Summary: Chronos is a work that continues the learnings of the now director Ron Fricke. With a similar concept but now removed from the proposal made in Koyaanisqatsi initially, in the sense that it takes some ideas, but the final vision of the film takes the viewer towards another ending.
This film, whose duration is around 43 minutes could be considered as a first experiment of the director in relation to his vision and previous learning. Something that will later expand in Baraka and eventually Samsara.
Format: Chronos had a Blu-Ray release in 2007. Although it was not as elaborate as Baraka's, the quality leaves nothing to be envied, being extremely clear thanks to its negatives filmed for IMAX. Based on the analyzed extras - unfortunately, it is only compensated with a comment from the director - it is possible to understand more the vision of the director but mainly the techniques used.
Address: Chronos seems to display a clear vision at the address level. The director explores the ideas in a way that does not feel out of place. With the exception of one particular scene, where the transition between one location and another is done in isolation, the direction, vision and style seem clear and well defined.
The way in which the shots are mixed with the sound is given in perfect synchrony and without fear of being wrong, I could say that even music - which may be the best or worst according to the viewer - plays a greater role than Koyaanisqatsi. Here, music, like Chronos - In Greek mythology, was the personification of time, as it is said in pre-Socratic philosophical works. - shows its inevitable advance, impossible to change or alter and accelerating at each step as time, reaching, an exquisite crescendo to the senses. It is in this aspect where the work of Fricke improves considerably in relation to Koyaanisqatsi.
At the directing level, Chronos is a film that surpasses the previous one where Fricke had participation. Its short in duration, however, seems to leave a lot to tell and the visual experience ends very quickly.
Photography: Undoubtedly one of the highest points of this film is photography. Shot in multiple locations in the world, and showing a photograph that does not seem to be in any hurry to transmit the message, Ron Fricke embarks the viewer on a silent journey through many everyday situations or simply take for granted in our day to day . Here or in Hong Kong, collective indifference is a growing evil. Part of what makes this film unique is the use of what is commonly called time lapses. A time lapse is a video sequence - similar to the one shown above - where you shoot for an extended period of time with few frames per second. While traditionally a film is shot at 24 frames per second, a time-lapse could be shot at 1 or 2 frames per second.
At the level of photography it is also worth noting that Koyaanisqatsi shows the first brush strokes of the technique used by Ron Fricke in Chronos but mainly Baraka. We speak specifically of those intensely emotional shots where the focus of photography falls on one or several subjects. The emotion is invisible to the eye, and it falls on the spectator to imagine the emotional moment of it. A little used technique, but also seen in traditional narrative. The clearest example we can mention of this could be Aki Kaurismäki with the well-known Trilogy of Finland. These scenes, although rare in this film, come to tie perfectly the indifference that the Director seeks to transmit through the nearly ninety minutes that the feature film lasts.
Soundtrack: The soundtrack of Chronos is misunderstood at first sight. Also, it could be considered outdated in relation to the standard in soundtracks currently, however, in our opinion, transmits correctly the vision of the director. Through its simple sounds, repetitive and in keeping with the tempo of the work, we are guided to feel more and more. We could even think that feeling of impossibility that comes from listening to some sections of the soundtrack, were made on purpose to more easily reach the message conveyed by the director.
As in the direction, the biggest criticism in this aspect is the culmination of the auditory crescendo, which happens very late in the work and therefore the end is reached very abruptly. A little more space between the start and end of the third act would have helped to appreciate the work more. This, complemented by a greater pacing at the beginning of the first act, would have generated a more uniform experience in terms of the soundtrack.
Narrative: The director takes us on a journey through the past of humanity through those civilizations that populated Greece, Rome, Mesopotamia, etc., as well as exploring the passage of time and its effect on the world - mountains, rivers , the causes, the erosion, the clouds -. Finally, we explore humanity in the last twenty years and experience a unification of emotions by previewing the director's critique. The man, before and now; nature; time. How much time do we have left at this faster pace every day? These and other questions are raised in a critical and abstract way.
It is debatable if the director should guide a little more or not to the spectator, because in the end, in the abstract cinema it is always a possibility. When analyzing Chronos and comparing it with other works by the author such as Baraka, one can not help but accept that the narrative evolved in each treatment. Here, like photography, is one of the highest points.
Uniqueness: Chronos is not the best work in the genre. Neither historically compared to what was before, nor in retrospect compared to what has been produced in abstract documentaries to this day. However, it is a work that feels united by the work of direction, editing and sound and seems to have a clearer vision than others. It is a great first step for the then amateur director Ron Fricke and it takes us without problems to pose the question: how much time is necessary? How much time is enough? and with that message reaches the crescendo necessary to impact the viewer. The biggest criticism that breaks this unit a little is, unfortunately, its first third of the movie. The vision of the director takes a long time to be reflected and transmitted correctly, making that uniformity throughout the work, is not appreciated in its entirety.
