Architecture can symbolise power and status, this is magnified in films, especially in sci-fis where there are clear split in power and character. One of the obvious choice is Washington, where the Capitol Hill and White House is located. Being one of the most important place in the world, they represent and symbolise the dominant political power the government insert into the people and even the whole world. On the other hand, Moscow is often presented as the villain or the spies in Western blockbusters for example in James Bond. Different styles of architecture also present different impressions to the

Continue reading[Reading Response: Sue Harris]

I would like to discuss further the issue of the generic city. As it is, I personally think it is a tool for filmmakers to use the emotional attachment and shock factor to empower their films without raising too many issues. This is more prominent in films where the story is dark and closer to life. For example, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Transformers serious, we see specific cities being used as the background of the film. These films are so obviously fictional and out of the ordinary that viewers are unlikely to associate said city with the

Continue reading[Reading response: Ackbar Abbas]

Ackbar Abbas mainly discusses two types of city, invisible city and generic city. An invisible city is a city without a clear image whereas the generic city is more like a city which keeps transforming and ‘erasing’ its history and identity. As mentioned, ‘many Generic cities today are located in Asia’, which is pretty true as far as I know. As an example, my hometown Jinan has been inhabited for more than 4000 years, many ancient buildings there actually represent periods of history. However, as time goes on, new buildings emerge and many ancient buildings have been demolished. To older

Continue reading[Reading Response: Ackbar Abbas]

As the writer said, “city allows itself to be evoked only through a certain kind of imagery”. Every city‘s impression is complicated and diverse, it could not be easily represented by a static picture. Therefore, the writer mentions that the instability of cinematic image could express the city. Meanwhile, many “anomalous details” in cinemas could lead to many turning points of audience understanding, which enable the city’s impression to become more stereoscopic and comprehensive. However, cinema may affect our understandings of a city. Due to “Cyber Kungfu”, the director could show images of the city that he wants to show,

Continue readingReading Response: Ackbar Abbas

The theme of “The Bourne Identity” is far beyond the simple opposition between good and evil in the action movies of the same period, and moves towards deeper thinking about the existence of society and individuals. Jason Byrne’s motivation in the entire trilogy is to retrieve memories and complete atonement, not to save the world and maintain justice as usual in Hollywood blockbusters in the 1990s. Because of this, the audience can find sympathy and empathy with Jason Bourne, who has lost his heroic aura. What we see is an ordinary person with scars, not a hero who is omnipotent

Continue readingReading Response: Sue Harris