Directed by Fernando Meirelles
Based on real events
Set in Brazil 1970s
Look for key elements of film form + narrative themes - if we aren't talking about how things impact on the spectator we aren't analyzing
Binary oppositions:
Poverty vs Wealth, Passivity vs Choice (Rocket doesn't act like everyone else, everyone else is passive in that they act in the favela way, Rocket doesn't), Nature vs Nurture
Theme of escape - starts by chicken escaping - knives are out, people are trying to get you. Tender Trio one tries to escape but gets killed, Benny tries to escape but doesn't as he's a victim of the chaos of the favela and his past passivity/actions, Rocket only escapes because he sees another way
Poverty - the driver of the narrative (at least initially, turns to power) as people are trying to survive. It's a trap they are all trying to escape, then trying to escape by:
L'l Ze's Corruption- as poverty wouldn't be there without his corruption. Knockout Ned starts his war for noble causes, but soon corrupts to needless violence, with him quickly being able to kill. The light theme with the Tender Trio shows that they aren't corrupted, supported by their ideals of no killing and giving back. But the film progresses and gets darker as Rocket's view on life is corrupted
Talking about themes is describing, need to apply it to film form to analyze
Ie 'how does X film form help with character development in the film OR show spectatorship OR how is gender represented etc.' Plan both before you answer
Childhood - reminds us of how young they are at all times - Rocket and his obsession with getting laid, smoking weed, girls. When the kid gets kid he's looks incredibly childish
Victims of circumstance, total corruption, trapped - top shots make it look like a rat's maze
Editing used in creative ways
3 sequences:
Little kid being shot - pans over to the youngest kid, can see his stomach and chubby child legs, he's still a child and the audience and the character knows that. Both kids readily offered over their hands, facing the reality of the situation. Little kid is dressed in clothes too small, cries like an infant, brings the reality that they're children. Li'l Ze corrupts Steak. The scene itself has a narrative that's reflected in the whole film - only scene where we follow Steak but reflects other character's experience - shows Todorov's theory as it starts quiet, disruption is them capturing the runts, acknowledgement is when Steak realizes what's happening, solving disequilibrium is when he's deciding to shoot them, and the new equilibrium is him as a killer and the Runts dealt with. Self preservation, trapped in the situation, hangs about with them for want of a better life which he sees he can achieve through them. But contrasting with Rocket, who has strong morals, and Li''l Ze, who has none, Steak is in the middle as he recognizes that it's wrong but can't stand up against it. Steak represents the spectator as he's on the outside but is forced in. Doesn't focus on the two kids during the time before Li'l Ze comes so we don't know them, we judge them just as children. When the sequence starts it starts with him presented behind bars - he's already trapped in the situation. Calling them 'friends' shows his childlike need for inclusion and his naivety of the situation. Hoods are shot from low at the end and confrontation to show their power, but when travelling as a group they're short from high, showing that poverty is all around them and they're all trapped by their surroundings, never letting us forget that its there. Steak starts strutting in the scene, like he's one of them - confidence in ignorance. When we're shown the children it's shot like the documentary with the handheld camera little zooms to show detail, and immerses us via it, but when it suddenly cuts back to Li'l Ze and his crew it's steady, Resevoir Dogsesque. Kids have naturalistic dialogue, Marxist reading shows how the drug structure is similar to capitalism, and is almost a concentrated form of it. The fact that the two kids aren't shown straight away shows that it could be any kid. When the 2 kids are shown there's always something looming over them, ie the gun. Steak is shown from a higher angle than before to show that he suddenly loses power when he realizes. Ze giving the kisd a choice is symbolic as there's never a right one in the favela, like the start with Rocket saying that whatever you choose it's bad. Ze calls it 'the little hand' before he ignores his choice. Editing pace slows down as Steak makes his decision, and the fact that he' shown from a low angle but is towered around by the others shows his lack of power. Also goes from group shots to a two shot with Ze and Steak and then just Steak, showing how his yearning for inclusion ultimately lead to isolation. Steak closes his eyes when shooting to show that he knows that it's wrong, while Ze never stops talking to show his nonchalant attitude to killing, further shown by the congratulations afterwards - after which he's shown by himself even though he's being congratulated. Last shot most isolating - with Steak looking away with the dead kid in the background, like the spectator and Steak not being able to look. No music for the whole sequence adds to realism. Set in broad daylight, showing that it's not unusual
Showing Li'l Dice/Ze as he grows and kills people. Effective transition of time, clever editing showing them in the same position. Introduces the character dynamic of Benny and Ze, and establishes his notoriety through the brutal sequence that leaves the audience shocked - we still don't have time to recover from seeing him as a child on the rampage
Rocket attempting to turn to crime - good narratively - shows us that there's still good in the favela, positions us strongly behind him as we can relate. Bit where they find a body then drives past tricks the spectator, reminding us of our pessimism after seeing the previous sequences, and reminds us of the innocence of Rocket - he has a moral compass and can't do wrong (i.e. when arguing with the journalist, he goes in angry but comes out with a job). Whenever he tries to rob someone he gets something out of it - good is the only way out
Actors who aren't professional means you only see the character, and there are some very good performances.
Homework:
To what extent does editing and/or mise-en-scene help to reinforce key themes in the films you have studied?
Editing:
Opening sequence
Child death scene has long takes with little editing, more camera movement
Li'l Ze child-teenager, frame moves but the character doesn't - represents poverty etc.
