I’m Not Scared Narration
I’m not scared Narration
Numerous books have been written in a first-person narration, yet fewer movies have been directed from that same perspective. Nicollo Ammaniti’s I’m not scared does the job beautifully in the novel form, and thankfully, it tackles the challenge in the film adaptation as well; the director’s smartest move was to film the proceedings solely from the perspective of Michele. He does so by focusing primarily on Michele throughout the film, his emotions, reactions, and even the ways he registers what is around him. The movie, however, does not put a heavy emphasis on Michele’s relationship with his father, thus making it difficult for the viewer to evaluate the strength and change in that bond.
The main technique through which the director attempts to translate the first person narration is through the use of a single-perspective focus. The novel makes it quite clear that the narration is a first-person one, and the narrator is Michele. It is revealed early on with the line, “Then there was me, Michele” who the protagonist as well as the narrator is (Ammaniti 3). In the film, it is evident that Michele is the protagonist of the story by the way in which the camera lingers on him the longest; it cuts to him to register his emotions in each situation. Moreover, the scenes where Michele watches the adults in the kitchen from hiding are carefully shot in a way that allows the audience to see only as much as Michele can see. We can watch what is happening in the kitchen from a narrow crack in the door that Michele is looking through as well. This type of perspective furthermore emphasizes that the entire plot of the film is narrated by Michele, and it is from his perspective alone that we can experience the action.
Because the story unravels from Michele’s point of view, the audience experiences how he deals with the new situation. The book shows Michele often creating vivid stories about his reality; in particular, he invents them to
Numerous books have been written in a first-person narration, yet fewer movies have been directed from that same perspective. Nicollo Ammaniti’s I’m not scared does the job beautifully in the novel form, and thankfully, it tackles the challenge in the film adaptation as well; the director’s smartest move was to film the proceedings solely from the perspective of Michele. He does so by focusing primarily on Michele throughout the film, his emotions, reactions, and even the ways he registers what is around him. The movie, however, does not put a heavy emphasis on Michele’s relationship with his father, thus making it difficult for the viewer to evaluate the strength and change in that bond.
The main technique through which the director attempts to translate the first person narration is through the use of a single-perspective focus. The novel makes it quite clear that the narration is a first-person one, and the narrator is Michele. It is revealed early on with the line, “Then there was me, Michele” who the protagonist as well as the narrator is (Ammaniti 3). In the film, it is evident that Michele is the protagonist of the story by the way in which the camera lingers on him the longest; it cuts to him to register his emotions in each situation. Moreover, the scenes where Michele watches the adults in the kitchen from hiding are carefully shot in a way that allows the audience to see only as much as Michele can see. We can watch what is happening in the kitchen from a narrow crack in the door that Michele is looking through as well. This type of perspective furthermore emphasizes that the entire plot of the film is narrated by Michele, and it is from his perspective alone that we can experience the action.
Because the story unravels from Michele’s point of view, the audience experiences how he deals with the new situation. The book shows Michele often creating vivid stories about his reality; in particular, he invents them to
Cited: Ammaniti, Niccolò. I 'm Not Scared. New York: Anchor, 2003. Print.