tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38644188.post116997533544055926..comments2023-06-26T06:30:22.555-07:00Comments on Machine Time/Time Machines: Distorted Reality in Man with a Movie CameraUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38644188.post-47109850297423286842007-02-07T19:26:00.000-08:002007-02-07T19:26:00.000-08:00Irene and Josh! The first comment (1/28/2007 2:08 ...Irene and Josh! The first comment (1/28/2007 2:08 AM) was posted by me. Thank you! =)Silbi Songhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02690439068216750086noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38644188.post-1170093598615304392007-01-29T09:59:00.000-08:002007-01-29T09:59:00.000-08:00I disagree with your interpretation of Vertov’s fi...I disagree with your interpretation of Vertov’s film as this being machine’s control over human space. What it seems to me is that the audience has a fascination for it. The tricks brought before their (and our) eyes can almost be considered magic. Fast forwarding, slowing down, even freezing images is something that cannot be done in reality. Vertov is demonstrating the possibilities of the Kino-eye, and throughout most of the film the music is very energetic and exciting. I would also have to agree with what Silbi mentioned, which is the equal dependence between the camera and the human. You say that people are now dedicating their time to watch the images from the camera instead of an opera or play. However, I believe that without the humans, behind and in front of the camera, there would be no film to present to the audience, and without the camera, the humans would no longer be able to create this "magic".Daniellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04961748497796571801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38644188.post-1170055379495638382007-01-28T23:22:00.000-08:002007-01-28T23:22:00.000-08:00It doesn't seem as though Vertov is criticizing ma...It doesn't seem as though Vertov is criticizing machines. The music in the opening scenes convey a sense of fascination and anticipation. It gives the theater a sense of life even without people occupying it. This theater caters to the people who enter, letting down the seats and dimming the lights. I agree with Silbi that Vertov tries to portray a harmony between humans and machines. Just as the orchestra must wait for the projector the start, the projected images are dependent on the orchestra for life. The humans and machines collaborate to produce the final product.thoughtsthatcantwaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17396008399868078243noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38644188.post-1170047913204052762007-01-28T21:18:00.000-08:002007-01-28T21:18:00.000-08:00I agree that Vertov is trying to send a message th...I agree that Vertov is trying to send a message that humans should not be dependent on machines so much. I could think of instances where he not only shows the dominance of machines, but also shows things that humans should be doing more of like leisure activities that do not involve machines. (Vertov shows people swimming, playing basketball, etc). Even the music of the movie itself sounded like the clinking and clanking of machinery in several parts. However, I do not believe that this theme is the only message that Vertov has. I agree with Silbi's comments in that Vertov's film is filled with many metaphors and is probably trying to show many things using those metaphors. Thus, I agree with the metaphors that you have come up with, but I do not think it is his ultimate message as you say in the end.Shyamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11672263503689715437noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38644188.post-1170046173570491032007-01-28T20:49:00.000-08:002007-01-28T20:49:00.000-08:00I agree, human lives, spatially and temporally, ar...I agree, human lives, spatially and temporally, are shown growing increasingly dependent on the camera. Just as the theater comes to life when the camera starts rolling, so do the town people. The film shown in the theater first shows every town resident and machine sleeping, still, almost lifeless. The atmosphere is gloomy with an air of death. This scene shows that human time is not just dependent on the camera and technology in general, these objects are essential to their daily function governed by time. Once the camera starts rolling, the people wake up and start their daily activities: jobs, house chores, entertainment. In this part, the film shows the man with the camera above the town filming almost as a “godly figure.” This is shown twice in the film; it represents the dominance of the camera over the town, the residents’ living space. Also, later in the film several scenes of the workers fusing with the machines they’re operating are shown as in “Time and Motion.” The scenes flash so quickly that it’s difficult to distinguish man from machine. This also represents that technology not only dominates, but enslaves humans temporally into machine time. Also, I see some irony that the camera, a form of visual enslavement, reveals humans' enslavement to technology through excessive and rapid work on machine time.BrendaFregosohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10515149013983339587noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38644188.post-1169978925090625142007-01-28T02:08:00.000-08:002007-01-28T02:08:00.000-08:00I disagree with the comment on the human dependenc...I disagree with the comment on the human dependency on machines in the film. Even though the repetitive and shocking images of machine-oriented shots might seem like humans are being controlled by the machines, Vertov clearly shows that the collaboration between humans and machines is the positive outcome of the modern society. You can see this through the many close-up shots of the camera lens and the human eye that resemble "Kino-Eye." I think that Vertov praises the industrial revolution and the mutual dependency between humans and machines. Also Vertov very much emphasizes Lenin's political ideology, which supports the industrial revolution throughout the film. And I think "distorted reality" is little too harsh. I believe that Vertov truly portrayed the state of Russia in 1920s in an innovative and artistic manner. This film is not just a documentary; it also is an art. Therefore, I don't think anyone should take every image so literally and assume that Vertov had distorted reality. It was the way Vertove expressed the reality of that era in his art form. Therefore the film is full metaphors and exaggerations.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com