Kirsty Hardy

Discuss two or more media texts that you would describe as ‘postmodern’ explain why have

you given this label

Postmodernism is a reaction or a rejection of modern films since the 1970’s. This is because the modern

films have become clichéd and stereotypical with similar storylines of a grand narrative. Postmodern

films tend to portray a ‘real’ life using conventions of documentary to persuade viewers to believe that

the actions are real and that the story is true Such as In this world and the road to Guantanamo, which

are meant by Winterbottom, to send a political message and relieve people of a single truth.

Winterbottom is a postmodern film director who often uses his docu-dramas as a vehicle to send a

message to his audiences and the world, which may have only seen one angle of the truth in news, as

Lyotard suggests that there is no one single truth. He also uses the use of post-modernism to entertain,

for example A cock and bull story disorientates the audience to challenge what is real and what is not as

some parts appear improvised and unscripted, however all of it is scripted. I will be discussing A cock

and bull story and In this world, both by Winterbottom.

In this World is, in my view, postmodern because it uses several techniques to make the audience

believe that it is real and is presented using codes and conventions of a documentary, such as shaky

camera movement, made by improvisation of the unscripted environment and hand-held camera that

makes us feel more apart of the scene and more believably real. This is postmodern because of the lack

of professional and classic style of a modern film. It is also based on a true story and the story is there to

educate us which helps the audience to break free from any one-sided news stories of only one side of

the truth. This is what the philosopher, Lyotard talks about when he speaks of the multiple truths that

make up the truth as there is no single truth. In addition to this, during the story the narration providing

context to the story, there is overlay of a digital map showing the place names that the characters go to,

however, as Baudlirrard mentions in his philosophy about how valid is information we are given; how do

we know that they really exist. As we are made to assume they are real from the map. We can also see

that the film is postmodern as it shows use of bricolage to give context and is used to compare our

media to there world, which helps us to open our eyes to see the ‘alternative’ truth. This is how

Winterbottom uses his film to send a public message to combat the news media’s biased news.

I also believe A cock and Bull story to be postmodern because of the postmodern techniques used such

as a sense of hyper-reality to challenge the audience to see what is real and what is not as it shows a

film of a film with actors acting out how they would normally act. This also links to how Baudrillard

discusses hyper-reality where the real and simulated are blurred. A second point is that it has a

disjointed structure and narrative, this is shown when Steve Coogan narrates the film, but then gets

ahead of it by going into tangential stories. This can confuse and challenge the viewer to keep up with

the incoherent narrative, which also reflects the way Tristram Shandy wrote the books. In addition, a

Cock and bull story questions the truth as it makes the audience question what is real in the film. This is

because of the documentary style with hand-held camera and breaking the fourth wall by talking

directly to the camera which links to Lyotard’s grand narrative idea to show whether the film is

manipulating the real events to make it appear real, however the truth is that it is scripted and is not

real.

Kirsty Hardy

To summarise, Winterbottom’s films use several postmodern techniques to challenge and/or send a

public message across to educate through docu-dramas so that the film is more believable rather than a

typical modern film. I feel that postmodernism could develop into utilising old videos from both film and

T.V, turning them into a bricolage film containing a story or subject in which to educate or entertain.