Apartment, time changing, editing over time, again shows that the place, City of God, is holding them there, and while the people change the place doesn't
Benny's death - cuts on the strobe light
Thursday, 18 April 2019
Monday, 15 April 2019
Vertigo and Classical Cinema
Martin Scorsese - Vertigo is cinema poetry
Classical Hollywood cinematic techniques
Martin Scorsese - Vertigo is cinema poetry
Classical Hollywood cinematic techniques:
The devices most inherent to classical Hollywood cinema are those of continuity editing.
Jump cuts are allowed in the form of the axial cut, which does not change the angle of shooting at all, but has the clear purpose of showing a perspective closer or farther from the subject, and therefore does not interfere with temporal continuity.
Classical narration progresses always through psychological motivation, i. e., by the will of a human character
This narrative is structured with an unmistakable beginning, middle and end, and generally there is a distinct resolution
Directors became more in charge of their films, as opposed to the studio controlled productions
Bazin - classical film is a photograph play, in which events existed objectively, and the camera is just getting the best angles
Little use of sound effects, and more so score and soundtrack
Martin Scorsese - Vertigo is cinema poetry
Classical Hollywood cinematic techniques
Martin Scorsese - Vertigo is cinema poetry
Vertigo has some new wave editing styles - the dream sequence, but still relies on the classical Hollywood day-to-day editing
Classical Hollywood cinematic techniques:
The devices most inherent to classical Hollywood cinema are those of continuity editing.
Jump cuts are allowed in the form of the axial cut, which does not change the angle of shooting at all, but has the clear purpose of showing a perspective closer or farther from the subject, and therefore does not interfere with temporal continuity.
Classical narration progresses always through psychological motivation, i. e., by the will of a human character
This narrative is structured with an unmistakable beginning, middle and end, and generally there is a distinct resolution
Directors became more in charge of their films, as opposed to the studio controlled productions
Bazin - classical film is a photograph play, in which events existed objectively, and the camera is just getting the best angles
Vertigo production context: Shift to new wave techniques
Blade Runner production context: Societal opinions - fear of Cold War, growing globalization, computers and rise of tech fear and tech revolution
Could end up with a question comparing classical Hollywood to new wave - editing and lighting are good ways in
Thursday, 11 April 2019
Project notes
Brief explanation of film - introduction
Inspiration from short films we've seen
How film is different to short films we've seen
Director's inspiration
-
I made my film, 'Don't Ask Why', with a postmodernist approach to the narrative twist choice for the stimulus. As such, I aimed to include the postmodern traits to my film, including most notably parody, playfulness/lack of seriousness, intertextuality and breaking the fourth wall and style over substance. Including montage and monologues, I wanted to create a stylized film that creates satisfying feeling to the audience, instead of any sort of thought provoking message.
-
By far the biggest inspiration I had for my film was the short film About a Girl (Brian Percival). The walking monologue is informative but filled with personality, setting up the character, film genre, story and establishing the use of fourth wall breaks in the film. Although my use of monologues is only at the beginning and end, they still fulfill the same function. In addition, the use of the emotive montage interspersed in the narrative to create a connection with the character is also something I took inspiration from for my film, as the combination of a character's commentary and the reality of the situation (which may differ from the character's analysis) is an effective and entertaining way to present a narrative, which presents the spectator with a lot of information through interpretation rather than overtly telling them what's happening.
The dialogue seemed realistic due to the use of slang and reliance on her regional accent, but in reality the nature of the conversation between her and the audience and the random jumping around topics actually makes it experimental. I aimed to write the Killer's monologue dialogue in a similar way - the character almost having conversations with themselves, and also the audience, with jokes and commentary of the events of the film creating a fourth wall smashing, humorous beginning and end which contrasted heavily with the dark appearance of the Killer and the sad montage and accompanying imagery at the start of the film. This is similar to About a Girl as it also contrasts the bleak reality of the girl's life with her upbeat, characterful monologue.
In addition, the cinematography for my film and this are also linked. In this, the shots of her life are bordering on voyeuristic, for example when showing her sitting on the side of the football pitch or walking with her family. It represents her trying to hide or ignore her real life, but is intruded on anyway. Similarly, my film's first montage in particular uses handheld camera movement, low angles and little lighting to create a voyeuristic experience, as if we're intruding into the character's depressed state. Working with this idea, I contrasted my second montage with this by including more close ups, steadier footage and lighter imagery to show that he is more accessible, both with the camera's perspective and the character's personality. However, I included voyeuristic shots, such as the conversation between the Girl and the Witness being partially obscured behind a wall, to remind the audience of the state he was in, and that as the Killer is still around he is still potentially in danger. It brings about the idea that he's being watched, stalked, vulnerable.
-
The Swimmer (Lynne Ramsay) inspired me more from a thematic perspective. The choice to focus more on aesthetic than overt message is a concept I used for my film and relates to my title. The cause for the conflict, is the killer aware of who he is and how she affected him, what's her goal? All of this is never stated, instead I focused first on the aesthetic, similarly to The Swimmer, with the plot being present but not taking precedent, leading to a negotiated reading which was my intention. Although my film is still more obvious than the more experimental The Swimmer. The narrative structure is non-linear
Music is also used in The Swimmer to evoke emotion, particularly at around the 5:00 mark, the 1940s vibe immediately creates feelings for the spectator, but are reliant on their individual experience, and so interpretation, of the music to create meaning, for example the nostalgia of the music and the slow pace creates a calm scene that possibly represents that the swimmer is looking at his past in the narrative structure. I aimed to do this in my film, particularly with The Doors' Alabama Song at the beginning and end. The quirky rhythm acts as a musical motif for the Killer, but the audience's interpretation of the music's quirkiness and lyrics creates connotations of the Killer that are unique to the individual. As this character was written to be an enigma of sorts, with no evident goal or motive, this was what I wanted to achieve; to create an ambiguous character that was up to the interpretation of the audience to define, which the music helped do similarly to The Swimmer.
