As Little As Possible (and As Much As You Can)

My favorite kind of scene is the kind that holds back. I just love that moment when the screen shows the effect of what happened, without completely telling what came to be. In American Beauty, it's when every scene with a popping red element concludes as the camera pans to a bare white wall, only to have it tainted by a blood splatter that reflects Kevin Spacey's resolute, smiling expression as he faces death.

In Chinatown, it's the end when -- well, I really shouldn't say but -- you hear the sound of what must have transpired, and realize that afterwards, the fate of the victim turns for the worst (as if it weren't already terrible!)...

In The Ghost Writer, it's when -- I really will not say this time!

And no accompanying clip, sorry! (I can't find one, and I highly recommend a screening of the movie! Though with a few storylines I still can't quite resolve, the movie, in my opinion, was very well directed!.)

Scenes like those are my favorite kind, and tonight, as I am resolved to sleep instead of finish work, I leave you with the last mentioned film's score. Quite the opposite of the quiet mysteriousness found in the entire movie, this score is one that holds nothing from us. Sounding livelier and less subtle than most accompanying music, it creates the perfect haunting atmosphere that an old noir film from the '70's must have had.

The Ghost Writer scored by Alexandre Desplat. Not a huge fan of his, but I like his Fantastic Mr. Fox score as well as this one.

I'm so sleepy! Thank you for letting me take this not-so-short break from work!

American Beauty (1999) directed by Sam Mendes, and Chinatown (1974) and The Ghost Writer (2010), directed by Roman Polanski.