THE EXPOSITORY PHASE
Cast Away opens with a long view of roads in a dusty, dry expanse of the plains in the Midwestern United States. You see what is called “infinite regress” -- the camera is looking down the road toward a vanishing point in the distance.
First, state whether or not you’ve seen the movie before. Then write responses to the following questions.
1. What kind of mood does the first scene establish? Choose one among the following possibilities. Write a brief justification for the choice you have selected. cheerful lonely meditative peaceful- Based on the scenery itself as well as the serene music, it establishes a peaceful mood. sad 2. There are several scenes of infinite regress in this movie. Watch for them and …show more content…
Is there music? What music is it? Are there other sounds? You will need this information to answer questions later in this packet.
.
At the beginning of the film, we see long shots of a FedEx truck making a delivery to a lone farmhouse. The names Dick and Bettina arc across the gate. Angel wings show prominently. The FedEx truck driver delivers a package, with angel wings drawn on it, and picks up a package with the same logo from a woman in the art studio behind the farmhouse. Elvis Presley music begins to play.
In the next scene, a FedEx truck delivers one of these angel wing packages to a man in an apartment in Moscow. “From my wife,” he says.
Although this image of angel wings may not seem important now, the fact that you saw the wings more than once tells you that the filmmakers have created a motif for you to follow. A motif is the repeated use of an image or element in literature or film that points you in the direction of a theme or an idea. Motifs can be symbols, as they seem to be here, but many times they simply serve as guides for your …show more content…
What did Chuck Noland mean? What does it tell us about him?
I think what Chuck Nolan means that time determines your lifespan. Life is short and you need to take advantage of the time that remains in your life. Based on this quote, Chuck is a person who lives in the now and doesn’t focus on what will happen tomorrow. Especially since he works for a company that dedicates themselves to time.
Time itself is a motif in this film. Anytime you see clocks in the background or hear any reference to time, you need to remember that the entire concept of time held by the main character is about to change. When you are introduced to Kelly in the Xerox room, for example, a clock looms overhead. Chuck and Kelly slow-dance to the rhythm of the Xerox machine’s steady beat. This moment serves as a contrast to the busy rush of Chuck’s job and the noisy happiness around the dinner table shown later in the film. The long shot of this table, packed with food, rich with company and plates passing from person to person, provides a bit of dramatic irony considering what Chuck is about to experience. Food, too, becomes a motif. Another motif echoed at the dinner table is Chuck’s toothache. This will become a thread to weave elements of the film together.
Cast Away opens with a long view of roads in a dusty, dry expanse of the plains in the Midwestern United States. You see what is called “infinite regress” -- the camera is looking down the road toward a vanishing point in the distance.
First, state whether or not you’ve seen the movie before. Then write responses to the following questions.
1. What kind of mood does the first scene establish? Choose one among the following possibilities. Write a brief justification for the choice you have selected. cheerful lonely meditative peaceful- Based on the scenery itself as well as the serene music, it establishes a peaceful mood. sad 2. There are several scenes of infinite regress in this movie. Watch for them and …show more content…
Is there music? What music is it? Are there other sounds? You will need this information to answer questions later in this packet.
.
At the beginning of the film, we see long shots of a FedEx truck making a delivery to a lone farmhouse. The names Dick and Bettina arc across the gate. Angel wings show prominently. The FedEx truck driver delivers a package, with angel wings drawn on it, and picks up a package with the same logo from a woman in the art studio behind the farmhouse. Elvis Presley music begins to play.
In the next scene, a FedEx truck delivers one of these angel wing packages to a man in an apartment in Moscow. “From my wife,” he says.
Although this image of angel wings may not seem important now, the fact that you saw the wings more than once tells you that the filmmakers have created a motif for you to follow. A motif is the repeated use of an image or element in literature or film that points you in the direction of a theme or an idea. Motifs can be symbols, as they seem to be here, but many times they simply serve as guides for your …show more content…
What did Chuck Noland mean? What does it tell us about him?
I think what Chuck Nolan means that time determines your lifespan. Life is short and you need to take advantage of the time that remains in your life. Based on this quote, Chuck is a person who lives in the now and doesn’t focus on what will happen tomorrow. Especially since he works for a company that dedicates themselves to time.
Time itself is a motif in this film. Anytime you see clocks in the background or hear any reference to time, you need to remember that the entire concept of time held by the main character is about to change. When you are introduced to Kelly in the Xerox room, for example, a clock looms overhead. Chuck and Kelly slow-dance to the rhythm of the Xerox machine’s steady beat. This moment serves as a contrast to the busy rush of Chuck’s job and the noisy happiness around the dinner table shown later in the film. The long shot of this table, packed with food, rich with company and plates passing from person to person, provides a bit of dramatic irony considering what Chuck is about to experience. Food, too, becomes a motif. Another motif echoed at the dinner table is Chuck’s toothache. This will become a thread to weave elements of the film together.