-
The Wasp (Andrea Arnold) is similar to my film in that it uses a world firmly placed in reality while maintaining the dependent-on-spectator ending, as nothing is told to the audience in regards to what happens next for the characters. I liked this approach to filmmaking as it kept the interesting trope often utilised by short films, but kept the story linear and grounded in reality. While I used imagery in my compilations (which this film lacked in favour of literal story telling) to evoke an emotional response and show the feelings of the character, it was still overt, especially in comparison to films such as the Swimmer.
The dialogue is realistic, especially for the demographic it was aiming to portray, which contrasts with my film in part, as I used both realistic and stylistic dialogue.
-
The Grandmother (David Lynch) effectively uses imagery via colour and film speed to create a feeling of shock or unease, which is something I aimed to replicate. For example, in Grandmother, the extreme white of the boy’s face contrasts with the impossibly deep black, as does his lips, to draw the eye to him while creating connotations of him not belonging, being out of place, which along with the experimentally jarring visuals achieved via mise-en-scene create an unending feeling of dread that doesn't subside throughout the film. Although I only aimed to achieve this with the mise-en-scene of the mask, I still took the alien visual, and its contrast with the surroundings, to tell the audience immediately that something is wrong - the character is dangerous. In addition, the use of blackness or shadow in Lynch's film adds to somber tone of the picture. Although this isn't revolutionary, the extent to which the darkness is exaggerated forces the feeling upon the audience, and I also wanted to include such an effect in my film, for example with the text section, when the character is surrounded in darkness it shows his isolation, and the darkness that defines the first montage also shows that his overwhelming feeling is depression, supported by the dialogue in the police interview scene.
-
The stylized works of Quentin Tarantino were a significant cinematic inspiration in particular for my film. His oeuvre is often described as, in typical postmodernist fashion, having 'style over substance' - evoking a feeling of thrill and tension while usually lacking any metanarrative or intrinsic message, and that was something I aimed to achieve with this film. Often (student and short) films get so bogged down with the message attached to it, that it forgets to be exhilarating or even subtle, and can feel preachy instead of enjoyable. Because of this, I wanted to create a film that was fun to look at, listen to, and experience, for the audience to come away with a feeling of 'coolness', not a thought provoking idea, which is a concept that I discovered and took from Tarantino. The dialogue of the Killer is playful, humorous, as if they aren't taking the situation seriously, which is an attitude that defines the film in its ending moments and is a key aspect of Tarantino's work (for example in the 'square' in Pulp Fiction) and postmodernism. The randomness of the gun shot, the intertextuality and pastiche of the opening line, the immediate break of the fourth wall all contribute to the postmodern ideology I used to create the film, which was inspired in part by Tarantino.
Furthermore, the use of '60s pop and rock is also reminiscent of Tarantino's work (again in line with postmodernism), and I decided to use it to create a stylistic work that would create the desired stylish feeling via the audience's perception of the music as well as the tempo and lyrics adding to the scenes they were over. While one goal of the music was to encourage the audience to attribute their interpretation and experience of the song to the images they were over, it was also used to evoke themes reminiscent of classic noir. I also held my takes for a long time (especially in the end monologue), in part to allow the song to play out more and so conjure more of an atmosphere, which is also common in Tarantino's work, for example for the Reservoir Dogs torture scene.
Also, the costume of the killer was inspired by similar characters in his works. I wanted something striking, stylized and memorable, and the mask in particular works as a memorable part of mise-en-scene, much like the yellow jumpsuit in Kill Bill or the suits in Reservoir Dogs.
-
Of course, the opening line of the film plays off the cliché trope of 1980s films and the animations of Disney and Pixar - and as this trope is so recognisable that my intention of immediately going away from it via the jarring gunshot and killing of the assumed main character was intended to present the audience with the darker, more stylised alternative while still maintaining the whimsical aspect of the trope with the dialogue and performance of the Killer. My postmodern approach to film lent itself well to the self-referential aspect of the beginning of the film, with the first line and the Killer's following monologue creating a playful aspect to the narrative which defined the character immediately.
-
My inspiration for the faceoff scene was classic westerns, for example the classic face off in The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. Using the postmodern ideology, I wanted to spoof the concept comically, which I intended to shock the audience and show that it doesn't fit into the expected narrative. As my intention was to include a narrative twist, and as well as unmasking the Killer at the end, I aimed to present twists in genre expectation throughout, i.e. by parodying the trope.
Inspiration from short films we've seen
How film is different to short films we've seen
Director's inspiration
-
I made my film, 'Don't Ask Why', with a postmodernist approach to the narrative twist choice for the stimulus. As such, I aimed to include the postmodern traits to my film, including most notably parody, playfulness/lack of seriousness, intertextuality and breaking the fourth wall and style over substance. Including montage and monologues, I wanted to create a stylized film that creates satisfying feeling to the audience, instead of any sort of thought provoking message.
-
By far the biggest inspiration I had for my film was the short film About a Girl (Brian Percival). The walking monologue is informative but filled with personality, setting up the character, film genre, story and establishing the use of fourth wall breaks in the film. Although my use of monologues is only at the beginning and end, they still fulfill the same function. In addition, the use of the emotive montage interspersed in the narrative to create a connection with the character is also something I took inspiration from for my film, as the combination of a character's commentary and the reality of the situation (which may differ from the character's analysis) is an effective and entertaining way to present a narrative, which presents the spectator with a lot of information through interpretation rather than overtly telling them what's happening.
