The Lift

http://gorillafilmmagazine.com/2011/08/07/lift/

The lift is a man called Marc Isaacs standing in the lift analysing people that live in the block that comes in the lift. When I first watch the documentary I was confused as to why he was standing and in the lift and what he could possibly find out from people from standing in a life. The scene was set in a kind of surreal setting. The setting of the documentary looks dirty and had a weird green lighting as gorilla film magazine described as 'morbid, futureless, artificial light illuminates the of dirty hallways'. In the beginning I wasn’t sure he was going to gain anything important or useless but as you watch you get to see the different characters that live in this block and you get to understand their story. You can also see a sly relationship build up between the director and the characters that come in the lift because at first they seemed to be a bit reserved because the camera was on them but it slowly started to become a daily routine for these people and become to open up a bit more about their lives. I didn’t think I would like this short documentary but the character were funny and had an emotional side to them that I didn’t that would be in this short documentary.

There is a big difference between ‘Bowling for Columbine’ and ‘The Lift.  For starters Michael Moore was seen in the documentary and personally went up to people and asked they questions and travelled to different places in America, whereas in ‘The Lift’ you didn’t see him at all the only time you get to see a bit of he is when the guy was moping up the lift and you get to see a bit of his shoes and Marc Isaacs is also in one spot for the whole entire documentary. Setting is the key difference between the 2 documentaries, Michael Moore was travelling up and down America to find out information about gun control in America whereas Marc Isaacs is just standing in the lift observing and interacting with people that come in the lift. Michael Moore was trying to change a serious problem in America whereas Marc Issacs was just showing the different characters, their backgrounds and problems that have come across in their life. I don't know if Marc Isaacs is trying to actually change something like how Michael Moore but I think he is trying to show the people that watch he's documentaries the things you could find out if you are patiences.