7/27/2019 Urban Stories Article Re the City in Film
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Source: Den of Geek
http://www.denofgeek.com/movies/16970/world-cinema-urban-stories
World Cinema: Urban storiesNews2 Feb 2011 - 12:20
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twitterHow does world cinema get across the idea of a city as a
character in its own right? Mr Hortonhas been taking a look...
In some of the most powerful drama told there is often a key
player, a powerful character who not only provides
context and history, but also a motivating factor for al l the
action. That character is, of course, the city.
Our urban metropolises are a relatively modern phenomenon, as
modernisation has increasingly eroded the rural
communities and driven millions into close contact with each
other. Cinema is also a relatively modern
phenomenon, and so it is natural that the two should have become
intertwined.
The moving image is surely the only art form that can truly
depict the city? Authors such as Charles Dickens may
have given the city a voice, but film revealed its true nature,
and through casting its eye over the sprawl, told the
millions of stories which otherwise would have been ignored.
But how does this relate to world cinema in particular? A very
good question.
Depicting the city as a character is a universal trait, shared
by any cinema that concentrates its population in
urban centres. However, it is especially relevant as a character
in non-first world cinemas, where the
development of a city mirrors the development of a culture or
community. The city brings into sharp focus the
conflicts inherent between people, while also highlighting the
often found extremes of living, fabulous wealth for
some and abject poverty for others.
World cinema films, with the city as a major theme, often share
striking similarities with each other. The city may
exist in many places, but it seemingly encourages the same
problems, as well as the same dreams. They are
narratively often rooted in the poorer, more desperate parts of
town, where crime is both the disease and the
cure.
Stylistically, too, there are many shared traits. The
quasi-documentary style so recently in favour in Hollywood
can be found earlier in the world cinema tales of the city. It
seems that the truth of these urban stories must
always be presented unvarnished, so as not to pretend there is
anything hidden from the audience.
However, despite, or perhaps in spite of this, there are often
new wave-inspired visual flourishes to be found in
many of these films, as if to remind the audience that, while
you may be watching the truth of people's lives, they
still exist in the living embodiment of the modern age. The city
is alive all on its own, and is the hub for new ideas.
This can be seen in many films, from a wide spectrum of
filmmakers, La Haine, Tsotsi, Amores Perros and
Rome, Open Cityto name just four.
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7/27/2019 Urban Stories Article Re the City in Film
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To illustrate my points further, it is probably time to have a
brief look at a recent entry into the urban stories canon
and how it represents its world.
Take Brazilian tour de force, City Of God. The clue is in the
title. It's pretty much the story of how a city is built.
And while the individual narratives told within the film are
important, they are nonetheless ultimately reactive to
the growth and development of Rio, and in particular, this one
new development in it.
It quickly descends into chaos and anarchy, but time and again
it begs the question: is it the place or the people
that create the situation?
One cannot exist without the other, but the city always survives
the comings and goings, the powers struggles
and the intrigues.
It also exerts a pull on the characters. Much is made of the
character's turning to crime in order to better
themselves and/or facilitate an escape, but they always return,
For example, with petty thief, Shaggy'sgirlfriend
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7/27/2019 Urban Stories Article Re the City in Film
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, whom we see disappearing early in the narrative in a focused
and emotive manner, only to be inserted back into
the action without so much of an explanation. Not that there is
any needed. She could not escape.
Highlighting this is the fate of Benny, an almost moral and kind
criminal who seemingly represents genuine hope
that there is a better life out there. A rogue bullet puts paid
to that notion, and the city claims another life.
For those who argue that Rocket escapes, I say to you: where
does he return to time and time again?
The aesthetics of the City Of Godalso tie in neatly with my
points raised above. The film contains a multitude ofcinematic
tricks to keep the viewer constantly entertained, off kilter and
energised. Whip pans, freeze frames and
split screen litter the edit, and provide a sense of
hyperreality to the proceedings, which dazzle and further
emphasise the role of the city as a place where anything can
happen, as well as alluding to its essentially
constructed nature.
We have built the city just as we have built this film.