The dialogue seemed realistic due to the use of slang and reliance on her regional accent, but in reality the nature of the conversation between her and the audience and the random jumping around topics actually makes it experimental. I aimed to write the Killer's monologue dialogue in a similar way - the character almost having conversations with themselves, and also the audience, with jokes and commentary of the events of the film creating a fourth wall smashing, humorous beginning and end which contrasted heavily with the dark appearance of the Killer and the sad montage and accompanying imagery at the start of the film. This is similar to About a Girl as it also contrasts the bleak reality of the girl's life with her upbeat, characterful monologue.
In addition, the cinematography for my film and this are also linked. In this, the shots of her life are bordering on voyeuristic, for example when showing her sitting on the side of the football pitch or walking with her family. It represents her trying to hide or ignore her real life, but is intruded on anyway. Similarly, my film's first montage in particular uses handheld camera movement, low angles and little lighting to create a voyeuristic experience, as if we're intruding into the character's depressed state. Working with this idea, I contrasted my second montage with this by including more close ups, steadier footage and lighter imagery to show that he is more accessible, both with the camera's perspective and the character's personality. However, I included voyeuristic shots, such as the conversation between the Girl and the Witness being partially obscured behind a wall, to remind the audience of the state he was in, and that as the Killer is still around he is still potentially in danger. It brings about the idea that he's being watched, stalked, vulnerable.
-
The Swimmer (Lynne Ramsay) inspired me more from a thematic perspective. The choice to focus more on aesthetic than overt message is a concept I used for my film and relates to my title. The cause for the conflict, is the killer aware of who he is and how she affected him, what's her goal? All of this is never stated, instead I focused first on the aesthetic, similarly to The Swimmer, with the plot being present but not taking precedent, leading to a negotiated reading which was my intention. Although my film is still more obvious than the more experimental The Swimmer. The narrative structure is non-linear
Music is also used in The Swimmer to evoke emotion, particularly at around the 5:00 mark, the 1940s vibe immediately creates feelings for the spectator, but are reliant on their individual experience, and so interpretation, of the music to create meaning, for example the nostalgia of the music and the slow pace creates a calm scene that possibly represents that the swimmer is looking at his past in the narrative structure. I aimed to do this in my film, particularly with The Doors' Alabama Song at the beginning and end. The quirky rhythm acts as a musical motif for the Killer, but the audience's interpretation of the music's quirkiness and lyrics creates connotations of the Killer that are unique to the individual. As this character was written to be an enigma of sorts, with no evident goal or motive, this was what I wanted to achieve; to create an ambiguous character that was up to the interpretation of the audience to define, which the music helped do similarly to The Swimmer.
-
The Wasp (Andrea Arnold) is similar to my film in that it uses a world firmly placed in reality while maintaining the dependent-on-spectator ending, as nothing is told to the audience in regards to what happens next for the characters. I liked this approach to filmmaking as it kept the interesting trope often utilised by short films, but kept the story linear and grounded in reality. While I used imagery in my compilations (which this film lacked in favour of literal story telling) to evoke an emotional response and show the feelings of the character, it was still overt, especially in comparison to films such as the Swimmer.
The dialogue is realistic, especially for the demographic it was aiming to portray, which contrasts with my film in part, as I used both realistic and stylistic dialogue.
-
The Grandmother (David Lynch) effectively uses imagery via colour and film speed to create a feeling of shock or unease, which is something I aimed to replicate. For example, in Grandmother, the extreme white of the boy’s face contrasts with the impossibly deep black, as does his lips, to draw the eye to him while creating connotations of him not belonging, being out of place, which along with the experimentally jarring visuals achieved via mise-en-scene create an unending feeling of dread that doesn't subside throughout the film. Although I only aimed to achieve this with the mise-en-scene of the mask, I still took the alien visual, and its contrast with the surroundings, to tell the audience immediately that something is wrong - the character is dangerous. In addition, the use of blackness or shadow in Lynch's film adds to somber tone of the picture. Although this isn't revolutionary, the extent to which the darkness is exaggerated forces the feeling upon the audience, and I also wanted to include such an effect in my film, for example with the text section, when the character is surrounded in darkness it shows his isolation, and the darkness that defines the first montage also shows that his overwhelming feeling is depression, supported by the dialogue in the police interview scene.
-
The stylized works of Quentin Tarantino were a significant cinematic inspiration in particular for my film. His oeuvre is often described as, in typical postmodernist fashion, having 'style over substance' - evoking a feeling of thrill and tension while usually lacking any metanarrative or intrinsic message, and that was something I aimed to achieve with this film. Often (student and short) films get so bogged down with the message attached to it, that it forgets to be exhilarating or even subtle, and can feel preachy instead of enjoyable. Because of this, I wanted to create a film that was fun to look at, listen to, and experience, for the audience to come away with a feeling of 'coolness', not a thought provoking idea, which is a concept that I discovered and took from Tarantino. The dialogue of the Killer is playful, humorous, as if they aren't taking the situation seriously, which is an attitude that defines the film in its ending moments and is a key aspect of Tarantino's work (for example in the 'square' in Pulp Fiction) and postmodernism. The randomness of the gun shot, the intertextuality and pastiche of the opening line, the immediate break of the fourth wall all contribute to the postmodern ideology I used to create the film, which was inspired in part by Tarantino.
