News: Battle of the Shaky Cam

Battle of the Shaky Cam

Responding to the inexplicably rampant use of faux-documentary techniques in "Battle: Los Angeles", Matt Zoller Seitz of Salon eloquently and hilariously lambastes the "played-out" fad of the shaky cam.  Here are just a few nuggets:

• 'Get yourself a tripod. Make a shot list. Think about where you're putting the camera and why you're putting it there, and try to redirect the audience's attention by moving the camera or refocusing rather than cutting every three to five seconds. Stop covering action. Start directing again.'
• '...You cannot say the same for "Battle: Los Angeles," which looks as if the cinematographer strapped cameras to the heads of a dozen baboons and fired a pistol in the air when the director called "action."'