Monday, August 20, 2007

More Shadowy 'Blue River' Hibiscus

"Pay no attention to the man inside the box."

That line from The Prestige, (which we watched the other night), could well sum up the focus of these shots Fernymoss did last week. Though in the context of the film it clearly refers to the illusionist's techniques to distract the audience from what is really going on (which is of course more interesting than the false focus), here it's meant more to guide the viewer of these photos to the true subject of these shots: the shadows.

Fernymoss was out to capture more of the effects of late afternoon sun on the 'Blue River' hibiscus than to get tightly focused Inner Bits shots ... and to that end, I think he succeeded quite well. These aren't the most perfect of Hibiscus blooms, au contraire, they're a bit chewed up (likely by grasshoppers who have been real pests of late, and have eaten all of my prized Convolvulus seedlings!) We also thought that the textures displayed here were interesting in and of themselves, as well as the strategically placed "eyes" the marauding insect left on the bloom ... and in particular, the inner bits reminded us of those 'blow out' noise makers so popular with birthdays and New Year's Eve celebrations. Whether you see a Mardi Gras mask or just a rather molested Hibiscus bloom, it doesn't matter ... what I like best about these shots are the golden hue of the late afternoon sun, combined with the shadows it makes during the transition to evening ... after which, of course, another bloom will come along to replace it in the cycle this 'Blue River' hibiscus goes through every year. Though the flowers may seem the same, it's shots like these that prove to us that each one is unique in its own way, and there's always something new to be seen on close examination out in the garden....

As a quick aside ... The Prestige is a film well worth viewing for its multi-layered temporally distinct narratives as well as its intrigue created by the rivalry between two late 19th century illusionists played by Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman. It's a film that will engage your intellect immediately and sustain it throughout its many plot convolutions and trips through time to tell its story. Directed by Christopher Nolan of Batman Begins and Memento fame, it's a film that generally got overlooked last year (hmm, was it because it was too intelligent for most audiences?) but merits more attention from a wider audience. We highly recommend it, and look forward to comparing it to that "other" magician film from last year, The Illusionist. The latter is going to have to go the extra mile to achieve the astounding effect The Prestige did for us, but we'll approach it with an open mind and see what it has to offer. I'm just curious though, about why two different films focusing on the minutiae of magic acts happened to be released at roughly the same time last year ... after all, it's not a subject that readily springs to mind as a potential film vehicle, but as far as The Prestige is concerned, I'm glad it got made and actually saw the light of day!

9 comments:

olivia said...

Not the Convolvulus!

I like Christian Bale ... how did you find his performance ... :)

Nancy P said...

lol, Olivia!

These photos are sooo Halloween. Maybe they scared off the Convolvulus. Which looks like a Latin word for IB's. :)

Larry Kollar said...

I like the holes, they add some character to the bloom. I thought it was supposed to be like that at first.

Hey IVG, is this anyone you know? :-D

Iowa Victory Gardener said...

Hi there kind regulars! I'm in full swamped work mode this week and have no new pics to share (waaahhh) but hope to be back in the swing soon. But you may have to suffer through film reviews to get there... lol.

Olivia, Christian B was excellent in The Prestige, as was Hugh Jackman (my man). It's really a film worth seeing and when we get around to The Illusionist I'll have more to say about both. I guess the two adjectives I'd choose for The Prestige are lush and literary ... a well done period piece that really engages you throughout.

Nancy, don't think I hadn't thought of Halloween too, lol. That's the biggest holiday around here as you'll see in the coming months. And alas, the convolvulus may sound dirty but they're lovely flowers we won't see this year due to to those damn grasshoppers. :-0

FAR! Great to see you my friend (I have to get collecting seeds for you soon)! I hadn't seen that story, and lordy no, I would not be associating with anyone named "Satin." LOL... I wished they had said what part of town that was in and that would have told me volumes. No accounting for what goes on in parts of this urban sprawl, but once in a while we show up on KO and I cringe. I can say that it was not in our area or I'm sure we'd have heard about it! Thx for passing that one on,FAR.

Sorry for the work induced hiatus here folks... I'm gonna muddle through and will be back in force soon I hope!

Family Man said...

Hi IVG.

Great pictures as usual! Can't say I've seen The Prestige, but I haven't been to a movie or rented a video in a very long time. Plus I think I'm one of those people where the film might be too intelligent for me. :)

Hope work slows down for you soon.

katiebird said...

Hi, IVG (and Olivia, Nancy, FAR & FM!)

I stopped by yesterday and looked at the photos (wonderful texture -- mister and I have found ourselves examining the flowers we find on our walks much more closely. I wonder why?) but haven't had time to read in the morning this week.

I saw in one of the comments that you've been busy this week. And I think FAR has too. So maybe something's in the air? I hope we all get a break at about the same time!

Mister and I just made a list of movies we've missed in the last 2 years & we put both The Prestige & The Illusionist near the top.

Somehow we got out of the habit of watching movies. I was shocked to realize as the new Harry Potter film started, that I had missed the 4th film! That must have been the start of our film drought.

This is a great post. I'm glad I came back to savor it. (please say "Hi" to Fernymoss!)

And visit, of course!

Anonymous said...

BEAUTIFUL pictures as always. :)

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