- published: 25 Jul 2013
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Birth is a 2004 film directed by Jonathan Glazer and consists of acting performances by Nicole Kidman, Lauren Bacall, Danny Huston and Cameron Bright.
Birth's storyline follows a young protagonist, Anna (played by Kidman), who is portrayed as the daughter of a prominent Manhattan-based family, as she gradually becomes convinced that her deceased husband, Sean, has been reincarnated in the form of a 10 year-old boy (also named Sean). Anna's initial skepticism is swayed by the child's intimate knowledge of the former married couple's life. Despite critical praise for various components of the film, including Kidman's acting and Glazer's direction, Birth generally received mixed reviews.[citation needed]
Distributed by New Line Cinema, the film's worldwide box office earnings total was USD$23,925,492.
In the opening of the film, a male narrator lectures to an unseen audience, explaining that he does not believe in the concept of reincarnation. The viewer then observes the narrator, Sean, running through Central Park in New York City, United States (US), where he subsequently dies of a heart attack. Ten years later, the deceased character's widow, Anna (Nicole Kidman), has accepted a marriage proposal from her boyfriend, Joseph (Danny Huston).
Birth (calving in livestock and some other animals, whelping in carnivorous mammals) is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring. The offspring is brought forth from the mother. The time of human birth is defined as the time at which the fetus comes out of the mother's womb into the world. Different forms of birth are oviparity, vivipary and ovovivipary.
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects. The process of filmmaking has developed into an art form and industry.
Films are cultural artifacts created by specific cultures, which reflect those cultures, and, in turn, affect them. Film is considered to be an important art form, a source of popular entertainment and a powerful method for educating – or indoctrinating – citizens. The visual elements of cinema give motion pictures a universal power of communication. Some films have become popular worldwide attractions by using dubbing or subtitles that translate the dialogue into the language of the viewer.
Films are made up of a series of individual images called frames. When these images are shown rapidly in succession, a viewer has the illusion that motion is occurring. The viewer cannot see the flickering between frames due to an effect known as persistence of vision, whereby the eye retains a visual image for a fraction of a second after the source has been removed. Viewers perceive motion due to a psychological effect called beta movement.