Influence & Impact on Contemporary Films 2.0 (Amended)

Montage served different purpose and has several meanings in the context of film and is not exclusively used to refer to Soviet Montage. It is used as a synonym of editing. In Hollywood cinema it means to edit a concentrated sequence using a series of short shots as brief transitions to create the effect of the passage of time or movement over large distances or for expressionistic moods and representation of symbolic meanings. Contrary to the conventional styles and movements, the soviet filmmakers was stepping away from common narrative structure and adapting what has come to be called "Soviet Montage". This new theory of editing was invented by Sergei Eisenstein and then adopted by a few other Russian filmmakers. Eisenstein, however, was the one who discovered its potential and first put it to work to make the people in the audience think whatever he wanted them to think of. “Thematic” or Soviet Montage was achieved arranging striking juxtapositions of individual shots to suggest an idea that goes beyond meanings within an individual shot. It is called collision montage as sequences create significant effects mainly through editing. Its rejection of the forms and conventions of the dominant Hollywood entertainment cinemas have inspired many film-makers to challenge the styles by creating films which emphasizes on the editing which aims to shatter the illusionistic storytelling and seamless continuity cultivated by Classical Hollywood.

In films nowadays, the technique of the Montage Theory is frequently applied in various conventional films in the hope of enhancing psychological relationships between the images in the montage. They would apply the technique as an explanation for longer narrative within short period of time. An example of montage used in contemporary films would be the training sequence in the Rocky (1976). Throughout the montage shows how Rocky trains for his upcoming important boxing match by running through streets, doing sit up and pushups, punching large piece of meat, running up and down of the stairs while in the mean time there is this song singing “Trying hard now… Getting strong now, Won’t be long now… Gonna fly now.” The passage of time was explained through the montage and in the mean time it also indicates that Rocky’s tireless effort and exertion of a great deal of energy in getting ready for his big fight with Apollo Creed, the current heavyweight champion. It brings the narrative along forward by compressing shots of Rocky’s training into a short three-minute sequence.

Using a more recently released film as an example, the film Real Steel also applied montage for similar purpose like Rocky, however in the montage it not only show the progress went through by a single character himself but many characters together at the same time whether in terms of the growth in their characters and mindset or the relationship between each other or event the skill of robot boxing. There is a mixture of shot which include Atom boxing with different robots at different while Charlie instructing at the side and Atom won every matches; the improvement in terms of the relationship between Charlie and Max as they always spend time together discussing about the matches, boxing with other while fooling and laughing around; and shots showing Max spending some time with Atom sitting and eating together when they are not in battle. Thus, the montages indicates the transformation all three parties have went through together in terms of their relationship as well Charlie’s improvement in controlling and instructing Atom during the matches as they always defeat every robot the fight in every matches. In sum, transformation is shown in various ways throughout the montage in terms of fighting skill, personalities as well relationships with each others.

Similar to the Rocky, the montage is also used in romance-genre films to portray the romantic moments and sweet memories a loving couple has been through together for a long period of time by showing a sequence of short footages consisting key events in the narratives from time to time. For instance, in the film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008) where Benjamin and Daisy were living together for the first time after knowing each other for so many years. In this sequence, the montage shows that the couple started living in a small apartment with not much of the furniture except a piece of mattress which both shared and slept on most of the time. In between, there are shots of the couple lying on the bed hugging and kissing each other from time to time while at the same time the narrative progresses as it started to dissolve into the same location but with more decorations and different time. As time goes by, their house started to filled with more furniture and they even painted house and making fun of each other during the process. Also, there is narration throughout the montage as Benjamin Button was describing his feeling during that period of time and how beautiful the memories are back then. All these shots were put together to imply to the audience how much time they spent with each other and how loving they were during that time. All these sequence of shots which lasted for years were then edited and put in together in a 58-second long montage in order to show all the quality time they have spent together and explain about the development of their relationship.

Another good example of montage showing the bondings between two characters’ relationships and feelings would be the 4-minute long montage in the Disney Pixar Animated film, Up. The visuals of the events revolving around the characters were well presented using short yet direct shots along with instrumental background music which smoothly draws out audiences’ attention and emotional attachment towards the film. Light-hearted and slightly faster pace of background music is used at shots portraying happy and cheerful events which aim to incite feeling stir up audience emotion and feeling of happiness whereas slower and softer music which is used when there is moment of peace and calm between the couple as well as the moment of sadness and melancholy as they received the bad news and have went through a moment of disappointment and sadness. Also, the montage has shown as series of happy and sad events which the couple and went through together starting from their marriage, moving into their new home and rebuild it together, spending their favorite pastimes together, decorating new room for their baby, receiving bad news from doctor and etc. until Carl’s wife got sick and passed away leaving Carl alone. A couple’s life which lasted at least 40 years and above has been compressed and cut short into four minutes without any dialogues said in between is the perfect example of the how effective a montage can be applied to tell a love story which last for 40 years long within four minutes.

