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Realisation moments in movies
ChristopherJ
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I like the poignant scene in The Apartment when Jack Lemmon realises from the broken mirror it is Shirley Maclaine who is seeing his boss.
Also the moment in Training Day when Ethan Hawke looks out the window to see the car is gone and he realises he has been left to his fate by Denzel Washington. I like the way everything that means is communicated by an empty space in the road.
Also the moment in Training Day when Ethan Hawke looks out the window to see the car is gone and he realises he has been left to his fate by Denzel Washington. I like the way everything that means is communicated by an empty space in the road.
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I haven't seen these films, so do you mean audience realisation, or character realisation, i.e. a character comes to realise something the audience already knows? I'll assume the former.
Seven - when it clicks with the audience what's in the box.
The Sixth Sense - when you get 'it'.
Platoon (1986) - the truth about Elias.
Infernal Affairs (2002) - the dual realisation of two characters, which subsequently affects their only chance to survive.
The Heartbreak Kid (1972) - newly wedded Lila's realisation and reaction.
The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2005) - the blind man.
Land of the Pharaohs (1955) - the burial chamber.
Blue Spring (2001) - there are three:
- the baseball player
- the flowers on a charcter's desk
- the moment before a character enters the state of catatonia.
The Last Picture Show (1971) - the housewife.
New World (2013) - the moment a character realises he has a choice.
"She's my daughter..." <SLAP!>
"... my sister..." <SLAP!>
"...my daughter..." <SLAP!>
"She's my sister and my daughter..."
... at which Jake (and the audience) realises that Evelyn's father raped her and forced her to keep the baby...
Some of the realisation scenes are just when the twist is revealed.
A character realisation for me would be Jules in Plup Fiction when he doesn't get shot when in the room retieving the suitcase - either then, in the diner or the time inbetween.
Both, I think. I suppose it depends how the film's plotted whether we know something the character doesn't – and sometimes never does. But in my two examples we realise something along with the character.
They both come towards the end after Henry has been busted for his cocaine dealing to people in Pittsburgh behind Paulie's back.
The first when his wife goes to see Jimmy to discuss Henry's case. At the end of the meeting Jimmy insists on Karen picking out a couple of dresses which happens to be in an empty shop down the street. As wanders down you can feel her tension and she looks in from the outside as Jimmy directs her to go in. She realises that she will be either taken as hostage or even killed, in order to scare Henry from testifying against Paulie and Jimmy in trade for his freedom. Another scenario may have been that Jimmy wanted to scare Henry to stop him from saying to Paulie that he was also involved in the drug dealing in Pittsburgh.
There is also the moment when Henry later goes to meet Jimmy in the Diner and he asked by Jimmy to go to Florida to do a job for him. Henry narrates at that point that if he had gone to Florida 'he would not be coming back alive.'
Consequently, as the viewer, we realise that the life glamorous life that Henry and Karen had whilst Henry was in the Mafia has come to an end. All the riches and the lifestyle is over and his friendship with Jimmy is gone. Henry's past had eventually caught up with him.
Vertigo - When the mystery all becomes clear to Scottie.
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane - When Blanche tells Jane the truth about what happened years before.
The Third Man - When we see a cat at the feet of a man who is obscured by shadow, and we know exactly who that man is without even seeing his face.
Less well known, Spy Game when they all realise Nathan (Redford) has been playing them.
The moment in Fanny and Alexander when I realised the second dvd, and so the second half of the film, wouldn't ****ing play. >:(