Furthermore, the use of '60s pop and rock is also reminiscent of Tarantino's work (again in line with postmodernism), and I decided to use it to create a stylistic work that would create the desired stylish feeling via the audience's perception of the music as well as the tempo and lyrics adding to the scenes they were over. While one goal of the music was to encourage the audience to attribute their interpretation and experience of the song to the images they were over, it was also used to evoke themes reminiscent of classic noir. I also held my takes for a long time (especially in the end monologue), in part to allow the song to play out more and so conjure more of an atmosphere, which is also common in Tarantino's work, for example for the Reservoir Dogs torture scene.
Also, the costume of the killer was inspired by similar characters in his works. I wanted something striking, stylized and memorable, and the mask in particular works as a memorable part of mise-en-scene, much like the yellow jumpsuit in Kill Bill or the suits in Reservoir Dogs.
-
Of course, the opening line of the film plays off the cliché trope of 1980s films and the animations of Disney and Pixar - and as this trope is so recognisable that my intention of immediately going away from it via the jarring gunshot and killing of the assumed main character was intended to present the audience with the darker, more stylised alternative while still maintaining the whimsical aspect of the trope with the dialogue and performance of the Killer. My postmodern approach to film lent itself well to the self-referential aspect of the beginning of the film, with the first line and the Killer's following monologue creating a playful aspect to the narrative which defined the character immediately.
-
My inspiration for the faceoff scene was classic westerns, for example the classic face off in The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. Using the postmodern ideology, I wanted to spoof the concept comically, which I intended to shock the audience and show that it doesn't fit into the expected narrative. As my intention was to include a narrative twist, and as well as unmasking the Killer at the end, I aimed to present twists in genre expectation throughout, i.e. by parodying the trope.
Thursday, 28 March 2019
Pans Labyrinth
Binary Oppositions:
Freedom vs Oppression/Freedom vs Fascism/Female vs Male/Femininity vs Masculinity
Fantasy vs Reality/Childhood vs Adulthood/Naivety vs Reality
Parent vs Child (captain looking up to father, Mercedes becoming mother role)
Female vs Male (Men have all the power - freedom fighters, doctors, Faun. Women underestimated but then show their strength)
Ofelia ends up taking care of mother with mandrake, rebels defeat soldiers, women defeat men - oppressed rise up, all lead to freedom
.
Sequences to be used for the themes:
Arriving at the house shows themes of parent vs child (the relationship between Ofelia, her mother, the captain, and setting up Mercedes to be a replacement mother), femininity vs masculinity (captain makes mother sit in the wheelchair, mother needs driver's help when sick, but while captain decides what happens the women are instrumental in it happening - he responds to them), fantasy vs reality (Mercedes obsessed with the fair only to be brought back to reality by the focus shift and her mothers focus on her shoes)
Captain killing rabbit hunters is parent vs child (lack of power father has to help son directly comparable with mother over Ofelia and her son because of the captain - fascism and hierarchy takes away family). Captain is half in shadow* while others are cowering in darkness. Entire film language of the scene doesn't work as expected. Doesn't build tension via music or cinematography (i.e. swell of music and close ups), relates to fascism and fem vs masc as it looks casual - robotic, procedure, no emotion on his face. No punishment for the officer who brought them in front of him wrongly - life is cheap
*his face is half in shadow at other times - before interrogating the stuttering rebel, his face is half covered in shaving cream when he pretends to cut his own throat in the mirror. Possibly shows the inherent violence he and by extension fascism has
Captain at the head of the table relates to Pale Man scene - both at the head of the table with fire behind them, Pale Man = fascism. Pile of shoes relates to concentration camp imagery, officer has a luger, a German gun
When mother is hurt, Mercedes immediately becomes the mother role - i.e. singing
When Ofelia talks to Faun there's a lot of music, when it cuts to the doctor and Ofelia there's no sonic bridge, snaps back to reality
Recurring image of lottery ticket - when listening to lottery numbers Mercedes escapes leading to their demise - greed, fascists selfishness leads to demise
When captain finds the root, there's never a 3 shot of all of them together - they aren't a family, they're separate. (Parent vs Child)
Editing:
Frog scene - seems seamless
Rabbit Hunter scene and the lack of conventional/Hollywood editing, no quick cuts
Fantasy vs Reality - pans with cuts to other places blurs between fantasy and reality, especially as it's usually used to cut between the two
Jump Cut/Axial Cut when she enters the Pale Man place shows her isolation and small size, and the chase uses choppy editing to make the chase seem faster than it is, especially his movement
Editing slows down massively when she's shot, her life ebbs away
Freedom vs Oppression/Freedom vs Fascism/Female vs Male/Femininity vs Masculinity
Fantasy vs Reality/Childhood vs Adulthood/Naivety vs Reality
Parent vs Child (captain looking up to father, Mercedes becoming mother role)
Female vs Male (Men have all the power - freedom fighters, doctors, Faun. Women underestimated but then show their strength)
Ofelia ends up taking care of mother with mandrake, rebels defeat soldiers, women defeat men - oppressed rise up, all lead to freedom
.