Score: 8.1
This film, whose duration is around 43 minutes could be considered as a first experiment of the director in relation to his vision and previous learning. Something that will later expand in Baraka and eventually Samsara.
Format: Chronos had a Blu-Ray release in 2007. Although it was not as elaborate as Baraka's, the quality leaves nothing to be envied, being extremely clear thanks to its negatives filmed for IMAX. Based on the analyzed extras - unfortunately, it is only compensated with a comment from the director - it is possible to understand more the vision of the director but mainly the techniques used.
Address: Chronos seems to display a clear vision at the address level. The director explores the ideas in a way that does not feel out of place. With the exception of one particular scene, where the transition between one location and another is done in isolation, the direction, vision and style seem clear and well defined.
The way in which the shots are mixed with the sound is given in perfect synchrony and without fear of being wrong, I could say that even music - which may be the best or worst according to the viewer - plays a greater role than Koyaanisqatsi. Here, music, like Chronos - In Greek mythology, was the personification of time, as it is said in pre-Socratic philosophical works. - shows its inevitable advance, impossible to change or alter and accelerating at each step as time, reaching, an exquisite crescendo to the senses. It is in this aspect where the work of Fricke improves considerably in relation to Koyaanisqatsi.
At the directing level, Chronos is a film that surpasses the previous one where Fricke had participation. Its short in duration, however, seems to leave a lot to tell and the visual experience ends very quickly.
Photography: Undoubtedly one of the highest points of this film is photography. Shot in multiple locations in the world, and showing a photograph that does not seem to be in any hurry to transmit the message, Ron Fricke embarks the viewer on a silent journey through many everyday situations or simply take for granted in our day to day . Here or in Hong Kong, collective indifference is a growing evil. Part of what makes this film unique is the use of what is commonly called time lapses. A time lapse is a video sequence - similar to the one shown above - where you shoot for an extended period of time with few frames per second. While traditionally a film is shot at 24 frames per second, a time-lapse could be shot at 1 or 2 frames per second.
At the level of photography it is also worth noting that Koyaanisqatsi shows the first brush strokes of the technique used by Ron Fricke in Chronos but mainly Baraka. We speak specifically of those intensely emotional shots where the focus of photography falls on one or several subjects. The emotion is invisible to the eye, and it falls on the spectator to imagine the emotional moment of it. A little used technique, but also seen in traditional narrative. The clearest example we can mention of this could be Aki Kaurismäki with the well-known Trilogy of Finland. These scenes, although rare in this film, come to tie perfectly the indifference that the Director seeks to transmit through the nearly ninety minutes that the feature film lasts.
Soundtrack: The soundtrack of Chronos is misunderstood at first sight. Also, it could be considered outdated in relation to the standard in soundtracks currently, however, in our opinion, transmits correctly the vision of the director. Through its simple sounds, repetitive and in keeping with the tempo of the work, we are guided to feel more and more. We could even think that feeling of impossibility that comes from listening to some sections of the soundtrack, were made on purpose to more easily reach the message conveyed by the director.
As in the direction, the biggest criticism in this aspect is the culmination of the auditory crescendo, which happens very late in the work and therefore the end is reached very abruptly. A little more space between the start and end of the third act would have helped to appreciate the work more. This, complemented by a greater pacing at the beginning of the first act, would have generated a more uniform experience in terms of the soundtrack.
Narrative: The director takes us on a journey through the past of humanity through those civilizations that populated Greece, Rome, Mesopotamia, etc., as well as exploring the passage of time and its effect on the world - mountains, rivers , the causes, the erosion, the clouds -. Finally, we explore humanity in the last twenty years and experience a unification of emotions by previewing the director's critique. The man, before and now; nature; time. How much time do we have left at this faster pace every day? These and other questions are raised in a critical and abstract way.
It is debatable if the director should guide a little more or not to the spectator, because in the end, in the abstract cinema it is always a possibility. When analyzing Chronos and comparing it with other works by the author such as Baraka, one can not help but accept that the narrative evolved in each treatment. Here, like photography, is one of the highest points.
Uniqueness: Chronos is not the best work in the genre. Neither historically compared to what was before, nor in retrospect compared to what has been produced in abstract documentaries to this day. However, it is a work that feels united by the work of direction, editing and sound and seems to have a clearer vision than others. It is a great first step for the then amateur director Ron Fricke and it takes us without problems to pose the question: how much time is necessary? How much time is enough? and with that message reaches the crescendo necessary to impact the viewer. The biggest criticism that breaks this unit a little is, unfortunately, its first third of the movie. The vision of the director takes a long time to be reflected and transmitted correctly, making that uniformity throughout the work, is not appreciated in its entirety.
Score: 8.1