This is more of a 10 films that i can remember really liking, sot so much top ten in order.
Fight Club
Cloverfield
Kick Ass
Four Lions
Napoleon Dynamite
Anchorman
Hurt Locker
Where the Wild Things Are
Prestiege
Pulp Fiction
Napoleon Dynamite!
Yeah i know, this film has some widespread opinions on it. I have met numorous people that just dont get this film. To tell you the truth, i just dont get those people. This film is hilarious! Staring Jon Heder in his first major film and first time director Jared Hess (Also writer of the film). This is the account of a teenager living in Idaho with his gran and his older brother Kip. The whole complex of this film is that its a story of a nobady becoming a nobady. Its entirely anti hollywood in that there is no point to it, no one wins, there is no real conclusion and no one wins. That is the beauty of it, its jsut the account of one teenagers progression from teenagehood into teenagehood. I think the reason so many young adults, along with me, love this film is because there is so much of the character that we can see in ourselves (just same characteristics, different setting). The interaction between him and his brother is also hilarious, not to mention the many random scenes that are dotted around the place (including REXKWANDO). Overall this is definitely one of the funniest films I have ever seen, and a perfect representation of teenage life just in a foreign language.
Lighting
High key - Bright and clear lighting
Low Key - Dark and more dim
Hard Lighting - Well defined shadows
Soft Lighting - Softer shadows
Frontal lighting - No shadows on face , very flat
Side lighting - Half of the face is hidden, character could be hiding something
Back lighting - Silhouetted for dramatic effect
Under lighting - Makes facial features bigger and more menacing
Top lighting - Casts shadow in face
The letter - Lighting
During the murder scene there is low key,hard lighting which makes you feel more fearful of the scene. With it being nighttime and the light above the woman makes her seem more menacing. With it being black and white, the lighting is made more significant. After the shooting when the camera is on her face there is a lot of light behind her which adds mystery because you cant see her face. Also after the shooting the moon disappears behind the clouds to add darkness and then emerges again after a few seconds, the camera shows this to bring attention to the darkness of what just happened.
Low Key - Dark and more dim
Hard Lighting - Well defined shadows
Soft Lighting - Softer shadows
Frontal lighting - No shadows on face , very flat
Side lighting - Half of the face is hidden, character could be hiding something
Back lighting - Silhouetted for dramatic effect
Under lighting - Makes facial features bigger and more menacing
Top lighting - Casts shadow in face
The letter - Lighting
During the murder scene there is low key,hard lighting which makes you feel more fearful of the scene. With it being nighttime and the light above the woman makes her seem more menacing. With it being black and white, the lighting is made more significant. After the shooting when the camera is on her face there is a lot of light behind her which adds mystery because you cant see her face. Also after the shooting the moon disappears behind the clouds to add darkness and then emerges again after a few seconds, the camera shows this to bring attention to the darkness of what just happened.
Casino - Figure expression
Looking at Robert De Nero's character.
The way that he walks shows a confidence in his character. He knows who he is and embraces that, the good and the bad. He has a contentment with his life and a real professionalism about ho he walks. You can see from this walk that he has got to where he is through work. Also when he is sat down he is relaxed but not slouching, this shows that he is always ready to do business. He is pretty much always smoking which goes with the casino lifestyle. He is unfazed by his friends kicking someone's head in in a bar, which shows that he has been through stuff before and he could well have had a violent past.
The way that he walks shows a confidence in his character. He knows who he is and embraces that, the good and the bad. He has a contentment with his life and a real professionalism about ho he walks. You can see from this walk that he has got to where he is through work. Also when he is sat down he is relaxed but not slouching, this shows that he is always ready to do business. He is pretty much always smoking which goes with the casino lifestyle. He is unfazed by his friends kicking someone's head in in a bar, which shows that he has been through stuff before and he could well have had a violent past.
