A cache by Jacko83 and Anikano (two mega film buffs!)
When looking for entertainment and escapism, you can’t go much further than a good movie! The latest blockbuster action film, comedy or thriller can be a fun night out and a great way to unwind. However, true cinephiles know that movies can also be a form of artistic expression where directors use the medium of the moving image to tell stories that ask audiences to reflect upon the meaning of life. The purpose of this cache is to explore some of the lessons in some of the most important films ever made, and hopefully, to perhaps revisit some of them again, or experience some for the first time ever. To solve this puzzle, you will need to guess the title of the film based on the brief description of the message it conveys.
Once you have found the corresponding movie title, you will need to sum the string of letters (A=1) until you get a single digit.
eg. Anikano = A =1 N= 14 I= 9 K= 11 A= 1 N=14 O = 15.
Word value (Digital root): 1 + 14 + 9 + 11 + 1 + 14 + 15 = 65
Summed to one digit: 65 = 11 = 2
A. This first movie looks at class divisions and relationships between individuals, and what can form between two people when these social constructs are arbitrarily removed. Similarly, it also looks at what can change in a relationships when these class divisions are reinstated, and whether beauty and love are restricted to the parameters of an individual's wealth. Set in the heart of a busy city, a vagrant happens to fall in love with a young girl who faces adversities of her own, which in turn prevents her from not seeing the man’s appearance of poverty, but only his kind and gentle nature. For the man, the young girl is the symbol of beauty and love, which is characterized through her occupation. The man however is not honest with her about his situation, and allows her to believe that he is in fact wealthy and distinguished. She has good fortune and becomes more well off throughout the film, and upon meeting the vagrant again, does not forget their initial connection and does not allow their class differences to get in the way of expressing her affection towards him.
In parallel throughout the film, a millionaire with a taste for alcohol and tendency for forgetfulness values a friendship with the vagrant when he is drunk, but soon forgets when he is sober and calls the police based on the man's appearance, which was a comment at the time of the short sightedness of the upper class.
B. We now move to an exploration of power and wealth through the tale of a man whose life story proves that money cannot buy happiness. Born into relative poverty, the protagonist in this film climbs his way up the social ladder, creating an empire and eventually being swept away in corporate greed and corruption. The film begins at the end of this man’s long life where he dies alone on his death-bed, surrounded by material demonstrations of his wealth but completely alone. He seemingly dies regretting the course of his life, and longs for the time before he became wealthy, when he had friendship and connection with others.
Following the man’s death, the film is told through flashbacks as the man’s acquaintances share their recollections of his life. Each character recalls this man from a certain perspective, demonstrating that the lasting impression we leave on people can be varied and that memories of those who are gone can become distorted over time. While highly controversial at the time of release, this film revolutionised cinema with its daring camera angles, non-linear story model and cryptic narrative.
C. Our next film argues that humility, honesty and having the courage to be yourself leads to a far more fulfilling life than fame and pretending to be someone you are not! This light-hearted movie also pokes fun at Hollywood, the media and reflects on the way in which people can sell themselves for fame - at the expense of living a genuinely meaningful life. This film tells the story of a happy-go-lucky actor and his regular on screen partner as they navigate a significant transition in cinema technology. While the actor adopts the change with grace, his actress co-star just doesn’t have the talent required to shine on screen the same way with this new technology. Meanwhile, the actor stumbles across a humble but beautiful and talented girl whom he falls deeply in love with.
Jealous of her co-star’s new found love and his girlfriend’s talent, the actress attempts to steal the limelight and takes credit for this girl’s performance. Humble as always, the girl allows this to happen, not wanting fame or attention. However, the actor will have none of this. Revealing his girlfriend to the world as the true star of the film, and his co-star as the shallow and empty person she is inside.
D. We next explore the true meaning of horror in a film that flipped the traditional idea of monsters on its head. In this film we follow the plight of a young woman on the run from the law. This woman’s story was particularly controversial at the time the film was released. Having sex before marriage, committing a crime and driving off alone into the distance, she was not the typical female protagonist during the period the film was made! Little did this woman know that her decision to stop driving and find accommodation overnight would be the worst mistake she made that day.
Up until this point, the majority of monsters and villains in movies had been grotesque monsters such as Dracula or Frankenstein. However, this revolutionary film demonstrated that true horror can lie within ordinary homes and that people who look innocent may actually have murderous intent. The plot of this film demonstrates the reality in our society today: that it is not a monster in the bush who is most likely to cause you harm, but someone who may look completely innocent and trustworthy. This film changed cinema and shocked audiences. Audacious camera angles, killing the protagonist mid-way through the film, reversing gender roles, and spine tingling suspense. Many years later it continues to stand the test of time.
E. Here we now look at a classic of American cinema. A multigenerational family saga where the true meaning behind what is occurring in reality is hidden behind euphemisms only those within the family can decipher. When a long standing tradition of running family business is in operation, it becomes clear that it is not so easy to seperate family, and business. Long standing traditions such as the patriarchal hierarchies of the business world remain in force for the family at the centre of this film, and when circumstances arise that lead to a new head of the family, naturally the son is chosen. However, with a member of the younger generation now taking the lead, previous traditions are challenged with a view that the family, like a business, needs to move progressively with the changing times.
