Friday, October 26, 2007
StyLeone
I wanted to comment on Sergio Leone's unique style of directorship. Like Once Upon a Time in the West, many of his movies run rather long in time. This use of time is quite unique. Actions are shown in realtime, the cut is used sparingly. Interestingly, a long running time does not imply an excess of dialogue. This is quite the juxtaposition. Leone is a master of expression, sound and other secondary means of storytelling. We see this in the opening scene at the train station with music, and the final shootout with an extreme close-up with expression. Overall, Leone seems fond of the epic feeling seen in his movies. Long play times, aggrandizing titles, timeless actors, et. cetera. They all create a substantial tone for his works.
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3 comments:
interesting analysis of the leone, his works are that of unique in the way you said. especially in once when it seems like time is just dragged on endlessly within harmonica for revenge of his brother, seeing his non-verbal motives, intent, and facial expressions work well for Once
Hmm. usually long movies put me to sleep. Maybe i've only seen long movies from bad directors. Haven't seen any of this guys movies. not to my knowledge anyway. i'll check him out sometime...maybe...
~PSH
I would agree. This is indicative of the European sense of film making. They don't hurry along in the story or plot, but stop to allow the senses to take in much more. It is their idea of stopping to smell the roses (or the gun smoke in Leone's case). His "Once Upon A Time In America" is a good example, it spans generations and has deals much more with the emotional journeys of the cast and not just that action you see on screen. You can't rush through that sort of thing and have it work with any meaning. I also like his eye for detail. I believe that he understands how the subtleties of set design create the real feel of a film.
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