.
In Michel Foucault’s Panopticism, differences between prior and current “political dreams” of order are explored. The first instance of Panopticism that Foucault explores is that of the plague in the seventeenth century. In order to stop the advancement of the plague, the town is placed on a lockdown. No one is allowed to leave or come into the town, people are not allowed to leave their homes, stray animals are killed, and the town is divided into section where syndics monitor the people. These syndics do daily inspections to see who has become ill. Foucault describes these inspections as follows “Everyone locked up in his cage, everyone at his window, answering to his name and showing himself when asked – it is the great review of the living and the dead” (182). In essence, he is describing the inspections that take place daily and the obedience that follows. He compares these acts of obedience to the exclusion of lepers.
The brutality of colonialism has been represented numerous times in books, essays, and even films. These mediums have all attempted to identify the effects of imperialism in the context of a larger narrative. In truth, “anti-colonialism” art has become a genre unto itself. Audiences have flocked to major Hollywood features, such as Pocahontas, Dances with Wolves and Apocalypse Now. The allure of film – and storytelling as a whole – is the ability to weave complex themes into the personality of characters that are relatable, familiar, and profoundly sympathetic. Thus, James Cameron's 2009 film, Avatar, finds itself in good company with other similarly plotted narratives. However, Avatar differentiates itself by utilizing the methodology of a
Animal asserts his position as the novel’s narrator by addressing his readership as Eyes, drawing from Jarnalis’s instructions on how to tell his story. Jarnalis told him to envision a presence, an undefined person who will soon come to feel like a friend he can be honest with and tell them his story. Animal turns the metaphor around: he says the eyes became real and started haunting him until from the undefined crowd emerged a single pair of them, Eyes, the reader themselves. The reader soon realizes they will not be a passive consumer of the story nor an omniscient presence observing the developments from the bird’s-eye’s view, but rather eyes fixed on Animal, unable to loo...