Secret life of Walter Mitty was first available in cinemas Boxing day 2013. It is a story about a photography assets employee starring Ben Stiller. The film starts with an introduction of Walter searching on a laptop with eHarmony for a partner, finding Cheryl Moldoff portrayed with Kristen Wiig. Continuing with the first appearance of Walter’s dream world moments on the train to his job at Life Magazine. There is a photographer Sean O’Connell who has a friendship in the film with Walter, sending him a package of a film negatives at the magazine company.
The film continues with moments in the company elevator with Walter imagining conversations and an elastic band action hero figure with motion from building windows. It interested to see the reactions of the cast when he returns back to real life in the film, some seem surprised or amused with his day dreaming. Walter’s boss in the film tells him to put a quote in a plague for his next job as a photo lab assets developer. A quote that would describe this film would read, ‘Escaping into dreams during work life is a fantasy’.
keeping to the city and locations of Life Magazine editorial company. With different occasions photography and camera methods are shown in practice in Greenland with Sean O’Connell photographing a Leopard, also during photo lab scenes with film development at his workplace. Some additional cinema photography elements such as panning and camera motion are the only few areas missing with production. Overall I would score this film at 9 out of 10, a possible chance for best picture with the Oscars.
Matt Leane Photojournalism Blog 