Matt- Task 2: Reviews & Information: Improvements needed

Final Version. 10 January 2014. The Lift

Reviews from http://film.thedigitalfix.com/ 
Lift, 2001

The brilliance and uniqueness of Isaac’s technique is demonstrated in his first short film, where he simply stands waiting in the lift of a tower block, pointing his camera at the diverse inhabitants who use it, occasionally striking up a conversation with a pertinent question or observation on their thoughts, on their love life, on their dreams as he gets to know the various people he meets. 

One might expect some hostility on the part of his subjects towards having a camera thrust in their face by a stranger, particularly within such a confined space, but somehow, whether through persistence or just the nature of the Londoners to take everything in their stride (it's actually filmed in Margate, but most seem to work and socialise in London), the people – barring one or two people clearly in a drunken state – are generally open to sharing fairly intimate details of their lives. Even those who are initially wary and mildly aggressive eventually come around and perhaps inadvertently reveal more about themselves than they would normally wish to. 

This is a more surprising revelation than it seems, considering how in general people tend to keep to themselves in lifts, all the more so considering the clear racial and age differences of the people involved in this particular tower block. Yet, even within the span of the few seconds it takes to get to and from the ground-floor, Isaacs manages to get his subjects to open up to the camera with disarming ease. The message is simple, but brilliantly achieved, that there are depths to the people around us that we might never be aware of, which we could discover if we’d only take the time to ask. 

Analysis: This review is very positive, the writer talks explains about how Marc Isaac achieved this films and also the things he liked about the film. There wasn't any bad or negative comments about this short film. The writer says 'The message is simple but brilliantly achieved' which means that he enjoyed this short film. 

The Lift Review: James Hocking http://gorillafilmmagazine.com/2011/08/07/lift/

Cold mechanical steel, met by a dull blanket of grey concrete. An unexpected setting for the profound emotional insight and raw humanity that Marc Isaacs exposes in Lift. Marc Isaacs is a North London-born documentary filmmaker with a passion and flare for bringing those on the fringes of our society to centre stage. His documentary films to date include Lift, All White in Barking, Travellers, and the harrowing Calais: The Last Border. His films force the viewer to look without judging eyes at people who remain on the lower rungs of our communities. Those ghosts in the background who work the unskilled jobs, speak with simple tongues and return home alone at night.

These common characteristics of his work are perhaps best displayed in Lift, possibly due to the sheer simplicity of the idea and the confinement of its subjects, but also because of the distinct sense of pathos we get from the wry smiles and faintly sardonic remarks made by them. Isaacs spent two months in the elevator of an East London tower block, speaking to the residents as they went on their daily commute. London’s multicultural nature ensures Isaacs encounters a diverse range of people, different colours, creeds and ages. The superficial yet clear divide in many of the tower’s residents is something which undoubtedly contributes to conveying the film’s message.

What is particularly interesting is the confidence that builds between Isaacs and the characters. A confidence that grows simply from being present in such a familiar and confined space, often without any real engagement at all. At first some are reserved, a few are somewhat overconfident in the gaze of the lens (alcohol having a role in these cases) and there are others completely unwilling to cooperate. However, as the films progresses all seem to grow used to his presence in the elevator, he becomes part of their daily ritual.
Once a bond of trust is built between Isaacs and his subjects, he poses a simple question. This proves to be a cuttingly effective technique in bringing out that which lies deepest within the characters. Questions such as ‘what is your best childhood memory?’ retrieve some of the most fascinating answers from lives which seem steeped in mundanity. But it is the development of the characters that these questions are posed to which truly captivates the viewer. A striking example in particular, is a man who at first appears to be completely unremarkable and too anxious to hold any relevant discourse with Isaacs. Even this man’s fondest childhood memory is ‘winning a recorder competition as the only boy’. But the story this man goes on to reveal to us is truly shocking, one that highlights Isaacs talent at bonding with his subjects purely by becoming involved in the most simple aspects of their lives, both through his physical presence and questioning.

Lift takes place in a world where a morbid, futureless, artificial light illuminates the lost souls of dirty hallways. But beneath this grim aesthetic lies an undeniably true concept. It beckons us to consider one of the truly sad things in life, that there are people everywhere, who are alone.

IMDb The Lift

Demographic breakdowns are shown below.

Votes	Percentage	Rating
27	14.3%	10
47	24.9%	9
53	28.0%	8
32	16.9%	7
15	7.9%	6
4	2.1%	5
2	1.1%	4
0		3
0		2
9	4.8%	1

Arithmetic mean = 7.8.  Median = 8

This page is updated daily.

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See user ratings report for:

	Votes	Average
Males	151	7.7
Females	15	7.0
Aged 18-29	98	7.7
Males Aged 18-29	87	7.8
Females Aged 18-29	11	7.1
Aged 30-44	60	7.4
Males Aged 30-44	56	7.5
Females Aged 30-44	4	6.3
Aged 45+	8	8.6
Males Aged 45+	8	8.6
Top 1000 voters	15	5.6
US users	19	5.8
Non-US users	147	7.7

Overall: This film was made for a film festival audience,  on IMDb 'The Lift' shows that on an average more males watched The Lift more than females which I don't think the director did this on purpose because the documentary hasn't got any convention that I think would aim at one director. This graph shows people ages from 18+ which I am not surprised by because I didn't think that this documentary would appeal to people under the ages of 18. This graph also shows that there was a lot of more non- US views who had watch this. I don't think this documentary was made for a large scale of people but niche audience that like usual sort of documentaries e.g film festivals.