What are films about?

Hollis Frampton, or in this case, Sarah, tells us that a film is about what appears most throughout. This declaration seems to stir up some controversy from filmmakers. Is a film really about what we see the most? Is it not about a meaning that is attempting to be portrayed over time in a piece? Is a movie like Mission Impossible about Tom Cruise, or does it have a deeper meaning? I have to disagree with Frampton on this claim that a film is about the most prominent figure that is shown. In a lot of cases films are about something, or someone that is rarely shown. A good example of this is contemporary horror films. These films are based on suspense, for the most part, and draw people in by making them wonder what will happen next, or what the monster really is or looks like.

I had an amazing amount of random mixed feelings from watching Gunvor Nelson's 1990 animated film, Natural Features. To get straight to the point of the post before i babble on, I did not see any possible way to apply Frampton's tactic of distinction to this film. There were a lot of, one could say, "recurring" images such as the brush, the pictures of faces, and the use of liquid/paint, but there was so much going on in this film that it was very hard for me to follow. At the beginning I was instantly drawn in by the amazingly out of place, and sort of random sounds that were used. I think, for probably only the second time in this class, I could not keep my eye off of the screen for more than a split second during the first parts of the film. As it went on though, it seemed to get fairly repetitive and I started to lose interest. Over all I was not really a big fan of this work. I like abstract works, but this was just insane to me.