The Shining - Figure expression
Looking at jack torrences character
He doesn't change expression when his wife tells him his son has been strangled. He seems empty, emotionless and as if there isn't anything going on in his head. The way he walks around shows and lethargic nature and physically and emotionally drained. Then he switches when his wife says if they should get their son out of here. He gets angry and overpowering. Also he starts to look at things with angry eyes. Both of these personalities show his mental breakdown at different stages.
He doesn't change expression when his wife tells him his son has been strangled. He seems empty, emotionless and as if there isn't anything going on in his head. The way he walks around shows and lethargic nature and physically and emotionally drained. Then he switches when his wife says if they should get their son out of here. He gets angry and overpowering. Also he starts to look at things with angry eyes. Both of these personalities show his mental breakdown at different stages.
The avengers - Props
The umbrella and pocket-watch in the first scene with john steed show his professionalism and classy. He has a very english upper class feel to him. And the pocket-watch shows the traditionalism in him. The car that he drives is again a very old english traditionalist car. It is a Bentley which adds to the wealthiness of his character. This is showing a typical view of an englishman, and a stereotypical view of an english spy (english gentleman/James Bond type). The umbrella shows that he is professional in that he is prepared, this also goes with the traditional/stereotypical Englishman. Then add on top of them the bowler hat, this just reinforces the stereotypes. Here the props reinforce the character of John Steed.
Emma Peel is the next character and you can see that she is very sofisticated/indepentent. She comes across as more of a modern girl. Her sunglasses give her an air of mystery, which obviously comes with being a spy, yet with all of the mystery over the story involving her, the sunglasses just reinstating that. In her house there is a grand piano which shows she is highly educated. Also the flowers you see are very expensive and in an expensive vase with show her sophisticated nature, aswell as adding a touch of femininity.
Emma Peel is the next character and you can see that she is very sofisticated/indepentent. She comes across as more of a modern girl. Her sunglasses give her an air of mystery, which obviously comes with being a spy, yet with all of the mystery over the story involving her, the sunglasses just reinstating that. In her house there is a grand piano which shows she is highly educated. Also the flowers you see are very expensive and in an expensive vase with show her sophisticated nature, aswell as adding a touch of femininity.
Yale Film Studies - http://classes.yale.edu/film-analysis/
As far as information goes it is perfect, however its layout is not very pleasing to the eye and looks like they haven't made the effort with presentation. This is made up with easy to understand yet technologically sound explanations,
Screenonline - http://www.screenonline.org.uk/
Really good resource looking at films that i havent really heard of, really well set out and a look at films using more intensive language
Sight & Sound - http://www.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/
A really good magazine followed up by its website, not including everything in the mag however it still runs through the basics
Empire - http://www.empireonline.com/
Great place to find reviews of any major film and some minor ones. Really well set out and you can find back dated films as well as present ones
The Film Program (Radio 4) - http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006r5jt
This is a great place to find real reviews with no opinion of the broadcasting company underlinging anything. It is purely a film reviewers opinions and thoughts.
Misery - Mise En Scene - Costume
All of her clothes cover her body completely, dressing in simple cloths with dull colors. Sort of amish-like. And she waers and cross which shows her morality and that stands out in her character. She is conservitive in her dress in that she ist wearing anything sexually prevocative. She is made to look like she is not wearing any make up. Her hair is again very simple and traditionsal, she doesnt care so much about how she looks which shows that she isnt vain. The taditional clothes matches with the fact of her religious background. She is a practical woman and does a lot of stuff for her self. Her low self asteem is show with the way she doesnt want to stand out. Also she is never dressing for anyone but herself which shows the lack of social interaction.
Mise en scene
This is originally applied to stage. This is anything that you can see on the scene (lighting props set...) This is broken down into:
Setting
Costume/Make up
Props
Lighting
Figure expression
First we look at setting in the film 9 to 5 which is set in the 1980s and touches on gender roles in those times. Concentrating on what the setting tells us about the characters...
