Reel/Unreel

 Francis Alÿs uses a variety of storytelling and cinematography elements to create a documentary that was unique to watch and interpret. Firstly I'd like to discuss the color pallet used in this documentary, which is one of mostly earth tones and tans this is entirely due to the environment it was shot in. The city of Kabul is in an arid climate, and due to this everything present in the frame has a visual dryness to it from the buildings to the people present. This even affects the sky, as there is a sandy haze cast across the entire horizon. Knowing this, Alÿs uses color to bring attention to attention to key subjects that we the viewer should be paying attention to, including the two boys who are unreeling and reeling the film who are wearing opposing colors. The first boy is wearing a white outfit, which almost blends into the environment's color pallet, The second boy who is reeling up the film and following the first boy is wearing a darker outfit. He stands out and is easier to notice.  I also noticed halfway through the film that a man was carrying a bundle of balloons, of all sorts of color, and those really stuck out. One for their color and two because there was a time that ballons were banned by the Taliban and given the implied liberation message of the documentary, such details serve a visual meaning and a symbolic meaning as well. 

The sound of this film really stood out to me. It had a binaural quality to it that really immersed me into the enviornemnt. I felt like I was running alongside the children with every step they took. I noticed how when the helicopter flew overhead, the sound of the helicopter blades was all that you could hear, the sound was deafening and took control of the audio. The sound overall felt natural and not manufactured all the sound elements had an organicness to them that came across as genuine. The final stretch of the film had both children running up a mountain, and with this came a focus on their breathing which became labored and difficult. 

Finally, the camera work was rather unique to watch. The entire documentary was filmed from the perspective of running alongside the children, it was as if we were present in the chase. Lauren mentioned that The camera had a bounce to it, matching the footsteps of the children, and I had to back and focus on that detail and she is right.  The focus of the shots changed from time to time, some with children running across the frame, somewhere they run into the frame. The ending really struck me, as it is in a wide-angle shot of the city from atop the ascended mountain, implying a time to reflect on the journey we just went on.