Heart Container 002: Lens Flare

Zelda gets the spaghetti western treatment, the Poké-pocalypse is upon us, and Nintendo goes feudal in our latest instalment of Heart Container.

By Katharine Byrne. Posted 08/20/2012 14:00 Comment on this     ShareThis

Film Crit Hulk Smash: WHAT MAKES A MOVIE GOOD?

Suggested by Katharine Byrne.

Film Crit Hulk is one of my new favourite writers, and this article about what makes a good film is definitely one of the most insightful articles I’ve ever read– mostly because it also translates so well to talking about video games too. You’ll have to stomach a whole lotta capslock, but if you can get past that then this is one article you certainly won’t regret taking the time to read.

Here’s a small taste to get you started:

OKAY, LET’S JUST GET THIS OUT OF THE WAY RIGHT NOW: A FILM IS NOT A CHECKLIST.

MOVIES ARE NOT A SERIES OF QUADRANTS THAT NEED TO BE MARKED OFF IN ORDER TO GET A PASSING GRADE. TO BE HONEST, MOVIES SHOULDN’T EVEN GET LETTER GRADES, SCORES AND RANKINGS, BUT THEY DO BECAUSE… WELL… THEY JUST DO. AND THE REASON THEY SHOULDN’T IS THAT MOVIES ARE SO MUCH BIGGER THAN ANY OF THAT.

~

SURE, WE CAN LOOK AT MOVIES WITH OUR TRAINED EYES AND SEMI-OBJECTIVE LENSES TO IDENTIFY THOSE THAT CONVEY A SENSE OF CONTROL, OF CRAFT, OR LIGHTING, OR WHATEVER OTHER IMPORTANT FACET WE FIND CEREBRALLY INTERESTING, BUT FROM THERE? THE FILMS THAT TRULY RESONATE WITH US OFTEN SPEAK TO US IN THESE CHEMICAL, SOMETIMES DOWNRIGHT NEBULOUS LEVELS. THEY SPEAK TO OUR PERSONAL HISTORIES AND EXPERIENCES. THEY STAY WITH US FOR DAYS ON END. THEY DO NOT FEEL LIKE THESE CAREFULLY CONSTRUCTED BITS OF CELLULOID. THEY FEEL AS LIMITLESS AS OUR OWN MINDS AND AS BIG AS OUR OWN HEARTS.

~

ALL THOSE CONCEPTS HULK KNEW ABOUT SUDDENLY MADE MORE SENSE THAN EVER: CONFLICT. DRAMA. EMPATHY. THE BASICS AND HEART OF CONVENTIONAL STORYTELLING. AGAIN, THIS ISN’T SOME CYNICAL APPROPRIATION OF THESE DEVICES. IF ANYTHING, IT SEEMED THE KINDS OF MOVIES THAT SUCCEEDED ONLY CONFIRMED THAT THIS HUMANE UNDERSTANDING OF STORY AND THE PURPOSE OF ART HAD TO BE GENUINE. SINCERE MOVIES PLAYED BETTER THAN ANYTHING.

~

YES, SOMETIMES CRITICISM IS ABOUT HELPING PEOPLE DECIDE HOW TO SPEND THEIR MONEY ON MOVIES, BUT IT CAN BE ABOUT SO MUCH MORE. IT SHOULD HOPEFULLY ENCOURAGE OTHERS TO EXPLORE. AND NOT IN THE INTEREST OF FOSTERING MERE AGREEMENT, BUT HOPEFULLY TO INSPIRE THE SAME KIND OF CAREFUL THOUGHT, PROCESS AND SENSE OF EVOLUTION IN CINEMATIC UNDERSTANDING. HULK TRULY MEANS IT, THE GREATEST THING ANY MOVIE-GOER CAN EMBRACE IS A PERPETUAL STATE OF LEARNING.

And because Dead Poet’s Society is awesome (and Film Crit Hulk uses this as an example) have a video too:


And that’s it for this latest instalment of Heart Container! We hope you enjoyed it, and if you have any thoughts about what we’ve included today or things you’d like to see in the future, let us know in the comments below. Of course, if you’ve got anything you’d like to share, remember to tell us at heartcontainer@nintendojo.com or include a link in the comments. We want to make this a place where we can all share our favourite game-related content and hopefully learn a few things along the way. Thanks for reading, and see you next column!

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