Special Event Summary

For my event I attended the Czech that Film Festival and watched the film Zakázané uvolnění (Icing). As I attended the event with two other classmates, however, I decided to host a European film viewing party with my roommates so I could share on a different topic. The two films I screened with my roommates were a 2012 Danish film titled Kapringen (A Hijacking) and the French film by the title of The Extraordinary Adventures of Adéle Blanc-Sec.  I chose the first film because of my interest in Danish cinema and television that I have developed as of late. I am fascinated with how many American show ideas actually originate in the country of Denmark so I thought it would be cool to watch a Danish film. The second film I chose because of the popularity of comic book adaptations in the United States as of late. I thought it would be intriguing to see a comic book adaptation in a European country.

Kapringen was interesting to view as it dealt with the issue of Somali pirates and was released the year before the Hollywood blockbuster Captain Phillips. The film took a different approach to the telling of the story as it showed relatively little of the pirate’s violence. There was only one on screen killing and it came in the closing minutes of the film. Even this killing is not shown on screen as the camera pans away as the gunshot is heard. The passing of time is shown visually as the day number is shown on the screen frequently throughout the film as it would perhaps otherwise be hard to discern how long negotiations have been happening for. A big theme in the film is that of being civilized. The negotiator on the side of the pirates is adamant that he is not a pirate and he should not be included in statements made by the Danish boat company referring to the hostage holders. He sees himself as civilized in a way. Another aspect of the film I noticed is the lack of gratification at the end. The film leaves the viewer feeling very hollow despite the fact that the crew is rescued. This lack of a happy ending in the film feels very different from the Hollywood norm.

The Extraordinary Adventures of Adéle Blanc-Sec was a much more light-hearted and fun film to watch. One notable aspect of the film was the use of a strong female heroine. She uses investigative journalism as her way of entering into a world of adventure. In the comics, themes of corruption are explored. The film also explores these themes to an extent while making a commentary on the incompetency of officials in the government and the police department. It could also be argued that a point is being made about the fear of scientific progress with a prolific scientist character in the film being almost hanged for the indirect results of his work. All of these deeper messages are hidden beneath an overarching layer of comedy and light-hearted cinema.