Paper Heart

Background: Paper Heart stars Charlyne Yi as a young comedienne looking for a definition, a meaning, a feel for the four letter word LOVE. The mix of fiction, documentary and animation gives the film a loose, whimsical feel and reinforces Charlyne's background in comedy. Paper Heart always feels like a big joke, and really like a big in-joke that we in the audience will never really get. 

The shot above shows Charlyne and Michael Cera running from the documentary camera crew. Plot wise, this was because they had fallen in love and craved some time away from the invading camera that was ruining their natural love. Beneath the surface it's another constructed image- this shot obviously reveals that they are running towards another camera capturing them running away from the cameras behind.

The relationship between fact/fiction and love/hate is mirrored by the camera's inability to capture the essence of love. Maybe this is why the audience is not allowed in to the last scene, where Char disappears in Michael's house, shutting the door quietly behind her.

I liked this movie because it was about a girl and a camera. I liked the scenes where the apparatus of film making was revealed. The two lovers sit on a couch, kissing. They stop, looking awkward. The scene pulls back to show a camera guy and a sound guy, their attention focused on the young couple. It sounds simple but this kind of transparency is rarely used, and is especially relevant in asking about our female protagonist's relationship to the power of the camera. Indeed, much of the tension is about how much the camera gets to penetrate into her life and how much narrative control she has.