"Contact" How to express unknown emotions? Jodie Foster's masterpiece has evolved through the integration of special effects.

Jodie Foster's acting evolved with special effects

Now, let's return to the important proposition. What was the compatibility between the famous actress and the special effects in ``Contact''? Of course, it goes without saying that Jodie Foster has an extraordinary presence in this film. Then, when I looked at it more closely, I came across a scene that surprised me and made me think, ``This is how special effects can be used!'' There is a hidden scene in which her acting and special effects are fused into a hybrid.

It is the climax, the scene where the heroine passes through the wormhole and sees the golden stars shining in front of her. At this moment, her eyes widen, and she gives off an expression that is indescribable, as if she has far surpassed the limits of an individual's performance. (around 2 hours)

During the filming, Foster focused on acting while staring at a blank blue screen, but there was something divine about her reaction to ``touching something unknown.'' What concrete methods did they use to elevate their expression to that level?

What Zemeckis and the special effects team put their heads into, once again, came up with a way to present something complex as it is. Zemeckis reportedly asked Foster to perform six different versions of the same scene without moving his face.

“Contact” (c)2009 Warner Bros. Entertaiment Inc. All rights reserved.

At first, I felt like I was feeling happy. Next, let's endure the sadness. This time, it was as if he was afraid of what was in front of him. The rest of the performance is based on emotions that are a combination of these, and the staff uses these photographs as material, and also incorporates Ellie's expressions when she was young, and by mixing all of them together, they create a series of expressions that cannot be put into words. ” was created.

No matter how good an actress Jodie Foster is, she probably couldn't have created this kind of performance using her imagination alone. As Zemeckis says, ``It is impossible to express so much emotion in just one performance,'' this scene is a unique hybrid ``fusion'' created by combining many of her performances with special effects. It was the body.

Zemeckis does not simply enjoy the performances of Hollywood's greatest actors, as he once did with Tom Hanks in ` `Forrest Gump, '' which revolutionized cinematography. By making full use of even that as an ingredient, he seeks to bring out the flavor and emotion of the material and amplify it many times over.

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22 years have passed since then, and special effects technology has evolved dramatically, but watching ``Contact'' makes you realize once again that what's important is not the technology, but the creativity that brings it all together. . Just like Zemeckis' `` BTTF '' series and ``Forest Gump,'' this film will continue to be loved for a long time as a movie textbook, with many discoveries and things to learn each time you watch it. That's probably true.

Text: USHIZU ATSUNOBU

Born in Nagasaki in 1977. When he was 3 years old, he saw ``Superman II'' with his father and became fascinated with movies. After The Graduate from Meiji University, he worked for a movie broadcasting channel and then became a movie writer. Currently, in addition to writing for Eiga.com, EYESCREAM, Real Sound Movie Club, etc., he also contributes to media press and theater programs.

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"Contact"

Blu-ray ¥2,381 + tax / DVD special edition ¥1,429 + tax

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(c)2009 Warner Bros. Entertaiment Inc. All rights reserved.