Essay on A River Runs Through It - 1223 Words

All lives revolve around decisions and instances from ones past. In A River Runs Through It (1992), director Robert Redford uses this idea and applies it to a true story of two brothers from Montana, Norman and Paul Maclean (Craig Sheffer and Brad Pitt, respectively). Based on the autobiographical novel by Norman Maclean himself, River uses Maclean’s metaphysical beliefs about life and nature to present its many themes. Using a longing score, various film devices, and a story line involving themes of youth, loss, and the pitfalls of pride, Robert Redford crafts a film about the beauty of the past. The film starts with an elder Norman fishing in the â€Å"Big Blackfoot† river. Written by Mark Isham (who won the Academy Award for his work on†¦show more content†¦This pattern of Norman accepting, and Paul pushing away, is recurrent throughout the film. Redford stays in the boys’ youths for a longer period of time than the average director. This is due to th e importance of youth within the film. Redford constantly reminds viewers of the boys’ innocence and purity by bathing them in light. In one of the first, and most widely known, scenes in the film the two boys are fishing in the middle of the river. Redford films the shot at the end of the day, as the sun is low in the sky, and the boys are backlit and silhouetted by the sun and its reflection off the water. This shot gives the characters a pure and innocent aura, and helps the viewer subconsciously connect with their youth. As Norman and Paul grow older, they remain very close. This is meant figuratively and literally, as Redford’s use of Mise-En-Scene helps to establish just how close the relationship between the two is. There are dozens of shots within the film, where the boys (and later men) are standing next to each other completely alone and at an extreme long shot, with the vast Montana wilderness behind them. This technique of camera distance and character clos eness gives the film and the boys’ relationship an â€Å"us against the world† feel, and also connects the boys closeness directly to the setting in which they grew up. Another way Redford conveys the importance of Montana and the river to the boys’ lives is with voice over placed on panningShow MoreRelatedA River Runs Through It753 Words   |  3 Pagesthings to look for in any drama are: conflict, character portrayal, and last, but not least, comic relief. Does this movie have conflict? Any good drama has a conflict in the plot, particularly one that grabs the attention of the audience, and A River Runs Through It is no exception. The main conflict in this film appears to be life itself. The conflict is displayed all throughout the movie, with the struggle of growing up to the struggle of finding your place in this world. The main plot is the conflictRead MoreRiver Runs Through It1218 Words   |  5 PagesA River Runs Through it A River Runs Through it is a story about the relationship between two brothers. The younger brother Paul has problems. He is a gambler, a drinker, and is short on cash, but his main problem is that he will not allow his older brother, Norman, to help him. Paul refuses to accept his older brothers aid and moreover refuses to even listen to what his brother has to say. In order to make his brother listen Norman will be forced to confront his brother, something that he isRead More A River Runs Through It Essay466 Words   |  2 Pages A River Runs Through It nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Fly fishing is not what this story is all about, although it might seem so at first. Neither is it about religion, even though the father’s first line is: quot;In our family, there was no clear line between religion and fly fishing.quot; Yes, these two things are themes that run through the story and add to its power. But there is so much more. It depicts a place of beauty, history, myth, and mystery, it is a triangle of earth in Montana whereRead MoreThe River Runs Through It Essay840 Words   |  4 Pagesfour-count, to something a bit more innovative, shadow casting. The technique wasnt the only thing he altered. He also caught fish for quality, which leaked with palpability when he told Norman he aspired to catch the most prevalent fish in the river. Another exceptionally nontraditional detail about Pauls fishing has to deal with the fact that he took incredible risks. This trait had particular obviousness when he went into the rapids in order to catch the fish of his dreams. TraditionalisticRead More A River Runs Through Us Essay4120 Words   |  17 PagesA River Runs Through Us 1. â€Å"The Anacostia River is a metaphor for the way poor people and minorities are treated† (Hoover). In 1994, the Anacostia River was fourth on the list of American Rivers â€Å"Most Endangered Rivers† (Rynor). Since the late 19 th century the water quality in this river has slowly declined with the onset of urbanization and industrialization and the pollution that accompanies this growth. The Anacostia is severely polluted with â€Å"sediment, nutrients, pathogens, toxinsRead MoreEssay on Norman Macleans A River Runs Through It925 Words   |  4 PagesNorman Macleans A River Runs Through It Throughout A River Runs Through It, Norman Maclean emphasizes the relationship between nature, art, and faith. The concise, simple sentence with which he chooses to open his story captures the essence of all one hundred pages: in his family, there was no clear line between religion and fly fishing (1). Reverend Maclean believes that both fly fishing and spiritual belief are exact arts, if such a term can exist without paradox. The Reverend holdsRead MoreA River Runs Through It - The Importance of Fishing Essay638 Words   |  3 Pagespeople who have read A River Runs through It some time in their life, is a gift. Whether fishermen use bait, worms, or Georges flies it is that much sweeter to catch some trout with a brother under one arm and a father on the other. The river and fishing made such a big impact on the Maclean family that it is the root of this book. The Macleans compared the river to life, went fishing to answer questions, and created a river that has a past full of memories. The river and fishing become metaphorsRead MoreNorman Maclean’s A River Runs Through It Essay1308 Words   |  6 PagesA Hobby or a Way of Life Religion and tradition are two ways that families come together. However in Norman Maclean’s novella, A River Runs Through It, the Maclean family’s devotion to their Presbyterian religion and their tradition of fly-fishing is what undeniably brought the family together. Under the father’s strict Presbyterian values, his sons, Norman and Paul used fly-fishing as the link that brought them closer together and helped them bond with their father on a different level. TheRead MoreAnalysis Of A River Runs Through It By Norman Maclean1736 Words   |  7 Pagestestifies to this power in his novella A River Runs Through It. Through his eulogy to the Blackfoot river Norman Maclean captures the human soul and what it means to grow up, his story explaining how a river affects a man. Robert Redford’s movie adaptation, while maintaining the core importance of the Blackfoot river, focuses on the interpersonal relationships Norman develops throughout his life and how t hose affect his character and life choices. A River Runs through it encapsulates the emotional growthRead MoreAnalysis Of Norman Macfords A River Runs Through It1779 Words   |  8 PagesA River Runs Through It The natural world is unparalleled in its power to make one deeply contemplative, introspective, and observant of the surrounding universe. Norman Maclean testifies to this power in his novella, A River Runs Through It. Through his eulogy to the Blackfoot river, Norman Maclean captures his journey from boy to man through his personal and visceral connection to the Blackfoot. Norman’s writing encapsulates his own coming of age through the symbolism and parallels he draws between