In commenting on this film, I must take into account that the majority of those reading have not seen Amblin'. I must also take into account my appreciation for Spielberg. As a filmmaker myself, I can easily state Spielberg was the person who lead me to where I am now. His films have meant more than entertainment to me. So it was with this motivation that I made my best attempt to seek out this film. After watching it, I found that experiencing Amblin' was a special if not entirely distinctive experience.
The job of a filmmaker is to tell a story visually. This is exactly what Spielberg does. In fact, it is purely told with images. Not one word is spoken throughout the film (save the main song "Amblin" by October Country.) Tracking shots, special photographic effects, freeze frames, and transitions are the tools that Spielberg uses to tell the story. We don't need words.
For those who are interested, I have supplied a basic outline of the events in the story. Those who do not want to know would do well to skip down after the stars.
The film opens with the sound of wind and the title song as we see the credits over shots of the sun (one of Spielberg's trademarks) at first light. We are introduced to the main character (The Boy) from a high angle, walking along a long, dusty highway road. As we go in closer, Spielberg uses a camera move from Seven Samurai to introduce the Girl. With only an exchange of looks between the two, they decide to move on together.
One of the sequences that follow is an olive-spitting contest; with a can of olives, they see who can spit the nuts the farthest across the breakdown line on the road. It's an old hat sequence with some strange sound effects but it works. Unfortunately, there is a trick Spielberg uses here and quite a lot in the film: the freeze frame (with a strange pluck of a guitar as a sound effect.) On the first viewing, it's quite jarring as it brings you out of the story, but on multiple viewings it works. (It's an experimental element, something Godard would use quite a lot.) Through the second act, which consists of about 11 minutes, we find our characters trying to hitch rides from unwilling drivers (in one section, the Girl flags down the cars as the Boy is hiding. By the time he runs to the Girl, the car is gone.) After practically getting run over by a speeding car, they hide in a dark tunnel and, seen only in silhouette, smoke pot. What follows is a nicely done sequence of special photographic effects where we witness the Boy's experience of being high. Dissolves and color corrections highlight the series of images.
Throughout the film, the Boy has been carrying a guitar case and there is a nice motif of the Girl constantly trying the open the case; the Boy keeps stopping her. There is also a sequence where they are picked up by some kids in one of those '60s buses. The boy feels out of place and it takes a couple of moments for the Girl to realize this. The kids are trying to open his case but he stops them. Consequently, they are dropped off again.
At the end of the second act, we find ourselves at a campfire. The two characters exchange looks and, in a few moments, and some very well done shots, they kiss. The transition between the end of this scene to the third act is one of those brilliant scene-transitions Spielberg is known for. A shot of a zipper being zipped dissolves into a moving shot of a painted line on the road. Spielberg would use these connecting ideas in all of his subsequent films. (I am especially reminded of Always, Schindler's List, and the scene directly after the murder of Chrissie in Jaws.) Finally, in the third act, they reach the Pacific Coast and, as the Boy jumps into the Ocean, the Girl looks into the guitar case and discovers something about the Boy. She picks up her things and leaves as the Boy stays in the water, in a way, finding himself.
* * * * * * * * * * *
One of the main themes in the body of Spielberg's work is the lost boy, and this is no clearer than in Amblin'. This is a Boy who doesn't know whether to hit the books or follow his dreams; to lead a structured life or a free one; to be uptight or liberated. This is only an interpretation but I'm guessing this is what Spielberg was feeling at the time. The dream of meeting another person who can connect and understand you is a dream that most people have. Interestingly enough, the ending is a rather melancholy one for a Spielberg film, something he would do again in The Sugarland Express. (Duel and Something Evil have more inclusive endings.) Of course, there are trademarks that can be found here that are apparent in his future films. I have already mentioned the transitions between scenes, which create a more cohesive film. There are also moments where characters look off-screen as we dolly in on their faces. And there are scenes that open on a detail in the scene and we pull back to reveal the characters (instead of giving us an establishing shot first and then into the details.)
