I’m sure you’ve heard the popular adage, “a picture is worth a thousand words”. That adage has never been as true for me as when I was watching, the visually stunning documentary, Samsara. The images shown in the movie, powerful as they were, were provided with an extra layer of meaning through the omission of dialog. I was not told what to think or feel about what was being shown; I was able to form my own opinions and thoughts. There were many themes displayed in the movie, but the ones I picked up on dealt with natural beauty vs. manmade beauty, nature, and the mass production/consumption of food and household items. There were numerous shots showing how beautiful nature is within the movie. The windswept …show more content…
Mother Nature uses the forces of earth, wind, fire, and water in the designs of her creations. The forces at her command can be all consuming for manmade structures. No matter how well something is built, if nature is given free reign, then nature will eventually breakdown and/or completely take over the structure. There were images of abandoned houses being filled up with sand and dirt, a supermarket and a library showing what was left after some type of powerful storm. The natural vs. manmade beauty fight has been going on since the first structure was built. It’s a war of wills between man and Mother Nature, and Mother Nature is as old as the planet itself so she has patience to ultimately win out if man gives up the …show more content…
However, the speed of the camera has increased so it appears that everyone is moving at high speed. That high speed grants the illusion of mindlessness. All they are doing is completing an action without thinking about the end results. The end result in the consumption cycle is to discard what has been used. So, we are left with immense landfills. If that wasn’t enough, there’s also a byproduct of mass consumption…obesity. When a body consumes more than it needs, the body stores that extra energy as fat. Now, compare that to what was shown of an African tribe. The African tribe lived very simply. They were not shown to mass consume, not shown to be obese, nor were there shots of vast garbage landfills. It appeared they were mindful of their environment and that they were living with