Darren Aronofsky, one of the most unconventional directors of modern cinema acclaim, has returned toNational Geographicwith a full documentary series. While Aronofsky previously took the reins for an episode ofOne Strange RockstarringWill Smith,his newest venture,Limitless with Chris Hemsworth, proves just how adaptive his auteur sensibilities are when applied to Nat Geo’s more rigid obedience to documentary filmmaking.
On paper, the new series now streaming on Disney+ sounds like your garden-variety Nat Geo fare. Take a muscled-up actor who plays Marvel’s Avenger and god Thor and then push him to his physical and mental limits. However, with Aronofsky pulling the strings, the end result is anything but ordinary. Auteur style is often frowned upon in the world of documentaries, at least on the kind of global big-budget docs that Nat Geo releases. The unspoken rule is that the camera should observe rather than participate. However, inLimitless, Aronofsky’s presence as a filmmaker is felt throughout. Here are the Aronofsky-isms that can be seen in his new series with National Geographic.
RELATED:Chris Hemsworth Takes on His Toughest Challenges Yet in New ‘Limitless’ Trailer
Aronofsky’s Extreme Close-Up Montage
Anyone who has seenRequiem for a Dreamwill know the stylized editing sequences that have come to distinguish Aronofsky’s work. These montages are a form of hyper-focused storytelling. A character who leaves home for work could have a camera follow them to the door, gathering items and saying goodbyes. In Aronofsky’s world, this instead could be accomplished with extreme close-ups of a hand grabbing keys, a hat pulled from a coatrack, and a door slamming, each punctuated with a distinct intensified sound.
Confined to the restraints of documentary filmmaking,Limitlessmust rely on footage captured of real life as it unfolds. Even still, with a bit of foresight as well as effort in the editing room later, Aronofsky manages to inject a few of these montages into the series. Notably, when the equipment for a particular feat or experience is introduced, rather than have a talking head sit and explain each piece, Aronofsky simply does an extreme close-up montage of them. In the sixth episode, “Acceptance,” for instance, close-ups show each element of the age simulation suit that Hemsworth will wear before any of it is explained.
Limitless Uses Wide-Angle Lenses
Another noteworthy attribute of Aronofsky’s film style that has found its way intoLimitlessis his use of wide-angle lenses on the faces of his characters. Usually coinciding with a leap in character development or when a character’s connection to reality is most distorted, the wide-angle lens intensifies a shot or scene. The elongated shapes of the face as well as warped backgrounds add to a sense of disassociation. InLimitless, this style element is used subtly in the interviews with talking heads throughout the series. Whenever there is the need to infuse a few talking points from one of the many experts, a shot from one of many interview sessions is used.
However, Aronofsky has done the most to stylize these shots as far removed from the current action. The interviewee is often half lit, with the edges of their face melting away into the background darkness, shot through a wide-angle lens and cropped in close-up so that their entire head doesn’t even fit into frame. The result is a major departure from the standard documentary interview style. Impressively, it doesn’t take away from the point of these shots and perhaps does a significantly better job of explaining that these shots are supplementary and were filmed independently of the main action.
Aronofsky Utilizes God’s Point of View
Throughout his films, Aronofsky has a tendency to reach for exciting angles of characters and scenes that push the envelope and further heighten the artistry of his films. One particular that gets repeated use is the “God’s point of view” angle. Also known as the bird’s eye view, these top shots welcome the viewer to take in a whole scene and perhaps even change the perspective of the characters in focus. InBlack Swan, the final edit often includes these overhead shots whenNatalie Portman’s Nina is shifting from naive to sharp-witted, innocent to villainous, white swan to black swan. This marker of Aronofsky rightfully fits well within the documentary world and here can be seen whenever Chris Hemsworth is pushing his limits and symbolically growing or evolving as a person in the process.
Dream Sequence
FromMother!toRequiem for a Dream,the work of Darren Aronofsky is sprinkled with fantastic dreams and windows into the psyche of his characters. As a director focused primarily on psychological thrillers, he often includes several visual constructions of characters' fear or mental disposition. These ultimately can be crucial to the film’s narrative. And while the dream sequence is furthest from reality, from documentary, somehow Aronofsky manages to sprinkle a few throughout. In the first episode, “Stress-Proof,” Hemsworth is tasked with walking across a crane arm atop a skyscraper. He recounts one of his nightmares leading up to the challenge — the crane breaking and falling to the ground. Aronofsky leaps at the opportunity to visualize this infusing a twisted, disorienting aerial shot of the crane that makes it appear as though it is crumbling to the ground from a vertigo perspective.
At the end of the series, the film includes a visual poetic journey that takes the liberty of attempting to portray the experience of dying. This dream sequence wraps up the episode and series in a fantastic bow and infuses Aronofsky-esque imagery and artistry but in ways that don’t challenge too many notions of what it is the audience is watching. It’s still a Nat Geo series, not an art film. Overall, the blend of beautiful locations, expert scientists, and experiences from Nat Geo is so well-captured with Aronofsky’s cinematography, editing, and style. While the end result may not be something anyone is used to seeing from National Geographic, it is almost certain that this will not be the director’s last foray into documentary.
