Analyse how visual techniques are used to develop deeper ideas in a visual text you have studied.
Life for many young aborigines is hard. That is the message Warwick Thornton clearly portrays to the audience ‘’Samson and Delilah’’. To ensure this theme is understood, Thornton effectively uses the visual techniques cinematography, props and make up.
Thornton uses make up to show the reality of the violence faced by young aborigines on the streets of Alice springs, and to show Australia and the world what life is really like there. An example of this is when Samson and Delilah are walking down the street and a car pulls up and some men jump out and kidnap Delilah. She is beaten and presumably raped. Thornton does this to remind us of the hard and violent life these people face every day. This is again emphasised when Delilah returns to the bridge they are living under. It is dark and at first, we only a long shot of her silhouetted against the fire. We know she’s back, but we don’t see the full extent of her injuries until it cuts to a mid shot of her face, in which we are reminded of how hard she has it. The audience is shocked to see the state of her face. She appears to have been bashed around badly and her eyes and cheeks are bruised and swollen. This use of make up effectively and realistically shows us the reality of life for young aborigines. Thornton being aboriginal himself has seen and experienced the rough life displayed in this film, ‘’It’s my life’’, he knows that this sort of thing happens on a regular basis and that this serious problem hasn’t been accepted by Australia. They are unwilling to accept that the capital of the red centre has major flaws and we know this through Thornton’s effective use of makeup.
Thornton uses cinematography effectively to show how teenagers feel dislocated from their culture. The character Samson is used as an example of this as he feels isolated and rejects his culture and his people. Thornton does this to show the attitude of many teenagers towards their culture. In one, scene Thornton shows ho w Samson is feeling by the high angle big-shot of the village from Samson’s point of view. He is sitting on the hills outside his town and is disconnected from it’s people. The mid-shot of Samson inhaling his petrol is contrasted with the high angle, big-shot of the village to show that he is separated and no longer a apart of that place. The scene ends with Samson standing up and walking away from his village. The camera stays still and this gives the effect of Samson walking away from the audience. This scene is perfect in showing the way Samson is feeling but his character also represents many other teenagers who have the same opinion of their culture.
Thornton use props to effectively show the reality of drug abuse on the streets of Alice Springs. Samson, the central character, has a major drug problem in the film and this is the case for so many young aborigines living like this. In the very first scene Samson wakes up and sniffs something. We are unsure what he is doing at first but as the film progresses we learn of his drug addiction. A prop that can always be associated with Samson is his petrol bottle. He takes this with him everywhere he goes and this is effective in constantly reminding us of his problem. Samson’s petrol addiction is important because it shows how hard his life is that he turned to drugs in the first place. Thornton chose to do this to further emphasise the problems with the way these people are living.
Thornton;s use of visual techniques is effective at outlining the problems involved with the way aborigines live. He wanted to show the world how hard these people have it and definitely succeeded. I don’t think i would last a week living in these conditions and many people take things like electricity, water, and safety for granted.
Life for many young aborigines is hard. That is the message Warwick Thornton clearly portrays to the audience ‘’Samson and Delilah’’. To ensure this theme is understood, Thornton effectively uses the visual techniques cinematography, props and make up.
Thornton uses make up to show the reality of the violence faced by young aborigines on the streets of Alice springs, and to show Australia and the world what life is really like there. An example of this is when Samson and Delilah are walking down the street and a car pulls up and some men jump out and kidnap Delilah. She is beaten and presumably raped. Thornton does this to remind us of the hard and violent life these people face every day. This is again emphasised when Delilah returns to the bridge they are living under. It is dark and at first, we only a long shot of her silhouetted against the fire. We know she’s back, but we don’t see the full extent of her injuries until it cuts to a mid shot of her face, in which we are reminded of how hard she has it. The audience is shocked to see the state of her face. She appears to have been bashed around badly and her eyes and cheeks are bruised and swollen. This use of make up effectively and realistically shows us the reality of life for young aborigines. Thornton being aboriginal himself has seen and experienced the rough life displayed in this film, ‘’It’s my life’’, he knows that this sort of thing happens on a regular basis and that this serious problem hasn’t been accepted by Australia. They are unwilling to accept that the capital of the red centre has major flaws and we know this through Thornton’s effective use of makeup.
Thornton uses cinematography effectively to show how teenagers feel dislocated from their culture. The character Samson is used as an example of this as he feels isolated and rejects his culture and his people. Thornton does this to show the attitude of many teenagers towards their culture. In one, scene Thornton shows ho w Samson is feeling by the high angle big-shot of the village from Samson’s point of view. He is sitting on the hills outside his town and is disconnected from it’s people. The mid-shot of Samson inhaling his petrol is contrasted with the high angle, big-shot of the village to show that he is separated and no longer a apart of that place. The scene ends with Samson standing up and walking away from his village. The camera stays still and this gives the effect of Samson walking away from the audience. This scene is perfect in showing the way Samson is feeling but his character also represents many other teenagers who have the same opinion of their culture.
Thornton use props to effectively show the reality of drug abuse on the streets of Alice Springs. Samson, the central character, has a major drug problem in the film and this is the case for so many young aborigines living like this. In the very first scene Samson wakes up and sniffs something. We are unsure what he is doing at first but as the film progresses we learn of his drug addiction. A prop that can always be associated with Samson is his petrol bottle. He takes this with him everywhere he goes and this is effective in constantly reminding us of his problem. Samson’s petrol addiction is important because it shows how hard his life is that he turned to drugs in the first place. Thornton chose to do this to further emphasise the problems with the way these people are living.
Thornton;s use of visual techniques is effective at outlining the problems involved with the way aborigines live. He wanted to show the world how hard these people have it and definitely succeeded. I don’t think i would last a week living in these conditions and many people take things like electricity, water, and safety for granted.
