Tony Zhou, whose work we’ve featured time and again, has a knack for concise and expert explanation of cinema’s more subtle techniques. His latest video essay uses Bong Joon-Hoo’s quirky summer hit, Snowpiercer, to illustrate how movies show character choice without dialogue.
Zhou covers a lot of analytical ground in a short span, but his central argument concerns how Snowpiercer, like many other films, uses the old “left or right” conundrum to expose characters’ inner turmoil. It’s a simple ploy, even a predictable one, but when used cannily it can in a brief moment reveal an entire set of competing motivations, priorities, and decisions.
(via Indiewire.)
