Canopy

source: Canopy

The limitation of the words created an explosion of words to describe each aspect of the movie. It sends a deep thrilling chill that goes through your bones. It is almost free from the obstacles of human language. It is brotherhood. It shows fear. It is love and caring that shows only under special conditions. It is survival. It is humanity in its purest form of which there is no doubt. It is discovery. The entire movie was made like a flashback. It depicts the quote "Actions speak louder than words". It is an art of which the viewer creates his own understanding of the movie. It is of infinite possibility.

The main problem with this is the slow pace and the lack of emotional dynamics from the main actor. His facial expressions did not change much. Alternatively he might be talented but was just poorly directed here. My main problem: I could not even tell if he was clever or stupid - we are not given enough information about his personality. We need to know more, to know him, and empathize. I felt nothing much for him as a blank face is just not enough for me to invest my emotions into and then connect with a character. Had this character been a beautiful woman, then that might have helped as then I could at least have imagined loving her, and we can forgive those that we love more easily! There are lots of meditative contemplative long slow shots in the film, in themselves beautiful paintings. But what was missing was an effective intensity of any relevant human condition to contemplate during these times; perhaps the philosophy of the struggle that the characters are having. The first few minutes of the film were great, setting up the possibility of a great journey, which for me never gathered momentum. The Chinese actor does a better job and the sound track is solid in the film.

Canopy celebrates the art of visual storytelling and atmospheric emersion. Aaron Wilson's sensibility about his characters journey, compels the audience to really think hard, and then feel deeply what these two allied pilots endured and the bond they formed while evading the Japanese. Actors Jim (Khan Chittenden) and Seng (Tzu-yi Mo), portray the innocence in war with a human story of survival and friendship. Their performances are bound together by non-speaking roles and the unforgiving Singapore jungle, where their planes were shot down during Wartime in 1942. As non-language film, Canopy exposes it's audience to the emotional effects of isolation under duress, the jungle is both a threat and sanctuary, giving security when needed but ultimately driving you further into the unknown inevitability of war in a foreign land. The most remarkable aspect of experiencing Canopy in the cinema, is feeling the embodiment of the characters environment. The Singapore jungle is brought to life by it's sounds, emphasised by an amazing surround cinema mix...this is a sound and vision feast for character driven film lovers.

Before I watch a movie I look at the plot summary and read a few reviews. There are a some very negative reviews of this movie here on IMDb and I am left wondering why these people watched the movie? A few seemed to think there should be more fighting and sophisticated effects. Some seemed to think there should have been a stronger story line. This is not that kind of movie folks. This is the kind of movie that requires the viewer to engage and think about the human condition. If you want banging and smashing action or a fairy tale story don't bother watching this movie. If your attention span is just long enough to manage handfuls of popcorn don't watch this movie. If you want to be engaged in a thought process then you are in for a treat. I was reminded very much of the classic war movie "Hell in the Pacific" as I watched. Here the two characters are comrades rather than adversaries but there are similarities in the lack of a common language and the reliance on strong visual images. I don't want to give away the plot or ending but without spoiling anything I can say the penultimate scene makes a very strong statement about how we remember the victims of a war. In summary people should watch movies according to their tastes. If you want big budget Hollywood action and a story don't bother with this movie, and moreover don't half watch it without concentrating and write a lambasting review. If you want something more existential and thought provoking, I recommend this movie to you.

I feel the movie missed its target of giving the viewer empathy of the Main character and did not give due to credit to those that endured this fate. Very little information of the 'fight' with the environment; I would have thought a pilot in this situation would have faced more than some splashing through puddles and a few bull ants e.g.Fatigue, hunger, dysentery from only water source available. Little effort to show the language barriers as main characters made few if any attempts to communicate with each other. Obvious costume and editing errors; disappointing to an observant viewer. Very long draw out periods of repetitive views of foliage canopy.

This movie is proof that an 80 minute film can be just as long, boring and pretentious as any 3 hour plus epic costume Hollywood picture. The movie's budget is so low that it can not afford to show us any real battle, and for a war film, that is a big minus. To compensate what it can not show us, the filmmakers over-fill the soundtrack with constant gunfire, explosions, bombings, airplanes flying over heard, etc. It was exhausting after a while. Of course, none of those aforementioned things would matter in the least if the movie had characters we cared about at all, or a story worth giving a damn about. Every single Close Up shot in the movie feels fake, and the director holds them for way too long before cutting away, making them feel even more disingenuous. The characters have no personality, no soul to them, so we are forced to watch two wooden people for what felt like an eternity, both of do as much overacting as possible for roles that require very minimal dialogue. The movie is simply over directed; everything in it feels fake, especially the actors' expressions. There really is nothing to find here: no drama, no suspense, no tension, only your life wasting away one second at a time.

This film is a candid excerpt into what it must have been like to be a pilot shot down in enemy territory. Its unusual because there is no script and no more than two actors of any consequence. The acting was superb. It was superbly done and photographed beautifully. Obviously the director had other ideas in mind when he introduced the flashbacks and Billie Holiday song. It was a masterstroke albeit reminiscent of an American not an Australian. The acting of the Chinese soldier was excellent. It can be as simple as what the director gave us. It gave a sense of realness not the usual hype and phoney Hollywood nonsense.

I knew nothing about this film before I watched it other than the basic story. I watched in in the dark with great quality headphones and was blown away. The film is beautifully shot and puts you right in the jungle and into the mind of the lead character. Definitely not an action flick as some seem to have expected but it does so much more. It evolves slowly and beautifully and draws you in. The sound design is intense and is a crucial part of experiencing this story. We often underestimate the importance of our auditory processes if we are tuned in to them. This experience I had may not translate when watching it on a small screen with an average sound system. In this world of rushing everywhere and fast cuts and action this was a breath of fresh air and I enjoyed it immensely.

I read the reviews before watching this movie so I was already a bit prepared of what I was going to see. I read there was not much dialogs and to me for a good movie sometimes it's not even necessary. But in this movie there is almost no conversation at all. The only line the main character had to remember is his name. He said it twice and that's it. I don't say Khan Chittenden failed as an actor because his expressions of fear and anguish are good but since there are two actors I thought a little bit of conversation would have done good to the movie. So the movie will just be liked by people that like jungle scenery. Nature is the only thing that keeps the movie interesting but then I wonder if I was not better going on a walk in the forest instead of watching this movie.