 Besides conveying the passage of time, montage is also used to create the effect of expressionistic mood in a way that various shots are combined to form a sequence in a slower pace to amplify the engagement of audiences feeling and experience towards the characters and atmosphere within the film. As background music and sound effects are widely used along during the montage, it tends to create more realistic feelings for the audience as the music allows film makers to touch on the emotional facets on the audience and draw them deeper into the films. In the film Pearl Harbour (2001) by Michael Bay, the part where Japanese air fighters have not yet started the assault towards US Navy at Pearl Harbour, the montage shows that different military units and officials conversation which together brings the feeling of calm yet tense as some of them were very relaxing as they are not aware of the Japanese fighters that are approaching the harbor nor did they expect any possible hostility from Japanese army because of the false friendly show on news while they were trying to adopt the uncivilized war strategy by sneaking up on the residents of Pearl Harbour. On the other hand, all the US army officials such as the admiral, strategic analyst and others were very tense as most of them were very suspicious towards the Japanese army because they were aware of Japanese’s threats towards the pacific fleet and they were very skeptical of the Japanese fleet which disappears at the pacific ocean as they suspect that it might be heading towards Pearl Harbour, which it did then. Therefore the mixture of relaxation and nervous expressed throughout the montage tends to give the audience a very tense feelings as they are now very nervous and worry about the US Navy and people in Pearl Harbour because they are way off their guards at that moment while the Japanese air fighters were slowly approaching towards them. It is like calm before the storm which then explodes when the assaults started.

As for the representation of symbolic meanings, there are films which use series of short shots and link them together to create an association for a particular meaning. As Sergei Eisenstein explained his montage theory of collision suggesting individual shots are used as fragments or parts of a whole scene, and not in collision with each other. (creative geography). Therefore, two short footages which alone depicts different meanings were put together to bring out a different meaning, just like how thesis and antithesis were add together to form a synthesis. With that, the best example of films applying the collision theory would be the Requiem For A Dream (2000) by Darren Aronofsky where there is an immense amount of montages which applied the collision theory to depict meanings to audience which not only serve transition, but more importantly they bring out meaning and feeling the director intended to show to the audience in the hope of engaging them into the mind and reality of the characters within the film. For example, every time when one of the main characters was taking drug or pills, the drug-taking processes were shown using a fast pace montage with different shots including the heroin bag, the syringe, US dollar cash rolled up, sniffing heroin, boiling glucose with heroin and etc. and all these shots were put together to form a sequence of montage that not only help to transit the narrative of the film but also to explain the process of it while imply how fast the transaction, consumption and addiction as well as the state of mind of ecstasy can be without knowing how slow and long the pain and suffering will become after. The close ups of all the shots showing details of the process along with sound effects aim to give audience the trippy feeling of addiction as it draws them into the characters’ perspective when they were taking drugs. Also, the montages where Sara was taking the diet pills and waiting for time to pass have their own meanings as well as they were used as a contrast to how different it is to lose weight naturally following conventional way compared to taking diet pills. The fast pace of the montage for taking pill implies that losing weight by taking pills can be as fast as the montage is while the slow pace of all the clocks, television and close ups of Sara as montage signifies how long it takes for a person to lose weight without taking diet pills. Thus, it shows the contrast of the diet process.

Despite of its brief period of time, Soviet Montage managed to influence not only the Soviet cinema back then, but it had inspired many of the prominent film makers which have successfully created many films using the Soviet Montage theory and has entertained countless of audience over the pass decades. The use of Soviet Montage has become so commonplace in mainstream film today that we take it for granted that this important part of film grammar had to be invented by a small group of Soviet filmmakers in the 1920s. (Rock, A.)

References

Rock, A. (n.d.). The Development of Soviet Montage. Retrieved February 22, 2012, from

      http://medb.byu.edu/files/lesson/TheDevelopmentofSovietMontage.pdf

Popular Artistic Styles. (2001). Retrieved February 22, 2012, from Art of Vide Capuchino High

      School website: http://chs.smuhsd.org/bigue/art_of_video/index/styles.html

3. Soviet Montage and The Formalist Tradition. (n.d.). Retrieved February 22, 2012, from

     Understanding Film website:

            http://understandingfilm.wetpaint.com/page/3.+Soviet+Montage+and+The+Formalist+Tradition    

Cooper, L. (2012, January 5). Expressive Storytelling in Soviet Montage Cinema. Retrieved

      February 22, 2012, from

      http://liz-cooper.suite101.com/expressive-storytelling-in-soviet-montage-cinema-a400461

Unique Characteristics of Soviet Montage (amended)

         
            Unlike Montage where by a combination series of short shots are edited into a sequence to condense space, time, and information, Soviet Montage on the other hand is a style of filmmaking that is evolved to immerse the audience in a story and disguise technique was turned upside down in order to create the opposite emotional effect to bring the audience to the edge of their seat, and in the case of the Odessa Steps sequence, to push the viewer towards a feeling of vertigo. In a simpler form, Soviet Montage combination series of short shots are edited into a sequence to create symbolic meaning.

