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Land Without Bread: in Reference To Chapter 4 of Bill Nichols Book Introduction To Documentary

The documentary film Land Without Bread by Luis Bunuel documents the difficult living conditions and poverty in the mountainous Las Hurdes region of Spain, showing how it was nearly impossible to survive there. The film aimed to indirectly criticize macho culture and drinking traditions as well as highlight the unsuitable living conditions. It focused on negative aspects of life in the mountains but not positives, revealing some things while concealing others as documentaries often do according to the book being discussed.

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95 views2 pages

Land Without Bread: in Reference To Chapter 4 of Bill Nichols Book Introduction To Documentary

The documentary film Land Without Bread by Luis Bunuel documents the difficult living conditions and poverty in the mountainous Las Hurdes region of Spain, showing how it was nearly impossible to survive there. The film aimed to indirectly criticize macho culture and drinking traditions as well as highlight the unsuitable living conditions. It focused on negative aspects of life in the mountains but not positives, revealing some things while concealing others as documentaries often do according to the book being discussed.

Uploaded by

Ruchika S
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

LAND WITHOUT BREAD

In reference to chapter 4 of Bill Nichols book Introduction to Documentary

Land Without Bread made by Luis Bunuel is a satirical, expository documentary


based on the mountainous region of Spain called Las Hurdes. This
documentary shows us how difficult it is to survive in that region, it shows us a
region so affected by poverty that it became a land where bread is unknown.

As Bill Nichols mentioned in his book, to make a film engaging and persuasive
one needs to understand the different perspectives of the audiences, the film
and the filmmaker.
Nichols also said that films that have some motive are often persuasive, like
the film Land Without Bread had the motive to indirectly poke fun at the
culture of showing machoism along with drinking with the new grooms and to
show how the living conditions there were not suitable for survival. The
intension of the filmmaker was clearly visible in the film, he also made efforts
to kill animals for the making of this film just to emphasize on the fact that,
that place is not suitable for living.
As clearly mentioned in Nichols book, the change in camera angle draws
attention, lays emphasis and makes the film more engaging. Performing
interesting, unknown and questionable activities make a film engaging.
Nichols has also mentioned several times that the interpretation of a film
depends in the audiences watching, their background and their beliefs. I
completely agree with this as every individual indeed has a different
perspective and their personal experiences cannot be screened out, this fact
alone will lead to various interpretations of one thing.
Films that activate already existing emotions towards certain beliefs and values
enhances its affective power, the same way the film Land Without Bread did in
the scene where there is no cure for some diseases and that people affected
poverty migrate and come back empty handed. Nichols also mentioned this in
his book that people in general have a desire to hear a story that strengthens /
reinforces our preexisting assumptions often draw us.
In Nicholas book, it was mentioned that Documentaries conceal as much as
they reveal, they are like 2 side of a same coin which is very true in this films
case too. The film focuses on the negative side of living in the mountains but
not on the advantages and positives. Again, as mentioned earlier it depends on
the perspective of the filmmaker in this case.
Now, coming to the point of concrete events and abstract concepts, we cannot
film feelings but we can film the situations that give visible embodiment to
these concepts. The same idea was followed by the Luis Bunuel and he was
successful in activating emotions by doing so in the viewers.
The film was informational and instructional but there was a tension visible
between the general and the specific and as said in Nichols ‘s book these things
result in compelling arguments for alternatives but they are not conclusive.
In conclusion, the film Land Without Bread is an engaging film as it goes in
reference with the book of Bill Nichols, Introduction to Documentary. Not to
forget that this film was deliberative, judicial or historical and had the power of
metaphor which intensified the feelings and that’s one of the main reasons it
was persuasive and engaging to watch.

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