Think about the narrative style in Man on Wire. Discuss this style of narrative in terms of its genre, the documentary. Spend 2 paragraphs on this. Now think about a film that, in your opinion, has a similar narrative style. It may be from any genre you please. Spend 1 paragraph comparing the two films.
Due: Wednesday, March 14.
Within the first few minutes of watching James Marsh’s 2008 “Man on Wire,” it is clear the film is not a typical documentary but rather an homage to fictional heist films. In fact, even some of the interviewees are referred to by names that one would see in these dramatic films including “The Inside Man” and another who is referred to simply as “The Australian.” This is definitely the kind of documentary that exists to entertain, with many cinematic elements breaking free from typical documentary conventions and giving it an action type feel.
ReplyDeleteThis “action film” style is introduced right from the extremely suspenseful heist reenactment that is the opening of Man On Wire. The suspense is then maintained through the nonlinear narrative, which intercuts this reenactment with old footage of Philippe, as well as the fast paced editing which slows down only when Philippe is on the wire, highlighting the majestically breathtaking moment. The reenactments throughout the film are what make it so akin to a scripted thriller and serve to entertain, making the heist more vivid. However, there are other elements that are typical of a documentary. The subjects’ own home videos and photographs, for one, add a personal touch to the film, making it truly a story about Philippe, as he is the subject of the documentary or the Man on the wire. The interviews too add emotion to the film while keeping with documentary conventions, with shots of Jean crying or Philppe’s uncontainable passion making the narrative more personal than a work of fiction would be. It is the combination of these documentary aspects with the action film style that make Man on Wire unique, just as Philippe is.
Although I can recall no film that bridges genres in a way akin to Man On Wire, in thinking about heist films while writing the first part of this blog the only thing that kept coming to mind was Rififi. Despite their different genres, countries of origin, and the gap of 60 years that lies between them, both films have narratives that are centered around the planning and execution of a heist. Both films were also directed by an American, despite having french subjects, and were both based upon books, which may account for the more dramatized style that both possess. Both films also have a distinct film noir look about them, with the heist and other such Wire reenactments shot in black and white, with a lot of shadows, just as Rififi, the true film noir, portrayed its heist. However, there are obvious differences. In addition to the expected differences between documentary and narrative, actors etc, the main thing that differentiates Man on Wire from its predecessor is sound. The heist in Man on Wire is made suspenseful with non-diegetic music, while the scene in Rififi is made suspenseful by the fact that, like a real heist, it is almost completely silent. However, this stylistic difference does not take away from the fact that Man on Wire is most definitely heist film in addition to being a moving documentary.
“Man on Wire” is a 2008 documentary directed by James Marsh. The film deals with tightrope walker Philippe Petit's crossing via tightrope between the two Twin Towers. The documentary covers his life, including how he acquired a passion for tightrope walking, how and when he finally realized he had to cross between the two towers, his journey leading up to that, and the day and aftermath of the actually crossing. Unlike the other documentaries we have watches, such as “Gates of Heaven” and “Grey Gardens”, “Man on Wire” is a heavily stylized, non-gritty documentary, which employs the use of interviews woven together with reenactments, pictures, music, real footage, and cultural references. The film is not meant to be a day-in-the-life scenario like “Grey Gardens”, nor is it supposed to be a spur of the moment, just film and capture whatever they say documentary like “Gates of Heaven”. “Man on Wire” is instead an experience, a whirlwind journey into the mind and passion – or rather, obsession – of Philippe Petit. The director wants the audience to be on the edge of their seat when something is at stake, to feel the sorrow of failure and joy of success that goes through the minds of all the people on screen, and to feel like they are witnessing this entire life unfolding on the screen.
ReplyDeleteThe film is quick paced, and unlike “Gates of Heaven” it does not drag along slowly in the doldrums of everyday life. There are no long, static, perfectly centered shots of interviewees. Instead there are quick cuts from interview to action and the film is set up not so much as a documentary as it is a thriller. The film entertains almost more than it informs (although it definitely helps the audience understand the mindset of the eccentric protagonist). Even if the story behind the documentary is slightly grandiose and unbelievable, we do believe it. The film could have just as easily been fiction, but the emotion conveyed through the interviews, and even the reenactments, is so genuine that it convinces the audience to stick with the story.
