I guess I should start this off by saying I know next to nothing about
film. I took a film course in college which consisted mostly of my professor
showing up late to class, and then begging us not to give her a bad end of the
year review. As you can imagine, not much learning happened in that class. One film
habit I did pick up during college as a way to de-stress before my big exams
(I’m looking at you midterms and finals), was binge watching movies. Something
about lying down on a comfortable bed with a pair of industrial strength
headphones and some snacks, really takes the edge off the intense horrors of
whatever impending test may lie before you. In the process of indulging this
habit, I found myself drawn to certain scenes throughout the films I watched, namely,
slow-motion scenes. I mean, come on, slow-motion scenes are the coolest. The
director can use them to slow down a fast moving sequence, they can use them to
highlight something important, they can even use them just for the hell of it.
The possibilities truly are endless.
All this being
said, I thought I would recount some of my all-time favorite uses of
slow-motion in film. Fair warning, I have a very, let’s call it eclectic style
so these film range from highly acclaimed to dismally bashed by critics. So
let’s jump into it.
Drive
(2011)
One of my all-time
favorite films is Drive, directed by Nicholas
Winding Refn and starring Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Bryan Cranston and
Oscar Issac. The film is a crime/drama centered on the life of a man referred
to as the Driver. I could go on and on about the various aspects of this film I
find absolutely brilliant, but for our purposes I’ll move straight to the
hands-down best use of slow-motion in any film I’ve ever seen. Let me set up
the scene. The Driver (Ryan Gosling) enters his apartment building elevator,
joining Irene (Carey Mulligan) his neighbor who he has fallen in love with, and
a burly well-dressed man. The man presses the ground floor button and the
elevator doors close. From out of the corner of his eye, The Driver notices the
glint of a handgun in the man’s inside pocket. Protectively placing a hand
around Irene, the Driver guides her to the corner of the elevator. The lights
dim, triggering the slow-motion, the Driver turns to face Irene. Their eyes
lock in an extended stare before they move in for a passionate, unexpected, truly
beautiful kiss, every movement captured in breathtaking slow-motion. The lights
brighten as they pull away from one another, casting them in an almost ethereal
glow. Their eyes meet again, a shy smile creeps to their mouths. The elevator
rings and the door open snapping the world back into motion.
This is a moment of pure happiness, a moment unrivaled
by all other moments in this film. A moment made even more important by the
events following it. Once the elevator reaches the ground floor, the Driver
shoves Irene off of the elevator and proceeds to brutally attack and kill the well-dressed
man. Irene watches in horror as the elevator door closes. Can you say
brilliant? No matter how many times I watch this film, I can never get over
this scene. I’ve never seen anything quite like it.
Electrick
Children (2012)
This next film I
stumbled upon after a night of watching independent movies on Netflix and it immediately
captured my heart. Electrick Children,
written and directed by Rebecca Thomas and starring Julia Garner, Liam Aiken
(think Klaus from Viacom’s A Series of
Unfortunate Events), and Rory Culkin, is a coming of age story about a
young Mormon girl who believes she is pregnant as a result of immaculate
conception. Picture this moment, it’s late evening, the sun hangs just below
the horizon electrifying the air in an almost neon blue glow. A group of
teenagers, some on bikes, others on skateboards, ride through an empty
alleyway. In the front, Clyde (Rory Culkin), the unofficial leader of the
group, pedals his bike, his long wavy hair blows in the wind as he moves towards
the camera. Behind him Rachael (Julia Garner) rides on his pegs wearing a pair
of bright red heart-shaped sunglasses. Her hands rest on Clyde’s shoulders, a mixture
of peace and apprehension blankets her face. As the pair moves closer, the
camera blurs into a haze of fuzzy shapes and figures. The sound of the ocean,
waves pushing and pulling, can be heard. Now imagine all of this captured in a 30
second slow-motion shot. No fancy editing, no artistic lighting, just these
teenagers in this empty alleyway riding towards the camera. The mix of Rachel’s
expression with the undeniable energy of the air around the teenagers makes
this scene so breathtakingly beautiful.
In context of this
movie, I think this scene really shows Rachael claiming control of her body.
She’s fifteen, she’s pregnant with a child who she believes to be the son of
God, and she’s finally doing exactly what it is she wants to do, even if she’s
not entirely sure what that is yet.
Sucker
Punch (2011)
While Drive
and Electrick Children use
slow-motion sparingly, Sucker Punch
gloriously overindulges in its slow-motion shots. From what I’m told the
director Zack Snyder, think 300 or Man of Steele, really, really loves his
slow-motion shots and he is not shy about using them. A little bit about Sucker Punch, it’s an action/adventure/fantasy/psychological
thriller/neo-noir mashup that follows the story of five girls desire to break
free from the oppressive world they live in. This film has everything you want
in a movie. An amazing kickass all-girl gang, an interesting plot, complex
internal struggles depicted through a series of badass fight sequences, I mean
does it get any better that that? For these reasons (and also the fact that I
have a horrendous crush on Emily Browning ever since she played Violet in A Series of Unfortunate Events), Sucker Punch is one of my all-time favorite
movies.
Getting back to
the slow-motion though. Because this film is filled with fight scenes, and I
mean deliciously filled, and Zack Snyder can’t help himself in the editing
room, you can find slow-motion EVERYWHERE in this film. For this reason it’s
hard for me to narrow down just one sequence that I really love, but for the
purposes of this list I’ll focus on the opening scene. Unlike the simplicity of
Electrick Children, Snyder pulls out
all the stops for this film. There’s stylized lighting, highly gimmicky
costumes, and an eerie soft music that grows into a loud orchestra/rock hybrid.
Also unlike Electrick Children, this slow-motion
scene lasts five minutes. For the sake of time I’ll focus on the opening
fifteen to thirty seconds. The camera lands on a young woman (Emily Browning)
with platinum blonde hair and heavy costume makeup on. She’s been crying,
streaks of mascara run down her ghostly white skin. Outside it is dark, rain
pours down from ominous grey storm clouds. A man appears in the doorway shaking
his head. The young woman runs out of the room desperately making her way to
the end of the hallway where she bursts through a door and falls to her knees
at the foot of a large bed. Her mother has died. Intense right?
Now, I don’t want to give away any spoilers because
this movie really is too good to pass up, even with its scantily clad female
fighters which some took offense to. There’s something so very Xena: Warrior Princess about this film.
I really dig it. I will say that this movie handles some really heavy topics
that may make some people uncomfortable and as I said before Snyder isn’t
afraid to go out these topics with all he’s got.
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