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Man With The Beautiful Eyes, The

Jonathan Hodgson, 1999

Against parental warning, a young boy plays with friends in the garden of what appears to be an abandoned house. But it’s not abandoned: in the house lives a wild man with blazing eyes, quite different in character to their own parents. The children suspect this difference is the cause of their parents’ disapproval and their warnings about the house. Later, the house is burnt to the ground; the children suspect their parents and conventional society are to blame.

Adapted from a Charles Bukowski poem, the abstract and lyrical visualisation creates an evocative dreamlike quality.

Clip Details

Genre: Abstract

Record ID: 007-002-000-037-C

Country of Origin: UK

Clip Length: 05:00

Age Group: S4-S6

Classroom Activities

  • Why do the kids like to play at the strange house?
  • Who do you think ‘the man with the beautiful eyes’ is and what happens to him?
  • What are the kids’ parents doing when we see them? What do you think that tells us about them? What does it tell us about how the kids saw them?
  • The narrator says his parents were ‘ashamed’. What does he think they were ashamed of?
  • How did the kids think the house came to be burned down?
  • Why do you think the first shot in the film is of a ‘missing child’ poster? Who do you think the child is and what has happened to them?
  • Show the first shot of the film. Does this give any clues about what will happen in the poem? (If necessary, draw attention to the poster "Have you seen this child?".)
  • Select any 20-second sequence from the film. Record what is in each shot and how many ways they can spot of moving from one shot to the next (transitions). Why was each type of transition used?
  • Show the film up to “the shades were / down / as always / and it was / quiet”. Why are the man’s words shown on the screen and represented in this particular way? (If necessary, replay and freeze-frame on the lines “You god damned whore” and “Hey, little gentlemen, having a good time, I hope?”). What does this suggest about the man, if anything, and about the boys’ perception of him? Draw attention to the contrast presented between the boys’ parents and the man. How is this contrast shown?
  • Discuss the use of colour in the film. What is striking about it? Is it all in bright colours? What might each of the colours represent?
  • Issue copies of the poem. Highlight the most significant words. Discuss how you would represent these words visually, either in a drawing or in film. Now watch the film and look at how some of these words have been represented or highlighted by the filmmaker. How does the animator draw similes and metaphors?
  • Show students the opening of the film and its conclusion. Ask them to speculate what happens in the film to connect the two.
  • Discuss this statement: “It’s human nature to always be attracted to dangerous things”.
  • The film/poem references the fears of society of the people and things we don’t understand. Pupils could investigate local/national media regarding immigration, looking at the language that different media outlets use and how it is reported. This could be extended to include social media and how the ability for anyone to reply to a post can influence/confirm views.
  • Pick up the story from where it ends and storyboard the next sequence. Using what materials are available to you, make a short animation of your narrative.
  • Download the film and remove the soundtrack. Now get pupils to script and record their own voices for the characters.
  • Hand out the poem and ask groups to design a storyboard of images to go with the text.
  • Choose a narrative poem which has some striking imagery (‘A Case of Murder’ by Vernon Scannell’ is a good example). Ask pupils to read it carefully and highlight some key words or phrases. Now ask them to storyboard a short sequence from the poem.

Clip Details

Genre: Abstract

Record ID: 007-002-000-037-C

Country of Origin: UK

Clip Length: 05:00

Education Level: Senior Phase