Over the past few decades, the film industry has played a major role in bringing out cultural differences between different countries across the globe. By comparing the French movie "The Big Blue" and the American movie "The Guardian”, this paper will be able to bring out some of the cultural differences between the two countries. "The Big Blue" was released in 1988 by luc Besson, a French director while “The Guardian” was released in 2006 by Andrew Davis who is an American director. Some of the noticeable values portrayed by American films include: innovation, newness and creativity. In French films however, the conformity to societal norms and centuries of old traditions are more valued than creativity.
This paper will argue about the cultural differences between the two films by referring to specific scenes in each one of them. The paper will also refer to some of the types of cinematic techniques such as shots, camera angles, tracking or panning and editing. This will create a platform that will allow the paper to explain why the directors can use the similar techniques as in literary arts. The paper will also examine some of the camera techniques in certain scenes and describe how they relate to the overall impression the two films create.
Cultural differences in the introduction phase and story line
The “Big Blue” opening is braced with several unique cultural ideologies that are only identifiable with the French society. First the film begins by showing the real-life friendship between Jacques and Enzo who are divers but had an age difference of four years. In France, age difference is rarely a hindrance block for people to make acquaintances with each other as is the case with other cultures particularly the US. The film is divided into two timelines; the first is the rivalry between the two divers while they were children and their final competition at the world free diving champions at Taormina. In this film, Jacques search for love, family and wholeness, as well as, the meaning of life and death creates a strong connotation of the latter timeline. The search for love also demonstrates the romantic culture of the French society.
In the “The Guardian”, the opening is very different from the “Big Blue” in terms of culture. The beginning portrays the “American dream”. The American dream is the term used to define the American culture of living the good life and that of high achievements in life. Randall is a top rescue swimmer at the United States Coast Guard while Fischer is a high value candidate for the Aviation Survival Technician. Randall is portrayed as having realized his American dream. Fischer has received numerous scholarships but had opted to enlist in the Coast Guard. Randall’s wife is frustrated by the separation due to his frequent time at work. The accomplishments He loses his team at a helicopter crash and is forced to retire as a coast guard trainer. In the movie, Randall and Fischer discover that they share a common ground. They both have gone through the pain of been the only survivor in an accident.
Unlike “The Guardian” the main characters in “Big Blue” are more formal in their interactions. These differences demonstrate the different cultural backgrounds of the each film. This is seen in the film by the way they greet each other to proper etiquette at work and at the restaurant. In the “The Guardian” interactions at the bar or at the training camp are very informal and relaxed. These cultural differences between the French and the Americans are as a result of a range of cultural complexities such as ancestry, religion and language. These complexities have played a major role in structuring the way the two films are directed with cultural realities in their settings. Each film’s country of origin is also a significant factor of the cultural complexity. This is because the country of origin helps construct the foundation for each film’s cultural identity.
Cultural differences from Scenes
This section aims at examining and comparing some of the cultural differences present specific scenes in the two movies. During the first dive attempt at the Champions league in the “Big Blue”, Jacques defeats Enzo who was by then the World champion. Enzo offers Jacques a gift which is a glass dolphin together with a tape measure that displayed the difference between Jacques and Enzo’s world records. This scene demonstrates the conformity to societal norms in the French culture whereby believing and standing up for the same things are the major objectives. In ‘’The Guardian”, Ben confronts Jake and confronts him for leaving his prospects as a competitive swimmer. During the confrontations, the two later come to learn that they share a common ground and know how it feels to be the only survivor in an accident. The American film is somewhat prudish when it comes to sharing information about each other.
There are several cultural differences between scenes from “The Guardian” and scenes from “Big Blue”. The most apparent cultural differences include the cuisine, café culture and the medical systems. Jacques is taken to the medical quarters where she slowly recovers from the diving accident. Medical staff attending him is less engaging as compared to the medical staff in “The Guardian”. The French view their medical staff as authority figures while the Americans view them as care givers.
Cultural difference in the conclusion phase
The ending scene for “The Guardian” ends with Jake on a rescue mission. Both Ben and Jake successfully connects the mission to the legend of the film’s storyline and Jake later on goes back to Emily whereby they rekindle their relationship. This finale is synonymous with the American culture of closing stages with a happy ending that is somewhat predictable but also creative at the sometime. “Big Blue” however, its ending scene is left open for the audience to interpret for themselves. Considering the depth Jacques swam down, it suggest that he is less likely to make it back to the surface. This ending is highly unpredictable and portrays of the films directors the level of imagination. Culture played a significant aspect in shaping the ending of each movie. Each ending demonstrated each film’s cultural identity giving each audience a greater since of shared nationality.
Cinematic techniques
The cinematic techniques used in “Big Blue” have been praised for been beautiful and serene. The French culture is artistic by nature and people pay particular attention to their appearance and the places they visit. Critics however, have also criticized it has been too drawn out, overly reflective, as well as, introspective. This is mainly because the French culture is more reserved in nature. Different under water shots and camera angles gave the movie a cutting edge over other films in Europe. Lighting was very poor because the crew used normal bulbs instead of the modern LED bulbs which have greater wavelength under water. Editing helped make up for the lighting errors but color palettes and sound systems had to be adjusted so as to be more appealing to other cultures across the globe.
The “Big Blue” production demonstrated the cultural factors associated with the French. The studio re-edited the movie to include a simplified “happy” ending. The ending would have appealed more to the French culture, but it would have been a commercial failure in America. This is because; the French cultural identity is more subtle when it comes to tragic events as compared to the American culture.
Unlike the “Big Blue”, “The Guarding” hired contactors to build an indoor pool for the production of the film. Most of the end credits include shots of the US coast guard helicopters carrying out rescue operations in New Orleans. The production of the film used over 60,000 pound of ice were used on the set. The film reflects the extravagant culture of the Americans, as well as, their creativity and innovation. This innovative culture is rarely seen in the “Big Blue” film. Most of the camera techniques used on certain scenes in the “guardian” entails complex helicopter maneuvers such as the scene whereby helicopters are flying over New Orleans and costly wave pools that were custom made for the film’s production.
The camera techniques used in “the guardian” during the rescue mission by Jake were all carried out in the custom made wave pool. The “Big Blue” takes a different approach in on camera techniques whereby instead of focusing on newness and creativity, it focused on scenes with exquisiteness and beauty. The overall impression created by “The Guardian’s” camera techniques is achieved by bringing together action packed scenes with real life events in an innovative and creative manner. This ensures the audience remains captivated through the movie. The “Big Blue” film camera techniques narrate the story to the audience in a manner that is rich in culture even in the smallest facets.
Conclusion
The film industry has played a major role in bringing out cultural differences between different countries across the globe. This paper has compared the French movie "The Big Blue" and the American movie "The Guardian”, and brought out some of the cultural differences between the two cultures. Some of the noticeable values portrayed by “The Guardian” film include: innovation, newness and creativity. In “Big Blue” films however, the conformity to societal norms and centuries of old traditions are more valued than creativity.
