So what we really watched last night for 'Pizza and Movie Night' was (you guessed it) HSM3 and I'll be knackered if I do ANOTHER review on that one--no matter how much I cried first time I saw it...
This morning I flew to Vancouver. Great flight on the new 777 beastie. Huge, very comfortable plane. Actually a good experience which has not been the 'norm' for me where Air Canada (cue evil emperor music from Star Wars...) is concerned.
I'm here to shoot a TV special tomorrow.
Anyway, as I'm wont to do when I hit the ground in Vancouver I went to see a movie.
"KNOWING" starring Nicholas Cage.
I really don't want to spoil it for you so I won't really say anything particular about it except to say...
1) It does thrill.
2) It takes an interesting turn (genre-wise) about halfway through.
3) The set-pieces were spectacularly executed with a kind of grit and realism you usually don't see in this kind if big, genre-flick--really impressive.
What you'll see, if you see it, is that it flirts with some pretty iconic imagery near the end and the problem with iconic imagery is that it comes loaded. Loaded with meaning. Loaded with connotation.
Loaded with possibility.
And the problem with possibility is that it's possible. It's possible you'll do something great with it but it's also possible that you'll screw it up--cheese it up--go on the nose with it.
It's such a fine line.
And I find that's the case with storytelling from pulpit or screen or at work for the sake of building a vision.
Case in point...
Say you have a dream. It's a real dream. It's a good dream. You want to inspire your staff with it. You can't stand up in the boardroom and say, "I have a dream..."
Why?
Because the second you use those iconic words it conjures up images of the Lincoln memorial and MLK Jr. and thousands upon thousands of people responding to a speech delivered with passion, intensity and a weight of life-experience that's way above your pay-grade.
Which means your people--even if it's unconsciously--will tune you out. They'll assume you're blowing smoke and will write you off. You'll have lost your chance to move them for no other reason than you casually used an iconic phrase.
But say you're sitting with your sweetheart, by a river at sunset. You take her hand and--without looking at her--say, "I have a dream..." Real soft and gentle like. She'll probably say, "A dream of what?" And you'll say, "A dream of playing with our babies in that water someday..."
You say that, you got her.
Same thing with movies, same thing with sermons.
You have to choose your imagery (whether spoken, or scripted or shown) very carefully. If you hit it right you stand the chance of blowing your audience away and really making an impact on them.
Still not sure if 'KNOWING' hit it exactly right. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the film, it was totally worth the time and money but...
Gonna' have to sit on it a bit.
Check it out, maybe drop me a line, and lemme' know what you think.
T
No comments:
Post a Comment