One film that comes to mind in comparing this with another film (besides another documentary) would be Sidney Lumet’s 1975 crime drama/comedy “Dog Day Afternoon”. The writing and pacing of the films, despite being two completely different genres, are remarkably similar; although “Dog Day Afternoon” is based on true events as well. “Dog Day Afternoon” follows a crucial moment in the life of a flamboyant and eccentric New Yorker who decides to rob a bank; “Man on Wire” follows a crucial moment in the life of a flamboyant and eccentric Frenchman who decides to cross the Twin Towers. Both films take place largely in New York and some of the city and its’ culture and energy inevitably is transferred to both films. The pacing of “Dog Day Afternoon” is also very similar to “Man on Wire” with rapid-fire action and moments of humanity and humor spread throughout.
Directed by James Marsh, “Man on Wire” is a British documentary film released in 2008. The documentary focuses upon the thrilling event in which wire walker Philippe Petit daringly walked between the World Trade Center in 1974. The film details the extensive planning that went into successfully conducting the wirewalk, the actual wirewalk and the repercussions of the walk. “Man on Wire” combines home videos, photographs, interviews and reenactments in order to stylistically convey the intricate storyline.
ReplyDeleteWhile the plot is extremely suspenseful, the film still incorporates many humorous witticisms from the members of the heist. Responding to accusations that he was high during the heist, David Forman chuckles "I smoked pot every day for 35 years - no reason to think I wasn't stoned that night." Marsh intersperses these humorous statements with suspenseful reenactments, allowing the audience to feel a range of emotions throughout the film. Throughout the film’s narration, there remains a level of intimacy that can sometimes feel uncomfortable. It seems apparent that Jean Louise, Petit’s best friend at the time, and Annie, Petit’s girlfriend at the time, continue to have a deep affection for Petit that does not appear to be returned. Despite that the narcissistic Petit seems to view them merely as pawns in his grand heist, Jean-Louise and Annie often tear up when recalling his passion for wirewalking and the beautiful sight of him performing between the buildings.
I saw many parallels between “Man on Wire” and “Inception”, an American action-heist movie, directed by Christopher Nolan and released in 2010. Unlike “Man on Wire”, “Inception” is science fiction, however, both films contain characteristics typical of heist movies. Both films rely on a charismatic, experienced protagonist who assembles the cast and makes the executive decisions. In order to complete this heist, a team of loyal experts and/or friends are consulted and brought in by this enthusiastic mastermind of the plot. In “Inception” this protagonist is Don Cobb, while in “Man on Wire” it is obviously Philippe Petit. Furthermore, both Cobb and Petit are responsible for the most stressful and important actions of the heist. Their slightest mistake has the potential to put their assistants at risk. Finally, while unexpected events occur periodically throughout the heists, the heists are successful in both films. Although it is a fictional film,“Inception”’s heist has many elements in common with Petit’s heist detailed in “Man on Wire”.
James Marsh’s 2008, “Man on Wire,” is an extremely stylized documentary that portrays its narrative very different from other films similar to it. The heavy use of interview and reenactment emphasize the thrilling story and all that were involved. The main point of the film is to get Philippe and his crew’s story out there, which is achieved by the specific way they tell it throughout the film. As some documentaries are boring and drawn out, “Man on Wire” is concise in its narrative as well as enjoyable, entertaining, and wildly fascinating.
ReplyDeleteAll of the narrative aspects working together is what makes Marsh’s film so very unique and special. As Flora explained, the use of interviews and home videos of Philippe and his friends bring the documentary to a whole other personal level. This stylized device creates verisimilitude, as it draws and connects the viewer to that of the world of the story. Seeing first hand reactions and opinions creates suspense, as the film becomes much more real for them. Unlike typical movies where the characters break boundaries and do something they shouldn’t, this film has a strong sense of realism because after all.. it really did happen. The chronology as well as the breaks within the story telling makes it captivating, as you want to know what happened next. Additionally, the reenactments give any viewer a clear sense of what happened the days leading up to Philippe’s stunt, and the stunt itself. Rather than just having people speak about the events, it gives the viewer a clear image of the narrative being told, which makes the documentary as a whole more understandable and interesting.
A film with a comparable narrative style as “Man on Wire,” is Orson Welles’ “Citizen Kane.” Although from a completely separate genre and time period, the way in which the stories are told share similarities. Both films employ flashbacks to convey and move the narrative along in a cohesive and understandable manner. The main difference, however, is that the flashbacks that occur in Citizen Kane are not chronological. Even though they are not presented as straightforward as “Man on Wire,” the film still remains verisimilar as the non linear flashbacks continue to make sense to the viewer. Also, emotions and suspense run high in both films, which creates a strong character- viewer connection.
