Who's the camera operator??
I enjoyed the film but don't understand who's actually filming everything and why don't they intervene??
shareits called acting........
share
MovieChat Forums > The Dirties (2014) Discussion > Who's the camera operator??
I found it a bit odd and arbitrary (HA).
Who is going to just follow these two clowns around all day long, everyday, and NOT be considered a best friend?
Usually, in found-footage movies, the camera is being held by the main characters/protagonists. It makes the footage look more authentic.
I kept comparing this to "Zero Day", which I prefer more.
And also... were there TWO camera set-ups?
Why were there 2 camera angles in certain shots?
Whoever he/she was, the person sure had a lot of time on their hands.
Jerry was the name? right?
I think I counted maybe 2 or 3 instances of where there was actual interaction/communication between the protagonist and the camera person.
But, honestly, I had more of a problem with the slick/crispy MTV visual style.
It looked kinda like The Office, even, at times.
Still, I enjoyed the movie fairly much.
It wasn't as cliche as I thought it would be.
I felt like at times(early in the film) that someone was filming. But at other times(Matt alone at the fire etc.) Matt was just imagining that there was someone there. I think he was crazy because he's just imagining at times that there is a crew following him.
shareBut then where did all that footage on his computer come from?
I read this in an interview from the director (http://cinema-scope.com/features/one-man-band-a-conversation-with-matt -johnson-about-the-dirties-by-calum-marsh/):
"We made an early cut of The Dirties in which the presence of the cameramen was explained more. But when we screened that version it just wasn’t working at all. There were so many weird psychological problems with it, as if you couldn’t get into the film because you felt like the whole story was just happening between these four kids and had nothing to do with you the viewer. But as soon as we took out all references to the camera operators, you could watch it and feel like you were there."
Would really love to see that cut footage and figure it out.
That first rough cut will be on the DVD release as far as I've heard. Also on the DVD release as a special feature will be the movie that the kids in the park said they were making in the beginning of the film. Apparently their film is actually done and cut and Matt Johnson offered them the chance to have it on their DVD release which I think is amazing.
shareThose two kids just happened to be in the park making their own movie. Matt asked them to come up on stage at today's Q and A at Bell Lightbox. They were really happy and excited to be in the movie and to have their own filming added to the DVD, something for them to remember. Matt's mom is in the movie though she didn't realize she was being filmed.
shareno he actually talks to the camera guy at one point he says his name
shareI felt like at times(early in the film) that someone was filming. But at other times(Matt alone at the fire etc.) Matt was just imagining that there was someone there. I think he was crazy because he's just imagining at times that there is a crew following him.
But then why add "Out of respect for the victims and their families, the footage has not been altered in any way"? If there's no footage...
For every lie I unlearn I learn something new - Ani Difranco share
The camera guy also grabs some popcorn, you can clearly see his hand, later in the film.
Meh, silly movie, terrible ending and I mean the direct ending. Right when things are progressing, the movie is over.
That's exactly the reason the ending was perfect. Watch it again, you might see it differently.
shareI read it as it being a figment of Matt's imagination, that's why Owen was yelling at him when they were near the cliff that it was only the two of them there... No camera operator... And then there was what seemed to be a reveal shot of inside a vent, when the whole movie you thought it was from the opposite side of blinds. No cameraman would be getting shots from inside a vent. I didn't notice when the hand grabbed the popcorn, but considering the potential for this movie I would have edited that out and reshot whatever I could to make it consistent. The only flaw I had with the who is the camera man bit is when he was editing the footage the camera man was filming, as well as the camera man not seeming to have any moral qualms about Matt's plan of action. Having the character imaging the camera in his head is the only thing that works for me, but I find it interesting that above somebody said it seemed in earlier versions the crew was explained... I liked the movie, but it seemed a little rough around the edges.
shareWhatever works for you(suggesting it's a figment of Matt's imagination). The beauty of art is that people are free to interpret things the way they see them. There is a lot of blurring of lines between fantasy and reality here. Matt the character is played by Matt Johnson (the co-writer and director). Matt cut out a lot about explaining the presence of the camera operator, but left in a couple of scenes such as offering Jared popcorn. The real Matt Johnson might not agree with you about your interpretation, but that's what makes creativity so interesting. The filming budget was between $10,000 and $15,000 (and that's Canadian) so the fact that a film project made for friends is even out there in release is amazing. This wouldn't pay for a week's food catering on a Hollywood film. Matt is a grad film student at York U. and Owen is a high school English teacher. Matt's mom (a doctor) didn't even know she was being filmed. The two kids at the beginning of the film were excited to be at the Q and A Sunday.
shareI actually quite liked how Johnson ended up leaving the camera operator as an unknown. I think the fact that they don't intervene is one of the larger points the film makes. I see it as a critique of media and audience complicity in the violence. As such, it is a nice companion piece to Haneke's Funny Games and Campos' Afterschool.
shareOkay, I haven't posted on imdb in a while, but having just watched it and being a really big fan, I've decided to chip in what I think is happening.
The whole piece works because of this whole film within a film concept. Early on we see the two guys in film studies class. Matt asks Chrissie why she said "help, please save me" in her film, prompting him to get footage of her saying something he can use out of context. He then takes this idea and starts to elaborate on in to make his film.
He uses this technique to stage almost ALL of the film from this point onwards. He does and says things to members of the school that will prompt them to react in a certain way and thus allowing him to get the footage he needs. This includes manipulating what Owen says, explaining why he hasn't seen a huge section of the film when he comes round one evening.
When he is going through the film frame by frame, I believe he is not only editing the sequences together, but editing out all mention of the cameramen.
In the scene where Matt is looking over the cliff an pretending to do kung fu, they have an argument over why he is now "Always acting", meaning that as the film progresses, less and less footage is meant to be fly on the wall "making of" footage and more like Matt tricking people into saying certain things that will allow him to piece his movie together.
This is the genius of the film. We don't know when it stops becoming real for the characters and neither does the viewer. The only person that has any idea whats going on is Owen (The Director) and the cameramen, a feeling that anyone who's ever been an amateur filmmaker, has probably felt before.
I agree with the comparisons to Funny Games in some respects but as a 'nice' companion piece? haha what a morbid and ironic turn of phrase
Because we're really going to double bill them aren't we? Christ, I think that would send anyone over the edge!
This was my main problem with the film until the scene with his mother in the kitchen. He asks her if she thinks he's crazy and she says something along the lines of "crazy technically means when you lose your ability to tell the difference between your thoughts and reality" I personal interpreted that as meaning maybe the cameramen had left with Owen, or maybe they never really existed in the first place.
share[deleted]
[deleted]