Friday, November 4, 2016

Assignment for Thursday, 11-10-16

Dear Mythologists,

For Thursday, November 10, please do the following:

(1) Watch Medea (Lars Von Trier, 1988), taking notes as you see fit. NOTE: THE FILM IS NOT STREAMING on any of the major video services, so please plan your viewing accordingly. As per usual, the DVD is available on reserve in Scribner Library. (Yes, it's on YouTube, but not in English.)

(2) Read "'An Orchid in the Land of Technology': Narrative and Representation in Lars Von Trier's Medea," by Susan Joseph and Marguerite Johnson. NOTE: To access this article, you might have to first access the Project Muse database via the Scribner Library portal.

(3) Remember by noon on Thursday to comment on this post with your choice of a sequence from Medea to view in class.

DC

12 comments:

  1. I appreciate many of the shots in the movie in terms of artistic style, but I'd like to note the scene that begins around 32 minutes. It's the first time that we see an interaction between Jason and Medea. At one point she says something along the lines of "my love has blinded me" and I think that whoever chose the positioning of the characters made a very smart decision because J and M hold hands through a type of string-curtain. They can't quite see each other, which is a nice reflection of M's experience and her words.

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  2. I would like to watch the very beginning scene of Medea at the beach 0:00:33 - 0:02:25. I really like the way that they introduce Medea. I think the environment that they put her in is appropriate and symbolizes her mind. It begins with the camera making it appear as if Medea is spinning out of control. Then the ocean gradually starts to consume Medea's body and mind. --Willa

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    1. I would also like to view this scene because this is the first time as a class we are seeing Medea as a lead in a film so not only is this a first introduction for the film but also for us. this sets the bar for future Madea leads we will see in the future and is the necessarily a good thing?

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    2. I want to see this too. This sequence disorients the audience in a way I don't think we've seen in other films. Beginning this film in confusion really sets the stage for us to sympathize with Medea and understand her own internal confusion.

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  3. I would like to watch the scene around 00:23:31 when Creon comes to see Medea in the swamp. The cinematography in this scene does an excellent job of capturing Medea's mysterious nature and, in a way, her power. Creon cannot see where Medea is which adds to his fear that he already has of her. It created a tension similar to that of prey waiting for the predator to strike. The scene is even more chilling because Medea barely seems to notice Creon as he is bumbling around. Her indifference to his presence puts her in an even greater position of power. While Medea could come off as a despairing, desperate mother throughout the film, I thought this scene really highlighted the power and agency she still has even if it seemed otherwise. Finally, as the authors of the article we read state, Medea is always seen as distant and separate from the men (the Greeks). This creates the "exotic" aspect of Medea in a different way than previous films did.

    ~Sophie

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    1. I agree with Sophie. I think the fog and the slow camera movements make this scene very unsettling, and it highlights how Creon views Medea, as a mysterious, unnerving, and foreign other.

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  4. I would like to watch the sequence beginning around 48 minutes in and ending at 52:40. The horse, pricked by the poisoned crown, has a wound in the shape of a heart. Does it's death represent the death of the love between Jason and Medea? Probably. And wow, what a great actor! The sequence also includes Medea's decision to kill her children, putting vengeance above maternal instinct. We also see Glauce prick her finger, but not her death (or, a literal representation of her death). I also think, given all the symbolism in this sequence, it can be useful in a discussion about the larger use of metaphoric imagery in this film, which we have not encountered in previous films.

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  5. I'd like to watch the scene immediately after Leslie's suggestion, which according to my notes starts at 53:00 and goes to 56:00, roughly speaking. This scene is the dramatic build up to the inevitable murder of the children, and if I recall correctly has two parts. Medea walking down the hall and Medea silhouetted in the field. These shots should provide some interesting points of analysis for assessing their artistic symbolism.

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  6. As uncomfortable as it is i think we should watch the murder of the children at 1:00:00-1:05:00. Its interesting to see the scene acted out when its usually done offscreen. the length of the shots and the lack of dialogue really adds to the sickening feeling the scene is meant to evoke

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    1. I agree with Jesse, I would like to watch this scene too. The murder of the children is a central theme both in the original myth and the movie. It is very interesting to see how the first kid is being murdered from the mother in a brutal and forced way, whereas the second one is actually helped by the mother to commit suicide (or at least that’s what it looks like to me). It is as if the second kid recognizes the necessity of the did and legitimizes his mother’s actions.

      -Frini

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  7. Let's watch the Creon scene that starts about 26 minutes in, Because it is CRAZY!
    In all seriousness this scene is amazing, it is a great example of how the film handles it's visuals and sounds in a non realistic way, but in a way that allows us to understand what the point of the scene is in a very clear way. it almost has a sense of expressionism, and the handling of Medea as well as the performances are amazing.

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  8. I'd like to watch the film's intro to Medea (00:00:30-00:02:30). I found the use of unnerving cinematography here to be very interesting, especially as a way to symbolize Medea's mindset. Furthermore, I think that this technique could also be seen as a kind of foreshadowing.

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