Reflective Paper Response to the Film “Samson and Delilah.”
Reflective Paper Response to the film “Samson and Delilah.”
“Samson and Delilah” (2009) explores issues of survival for two disliked teenagers from a remote indigenous community in Central Australia. Written and directed by Warwick Thornton, this film follows the gradual partnership of two indigenous teenagers who live in a small-impoverished rural community outside Alice Springs. It is a film of slow and alarming beauty. The journey of these two young teenagers has brought to attention a greater awareness and understanding of both Indigenous art and culture, as well as how issues arising from this film may affect and impact upon wider understandings and awareness of Indigenous culture.
The first personal connection I made with “Samson and Delilah” were the scenes viewing Delilah’s grandmother and her paintings. After viewing the first few lectures on the DVD Art + Soul[1] I was able to understand and appreciate more of an in depth acceptance to the relevance of the paintings. Like the Art + Soul viewings, I felt that Delilah’s grandmother was thinking about her family and country in her paintings. She too was singing and telling a story like I had previously witnessed. Having close to a zero understanding of Indigenous art and culture prior to this course, I have already gained a higher knowledge into the meaning of Indigenous Art, which is something I have witnessed before, only without any understanding to the meaning behind it.
Delilah’s grandmother taught her how to paint and shared the techniques she used. The paintings were very repetitive, and as I had already learnt from the Art + Soul episodes, the meaning of the repetitiveness reflected upon what she sings: stories of her country and family. Beyond the paintings’ purpose to express the meaning of her country and family, I appreciated the fact that the paintings are as well a thought out process to make money so they can maintain in their country and live in their culture. As the film developed,
“Samson and Delilah” (2009) explores issues of survival for two disliked teenagers from a remote indigenous community in Central Australia. Written and directed by Warwick Thornton, this film follows the gradual partnership of two indigenous teenagers who live in a small-impoverished rural community outside Alice Springs. It is a film of slow and alarming beauty. The journey of these two young teenagers has brought to attention a greater awareness and understanding of both Indigenous art and culture, as well as how issues arising from this film may affect and impact upon wider understandings and awareness of Indigenous culture.
The first personal connection I made with “Samson and Delilah” were the scenes viewing Delilah’s grandmother and her paintings. After viewing the first few lectures on the DVD Art + Soul[1] I was able to understand and appreciate more of an in depth acceptance to the relevance of the paintings. Like the Art + Soul viewings, I felt that Delilah’s grandmother was thinking about her family and country in her paintings. She too was singing and telling a story like I had previously witnessed. Having close to a zero understanding of Indigenous art and culture prior to this course, I have already gained a higher knowledge into the meaning of Indigenous Art, which is something I have witnessed before, only without any understanding to the meaning behind it.
Delilah’s grandmother taught her how to paint and shared the techniques she used. The paintings were very repetitive, and as I had already learnt from the Art + Soul episodes, the meaning of the repetitiveness reflected upon what she sings: stories of her country and family. Beyond the paintings’ purpose to express the meaning of her country and family, I appreciated the fact that the paintings are as well a thought out process to make money so they can maintain in their country and live in their culture. As the film developed,