"Run Lola Run" Editing Presentation--Critique

Our presentation was an overall success in terms of getting all of our points across and keeping to our topic of editing. Our interpretation of the film through editing seemed fairly spot on because we discussed how odd this film was compared to others (through the discussion of formalism), as well as the importance of time in both its manipulation within a shot or shots and the pacing (cutting). Some prime examples that display our interpretation are the slow motion and how it's used at pivotal points in the plot, the use of split screen to show parallel action, and the use of fast cutting to highlight the fast pace and tension in the film. I think our use of film language was fairly good, going from simple terms such as "slow motion" to more advanced terms like "formalism" However, I think it could have been further developed, such as how I did not use the term "associational cut" in my analysis of the scene of Lola and Manni on the phone when Manni is discussing how the homeless man could be on a plane anywhere by now.

I believe a strength of my presentation were my analysis in my attempt to go under the surface of examples. I also think I had good examples and screens shots, such as the shot of Lola getting shot and the bag flying up in the air. A final strength was my use of quotes. I tried to find Tykwer's quotes, from his take on "Run Loloa Run" that we went over in class, that were the most relevent to whatever point I was trying to make.

One challenge or weakness I had was my limited use of film terminology. As mentioned previously, I could have used the term "associational cut" for the homeless man/vacation example. Also, there was at least one thing I failed to see in my examples that related to editing. The one mentioned in class that I fialed ot notice was the graphic match of Lola on the ground after being shot transitioning to the intimate scene between Lola and Manni. Also, I find it hard to tell when presenting and when I did not get feedback on it, but I may not have looked at the audience enough and may have looked too much at my notes and the screen.

HoodBlinked

A girl arrives at her doorstep with a guy. They stand shyly and hesitantly next to each other; they both twiddle their fingers, unsure of what to do next. "Well, I'll text you later," the guy says with a smile. "Yeah, okay. See ya," the girl responds, returning the smile, not the least bit disappointed. The girl slowly starts to reach for the doorknob, but the boy quickly takes her outstretched hand and pulls her toward him into a quick hug.

Taken off guard, the girl bites her lip with a smile. The guy lets go and they are seen smiling even bigger than before. "Okay, now I'll see you," she turns and opens the door, stepping inside, while inside her head she squeals. The door shuts behinds.

An alarm clock goes off. Its bright numbers flashing repeatedly. We see a neat room and the girl rises with a big smile and gets to her routine: jump cuts of teeth being brushed, her legs trying to make their way into her pant legs, her hand pulling up the zipper of her jacket, hair being put into a ponytail, shoes being put on, and finally a waist shot at the end of the routine.

A voice calls out from downstairs, "Morning hun."

"Morning, Ma," she calls back, about to walk out her door. The girl passes her clock and checks the time: 10:12 AM.

She blinks: the clock now reads 10:12 PM.

It's now nighttime and the girl finds herself in her pajamas again with her hair down. That's not supposed to happen..She slowly turns toward the window and sees the night sky. She looks down perplexedly at her pajamas, her hand grabbing a fistful of her shirt. And wasn't I wearing actual…Um...clothes?

Her mom yells from another room in the house, "Night, hun."

Um, Night? she thinks as she looks toward the door. The girl checks her phone for any texts. She sees some from earlier that day, only she doesn't remember reading or responding to them. There was one text confirming that she has another date with the guy. Since when do we have another date? The girl checks her calendar and we see the the girl mark the calendar for the next date, 3 days later. Hmmm…

Glancing at the clock, she yawns with her eyes closed for a few seconds: 10:14 PM. Now, her hair is in a braid. Yeah that's weird. The girl touches her hair, but then shrugs off the strange happenstance. Her phone vibrates and she checks it. She quickly texts back as she sighs. When she puts the phone back to its home screen, the date is changed to 4 days later. The girl's eyes widen OH MY GOSH. and she looks at her calendar. The day for her date has been crossed off. The phone vibrates and she checks it. There is a text from the guy she went on a date with: "Are you okay? Every time you respond to my texts, it doesn't seem like you're all there." She purses her lips in thought Well maybe that's because I HAVEN'T been responding to your texts, puts the phone at her bedside, and then gets into bed and looks at her clock again and turns the alarm on: 10:14 PM. She puts her head on the pillow and lies there. The girl sighs, then the crickets gradually become the sound of chirping birds and sun falls on the girl's face [this is not one of the phenomena of time, just a transition].

The girl's alarm clock goes off at 9:00 AM and she turns it off without looking. She gets up and goes through the morning routine again, exactly as in the first scene. She goes back and checks the clock: 10:12 AM. Then, looking up in thought and suspicion, Maybe if… the girl looks at the clock and closes her eyes, even squinting them shut. We hear sounds of time moving by quickly, and when the girl opens her eyes, it is 10:12 AM.

The girl nods her head in triumph at solving her little problem.

She sees a missed call on her phone from the guy. She calls the guy, and a female voice picks up on the other end: "Hello?"

The girl quizzically asks for the guy and the voice on the other side pauses and hesitates. Static can be heard and then the guy's voice is heard, "What do you want?"

"When are we going on our date?"

"What are you talking about? We haven't talked in three months."

The girl freezes. Three months. We spin around her as we cut to a calendar passing through the months until it becomes transparent with the girl. The room starts to become a wavy blur, causing her to drop her phone. The loud crack on the ground can be heard as well as the guy on the other end saying "Hello? Are you there?" She ignores it, runs to the clock and pulls out the plug. The clock crashes to the floor and in that same instant, there's a whoosh as she wakes up, eyes wide. The swooshing sound merges with the sound of the alarm clock and her eyes move toward something off-screen. The camera follows her eye line and lands on the clock, unbroken, on the stand blaring the time of 9:00 AM.

The girl picks up the phone and calls Pleeeaaase pick up! "Hello?"

The girl closes her eye in joy and smiles, relieved. Yes!