From the Silent Screen to the Screaming Screen
Toronto to me is a movie town - we make 'em (much to the chagrin of the Govenator), we show 'em and we even have a festival dedicated to 'em. Toronto audiences, we are told each September, are 'some of the best in the world.' I always thought that was a weird statement. I mean what makes a good audience? We shut up and don't say anything? We clap politely at the credits? We ask mild and unthreatening questions during the Q&A after films are shown at the film festival, so as not to try and intimidate actors in drug-induced stuppors (and anyone around the festival knows that these do exist)?
Well, yes to all of the above. Now I'm not going to say that Bostonians are poor audiences for films, but they are extremely vocal. Its kinda like a Fenway-cinema experience. If an audience likes a film in Boston you know - they will laugh and applaud loudly after a character gives a dramatic speech, they will also heckle productions that they feel are not up to scratch. The concept of heckling always astounds me, its not as if the actor can turn around and do the performance over again?
I went to see two movies that made this clear to me - A History of Violence and Good Night and Good Luck. WHile Boston audiences cheered Clooney's movie and Murrow's speech against Joe, his Red Menace and censorship, Cronnenberg's film was heckled openly throughout by its audience to the point of annoyance. But I guess that is to be expected - while Clooney's movie is a very safe exploration of the Red scare in American that relies on mostly archival footage to make its point, Cronnenberg challenges his audience by playing with, exaggerating and destroying the stereotypes of everyday life. One although meant to be intimidating ends up looking old and dated, the other is shocking by looking so ordinary.
But my movie experience re-emphasized something else to me - the importance of the film experience still. Question is are we up for the challenge, or would we prefer the noose-bleed seats open to hecklers?
Toronto to me is a movie town - we make 'em (much to the chagrin of the Govenator), we show 'em and we even have a festival dedicated to 'em. Toronto audiences, we are told each September, are 'some of the best in the world.' I always thought that was a weird statement. I mean what makes a good audience? We shut up and don't say anything? We clap politely at the credits? We ask mild and unthreatening questions during the Q&A after films are shown at the film festival, so as not to try and intimidate actors in drug-induced stuppors (and anyone around the festival knows that these do exist)?
Well, yes to all of the above. Now I'm not going to say that Bostonians are poor audiences for films, but they are extremely vocal. Its kinda like a Fenway-cinema experience. If an audience likes a film in Boston you know - they will laugh and applaud loudly after a character gives a dramatic speech, they will also heckle productions that they feel are not up to scratch. The concept of heckling always astounds me, its not as if the actor can turn around and do the performance over again?
I went to see two movies that made this clear to me - A History of Violence and Good Night and Good Luck. WHile Boston audiences cheered Clooney's movie and Murrow's speech against Joe, his Red Menace and censorship, Cronnenberg's film was heckled openly throughout by its audience to the point of annoyance. But I guess that is to be expected - while Clooney's movie is a very safe exploration of the Red scare in American that relies on mostly archival footage to make its point, Cronnenberg challenges his audience by playing with, exaggerating and destroying the stereotypes of everyday life. One although meant to be intimidating ends up looking old and dated, the other is shocking by looking so ordinary.
But my movie experience re-emphasized something else to me - the importance of the film experience still. Question is are we up for the challenge, or would we prefer the noose-bleed seats open to hecklers?
posted by Jen S. @ 11:37 AM
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