Symbolism In Stranger Than Fiction

Complex issues and ideas are those that can be argued for or against, and both arguments have their suitable and understandable points. In the film Stranger Than Fiction by Marc Forster, the complex ideas of literature making us socialise, routines isolate us, and needing people to change are lives are argued through the use of composition, long shots, and symbolism. In the text Stranger Than Fiction, complex issues have been constructed through visual techniques.

Harald Crick, the protagonist, is an anti social character. The text suggests this is because of his love for maths, rather than english and literature. At the beginning of the text, we see Crick getting ready for his day alone. The film adds many numbers and arrows, representing his thought process. This shows

This has been done through the visual convention of long shots. At the beginning of the film, it was mentioned that Crick was a mundane character who has been stuck in a routine, and has been on his own for twelve years. A long shot has been used to accentuate that, where is shows Harald Crick walking down the street alone, counting his steps, and getting to the bus stop to get to work. Through this long shot and the numbers added to show him counting his steps, the viewer understands what the film means by a constant routine - he does the same thing every day, on his own. The film suggests that in people our world are isolated because of their routines, like Crick. This is a complex idea, as it can be argued that people isolate themselves, and that it has nothing to do with the way they live their lives. Crick’s office is full of people that he has been working with for twelve years. Why hasn’t he socialised with any of them? He has simply chosen to isolate himself. Through the use of long shot in the film Stranger Than Fiction, the complex idea of constant routines causing isolation is