There is a difference when viewing a
movie as opposed to a play. I have attended plays in the past, and
noticed that when watching it, I am viewing the whole scene there on
the stage, rather than a small screen shot in a movie. In the 1962
film Electra, the filmmakers
would zero in on certain scenes, ones that they would want to
emphasize, or make more dramatic. For example, when Queen
Clytermnestra confesses that she killed her husband, the camera zeros
in on her face to emphasize that certain part. I believe that this
technique is a way of making the viewers respond in a more dramatic
way.
When
books are turned into movies, the filmmakers choose to leave
characters or plot aspects out of the movie because of length, or for
other reasons. In this particular production, Electra's sister
Chrysothemis is non-existent. She gave us a relieving feeling in the
text, like a retreat from the sadness that was already there. But in
the film, since she is not there, the feel is more melancholy, and
overall, just sad. I believe the setting of the film makes up for
this melancholy feel, or at least brings it down a notch. It is set
in the country, where Electra is banished, forced to live a country
life. For me, the country is calming, so as I was watching the film,
it was calming in a sense to see the countryside while these murder plots and negative feelings were present.
Another
aspect that I noticed in the film was the music. Music definitely
makes a great effect on the audience, especially in movies. Whenever
a dramatic scene happens, there is dramatic music. For example, when
Orestes and Electra were in the country house killing their mother,
horrible, dramatic music was playing in the background. The chorus
was outside the house wailing, adding to that dramatic effect.
I watched the movie as well, and also found that it was pretty different from the play. There was a lot of wailing and screaming in the moving, from the chorus at times, and from Electra. It made it more dramatic but I didn't like it because it also made the whole story feel more torturous. It was one of those things where it made me grit my teeth and sent a shiver up my spine.
ReplyDeleteWow- I have difficulty imagining a production without Chrysothemis! While not the title character, each member of their family shows us a different way of dealing with grief: Orestes flees (albeit much against his choice), Electra lets it consume her with Anger and then Depression, Clytemnestra spends most of the play in Denial, and Chrysothemis alone seems to experience the katharsis of Acceptance. Without her as a frame of reference, there's no true measure of Electra's insanity.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest I wish some of that music and action was put into the live version. The stage version was great but I felt that it would've been a little more captivating if there was more instruments than just a drum set to help us depict what was going on that moment. I guess that's the greatest part of movie making though! you can add what you want when you want, whereas a live play is restricted to what they can use... I wonder if I would've liked the T.V. version more.
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting that they left her out of the movie. I think she acts as a very effective balance to Electra's frantic thirsting for revenge. With the contrast there, it makes Electra's behavior appear all the more eccentric and unacceptable.
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