Clarity, Uncertainty, Blindness, and Confusion

Jack and Judah discussing a little problem

What does it mean to be certain of something?  When you are certain of something does that mean that what you are certain of is right?  Do you ever seem to question your certainty or is it burned in the back of your mind and all other possibilities are omitted?  What if someone is certain about something that you are uncertain about, who is right and who is wrong, who is being moral and who is immoral?  After viewing movies in our class we saw many familiar themes throughout each film.  Characters questioned themselves, disagreed with others, and flat out seemed uncertain at times.

            The two images from scenes I will be talking about are from the movies Crimes and Misdemeanors directed by Woody Allen and Doubt directed by John Patrick Shanley.  First I Will talk about the close up shot of Crimes and Misdemeanors which show Judah and his brother Jack talking about his problem of the affair he is having with another woman.  In the shot Judah is looking straight ahead almost seeming to be staring at absolutely nothing and the audience gets a feeling as if he is having a mental battle with his morals.  Judah knows that murder is an absolute heinous crime and also is a sin to his religion but also is thinking about the consequences of coming clean to his wife about the affair which he was having and which he seems to be over with.  His brother Jack on the other hand seems to have clarity on what seems to be right for the situation and knows deep down that the only way to solve his brothers problem is to make Judahs lover disappear.  I really like the relationship between Jack and Judah because it shows the two different types of people that live in our world.  On one hand Judah is the moral one, who knows that murder, lying, and cheating is wrong, and on Jacks side, he believes that the world is already a cruel place and that one person believing in doing the right thing will have no effect on the world and will ultimately hurt the person that is trying to do right.  I also like how in this shot Jack seems to be trying to persuade Judah into believing what he believes, he is telling Judah that there is no other way for his problems to be solved unless he eliminates the problem forever.  All in all this shot perfectly shows the difference between certainty and uncertainty.

Sister Aloysius and Sister James discussing a little problem

            The next shot I will be talking about is from the movie Doubt which shows Sister Aloysius and Sister James discussing a problem which is occurring within the school that they work in.  The first thing I noticed in this medium-up close shot is opposed to the Crimes and Misdemeanors shot is that Sister Aloysius who seems to be the one that is certain is now staring off into oblivion and the uncertain person, Sister James, is staring at her how Jack is staring at Judah.  This makes me really start to think is Sister Aloysius really certain of what she believes, or is she lost in uncertainty like Judah but not expressing it to anyone else.  It also makes me question is Judah really the certain one?  Since Judah is also staring off into nothing is he certain in his mind that murder is wrong?  I think both shots do a great job of pondering morals and shows how all the characters differentiate their beliefs in different ways such as where they are located and their interaction with other characters.  To conclude about the topic of moral clarity and moral uncertainty, I believe that those who are certain of something have a hard time changing their stand point and those who are uncertain of something seem vulnerable to changing their view on a problem at hand.