How realism has been portrayed throughout the film "Iñárritu"

Question 1 

The use of non-linear shots and/or non-chronological order as part of the film plays a critical role in building the style and appreciation in the film. The non-chronological order used provides the audience with a deeper and much more authentic connection to the film. When analyzing how the audience appreciates the film, Berardinelli (2010) indicates that the use of a non-linear narrative has been of great value towards remodeling the film’s plot; thus, creating a new beginning, middle, and end. Alejandro González Iñárritu believes that the idea of using this order is important towards eliminating any aspects that can be restricting in his presentation of the plot within the film. Basically, the order adopted as part of the film brings out a major advantage with regard to building clarity and pace in the film, as it gives the audience a chance to connect with the film’s plot. The use of the non-linear shots, as part of the film, allows Iñárritu to demonstrate the depth of the characters as they relate to the plot. Some of the key characters that have been brought out effective through using non-linear shots are Paul Rivers, Cristina Peck, and Jack Jordan.

Question 2 

In the film, Iñárritu focuses on the use of “grainy” black-and-white sequences to bring out a sense of color and film stock, which is important towards highlighting the mood and impact towards its audience. The color and film stock help towards ensuring that the audience is able to build focus on the main plot of the film, as they aid towards building relevance. Color and lighting changes severally as the film goes on with these changes reflective on the different time periods and scenes that the film is representing. Additionally, a change in color and lighting also helps towards exploring the mood that is being projected depending on the specific scenery. An example can be seen when the film changes to black and white as Cristina is taking out some of the stuff in her children’s room after their death. The use of a black and white scene is important towards showing the somber mood that has overwhelmed her due to the loss of her children (Degroot, 2004). The scenes were shot in “grainy” black-and-white sequences as a way of ensuring that the audience would connect with the specific story that is being presented in the scene within the context of the entire film.

Question 3 

Realism has been portrayed in several notable ways throughout the film with Iñárritu using this element towards ensuring that he is able to captivate the audience to build on their active participation in the film (Phillips, 2009). The first way that Iñárritu shows realism is through the settings that each of the scenes have been set, which are reflective of the true message that he intends to bring out to his audience. An example can be seen from his use of a hospital setting when Paul is in hospital, which is important towards providing the audience a with a much better connection to how the scene has been brought out. The second way that Iñárritu is able to reflect on realism is through the costume selection for the individual characters in the film. Iñárritu selected costumes with the view of having to bring out the depth of the individual characters as a way of aligning with the audience’s expectations.

References

Berardinelli, J. (2010). 21 Grams (United States, 2003) . Retrieved from http://www.reelviews.net/reelviews/21-grams 

Phillips, W. H. (2009).  Film: An introduction , 3 rd Edition. Macmillan.

Degroot, M. (2004). '21 Grams' delves into deeper meanings of life, soul.