Sequences to be used for the themes:
Arriving at the house shows themes of parent vs child (the relationship between Ofelia, her mother, the captain, and setting up Mercedes to be a replacement mother), femininity vs masculinity (captain makes mother sit in the wheelchair, mother needs driver's help when sick, but while captain decides what happens the women are instrumental in it happening - he responds to them), fantasy vs reality (Mercedes obsessed with the fair only to be brought back to reality by the focus shift and her mothers focus on her shoes)
Captain killing rabbit hunters is parent vs child (lack of power father has to help son directly comparable with mother over Ofelia and her son because of the captain - fascism and hierarchy takes away family). Captain is half in shadow* while others are cowering in darkness. Entire film language of the scene doesn't work as expected. Doesn't build tension via music or cinematography (i.e. swell of music and close ups), relates to fascism and fem vs masc as it looks casual - robotic, procedure, no emotion on his face. No punishment for the officer who brought them in front of him wrongly - life is cheap
*his face is half in shadow at other times - before interrogating the stuttering rebel, his face is half covered in shaving cream when he pretends to cut his own throat in the mirror. Possibly shows the inherent violence he and by extension fascism has
Captain at the head of the table relates to Pale Man scene - both at the head of the table with fire behind them, Pale Man = fascism. Pile of shoes relates to concentration camp imagery, officer has a luger, a German gun
When mother is hurt, Mercedes immediately becomes the mother role - i.e. singing
When Ofelia talks to Faun there's a lot of music, when it cuts to the doctor and Ofelia there's no sonic bridge, snaps back to reality
Recurring image of lottery ticket - when listening to lottery numbers Mercedes escapes leading to their demise - greed, fascists selfishness leads to demise
When captain finds the root, there's never a 3 shot of all of them together - they aren't a family, they're separate. (Parent vs Child)
Editing:
Frog scene - seems seamless
Rabbit Hunter scene and the lack of conventional/Hollywood editing, no quick cuts
Fantasy vs Reality - pans with cuts to other places blurs between fantasy and reality, especially as it's usually used to cut between the two
Jump Cut/Axial Cut when she enters the Pale Man place shows her isolation and small size, and the chase uses choppy editing to make the chase seem faster than it is, especially his movement
Editing slows down massively when she's shot, her life ebbs away
Monday, 18 March 2019
Pans Labyrinth Scenes
Start sequence:
Captain's grey contrasts with the light or earthy tones of the rest of the sequence, his close up is slightly low angle and imposing (probably mise-en-scene instead)
Soldiers go right to left to enter screen, while Ofelia and mum go left to right, shows we're on their side
Pull focus from her to mum when looking at 'fairy' pulls her back to reality
Follows Ofelia's eyes, gets us on her side, and has lots of close ups on her
Pale Man scene analysis (cinematography, sound and editing):
Music
Editing
Theme
Cinematography
Shows eyes then grapes, hinting to the audience that she's going to replace the eyes with grapes, but doesn't
Needed to focus on her hunger (having not ate the night before) and use more shots of the food to make it more tantalizing, and her more relatable
Pacing is way slower than a typical 'scary' horror film, we can see him coming, eating the faeries etc. Also makes us anxious that she won't get out in time from the get go, which eventually comes true
Sound of eyes on plate disgusting
Cutting to hourglass keeps us in suspense
Pale Man - Del Toro decided to make him featureless, where they were initially going to have a face, to make it representative of institutions and ideas rather than an individual
Initial shot of her entering the corridor shows her as small, showing her weakness and foreboding, jump cuts to show her even smaller also effective
All music ends as the Pale Man comes alive, replaced by deep drum noises then his groans, immediately changes tune. High pitched noise of her tools also contrasts with the deep noise, and the noise of the faeries also contrasts, almost jarringly against the low rumble of the background, plus it shows that they aren't supposed to be there, different worlds
Ambient noise almost sounds like breathing (Darth Vader esque), immediately putting us on edge. Also rumbling in the background suggests underground, unknown area
Music rises as she finds the dagger, indicating success, dips, then rises ominously as she is tempted by the food
Lightning/thunder as he finishes eating the faeries suggests danger
Her heart beating at the end is the only thing that remains from the scene after the door shuts
Quick cuts between her running and man coming towards her - he's gaining on her
When she first shows up he's in shot, but after before he focuses on the key he's constantly over her shoulder, reminding us of the danger, but when she picks up the key and uses it a similar shot is used but he's no longer there, showing us she's unaware of the threat. When distracted by food, shot shifts to block the Pale Man to focus on the fruit, also drilling in that she's distracted. She only realizes he's behind her when he comes into shot. Every time we see the hour glass it's always in focus, aside from when she's running towards it when the time runs out, before coming back when it does run out and the door shuts
Groaning makes him sound archaic, an ancient being, the pillars being Freco-Roman also imply age and show that he's ancient
Shot of mural with kids screaming debatably diegetic - can she hear it in her head, is it just for us, does it fill the room supernaturally (capturing souls etc.)
Cries of babies make us worry for her as a young girl
Fantasy has been gentle up until that point, which is incredibly jarring (only violence is bludgeoning and shooting the rabbit hunters), ramping up the violence. Relates to fascism concept theory - seems reasonable at the start but gets more and more dangerous
Ofelia wears green, which contrasts heavily with the red of the fruit, showing they're her opposition and has connotations of danger, and also with the orange of the room due to the fire and the metal, which extends to the Pale Man to an extent because as he's white the light reflects him, ie he belongs there but she doesn't
When the scene ends she returns to the blue-green colour she's assocaiated with, she belongs
Overall theme and point of the scene is that it shows that Ofelia is a flawed hero - it's the only point so far that it hasn't gone her way in a way that's tangible to the story (Toad and Mandrake good, dress ruining bad but not consequential). Sets in the disequilibrium, as although this started for the character with coming to the house, as the audience has only seen that it's the equilibrium for us (could be debated that her finding out she's a princess is a form of disequilibrium, but this is it in the traditional pejorative sense).
Rabbit Poachers Scene:
Repeated motif of circles and wheels in the film - cycles like the moon. Scene takes place next to a water wheel, and it comes from a scene where he's fixing his watch.
