Born In Flames There are a lot of things that can go wrong in the production of a film that can make the movie not turn out just quite as expected. Born in Flames is not a horrible film, but it isn't one worth recommending either due to problems with production. The movie almost caves in because of bad production values and the documentary feel Born in Flames tries for doesn't work for this fan of pseudo-documentary films. The film is obviously low-budget independent, and of the type I will rant for hours on how no one pays a bit of attention to. This film is the anti-thesis of independent films. It was made in 1983 by director Lizzie Borden, who a few years after this film made the much better "Working Girls." I have to give Borden credit for the idea and concept of the "women take over" story line, because I found it to be intriguing. Women liberation is often left for 60 Minutes and otherwise ignored in most mediums. But it's hard for me to support the cause when I felt like I was watching a home movie at points, and I also felt like someone was just taping a television and I was watching a tape of that. Was there a dimension I wasn't aware of? Camera movement in Born in Flames is a big problem, and often unintentionally jerky. The acting, I hate to say, is almost unbearable at moments. It pains me to rip on a film that could have been better, really it does. The actors, obviously amateurs, almost destroy the positives the film has. The lighting, which I'm not sure whether they just used what was available, has that horrible late 70s-early 80s sitcom look to it. And I'm not talking about the good sitcoms. There were points where I couldn't make out certain characters due to bad lighting, which made me start to think you were supposed to be wearing 3-D glasses while watching the film. The soundtrack, which I found to be the most annoying aspect of the film is a word I hate to use but there is no other word for it, "cheesy." Like I said before, the idea the film presents is revolutionary and fresh. This film might be a good idea for a re-make, and could be something worth talking positively about with better production values. If I wasn't aware of who had made it, I would have guessed bored high school Stuco members. You can't have a war without good weapons. |
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