27 April 2013

Věra Chytilová - Daisies (1966)


Věra Chytilová has embodied a unique cinematographic language and style that does not rely on any literary or verbal conventions, but rather utilizes various forms of visual manipulations to create meaning within her films. Chytilová uses observations of everyday life in accordance with allegories and surreal contexts to create a personalized film style that is greatly influenced by the French New Wave, and Italian Neo-Realism. Chytilová actively uses a filmic style that is similar to cinema verite in order to allow the audience to gain an outside perspective of the film. Her use of cinema verite is best illustrated in her 1966 film Daises in which these techniques create a “philosophical documentary, of diverting the spectator from the involvement, destroying psychology and accentuates the humor”. Through these manipulations Chytilová has created a legacy of creating a disjunctive viewing experience for her audience forcing them to question the meaning of her films.
Věra Chytilová is cited as a militant feminist filmmaker. Josef Skvorecky states that Chytilová “In a true feminist tradition Vera combined intensive intellectual effort with a feminine feeling for beauty and form”. Daises is seen as a feminist film due to its attitude and active critique of male attitudes towards sex However Chytilová does not see herself as a feminist filmmaker, but rather believes in individualism, stating that if a person does not believe in a particular set of conventions or rules then it is up to that individual to break them.

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