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DeleteJames Marsh’s “Man on Wire” is a structured documentary following a single narrative: Philippe Petit’s rope walk between the two Twin Towers in the 1970’s. It consists of the realization of a dream, the preparation and practice, the planning and set up, the event itself, and the aftermath. The composition resembles styles of made-for-TV documentaries on the history channel or the ESPN series “30 for 30”, as it is concise and the point, straightforward following a timeline and a cause and effect chain. There is no question of the director’s intention as there may be in “Grey Gardens” and “Days of Heaven”. It is made plain that the sole purpose is to illustrate Petit’s story through reenactments, photographs, and interviews from all sides.
ReplyDeleteThe documentary makes it nearly impossible to root against Petit and his crew, as the tone of the narrative as it is presented is awe-inspiring and casts an incredulous light on the stunt. The comradery between the crew and the rope walker is portrayed through the goofy home videos and photographs placed throughout the documentary (these also add to the realism or verisimilitude of the documentary, reminding the audience that this is a non-fictional work). With a contrasting mood the reenactments of the night setting up the wire ooze tension and suspense. The conclusion? Of course, full of excitement, therefore dragging the audience through a spectrum of emotions before the documentary comes to a close. The order of events is sensible and follows the traditional “introduction, rising-action, climax, falling action, conclusion” format. Ultimately, the film builds a bridge, or a wire if you will, between two contrasting genres: the documentary and the basic narrative (and thus served as a good transition from “Grey Gardens” to “Chungking Express”).
“Man on Wire” is in actuality a recollection of past events in the order they happened. With that in consideration, the first movie that comes to mind is “Citizen Kane”, but since Ellie already touched upon that one, second was “Forest Gump”. The obvious connection between the two is the portrayal of the main characters, Forest and Philippe. It’s their innocent excitement at their own achievements that makes each man all the more likeable. While Forest sits on a bus stop bench telling a series of strangers his outstanding life story, Philippe is planted in front of a camera discussing his life’s greatest accomplishment with an audience that he is aware of. Despite their differences and dissimilarity in terms of genre, the two men’s storytelling has a common effect.
"Man On Wire" is a 2008 documentary directed by James Marsh, whose narration focused on the set up and execution of what was considered "the artistic crime of the century." The plot is centered around the tight- rope walker Philippe Petit and his journey through his daring high wire routine, between New York City's Twin Towers. The style of this particular documentary is a lot different compared to any of the others, because it includes some elements of regular narrative films, to keep the audience on edge and interested thought out the film. It doesn't just follow Petit through out the day in his day-to-day routine. It highlights important parts of his career and his passion so viewers can understand where the idea came from for him to do this and also how he went about doing it. It also includes some interview footage of his friends who supported him and actually participated in the planning and set up process.
ReplyDeleteThis Documentary, unlike many, has a beginning, middle and end. It portrayed like a real life adventure film, including real footage and real people. It's very fast paced, except for one scene, which is the heist scene. The heist scene, however, is supposed to be very intense and it allows the viewers to feel a range emotions.
"Man On Wire" reminds me a lot of the film Rififi because of the intensity, the black and white and the heist. Both films take you through a process of executing an illegal task and they both take you through a range of emotions, fulfilling all aspects of entertainment. Even in the heist there points of humor at maybe a silly mistake that was made or how easy it was to trick someone. Then there are the moment of fear that really bring the audiences to the tips of their seats. Finally at the end in of the heist, in both films, the audience feels a sense of relief and happiness.
“Man on Wire” is a very unique documentary directed by James Marsh. Our typical documentary is usually filled with interviews and voice-overs of information about the topic. “Man on Wire” on the other hand was taken at a slightly different approach and serves more as homage as Flora stated. This documentary was also a little different because it wasn’t only for the knowledge of the life and experience of Philippe, but it was also made to entertain.
ReplyDeleteA major of aspect of this documentary is the quick transition between shots and scenes. Unlike some documentaries where their main goal is to educate their audience and seem to be slow, this documentary wanted to entertain so the transitions were quick to keep the audience interested. The documentaries that we are use to watching usually are full of long static shots of people being interviewed being center in the frame. This documentary did not follow that style, which personally made me want to watch it more. A lot of documentaries that are made to inform do just that that, but the way that this documentary was set up made the it seem more as a story line. The documentary didn’t only show the life of Philippe either, it showed the major parts of his experience as well as backing that up with pictures making it believable.
As Rayna stated I see a connection between this film and Rififi. I made an immediate connection to this film when I saw the similarity in the heist. Both of these films build up suspense for the audience in what is going to happen in the end or if whatever is going to happen is going to be a happy or sad moment. Lukcily in both of the films they have happy/successful ending which gives the audience a feeling of relief. The fact that Marsh was able to create the same feeling in a documentary, as most have to do in a film is very impressive. I loved the documentary.