The Harbingers
When war and suburbia collide there
is often a mediator that interprets and diagnosis the situation for us. This filtration process takes place
unknowingly, unwittingly, and without regard for the public at large. Assumptions are made based on veiled
intelligence, and are accepted by the public without question. These mediators become the basis for the
public’s collective knowledge, and are often elevated in status as a trusted
source of information. We depend on them
to ring the alarm bell, and we salivate like Pavlov’s dogs.
Confronting an actual battle or war
is difficult and is therefore too intense for the American people to view. The people do not wish to see their sons and
daughters slaughtering innocents, gunning down insurgents, or bombing a
city. Thus, a mediator is sought to
remove these images of horror and destruction, and replace it with feel good
patriotic drivel that dims the senses.
The public only becomes loosely aware of their danger, and comfort is
achieved.
The
Harbingers seeks to distort this perception and invade suburbia with a true
sense of what their sons and daughters are doing and have done in a wartime
setting. It is an uncensored look into
the theater of war and juxtaposes itself with the suburban lifestyle that was
created by former World War II soldiers from blood. The roles of the mediators are used as
metronome and in repeating their phrases the American public becomes pacified
and placated. Their opening and closing
phrases are often cheerful and seek to remind us that “Everything will be ok.”
Meanwhile an Apache helicopter
hovers a mile away from a group of Iraqi people, and after a confirmation from
their superiors opens fire and this unsuspecting group of people. Congratulations are offered for good
shooting, as eight people lie dead or dying in the street. The bodies pile up, the blood pools, and a
corpse is run over by a tank, but do not fear Tom Brokaw will make it alright,
and you will believe him.
The combination of the images and voiceovers was very interesting. i wish you would've used some of your own footage (i know you dont want to lol) but it was a crazy new connotation with the mixture. I really enjoy how it turned out! great job! I know you are passionate about certain things so as long as you are interested in it then that's what matters.
ReplyDeleteI think your intentions were fully realized. I would fully ignore Hsiao-ping's comments on using your own footage. I know that it was the goal for the project, but I don't think your end result would have been the same.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I am a little horrified. I hope this was your goal.
Wow this imovie was so effective...I feel really depressed now. Your combination of videos was very striking, especially because it seemed nostalgic. The little children in the film looked like the ideal suburban life, almost like a dream. Juxtaposing that with the violent footage of the shootings made your message very clear and shocking. Our separation from reality is undeniable...but it makes me wonder if we could even handle the trauma of accepting all the truth in the world.
ReplyDeleteThis was great and very well done.
i got the idea behind your video without even having to read your artist statement. i thought it worked really well.
ReplyDeleteVery powerful, thought provoking idea...nice work!
ReplyDeleteYour iMovie project is really interesting, kind of a somber note to end on. It kind of works as a critique on society for me, and how people can be so disillusioned about what is really happening. While the found footage works for this video, I'm not sure it was what was intended for this assignment, but you made a really intense commentary here.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy your movie, Mark, but to tell you the truth the video alone is a little to high concept for me. I like it along with the written statement but personally the video itself... there's just something about it. I think that's good though. I don't want to watch it again but in that way that I only have ever seen There Will Be Blood once, it's a movie that gets it's point across and is so strong it sticks with you. And that's fantastic really.
ReplyDelete