This movie shows that while good intentions to change a family unit can be admirable, traditions can be imbedded deep within culture, and can often die hard.
F. The meaning of friendship and processing grief is explored in our next film where we examine the transition to adulthood. Set in small town America, a small group of friends embark on a journey that takes them away from the emotional trauma and family expectations they are dealing with and into the wilderness where they each overcome their own personal difficulties and together experience a ‘coming of age’. When they return, they feel no longer limited to the safe confines of their town and the childhood they grew up with, but knew what life had to offer. This film teaches us that there is a significant period between childhood and adulthood in which we learn some of life’s biggest truths, one of which is the mystery that is death and processing the effects of people whom we loved now gone.
The second, is the course of life’s journey in finding one’s identity, and determining whether it is more important to meet the expectations and moulds set by parents and society, or whether one is happiest when they are surrounded by people who accept them and value them for who one is. Lastly, the movie symbolizes that life does not always need to be examined with philosophical or existential questions, but to spend time in the company of friends talking about the pointless things just for the fun of it and being able to shift to the lighter conversations in life for the laughter they may bring.
G. Our next tale shines a light on the “Dream”, highlighting that when you look closer, things are not as perfect as they may seem on the surface. The protagonist in this modern classic is living an “average” middle class life. He has a white picket fence, a house filled with ornate possessions, a wife, a child, a standard 9-5 office job and, ultimately, a life devoid of meaning. The film follows this man as he wakes up to the mundane nature of the “Dream” and seeks to add some excitement back into his life, through an unorthodox and taboo pursuit. Stuck in a miserable marriage, a dead end job and parenting a child he doesn’t understand, we watch as this man begins to liberate himself from society’s expectations to focus on finding fulfilment in his own life. Simultaneously, we also watch as the protagonist’s wife and adolescent struggle with maintaining the charade of the perfect family and attempt to find happiness through other sources.
This film teaches us that achieving everything society sets out for you (work, marriage, children, buying a house etc.) does not guarantee happiness or equate to a meaningful life. In fact, it can lead to quite the opposite and leave people yearning to fulfil dreams that they think will somehow liberate them from the chronic emptiness they feel. The movie also emphasises that people only show us the side of themselves that they want us to see, and that beneath a seemingly perfect face or lifestyle could reflect a broken person hiding their insecurities.
H. Identity, anarchy and philosophy are at the core of our next film which asks us to consider our endless need for consumption. This film follows the plight of a depressed and empty man who is beginning to question the “American Dream”. In a moment of epiphany, he realises that his life is dominated by consumerism and meaningless interactions with others. Enter the antagonist - a suave, rebellious, anarchist who is the complete opposite of our well-mannered, average-Joe protagonist. This man takes our main character on a journey of increasingly daring law-breaking and anarchism, embroiling other people in his scheme along the way. His goal? To liberate the oppressed by causing havoc among those who promote consumerism.
At the same time, we watch as our protagonist falls deeper under this man’s spell and increasingly becomes as rebellious and malevolent as his teacher. The main character is eventually left questioning his very identity and the influence that this man has had on his life. Is he slowly turning into his teacher, or has the potential for anarchy always lived within him? This movie forces audiences to take a hard look at the superficial elements of society and consider whether anarchy is the solution to the chaos created by consumerism.
I. We now move to a film that confused audiences when it came out with its non-linear story-telling and bounces between dreams and reality. However, with repeat viewings the true meaning of this at first seemingly bizarre film becomes apparent. The film begins as our protagonist is dealing with the heartbreak of a recent relationship breakdown. Shy and insecure, he cannot imagine life without her even though their relationship was stormy (mainly due to his girlfriend’s impulsive and reactive behaviour). Desperate to forget her, this man seeks to push her out of his mind. However, as he begins to lose the memory of her, he realises that she was an integral part of his life and that no matter how painful the memory of her is, he does not want to forget the time they shared.
This movie asks us to consider how our experiences make us who we are and how we can find meaning in even the most painful events. We watch as other characters repeat cycles of old behaviour again and again because they have not learnt from past mistakes, due to having their memories modified. The film teaches us that our experiences and memories are an integral part of who we are.
J. Our final film is likely to stand the test of time as being a modern classic. Using a dark twist on a well known story, this film revolutionised this genre showing that even blockbusters can have a deeper meaning. The movie asks us to consider how far we should go to restore order to a corrupt society and whether if by taking the law into our own hands, it is possible to become as bad as the people you are trying to stop. Our protagonist grapples with this issue throughout the film as he seeks to purge his beloved city of evil through vigilante action. Constantly tested by a villain who knows no limits and has no morals, we watch as he is forced to make increasingly difficult ethical decisions in order to try and restore order.
Meanwhile, another character in the film seeks to restore order by following the established route of law and justice. When tragedy strikes, this character is pushed over the edge and decides to take the law into his own hands like the protagonist. However, instead of aiming to restore balance to the city, this character decides to take revenge on those who have harmed him and eventually becomes like the people he had tried so hard to defeat. While the protagonist is successful in defeating the anarchist who has been running the city, he is left grappling with his conscience about whether he himself crossed the line between good and evil and what that means for his future.
GZ = S 38 0C. (C-H) (A-D) (F+G), E 144 JE. (B-C) (A+J) (I-A)