Manufactured Landcapes

Working at my office you get exposed to some really interesting and different things. I recently met a whole bunch of North Carolinian bankers. Blue suits and some of the friendliest people who I've met in the US to date. I got kisses on the cheeks and it was almost like I'd made 80 new friends.

By far, the highlight this week has got to be the screening of "Manufactured Landscapes," a documentary about the changes brought about by the industrialization in China. Filmmaker Jennifer Bachiwal followed photographer Edward Burtynsky on his trips to China as he documented everything from factories, 3 sisters dam in China to ship graveyards in Bangladesh.

It's not only visually stunning, but also a stunning example of how two mediums can be seamlessly woven together. The opening scene is a shot that pans along row after row after row of factory workers, all in identical yellow shirts. At first it's interesting, then it gets a bit monotonous, then boring. The whole scene lasts about 5 minutes. In the q and a after the movie, Jennifer said that it was supposed to be like that and it was the only way that they could think of to portray the sheer immenseness of this factory, which was over 1 kilometer long.

One of the things that I loved about this movie, was that it showed things as they were, letting you make your own opinions and judgments. Documentaries are clearly not objective, but this one did a better job than others, especially on a subject that initially appears so one-sided.

I highly recommend that you check it out. It's been the best way that I've spent 90 minutes in a while

http://www.mongrelmedia.com/films/ManufacturedLandscapes.html