Nanook of the North
Nanook of the North is a non-fiction documentary directed by Robert Flaherty in 1922. A documentary is not scripted and is simply the recording of everyday life and in this case the everyday life of Nanook, Nahla, his wife, Ollie his eldest son and Rainbow his youngest child. Flaherty, as the director makes some interesting choices in the way that he wants the audience to view this family and Nanook and his family add some interesting qualities as well. Flaherty wants the audience to be familiar with the surroundings of this Eskimo family and therefore introduces the audience
The children are playful and are seen playing with the puppies. Nanook and his family along with the director Robert Flaherty work well together to capture the essence of the Eskimo life and what it entails. We also become familiar with other occupants of this land such as the different animals. The people would advance towards the camera rather than the camera going to them. Also the shot of Nahla and Rainbow as she kisses him shows love. Nanook and his family want to be represented as a loving, playful and helpful family. Flaherty chooses to use a stationary camera in most of his shots and is not focusing on the personality of the family but rather their lifestyle and how they contribute to one another. This film values the importance of family and how they live and work together. We become familiar with the coldness that the Eskimos must endure with shots of snow and ice on the lake. Flaherty chooses to use the animals to help us relate to the surroundings and the changing of the seasons. I think that this enables the audience to see that this family is welcoming us into their lives and wants us to witness what they are all about. I noticed that many of the shots are of what the family is doing, their actual actions and so their faces are usually left out of the frame. There are many scenes of them working together to get food and so forth.
Common topics in this essay:
Nanook Nahla,
Robert Flaherty,
Nahla Rainbow,
Nanook North,
nanook family,
everyday life,
robert flaherty,
flaherty chooses,
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