How Do Gods Impact One's Life?

How can ‘gods’ impact one’s life? This is answered in the film ‘Stranger Than Fiction’. It is about a man named Harold Crick whose life is changed in a tragic fashion by an author, Karyn Iffel, and a literary Professor, Jules Hilbert. Marc Forster, the director, uses various camera angles, contrasting colours and sound to answer the question: how does the ‘gods’ affect ones life.

Throughout the film ‘Stranger Than Fiction’, Forster’s employment of camera angles depicts the impact of ‘gods’ have on one’s life. A key example of this is when Professor Jules Hilbert looks down on Harold in the pool scene. When Harold looks up to Professor Hilbert for ‘divine intervention’, the camera looks up. This shot looking upwards represents how we ask for help from God and his answer deeply impacts our life. When Prof. Hilbert looks down on Harold (High Angle), we are portrayed as weaker individuals, which indicates how an we are weaker than god. By the use of cinematography, Forster demonstrates the impact gods have on one’s life.
Harold goes into Professor Hilbert’s office to talk about death and Harold wears black – a colour that is associated with grievance and how he doesn't want to accept his fate, whereas Prof Hilbert wears whitish clothes which represents what we envision Heaven as, a white pure place which we all aim for. This contrast of colours explains that the ‘gods’ and individuals are disassociated from each other, as Harold and prof Hilbert are separated. Forster’s use of colours establishes the impact ‘gods’ have on one’s