            One main characteristic of Soviet Montage films is the downplaying of individual characters in the centre of attention whereby single characters are shown as members of different social classes and are representing a general type or class imitating Marxist Concept which believe more on society rather than individual .For Instance, in Eisenstein's Strike there is only one character named individually in the entire film. This proves the theory portraying collectivism rather individualism to propagate how united are the people against whatever political climate in Russia.

            The central aspect of Soviet Montage style was the area of editing. Cuts should stimulate the spectator. In opposition to continuity editing Montage cutting often created either overlapping or elliptical temporal relations. Elliptical cutting creates the opposite effect. A part of an action is left out, so the event takes less time than it would in reality. Elliptical editing was often used in the form of the jump cut. For instance, in Strike, Eisenstein cuts from a police officer to a butcher who kills an animal in the form of a jump cut. This is to indicate the butcher not being part of the story but should be able to create or make the viewer think about the relation and come to a conclusion as if the workers were slaughtered like animals in reality.

5 Methods of Montage:

 

Metric Montage

Number  of frames will be used regardless of the series of event in every clip. It is normally used to appeal to the audience emotionally. The usage is rather basic and direct, includes a lot of quick cuts that makes one focuses more on the clips. Perhaps the best time to use this technique is in a suspenseful moment. The prime example of this usage is well portrayed in the film “October” (view below).

Rhythmic Montage

This technique is usually based on the length of the clips and how well would the transition flow along. It is commonly used to highlight a sorrowful or slow moving scene. The key word here is visual continuity. The best example can be found in the film “Battleship Potemkin” (view below).

Tonal Montage

       It is the essence of overwhelming emotion. It used the emotional meaning of the shots, to emphasize a response from the audience in a more complicated manner than Metric or Rhythmic Montage. Relevant reference is found in the film “The Battleship Potemkin”, where audience can witness the death of a revolutionary sailor Vakulinchuk (view below).

Over tonal Montage

       It consists of Metric, Rhythmic and Tonal montage to create its effect on the audience for a more complex effect. It usually gives an extreme view on certain scene and also a crafty way of looking a series of clips as to help the audience to empathize the situation rather than just conveying the message literally. It is best shown in a film called “Pudovkin’s Mother”, where the man are seen as workers walking towards a protestation at their own factory and later on, the protagonist uses ice to escape (view below).

Intellectual Montage

       It is an alternative that portrays visual metaphor, it creates meaning completely outside the depiction, unlike continuity editing, where images are created in a smooth space or time. In general, ‘intellectual montage’ is when the image is not represented by a particular idea. Basically, it uses shots which, combined, emphasize an intellectual meaning. The effect is shown through conflict such as juxtapose shots that have no direct relationship. For instance, this can be seen in throughout the film “Strike” (view below).

            In this film, cut of shots include striking workers being assaulted and a bull being butchered. This is done as metaphor to show how workers are being treated like cattle. The butcher is here a nondiegetic element. Anything that is part of the film story world is diegetic. A nondiegetic element exists outside the story world. There is no connection between the slaughters of the animal. The use of such nondiegetic shots was a total direct portrayal of Eisenstein's theory on intellectual montage creating effects through conflict such as the juxtaposing of shots that have no direct connection as all.

            It is also shown in a film called The Godfather, where killing scene was shown during the baptism of Michael’s nephew. The whole scene was to show the murder “baptize” Michael into a life of crime. Another example is from a film called Apocalypse Now, juxtaposing shot was used in the execution of Colonel Kurtz. 

 

            Another example of contemporary films adopting intellectual montage would be  In     Boogie Nights, Dirk Diggler announces at the conclusion of filming a pornographic scene that he can "do it again". There is then a quick cut to a champagne bottle uncorking at a post-shoot party. This particular scene represents both ejaculation and Dirk's celebratory initiation into the world of porn.

            In a nutshell, Souviet Montage involves editing as a much more pronounced feature than in German Expressionism. It explores the ways in which each shot gained intensified meaning from its relationship to the shots deliberately placed before and after it. For Eisenstein it is in the tension (or conflict) between shots that meaning is created. Montage cinema demands that audiences continuously search for the meanings created by the juxtaposition of two shots and can be seen as alternative to the dominant continuity editing style of Hollywood cinema. Putting shots A and B together does not result in AB but in the emergence of X or Y – something new and larger than AB. This moved the theory of montage on from Kuleshov and Pudovkin who believed shots are like bricks in the way they construct a scene. Kuleshov and Pudovkin aimed at linkage rather than conflict.