Carry It Forward: Lord Of The Rings Trilogy

Imagine if Frodo Baggins did not have the rest of the fellowship in his quest to destroy the ring of power. In the movie The Lord of the Rings, which actually is a trilogy, Frodo embarks on a quest to throw back the evil ring of Sauron in the heart of Mount Doom, the highest mountain in the desert wasteland of Mordor. However, what if he died before he threw the ring in?

This is where the 5 obstructions would come into play...

Using the idea that 5 Obstructions used for the film "The Perfect Human" by Jorgen Leth, I believe it would be interesting and provocative if the same method were applied to altering the trilogy that so many people of the world know and love. The director and primary screenwriter, Peter Jackson, would be taking the role of Jorgen Leth, as the one that has to fulfill the obstructions given by the obstructionist. In my mind, Von Trier would be replaced by the Wachowski Brothers. I think the obstructions given by the Wachowski Brothers to Peter Jackson would result in some mind blowing alterations of The Lord of the Rings.

Another idea would be to pick 5 well known directors, such as the Wachowski Brothers, Stanley Kubrick, Steven Spielberg, Alfred Hitchcock, and Quentin Tarantino, and each give Peter Jackson an obstruction or a set of obstructions for remaking the movie. That would be spectacular.

The influence of each obstruction upon the movie would reshape the the entire story arc. Events that happened in the original movie that people know so well could be completely changed, offering a brand new story in a visually different medium. These 5 directors are hugely different from each other, and their obstructions would be hugely incomparable. This incomparability would offer 5 new perspectives of one of my favorite movies of all time, from the obstructions of 5 of my favorite directors of all time.

Recreating this epic story in 5 new, different ways would allow people to delve into and experience Frodo's journey in ways that even the story's original author, J.R.R. Tolkien might not have imagined. Even so, I am sure that he would have appreciated a visual understanding of the different perspectives of his fiction by some of the greatest visual experts that ever lived. The 5 Obstructions: The Lord of the Rings is an amazing idea to put into action. It adds new and exciting ways to interpret the original journey to destroy the ring, while preserving, appreciating, and spreading its original magic.

Change of Mind: "The Perfect Human"

This film was one of the weirdest films I have ever seen. I usually do not experience art that does not literally speak to me right away, as this one does. Jorgen Leth has created something that I still have trouble describing. When I first saw the film, I was fascinated by what the narrator was going to show the audience next because I enjoyed watching the actor and actress act whatever the narrator said on the screen. I also wondered why the narrator chose to pick the actions that he did. Soon, I realized that the narrator was trying to give perspective on the abilities that the human body can do. Leth was trying to show what we take advantage of daily by putting an emphasis on each individual action, even sometimes repeating them.

This film changed the way I saw simplicity in the movies. These days, most movies that come out are all filled with CGI, special effects, and computers. The balance between actual acting and computer technology has been leaning towards the computer technology. This movie, "The Perfect Human," allowed me to appreciate actual acting. There were no special effects in this movie, but its appeal and effect were as large as a movie that has them. This is due to the acting. Simple acting allowed me to appreciate what Leth was trying to tell the viewer. Whatever his actual reason was, I was able to interpret it to my own desire with the aid of the simple and articulate acting of the actors. I very much enjoyed this thought provoking film, and have started to research older movies, ones that had less of an emphasis on CGI and more of an emphasis on pure, great acting.

Challenging The Status Quo

It is necessary to challenge status quo thinking to the fullest extent. People of the world share different ideas and different viewpoints on topics, issues, answers, and questions. These viewpoints need to be released to the world because the objective is to NOT have a status quo. Even though we do have a status quo for almost every thing and every part of our society, the goal should be to remove that status quo. Even though status quos will probably never be removed, they will change over time. This change is necessary in order to fit with newer generations. Going back to the necessity of challenging the status quo...The degree that is necessary is infinite because this challenging is what fuels change and revolution. This challenging fuels the changing times. This challenging should not be suppressed because people are always going to have different methods to challenge status quos, so they will automatically be suppressed. Challenging status quo is a welcoming sign of change.

The degree in which it is possible to challenge status quo thinking is infinite until that challenge becomes the new status quo. Since challenging status quo brings about change and revolution, that challenging will continue until it becomes the NEW status quo. The moment it becomes the new status quo is the moment that it is done being challenged. It is when someone else will begin to challenge it because it is the status quo. In conclusion, the actual amount of times status quo is challenged is infinite, but the amount of time that a status quo is challenged is finite.

Best Of Week: "Bootleg Culture"

The best topic of this week was Bootleg Culture because of the ensuing discussion we had in class about the 'validity' of remixes and mash-ups. I am completely for these types of creative expression because I believe putting a remix together or putting a mash-up together requires more than just "Highlight, Control C, Control V, Press Play." It takes a lot more effort than that. When I listen to remixes of songs, I always note the differences because thats what makes the remix good. If the remix sounded just like the original, then I wouldn't have a care for it and would probably not bother to listen to it. But since remixes are made to sound different than the original except for the main themes, I do care about it because it shows me the interpretation of the original song that the remixer had. I appreciate that. I can connect these "interpretations" with solos and cadenzas on the violin. A well known concerto that has been played over and over by people since the times it was written years and years ago is played with different styles and musical elements by every single violinist. Every violinist puts crescendos, accents, tempo changes, volume changes, bowing changes, etc. wherever it feels right to them in the piece. This is their interpretation.

Going back to remixes and mash-ups, putting these tracks out there for the world to see should be perfectly legitimate because 1) It is a type of art, and art is meant to be shared and interpreted in their own way by everyone and 2) It is a form of "original song advertising" because listeners of remixes and mash-ups wonder what the original songs are, and end up looking them up and checking them out as well. If they like the original song and the original band, the remixer has successfully shared his/her own art while simultaneously advertising for the original artist, benefiting both.

Mash-ups and remixes are not simply 'cut, copy, and paste.' They take time, effort, and a grasp of music theory as well if they are to appeal to the listener. In an age of widespread opportunity to get your hands on audio editing software, they are inevitable and should be welcomed instead of shunned.