Person to Person: How to Bend the Omnibus Genre
Person to Person is another attempt at the ever-present omnibus movies with an eclectic cast of actors from the New York indie scene. Even though the director (Dustin Guy Defa) walks down a well-trodden path, he is not reluctant of tapping into uncharted areas of the genre with his unorthodox twist on the narrative structure, along with his distinctive choices of approaching cinematography, which help reinforce the modernistic approach to the story.
The audience gets mesmerized right off the bat with wide shots of carefully chosen locations of the Big Apple, which undoubtedly resemble a Woody Allen technique of quickly introducing the setting to the viewers without spoon-feeding them. What’s more, with the aid of the ear-pleasing jazz music, the director sets a dreamy and a bland tone for the movie. Furthermore, we are progressively introduced to each of the stories which feature a diverse set of characters by giving us quick glimpses and insights into their lives, psyche and quirks. For example, a particular character which stands out from the very beginning is Bene (Bene Coopersmith), who asks people he runs into if the shirt looks good on him. As a result, we are shown his prosaic life and peculiar ways of living.
By dividing the movie into three, separate, back-and-forth stories which have nothing in common but the setting itself, the director creates both a stimulating, confusing and modernistic atmosphere. This is achieved through the constant anticipation for cohesion which he purposefully fails to deliver. Consequently, the viewers are left craving for a closure and a connection between the loose ends, however, Defa follows his artistic vision by avoiding to please the audience, thus he takes them on the confusing journey with him to the end of the movie where the characters fail to cross their path. This proves, that once again, he firmly stands on his own ground and reinstates his own unique approach to the narrative.
Not only does Defa use the untraditional way of storytelling to his advantage, but he also enhances the viewer experience by shooting the movie on raw and granular celluloid which goes hand in hand with the precisely thought out shot selection. The shot selection is accompanied by countless medium and close-up shots. A memorable scene which emphatically draws our attention to the practical use of these techniques is the heart-to-heart between Wendy and Melanie (Tavi Gevinson and Olivia Luccardi). This scene presents filmmaking at its best, as the subject matter and the visuals match each other. While the characters are discussing their intimate problems, the director zooms in on their faces, therefore, their vivid emotions are captured through the vibrant colors of film and the proximity of the subjects, which produce an intimate atmosphere between the viewers and the characters; we feel as though we are acting in the movie ourselves.
Another field in which this picture exceptionally excels in is the deconstruction of an omnipresent trope in movies. To be more exact, the trope of the exhilarating and explosive chase scene. Rather than using actual explosions, the director deliberately uses mockery and humor to illustrate what a real-life chase would look like, which is run at a relatively glacial pace, with two mortal anti-heroes whose limit of physical abilities is stressed. The scene in which Bene goes after the person who sold him a bootleg record serves as a vehicle to deconstruct this trope, and simultaneously, it is utilized to make the audience laugh.
This triumphant run for Defa may not be a cup of tea of the general movie goer, however, in its own world, it is a genre bending movie which paves the way for future movie makers. Person To Person sends out a message to all artists, to not give the people what they want, but rather, what they need.
