How the Structure of Film Amazing Grace Is Such a Critical Part of the Film?
- Submitted by: vanillafleur
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- Category: English
- Date Submitted: 09/20/2015 04:35 PM
- Pages: 9
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Amazing Grace is an engaging and educating film because of the complex structure that is created by director Michael Apted. It’s woven in a way that effectively conveys William Wilberforce’s deepest emotions and beliefs to the audience. In this film, Apted has to tell a story to entertain and capture his audience’s attention on the sheer determination to end the cruel era of the slave trade. He certainly does this, through thought-provoking use of structure.
The film is told from Wilberforce’s narrative point of view, for the purpose of the audience seeing his true personality and feelings on slavery. We get down to personal level and become more emotionally involved with day to day scenarios. We know his thoughts for his loyal supporters, like Barbara Spooner and John Newton and we feel the hate from rivals Lord Tarleton and Duke of Clarence.
The use of a non-linear storyline in Amazing Grace is also employed with the use of flashbacks, dream sequence and jumps in time. This helps the audience understand his thought processes and how his beliefs have formed over time.
Also crucial to the success of the film is how Apted has formed a striking contrast of the beginning and ending of the film. This conveys the mood of the situations, from the despair of the seemingly impossible situation to begin with, to the exhilarating victory at the end.
If you heard the name William Wilberforce before watching Amazing Grace, what would you think? But few really know the length and extent of his battle, how sick he was and how close he came to giving up.
Amazing Grace portrays these important details perfectly, because it’s told from a limited first person narrative point of view. This is presented to the audience in this way because it allows the director to disclose certain facts and details about Wilberforce that only Apted knows. Whereas if we were watching as an objective observer, we wouldn’t buy into the story as much. Right from the beginning, we see Wilberforce...
The film is told from Wilberforce’s narrative point of view, for the purpose of the audience seeing his true personality and feelings on slavery. We get down to personal level and become more emotionally involved with day to day scenarios. We know his thoughts for his loyal supporters, like Barbara Spooner and John Newton and we feel the hate from rivals Lord Tarleton and Duke of Clarence.
The use of a non-linear storyline in Amazing Grace is also employed with the use of flashbacks, dream sequence and jumps in time. This helps the audience understand his thought processes and how his beliefs have formed over time.
Also crucial to the success of the film is how Apted has formed a striking contrast of the beginning and ending of the film. This conveys the mood of the situations, from the despair of the seemingly impossible situation to begin with, to the exhilarating victory at the end.
If you heard the name William Wilberforce before watching Amazing Grace, what would you think? But few really know the length and extent of his battle, how sick he was and how close he came to giving up.
Amazing Grace portrays these important details perfectly, because it’s told from a limited first person narrative point of view. This is presented to the audience in this way because it allows the director to disclose certain facts and details about Wilberforce that only Apted knows. Whereas if we were watching as an objective observer, we wouldn’t buy into the story as much. Right from the beginning, we see Wilberforce...