Films have completely captured me this year. The nuanced beauty depicted in different shots, cinematography, and overall film composition has the power to make life appear more meaningful.
The vast outlook of a seemingly endless waterfront view means more than the macroscopic visual. Two characters’ symmetrical stance alignment in a scene can metaphorically be attributed to alignment in mindsets. Lilac means Lilac, but orange means optimism.
I remember sitting in my friend’s apartment countless summer nights during our film marathons after an arduous workday at a local pizza shop. Throughout the entirety of the movie, I would usher my usual comments of “Look how the color hues of the background are complemented by the character’s outfits” or “The silence was so impactfully loud in that scene.”
Although the comments would be accompanied by his usual “hmm” or a neglectful silence, I still pestered him with my excitement of a more fantastic version of life’s mundanities and sense of tedious purpose.
The definition of the word “romanticize,” according to the Cambridge dictionary, is, “to talk about something in a way that makes it sound better than it really is, or to believe that something is better than it really is.”
A film scene I recently watched depicted an individual sitting alone, softly playing a grand piano at a slow, gradual tempo. The audience then sees the character’s love interest enter the shot, and the noticed presence is immediately accompanied by the music pushing a crescendo.
Adding a subtle and impactful nuance to the scene, the piano forte was a visible manifestation of passion and desire affiliated with the love interest.
Make the little things mean everything. Translate the dull ring of a piano key into the infectiousness of a person. Take account of the beauty of the moon and nearby star’s symmetry with the asymmetry of your friend’s light, Saturday afternoon smile.
Writing is an art form designed around the aspect of romanticizing in its entirety. I employ abstract metaphors, similes, and appropriate anecdotes to paint a colorful picture in a reader’s mind about life and purpose when I could simply say “think more positively to make life seem better” in one sentence and close my laptop.
Romanticizing is about making yourself and others equate the simple aspects of life with a more intricate meaning.
Shakespeare did not originate Sonnet 18’s “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” at first glance utilizing the normal individual’s cynical, uninspired mindset, such as I do not write a poetic one-liner about a person’s eyes merely thinking of a color-surrounded pupil.
I once had someone affectionately call me “the sunrise,” and it had always meant much more to me than the typical names you would call a significant other. Instead of merely being a companion, I was beauty, constance, rejuvenation, and serenity.
Many times, people believe that films and other forms of art are pure fiction, a deep romanticization of a cruel and dark-toned world, but it is actually the beauty of the world that makes art possible.
Structure everyday thinking to realize that the world and its beauty pre-existed art mediums. Art is inspired, not created to enhance the timeless beauty of this world. Believe something is better, and it will be better.
Romanticize the subtle passing of a brisk breeze and the Sunday morning stillness.
Become aware of the moment that life was worth living again, and allow a blank wall to be an endless string of inspired ideas.
To quote a song that subtly and beautifully applies this theme:
“Who needs stars? We’ve got a roof.”