Camera's moving at the start as if moving with purpose, stops with captain and soldiers in the foreground in focus, farmers behind slightly out of focus
Patriarchy as a theme is present in all the film, including this as there's a father son relationship.
Camera moves in as they're about to be accused
Uniforms blue and the darkness of the scene stand out compared to fantasy world
Can see more clearly that the farmers are dirty, even more contrast with uniforms
Very long take, the push in as they're accused, and again as the captain examines the bag, warns us that something bad is about to happen. Pushes in more as they speak and become more in focus. At this point the captain is on one third the son is on the other, showing opposition. Moves in again before bottling and we still don't expect what's happening because the lack of pace
Cuts to lower angle with the strong violence of the bottling, then cuts to various angles of his face, POV shot and a low angle shot, immediately speeds up pace. Ends with a shot with he father's ace in the center and the camera rises, again showing warning, before he's shot without performance warning
Shot tracks forward as he goes back to check the bag, showing that what he's going to say is important, and also has a long take.
The line shows that he's not phased by violence and sets his up as a violent man
Rack focus of the two soldiers as the captain walks away shows the fear of the soldiers as well, and that there's no camaraderie between troops. This is the easiest points for them to question him, and they outnumber him, but they're all order followers and so don't
Music is very sparse, highlighting the brutal sounds of the bottle
End scene:
Adds a lot to the fairy tale theme of the film. The somber scene goes to a high key colour fantasy world. Adds a dream like quality that goes into the afterlife
Yellow light that transitions into the fantasy scene is an effective transition, but also could represent the bright rebels defeating the cold blue of fascism - almost a pyrrhic victory. The yellow is also the yellow of the real world, i.e. in the start, and so goes towards the argument that she's actually alive and that they fantasy is real, adds towards the negotiated reading, especially as the light appears in the real world
In the fantasy world the shoes are focused on, and has imagery of Dorothy's shoes in Wizard of Oz. But they're less feminine, links to feminism and that she isn't a passive character
Red of the blood contrasts (high contrast colour) massively with the white of her costume, very emotive and striking image.
The high key blood almost shows she's dead because it's so striking
Cinematography, ie the crane shot focusing on her, is typical death cinematography
Bloody hand death imagery
Goes back to the Toad Tree, which is supposed to look like ovaries to show reborn, and goes to the branch where she hangs her clothes to show the flower being reborn, like the story at the start, and so brings about ideas that she is reborn and reinforces the fantasy negotiate reading.
The cuts in the end, ie by the tree, shows us that it's soft or fantastical
Faun meeting scene:
Relating to death scene where the final shot of her cranes up, the first shot of her walking down the stairs matches the shot, implying that its marking her movements down into the labyrinth to be reborn
She's isolated in the scene, innocence or even naivety. She's manipulated by every man in her life including the faun
Scene edited via POV shots, Faun shot from low down, very little objective cinematography
Faun in half light all the way through, showing that he's untrustworthy, and we only really trust him at the end of the film. Appears and disappears via shadow
Captain's grey contrasts with the light or earthy tones of the rest of the sequence, his close up is slightly low angle and imposing (probably mise-en-scene instead)
Soldiers go right to left to enter screen, while Ofelia and mum go left to right, shows we're on their side
Pull focus from her to mum when looking at 'fairy' pulls her back to reality
Follows Ofelia's eyes, gets us on her side, and has lots of close ups on her
Pale Man scene analysis (cinematography, sound and editing):
Music
Editing
Theme
Cinematography
Shows eyes then grapes, hinting to the audience that she's going to replace the eyes with grapes, but doesn't
Needed to focus on her hunger (having not ate the night before) and use more shots of the food to make it more tantalizing, and her more relatable
Pacing is way slower than a typical 'scary' horror film, we can see him coming, eating the faeries etc. Also makes us anxious that she won't get out in time from the get go, which eventually comes true
Sound of eyes on plate disgusting
Cutting to hourglass keeps us in suspense
Pale Man - Del Toro decided to make him featureless, where they were initially going to have a face, to make it representative of institutions and ideas rather than an individual
Initial shot of her entering the corridor shows her as small, showing her weakness and foreboding, jump cuts to show her even smaller also effective
All music ends as the Pale Man comes alive, replaced by deep drum noises then his groans, immediately changes tune. High pitched noise of her tools also contrasts with the deep noise, and the noise of the faeries also contrasts, almost jarringly against the low rumble of the background, plus it shows that they aren't supposed to be there, different worlds
Ambient noise almost sounds like breathing (Darth Vader esque), immediately putting us on edge. Also rumbling in the background suggests underground, unknown area
Music rises as she finds the dagger, indicating success, dips, then rises ominously as she is tempted by the food
Lightning/thunder as he finishes eating the faeries suggests danger
Her heart beating at the end is the only thing that remains from the scene after the door shuts
Quick cuts between her running and man coming towards her - he's gaining on her
When she first shows up he's in shot, but after before he focuses on the key he's constantly over her shoulder, reminding us of the danger, but when she picks up the key and uses it a similar shot is used but he's no longer there, showing us she's unaware of the threat. When distracted by food, shot shifts to block the Pale Man to focus on the fruit, also drilling in that she's distracted. She only realizes he's behind her when he comes into shot. Every time we see the hour glass it's always in focus, aside from when she's running towards it when the time runs out, before coming back when it does run out and the door shuts
Groaning makes him sound archaic, an ancient being, the pillars being Freco-Roman also imply age and show that he's ancient
Shot of mural with kids screaming debatably diegetic - can she hear it in her head, is it just for us, does it fill the room supernaturally (capturing souls etc.)
