Think of a time when you have felt isolated, disconnected, or even disengaged from the world or perhaps each other. I would like you to imagine what it would feel like to inhabit a world where this is a reality, where there is very little human interaction and constant darkness? How would you feel? After all, connections with others gives our lives purpose and meaning, right? Well, these are the confronting dystopian worlds represented in Ridley Scott’s compelling and evocative film, Blade Runner, originally released in the 1980’s and Steve Cutts thought provoking short film entitled Happiness, released in 2017 which both successfully establish a relationship between their purpose, context and the audience.
Purpose:
Throughout their images, …show more content…
As seen in the Blade Runner images, Scott has achieved this through a wide shot of J.F Sebastian’s empty apartment and a long shot of Deckard on the balcony to convey this sense of human isolation. Ironically, both J.F. and Deckard exist within these vast empty structures completely alone, their lives devoid of interpersonal connectedness. Although the world is set in an over populated futuristic Los Angeles, these shots have no human being in sight but instead complete emptiness and pervasive darkness, a typical film noir trope symbolic of isolation and lack of connection. Scott suggests that the world is so disconnected that there is a severe lack of meaningful interaction as everyone is so caught up in advancing technologically, seen especially through the use of the symbolism of the …show more content…
Well, when Blade Runner was originally released in the 1980’s, there were a lot of rapid advancements in technology that radically changed the way many people lived and interacted with each other. This context is reflected in the prevalence of technology, being the robots and the vast high-tech construction. Further over, Steve Cutt’s short film was released in 2017 when the term, ‘happiness’ became defined by status and wealth and when there was the introduction of mass social media platforms which is similar to that of the technological advances evident in Blade Runner. This context can be seen through the symbolism of the signs pointing to ‘happiness,’ suggesting that it can be pin pointed and traced back to one specific object or place and hinting to the widely accepted dehumanizing value of materialism. The contrast in the lighting of the crowds of rats in slight darkness surrounding the central rat shown in a brighter light shows that the central rat may be considered different to the others as it has been singled out. The dominance of the pervasive greyness suggests despair, hopelessness and despondency which contradicts this idea of ‘happiness,’ and symbolizes that although the rat may be considered different and perhaps falling behind it is instead progressing at a much faster rate by valuing more important things such as this idea of human
Purpose:
Throughout their images, …show more content…
As seen in the Blade Runner images, Scott has achieved this through a wide shot of J.F Sebastian’s empty apartment and a long shot of Deckard on the balcony to convey this sense of human isolation. Ironically, both J.F. and Deckard exist within these vast empty structures completely alone, their lives devoid of interpersonal connectedness. Although the world is set in an over populated futuristic Los Angeles, these shots have no human being in sight but instead complete emptiness and pervasive darkness, a typical film noir trope symbolic of isolation and lack of connection. Scott suggests that the world is so disconnected that there is a severe lack of meaningful interaction as everyone is so caught up in advancing technologically, seen especially through the use of the symbolism of the …show more content…
Well, when Blade Runner was originally released in the 1980’s, there were a lot of rapid advancements in technology that radically changed the way many people lived and interacted with each other. This context is reflected in the prevalence of technology, being the robots and the vast high-tech construction. Further over, Steve Cutt’s short film was released in 2017 when the term, ‘happiness’ became defined by status and wealth and when there was the introduction of mass social media platforms which is similar to that of the technological advances evident in Blade Runner. This context can be seen through the symbolism of the signs pointing to ‘happiness,’ suggesting that it can be pin pointed and traced back to one specific object or place and hinting to the widely accepted dehumanizing value of materialism. The contrast in the lighting of the crowds of rats in slight darkness surrounding the central rat shown in a brighter light shows that the central rat may be considered different to the others as it has been singled out. The dominance of the pervasive greyness suggests despair, hopelessness and despondency which contradicts this idea of ‘happiness,’ and symbolizes that although the rat may be considered different and perhaps falling behind it is instead progressing at a much faster rate by valuing more important things such as this idea of human