First you can see that it is in a big city (possibly New York) and from the clothes in the opening scene that you see it is set in 1980s. Then you enter the office and there is the simple setting indication when the men that your attention is brought to all have offices that are made out wood paneling and have comfy chairs. While the women are all in the bull pen of desks. The first question the boss asks one of the women with some sort of power is if she could pick out a scarf for his wife and the second is if she could make coffee. The men have personal offices. This all showing the gap between men and women. Also the color change in rooms from a plastic white to a wood brown when you enter where the men work. The office of the boss is a manly man and you can tell this from the personalised decor in the office. Such as the deers on the wall and the football trophy. Also he is a vain man which you can see from the large mirror he has on his wall and he reinforces his power with his large chair that he sits on. All of this shows insecurity in that he needs these things to feel like he has power,
Setting
Costume/Make up
Props
Lighting
Figure expression
First we look at setting in the film 9 to 5 which is set in the 1980s and touches on gender roles in those times. Concentrating on what the setting tells us about the characters...
First you can see that it is in a big city (possibly New York) and from the clothes in the opening scene that you see it is set in 1980s. Then you enter the office and there is the simple setting indication when the men that your attention is brought to all have offices that are made out wood paneling and have comfy chairs. While the women are all in the bull pen of desks. The first question the boss asks one of the women with some sort of power is if she could pick out a scarf for his wife and the second is if she could make coffee. The men have personal offices. This all showing the gap between men and women. Also the color change in rooms from a plastic white to a wood brown when you enter where the men work. The office of the boss is a manly man and you can tell this from the personalised decor in the office. Such as the deers on the wall and the football trophy. Also he is a vain man which you can see from the large mirror he has on his wall and he reinforces his power with his large chair that he sits on. All of this shows insecurity in that he needs these things to feel like he has power,
Notes on Flight Plan main character Kyle
The camera giving a birds eye shot with everyone walking past her showing her isolation. She is usually closed with her body language and doesn’t want anything interrupting with her daughter. Plus her focus is usually on her daughter, she trys to keep one eye on her at all times. From the way that she spaces out you could tell that the loss of her loved one is hard to deal with. The more she realises her daughter is missing, the more she makes up excuses to the light attendants, then as she paces more and faster walking then turns into twitchy. She gets emotional and varies her tone when speaking to the captain showing her passion for her daughter. You cn tell that before her husband died that it was just her family and job and she was closed off from the rest of the world. When she approaches cabin staff about her daughter she is quite hostile. Also there are many camera shots of her in focus and the rest blurred, this just emphasising the lonlyness and isolation through cinematography. Her costume is always very dark and she reflects that with the dark mood that she is in. Her professionalism comes through her costume as well, the way that she wants respect and is mostly serious in that she is not revealing in her clothes. She takes anxiety tablets which also shows her on edge of a breakdown, this comes with her tone and twitch when something goes wrong.
Film Profile
1. Which is your favourite film?
Well i would really like to put some sort of sarcastic answer, like the first 40 minutes of die hard 3. However realistically the film that affected me personally the most when i saw it was definitely Where The Wild Things Are. This was definitely more on a personal level than looking at it from a film studies point of view. The child that plays Max in this film pulls an absolute blinder and even at such a young age involved me from the off and he really played a character that you emphasised with.
2. Which is your favourite British Film?
I would go with the controversial choice of Four lions. Directed by Chris morris know for (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NesjvRihbEg). I can see why people would find a film about 4 extremist Muslims in Sheffield could be offensive however it is just hilarious! He really does pull it out the bag with everyone in the cast is hilarious. here is the trailer... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_sBuPCO31Q
3. Which is your favourite film genre?
I love to laugh, so i would say its comedy, yet still im bored of most comedy films around at the moment. I love a funny film with a gripping plot and clever comedy. Something you HAVE to watch twice.
4. Who is your favourite film actor?
Kevin Spacey, but im not too picky, just anyone but Willem Dafoe
5. Who is your favourite film director?
My favourite film director is Spike Jonze, he doesn't really have any prestigious reckoning however i just love his methods with directing as its very much a hands on deal with him.
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