Cries of babies make us worry for her as a young girl
Fantasy has been gentle up until that point, which is incredibly jarring (only violence is bludgeoning and shooting the rabbit hunters), ramping up the violence. Relates to fascism concept theory - seems reasonable at the start but gets more and more dangerous
Ofelia wears green, which contrasts heavily with the red of the fruit, showing they're her opposition and has connotations of danger, and also with the orange of the room due to the fire and the metal, which extends to the Pale Man to an extent because as he's white the light reflects him, ie he belongs there but she doesn't
When the scene ends she returns to the blue-green colour she's assocaiated with, she belongs
Overall theme and point of the scene is that it shows that Ofelia is a flawed hero - it's the only point so far that it hasn't gone her way in a way that's tangible to the story (Toad and Mandrake good, dress ruining bad but not consequential). Sets in the disequilibrium, as although this started for the character with coming to the house, as the audience has only seen that it's the equilibrium for us (could be debated that her finding out she's a princess is a form of disequilibrium, but this is it in the traditional pejorative sense).
Rabbit Poachers Scene:
Repeated motif of circles and wheels in the film - cycles like the moon. Scene takes place next to a water wheel, and it comes from a scene where he's fixing his watch.
Camera's moving at the start as if moving with purpose, stops with captain and soldiers in the foreground in focus, farmers behind slightly out of focus
Patriarchy as a theme is present in all the film, including this as there's a father son relationship.
Camera moves in as they're about to be accused
Uniforms blue and the darkness of the scene stand out compared to fantasy world
Can see more clearly that the farmers are dirty, even more contrast with uniforms
Very long take, the push in as they're accused, and again as the captain examines the bag, warns us that something bad is about to happen. Pushes in more as they speak and become more in focus. At this point the captain is on one third the son is on the other, showing opposition. Moves in again before bottling and we still don't expect what's happening because the lack of pace
Cuts to lower angle with the strong violence of the bottling, then cuts to various angles of his face, POV shot and a low angle shot, immediately speeds up pace. Ends with a shot with he father's ace in the center and the camera rises, again showing warning, before he's shot without performance warning
Shot tracks forward as he goes back to check the bag, showing that what he's going to say is important, and also has a long take.
The line shows that he's not phased by violence and sets his up as a violent man
Rack focus of the two soldiers as the captain walks away shows the fear of the soldiers as well, and that there's no camaraderie between troops. This is the easiest points for them to question him, and they outnumber him, but they're all order followers and so don't
Music is very sparse, highlighting the brutal sounds of the bottle
End scene:
Adds a lot to the fairy tale theme of the film. The somber scene goes to a high key colour fantasy world. Adds a dream like quality that goes into the afterlife
Yellow light that transitions into the fantasy scene is an effective transition, but also could represent the bright rebels defeating the cold blue of fascism - almost a pyrrhic victory. The yellow is also the yellow of the real world, i.e. in the start, and so goes towards the argument that she's actually alive and that they fantasy is real, adds towards the negotiated reading, especially as the light appears in the real world
In the fantasy world the shoes are focused on, and has imagery of Dorothy's shoes in Wizard of Oz. But they're less feminine, links to feminism and that she isn't a passive character
Red of the blood contrasts (high contrast colour) massively with the white of her costume, very emotive and striking image.
The high key blood almost shows she's dead because it's so striking
Cinematography, ie the crane shot focusing on her, is typical death cinematography
Bloody hand death imagery
Goes back to the Toad Tree, which is supposed to look like ovaries to show reborn, and goes to the branch where she hangs her clothes to show the flower being reborn, like the story at the start, and so brings about ideas that she is reborn and reinforces the fantasy negotiate reading.
The cuts in the end, ie by the tree, shows us that it's soft or fantastical
Faun meeting scene:
Relating to death scene where the final shot of her cranes up, the first shot of her walking down the stairs matches the shot, implying that its marking her movements down into the labyrinth to be reborn
She's isolated in the scene, innocence or even naivety. She's manipulated by every man in her life including the faun
Scene edited via POV shots, Faun shot from low down, very little objective cinematography
Faun in half light all the way through, showing that he's untrustworthy, and we only really trust him at the end of the film. Appears and disappears via shadow
Visual Storyelling 101
Pan's Labyrinth and City of God will both ask about key elements of film form, both likely to be cinematography
Composition:
Rule of thirds
Central framing to draw attention , applying with symmetry
'Leading lines' (using lines in frame to direct attention)
18mm wide shot, used to establish
50mm standard
Use long lens to pull background forward
Lighting direction
Side lighting suggests character has a dark side, as does surrounding them with darkness
Colour and contrast
Low contrast - looks like real life
High contrast - colours stand out, blacks darker. Stylized
Ie colour contrast in Trainspotting goes up when he's off heroin - more vibrant, or less normal
Should use a start, ending, middle sequence in each film to analyse
Composition:
Rule of thirds
Central framing to draw attention , applying with symmetry
'Leading lines' (using lines in frame to direct attention)
18mm wide shot, used to establish
50mm standard
Use long lens to pull background forward
Lighting direction
Side lighting suggests character has a dark side, as does surrounding them with darkness
Colour and contrast
Low contrast - looks like real life
High contrast - colours stand out, blacks darker. Stylized
Ie colour contrast in Trainspotting goes up when he's off heroin - more vibrant, or less normal
Should use a start, ending, middle sequence in each film to analyse
Thursday, 7 March 2019
Coursework
Friday 26th April Deadline for film and write up
Try and get everything done for 29th of March
Look on EDUQAS website at GCE Film Studies for criteria
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