A documentary must be objective and it must present all evidence in its original context and form. A documentary can be one of four categories: expository, observational, interactive or reflective. Made in Bangladesh is an interactive documentary because the interviews conducted allow people to have a voice and give their own opinions. Depending on how the interview is shown, the speaker will be seen as either trustworthy or untrustworthy, which will determine the credibility of the documentary.…
The problem of les banlieues (the suburbs) became particularly prominent from the early 1980’s onwards. Violent confrontations between suburban youths and the police took place in a number of the suburbs surrounding France’s major cities like, for example, Sartrouville and La Corneuve near Paris and Valulx en Velin and Venissieux near Lyon.…
Documentaries reinforce or criticise dominant representations of groups in society. Discuss in relation to a documentary you have studied.…
In documentaries when a director takes on a sensitive subject matter, like upsetting historical events, he or she needs to develop a certain point of view without being biased, or the authenticity of the documentary is jeopardized. Two historical events that are featured in many documentaries are the Holocaust and the terrorist attacks of 9/11. Director, Alain Resnais, captures the horrors that took place in the Jewish concentration camps during World War II in the 1955 short documentary film Night and Fog; whereas director, Michael Moore, focuses on the actions of President George W. Bush following the 9/11 attacks in the 2004 documentary, Fahrenheit 9/11. Though both films expose the truth behind the said historical traumas, the different montage approaches of these directors evoke distinct point of views: one that is omniscient while the other is objective, respectively.…
The documentary about the Islamic religion and its founding prophet Muhammad peace be upon him was very interesting to me because, I come from a dominant Muslim country know as Iran and I have never really knew how, from where and by who the Islamic religion started. This movie sums it up in about an hour.…
Documentaries are useful as research sources. They are also used quite frequently as supplemental learning tools in the classroom. A common writing assignment is a critical review or analysis of films.…
The idea of a documentary being an artistic or even personalised expression of a director is long gone, or so it seems in recent times. In Michael Moore’s latest documentary, Bowling for Columbine, he attempts to get across to viewers his, and essentially only his point of view, on the topic of gun laws. Although what Moore is trying to say is not necessarily wrong, he is at the same time not taking into account the other side of the argument either; all he is trying to do, essentially is hypnotise viewers into thinking his way of thinking is the only way of thinking. In his documentary, it seems that all other arguments are simply invalid.…
I found the documentary very compelling when they spoke about the differences between the ways that juveniles and adults are treated in the court system. For example, juveniles are sentenced their punishment is based on what is best for them, whereas adults are sentenced based on what is best for the community. Even though this is not always the case for juvenile offenders, as some are tried as adults, it is very interesting how the court…
How far is the spectator challenged by issues of manipulation in documentary film? Refer to the films you have studied for this topic.…
Documentaries are films that inform truth with factual evidence in contrast to narratives that employ fictional events. The conventions of this genre are what make it creditable and serious. Non…
The narration keeps the viewers informed on the events. The introduction of the characters gives a background of their stories. For example, when he narrates, “…and then there was a hungry little girl who…
She does some imagery to help the audience visualize some of her points. For example, in an effort to vividly portray what odds Mohammed faces in addition to his loss of limbs from cluster bombs she says, “Even before his disability, Mohammed's life wasn't easy. He was born in the Rashidieh Camp for Palestinian refugees, and this is where he still lives. Lebanon holds some 400,000 Palestinian refugees, and they suffer from discriminatory laws. They're not allowed to work in the public sector or practice certain professions and are denied the right to own property. This is one of the reasons why Mohammed doesn't really regret dropping out of school right after his injury. He said, "What's the point of a university degree when I can't find a job to start…
While 'documentary ' is the name of a genre, the term is used very broadly to cover a range of film types. What these texts have in common is that they all intend to persuade their audience to a particular viewpoint but that is where the similarities end. While documentaries are made primarily to entertain and inform audiences, there are many factors that determine the way in which they will achieve their purposes. And purpose is a driving force in determining the style a documentary will take. Some films may be created purely because of the passion and vision of a director, others may be produced as a form of propaganda, pedalling a particular viewpoint and still others may be arise because an institution or organisation feels they need to get their message out to the world. So while the genre…
The French-Belgian film (the director was Belgian) Ma Vie En Rose (My Life in Pink) is a story set in France about a family of six (Mom - Hanna, Dad - Pierre, three sons (Ludovic being the youngest, and Daughter) in which the 7 year old son, Ludovic (Ludo for short), has a gender identity disorder. Ludo thinks he's a girl and God mistakenly made him a boy when his second X chromosome didn't go down the chimney. He attempts to correct this mistake by dressing like and acting like a girl. At first, Ludo's parents find his behavior humorous. However, after repeated incidents of girlish behavior - including dressing up like a girl and pretending to marry his best friend, Jerome - his parents start to think there's a serious problem and find a psychologist to help their son. The psychologist is apparently unsuccessful in convincing Ludo that he is meant to be a boy. His continued behavior considerably stresses his parents. They are at times accepting of the way he is and at other times exasperated and livid at him for being so indecisive about his sexuality. But his problems are also affecting his school life (the parents of Ludo's classmates successfully petition the school to expel him) and his social life [his friends make fun of him and call him bent (gay)]. After Pierre (Ludo's father) is mysteriously laid-off (Jerome's father is Pierre's boss), Pierre finds another job. However, this job calls for the family to move from the suburbs of Paris. This move let's Ludo and his family get a fresh start.…
They explained very factual information about the military tactics used, as well as the history of the sultans. In these historical accounts of the Ottoman empire, the documentary uses credible historians and re-creates this amazing rise to the top. In simple terms, there was no real bias and the narrator's kept it very objective by only stating facts and explanations. These creators did not give opinions about the empire and kept it objective even in the cases of the Harems (sex slaves). Overall they did a great job reliving the experience of a surprising uprise in the ancient…