Grizzly Man was a
fantastic opening into the land of documentary film for this semester. The
majority of the footage the movie utilized had been through several layers of
filtering before it reached its audience.
Thus, insightful questions arise when we consider the editing process of documentary film's "mechanical eye." This allows us to explore in great depth the fundamental underpinning of documentaries: reality versus artistry.
Thus, insightful questions arise when we consider the editing process of documentary film's "mechanical eye." This allows us to explore in great depth the fundamental underpinning of documentaries: reality versus artistry.
The first editing layer begins with Treadwell. He presented himself to the public as a friend and savior of the
bears. He learned from them and protected them in turn. His footage is a candid
glimpse into his own reality. But is the truth of his situation skewed by how
he presented himself?
The next layer of editing is the
greatest filter of this film, that of Werner Herzog the director. He was
inspired to take Treadwell’s footage and show the story through his own
interpretation. The artistic choices he made skew how audiences view Treadwell.
The footage and interviews Herzog utilized completely change the
dynamic of the film. This is a common theme among documentaries as a genre.
The final eye is that of the film’s
audience. Our preconceptions about nature and man’s place within the
environment alter how we see and understand Treadwell’s character. Our experiences, beliefs, and cultural backgrounds filter Treadwell’s image
even more.
With so many eyes and truth decomposition, we are left with an important question. What is the accuracy of documentary film in its goal of seeking and showing realities? Grizzly Man allows us to explore this
question more deeply because of its many mechanical eyes. The
film is complicated and a very powerful metaphor of documentary film itself. We
cross heightened boundaries of reality vs. artistry, which offers much in the discussion of documentary film’s intent and place.
image by ChristianR
image by ChristianR
Your theory of multiple layers is an interesting, new way for me to look at documentaries. It is funny to think that, even though a documentary's goal is to present a truth, it is filtered through so many biases that what each viewers takes from it it never the same. What Herzog wishes to show us is already a separate take on Treadwell's life, but then to that we must take into consideration our own morals and how they might affect how we see Treadwell and his actions. Our book for class has really open my eyes to the fact that there is a limitless number of versions of the "truth" and I'm baffled!
ReplyDeleteReading your blog was intriguing to me and it really got me thinking. I enjoyed the paragraph in which you asked question after question because it opened up a lot of new ideas. The thought you used of multiple different eyes was also very interesting and it is nice that you used that through the entire blog. I especially liked the paragraph in which you question the way that Timothy portrayed himself. Maybe it really was his own fault that people saw him as crazy, but I hadn't thought about it that way before reading your blog. The only small critique I have is that in a couple of your paragraphs your sentences got a bit choppy and hard to follow. Overall though i really enjoyed reading your blog.
ReplyDelete