If you take the story and just look at it without the mise-en-scene, it's a rather bland and clichéd story. It's the directing and style that makes it noteworthy. Steven Spielberg used this film to get his contract into Universal Studios and while it's not as great as I thought it would be, it definitely was a pleasure to experience.
The job of a filmmaker is to tell a story visually. This is exactly what Spielberg does. In fact, it is purely told with images. Not one word is spoken throughout the film (save the main song "Amblin" by October Country.) Tracking shots, special photographic effects, freeze frames, and transitions are the tools that Spielberg uses to tell the story. We don't need words.
For those who are interested, I have supplied a basic outline of the events in the story. Those who do not want to know would do well to skip down after the stars.
The film opens with the sound of wind and the title song as we see the credits over shots of the sun (one of Spielberg's trademarks) at first light. We are introduced to the main character (The Boy) from a high angle, walking along a long, dusty highway road. As we go in closer, Spielberg uses a camera move from Seven Samurai to introduce the Girl. With only an exchange of looks between the two, they decide to move on together.
One of the sequences that follow is an olive-spitting contest; with a can of olives, they see who can spit the nuts the farthest across the breakdown line on the road. It's an old hat sequence with some strange sound effects but it works. Unfortunately, there is a trick Spielberg uses here and quite a lot in the film: the freeze frame (with a strange pluck of a guitar as a sound effect.) On the first viewing, it's quite jarring as it brings you out of the story, but on multiple viewings it works. (It's an experimental element, something Godard would use quite a lot.) Through the second act, which consists of about 11 minutes, we find our characters trying to hitch rides from unwilling drivers (in one section, the Girl flags down the cars as the Boy is hiding. By the time he runs to the Girl, the car is gone.) After practically getting run over by a speeding car, they hide in a dark tunnel and, seen only in silhouette, smoke pot. What follows is a nicely done sequence of special photographic effects where we witness the Boy's experience of being high. Dissolves and color corrections highlight the series of images.
Throughout the film, the Boy has been carrying a guitar case and there is a nice motif of the Girl constantly trying the open the case; the Boy keeps stopping her. There is also a sequence where they are picked up by some kids in one of those '60s buses. The boy feels out of place and it takes a couple of moments for the Girl to realize this. The kids are trying to open his case but he stops them. Consequently, they are dropped off again.
At the end of the second act, we find ourselves at a campfire. The two characters exchange looks and, in a few moments, and some very well done shots, they kiss. The transition between the end of this scene to the third act is one of those brilliant scene-transitions Spielberg is known for. A shot of a zipper being zipped dissolves into a moving shot of a painted line on the road. Spielberg would use these connecting ideas in all of his subsequent films. (I am especially reminded of Always, Schindler's List, and the scene directly after the murder of Chrissie in Jaws.) Finally, in the third act, they reach the Pacific Coast and, as the Boy jumps into the Ocean, the Girl looks into the guitar case and discovers something about the Boy. She picks up her things and leaves as the Boy stays in the water, in a way, finding himself.
* * * * * * * * * * *
One of the main themes in the body of Spielberg's work is the lost boy, and this is no clearer than in Amblin'. This is a Boy who doesn't know whether to hit the books or follow his dreams; to lead a structured life or a free one; to be uptight or liberated. This is only an interpretation but I'm guessing this is what Spielberg was feeling at the time. The dream of meeting another person who can connect and understand you is a dream that most people have. Interestingly enough, the ending is a rather melancholy one for a Spielberg film, something he would do again in The Sugarland Express. (Duel and Something Evil have more inclusive endings.) Of course, there are trademarks that can be found here that are apparent in his future films. I have already mentioned the transitions between scenes, which create a more cohesive film. There are also moments where characters look off-screen as we dolly in on their faces. And there are scenes that open on a detail in the scene and we pull back to reveal the characters (instead of giving us an establishing shot first and then into the details.)
If you take the story and just look at it without the mise-en-scene, it's a rather bland and clichéd story. It's the directing and style that makes it noteworthy. Steven Spielberg used this film to get his contract into Universal Studios and while it's not as great as I thought it would be, it definitely was a pleasure to experience.