Quick synopsis: Schroeder is allowed to film the dictator for one week in 1974, with Amin essentially given final say on the movie and staging many of the events in it (hence the 'Self-Portrait' in the title). However, despite this, there are many subtle critiques by Schroeder within the movie (and a few unsubtle ones, such as including Amin's anti-Semitic letter to the UN and stating that a cabinet member was found dead in the Nile a week after Amin chastised him during a government meeting, though I'm unsure what Amin's reaction would be to them).
1.
Throughout the documentary, Amin attempts to portray himself as jocular, intelligent, and a great leader. In this scene on a boat, just after Amin gives a safari tour of the wildlife surrounding the water of the area, Amin nearly doubles over with laughter after Schroeder asks him, 'But is it true that you said that Hitler didn't kill enough Jews during the war?'. By holding the camera directly on him and allowing the laughter and gesticulations to play out, the viewer can see how silly and, on many levels, phony Amin is. This dichotomy of surficial appearances versus reality is the unifying theme of the documentary.
2.
In this scene, Amin is giving an interview near the backyard garden behind his house. This interview was immediately preceded by information that Amin puts out a daily newsreel for Ugandan.
While Schroeder's voice is only occasionally heard throughout the documentary, here not only is his voice heard, but he is seen multiple times, as is part of the crew. The camera shots continually alter between the color shots of the main camera that is focused on Amin, the color camera behind the interview crew filming the the interviewer/crew, and the black-and-white shots of a film strip of the interview being projected on a wall.
The effects of this are twofold: one, to show how steeped in propaganda Amin is in disseminating his thoughts to his people, and two, to show how fake Amin's words are. Amin is not speaking truths, he is performing. We are not seeing an unfiltered discussion of policies or the man himself, we are seeing an actor perform in a film where he is also the writer and producer. Several sentences of dialogue are repeated; shown first as they are happening on the main camera (the first of these three pictures, and then shown again as a film. This 'self-portrait' of Amin is phony and a sham. We are not watching a documentary but instead are watching a movie.
3.
Another subtle critique of Amin. Amin is ostensibly showing off his playful side while he swims around with some commoners. Giving a poolside interview, Schroeder uses a wide shot to both show off Amin's buffoonery and to keep his gold Rolex watch in frame. Amin wears the watch throughout the documentary and it is prominently featured, but seeing him wear it even while swimming displays the foolishness and opulence and self-consciousness of Amin.
4.
In what is probably the most important scene in the documentary, Amin meets with a group of doctors. Schroeder's narration explains: 'Amin gets ready to face a much more critical audience than his usual audiences. It is a gathering of the capital's eminent physicians.'
After some silly joking and patronization about the doctor's intelligence and diligence, the floor is opened for questions. Without any direct commentary by Schroeder and using only framing and zooming, Schroeder is able to show both how out of depth and how chilling Amin is.
As one doctor begins a slight critique and request, the camera slowly zooms in on Amin's blank expression. It is not a look of understanding. Further, one gets the impression that Amin is seething in anger, both at the doctor speaking (who has just made a small error by referring to the head of his commission as 'President', which is a title only Amin gets to have) and his inability to comprehend what the doctor is saying. The sounds of Amin breathing are amplified, sweat appears on Amin's brow, and he begins to fidget and rub his hands together. It is altogether telling and chilling (the latter especially when you consider how quickly Amin dispatched the cabinet member earlier in the doc). When the doctor finishes speaking, Amin snaps back into reality and offers up the impotent rejoinder, 'I like this type of frank discussions.'
Amin tries to project a certain image of himself to the world, and Schroeder undercuts this with subtle camerawork and editing.
No comments:
Post a Comment