Film Iciar Bollain example essay topic

ENGLISH COMPARATIVE ESSAYASSINGMENT II'A comparison and contrast between "Flowers from another world" and "Hi, are you alone?" 'This essay will attempt to compare and contrast two films directed by Spanish director actress Iciar Bollain. The films to be compared and contrasted are "Hi, are you alone? ("Hola, est as sola?" ) and "Flowers from another world" ("Flores de o tro mundo"). The most apparent reason for comparing and contrasting these two films is that both focus their attention on women's affairs and behaviour's in today's Spanish society, both display similarities in their content but most important is the differences that one may find in the portrayal of women the director seems to be interested in. A) "Hi, are you alone?" : Trini and La Ni~na are the same age: 20, and have the same uncomplicated way of going about things, they simply go ahead and do them. The two girls also share the lack of a mother.

During their trip, they share everything, including Olaf, a Russian who knows not a word of Spanish and with whom La Ni~na has an affair. They have a mutual letdown: Mario. La Ni~na finds love and loses it, finds her mother to lose her again, but also finds a friend, Trini, whom she is certainly not about to lose. This is film is regarded by many critics as an enchanting road movie about being a woman, being young, love and friendship is the first directorial work by Iciar Bollain. In this opera prima, Iciar shows her ability to direct actors, especially her two leading actresses, but it is in her handling of a story told so many times before (two girlfriends on the road has been the theme everywhere, who can forget Thelma and Louise!) and thus making look so fresh and original that her directorial talent is revealed.

She has managed to capture, not the loss of innocence, but the gaining of maturity, the moment when we learn which things we can change and which we cannot. In this film we do not find a false step since the fraternal relationship between the two young women is very cleverly constructed and transmitted to the audience. We also feel that the two leading actresses, Silke and Candela Pena are up to the level of the rest of the film. B) "Flowers from another world": A bus load of women arrive at a bachelor ceremony in a dying Spanish village in hopes of marrying men that can support them and in some cases, their children. Patricia (Lissete Mejia) from the Dominican Republic hopes to marry a man who will support her and her children and allow her permanent residence in Spain. It's unclear why Marirrosi (Elena Iru reta) takes part in the bachelor celebration since she appears to be gainfully employed and she appears to be content with her life as a single woman while Milady (Marilin Torres) from Cuba wishes for liberation.

All three women find themselves entrapped in uncomfortable situations with their male companions and the drama in the film revolves around the tensions caused by their relationships. The desperate women are unable to communicate their needs to their partners for the most part or in the case of Marirrosi, is unable to sacrifice her life in the city and move to the village and marry the villager Alfonso (C hete Ler a). The actors deliver compelling performances as they flesh out their characters. The strikingly beautiful Lissete Mejia plays the role of Patricia with controlled grace while Cuban actress Marilin Torres exudes sex appeal and a wild. In this film Iciar Bollain once again tells a believable and disheartening story.

Although the rhythm of the film may seem slow, the director strikes the audience with powerful and emotive scenes and vibrant images which allow viewers to become fully involved with the entire drama that embodies this story. Similarities between the two films: I) The plot: Both films discuss social issues in a detailed manner. They both present us with an environment where women are at its centre despite the fact that the director is a woman herself, one never gets the impression that she depicts women and their relationship with society in a subjective way, moreover this is a characteristic of Iciar's films that she remains neutral when judging the situations her female characters experience. Both plots have a vast amount of drama in their content making common for the audience to expect emotional and passionate scenes where becomes clear that the director is an expert in obtaining the very best of every actor in her films. II) The Characters: Both films have different portrayals of women, there are female characters such as Silke in "Hi, are you alone" and Patricia in "Flowers from another world" who represent women determination and contingency as opposed to Trini and Milady who are much more sex appealed and adventurous thus much more joyful. The former are more complex figures whereas the latter, Trini and Milady are more immature and.

In both films we get the figure of the mother who at first seem all caring and all loving but turns out to appear as a malicious figure whose ego is greater than her heart.) Politics: Both films suggest a sympathy towards a left wing government or Evolutionary as often called in Spain where the establishment appears to be the cause for the distress and problematic lives the characters have in this two films. One finds this is the case when Patricia shouts out "Maldi ta " referring to Spain's hierarchical family structure in "Flowers from another world" and when Trine calls her landlord a fascist because he looks down on her partner for dressing like a hippie. Both films reflect the oppression Spanish government can have upon women like the ones we find in these two stories. Differences between the two films: I) The rhythm: "Hi, are alone" is much easier to watch mainly because it is a kind of road movie with a high dose of action and not so many dialogues to attend. There are also fewer characters and we are taken to many different cities along the Spanish territory which gives the audience a stronger feeling of movement. It is also important to bear in mind that "Flowers from another world" embodies a wider range of topics thus not merely concentrating in the lives of its characters but also explores the difference between Spanish culture and that of South American whereas in "Hi, are you alone" we only seem to be travelling alongside our characters lives in a rapid way.

"Hi, are you alone" is structured in a much simpler way than its predecessor which may be an explanation for clarifying the view that "Hi, are you alone" is more fun to watch. The figure of man: Men in "Flowers from another world" are depicted in a submissive manner, in the sense that they never take decisions by themselves but simply obeying what their women have to say. Men in "Flowers from another world" are weak, they never determine the course and development of the plot whereas in "Hi, are you alone" we return to the Macho figure especially with Olaf, the Russian whose only concern is to return home and find the fridge full of beer and food thus causing a lot of pain to the two girls who foolishly fall in love with him. Conclusion: It is important to stress the fact that neither of these films have been directed from a feminist point of view, Iciar Bollain demonstrates her ability to direct films where both men and women can learn from the experiences the characters go through. Social issues are treated with extreme care so one can argue that Iciar's films do not by no means underestimate people's ideologies, in fact she seems to be very respectful and one never gets the impression that she is trying to impose her views upon the audience, however it has been argued that she shows her political preferences towards the Spanish left wing parties. Iciar simply exposes problems of her interest that are common in Spanish society and from that she creates stories which have something to say thus making the audience question certain values and principles that are present in our social lives.

Many critics argue that "Flowers from another world" is the accomplishment of her first film "Hi, are you alone?" since the director shows her confidence to tell a much more sophisticated story where for instance one can see many more characters who also come from all sorts of backgrounds whereas in "Hi, are you alone" one seems to be limited to the lives and relationships of two girls and perhaps forming a triangle structure with Trini, La Nina and Olaf which nevertheless remains fairly linear.