Final Post

The semester is coming to an end. Since the beginning I have watched a lot of movies, some of which I liked, others not so much. For this final post I'm going to talk about my favorites, and some movies that I think everyone needs to see.

First is Pan's Labyrinth. While I had seen this movie before, it was well worth watching again. It was very interesting seeing what was essentially a fairy tale for grown ups. It was a simple story about a girl trying to cope with a bad situation, but the way it was all put together was very original and well done

Next is American Beauty. After seeing this film I finally get what all the fuss was about and why it won all those awards. I'm not sure what I can say that hasn't already been said, everything about it was perfectly done and that's what it takes to make a good movie.

Finally there is Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Again it was a pretty simple story and concept, but the way they went about telling the story is what made it so good. The way it was edited really gave it a dream like quality, which is fitting given that most of the film takes place inside the main characters head.

Now here are some of my favorite films.

First is Fight Club. I never get tired of watching this movie. When I first saw it I knew next to nothing about it, and I think that's part of why I liked it so much, I didn't know what to expect. From the dark twisted humor to the similarly twisted story, It all comes together to make one of my favorite films.

Next is an animated film called Spirited Away. This is a film by Hayao Miyazaki and there is no other film like it. It's a story about a girl who stumbles upon a strange fantasy land. Most of the movie takes place in a bath house within this world, and follows the girl as she try's to find her way home. The story is original and the hand drawn animation is amazing. I definitely think everyone should see this film.

Last but not least is my all time favorite, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy. Everyone needs to watch these movies. It is the classic good vs. evil story, with the good guys fighting against insurmountable odds to survive. If you haven't seen them see them, better yet watch them back to back.

Edgar Wright Interviewed on The Treatment

For this post I am going to talk about Edgar Wright. He was interviewed on The Treatment on Wednesday August 4th, 2010. Edgar Wright is a film director, and is most well know for his work on the films  Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, both of which he wrote along with the star of those films Simon Pegg. His most recent film is Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, which is an adaptation of a graphic novel and for which he wrote the screenplay.

Most of the interview was spent talking about his latest film Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, but they did spend some time talking about his background and how he got started in the film industry. This is the part that I found most interesting. He came from an artistic family and he and his brother both loved to draw,in fact some of his first film projects were animated films, he even won a national film contest with an animated film. His family was very supportive of his desire to work in the film industry, and he even credits them with the existence of his entire career. Another thing I found interesting was when they talked about some of the similarities between some of his films. Each of the movies mentioned above has, for example, an element of ordinary "Joe's" becoming hero's or overcoming great obstacles. It's a simple fact, but one that I hadn't really thought about when seeing the films.

The first quote that I found noteworthy goes back to something I mentioned in the last paragraph. In the interview he said "My entire career sprang from the fact that my Mom and Dad bought me and my brother a super 8 camera". I felt this quote was noteworthy in that it really tells you the kind of support he had growing up. He acknowledges that he likely wouldn't be where he is today if it weren't for his family.

There was another point when they were talking about how he got started and when asked if he had any advice for those looking to do the same  he said "Just go out and do it, even if you don't have the equipment.... don't wait for a handout, the opportunity is never gonna land on your door step, you can make your own opportunities." Out of context it sounds kind of cliche, but when it comes to art or being creative I've always thought that this was a good way of going about doing it, just do it.

Finally, there is my favorite quote of the interview. Not long after the previous quote he said "I got turned down for film school in the UK. My response was, well I'm just gonna make a film then". This quote spoke to the same part of me as the last quote. For me it says that just because you don't have formal training, it doesn't mean you can't still do what you love and be successful at it.

I really liked this interview, not just because I'm such a big fan of Edgar Wright's movies, but because I like his attitude towards himself and what he does. He is very successful, yet he doesn't take himself too seriously. I eagerly await his next project.

Shot Checklist

Production Title: American Beauty

Director: Sam Mendez

Cinematographer: Conrad Hall

SHOT #	LOCATION	SHOT TYPE	CAMERA ANGLE	CAMERA MOVEMENT	SHOT DESCRIPTION (subject, action, lighting, etc.)
# 1	Ext.	EST - LS	EL	Slow Zoom-In	Ext. banquet hall, night; slow zoom-in to view of crowd inside[u1]
	Now begin your analysis of the scene you have chosen, providing the information asked for in these columns.
#1	Kitchen	EST - CU	EL	None	Kitchen, night; close up on Lester’s face lying on the table.
#2	Sky	ELS – WS	EL	Pan	Daytime, pan from left to right that shows the clouds in the sky
#3	Outdoors	LS	BE	Traveling Shot	On the grass, night; slow track left to right shows young Lester lying on the grass
#4	Bedroom	LS – 2S	BE	Crane – Traveling	Bedroom, night; slow track left to right shows birds eye view of two people lying in a bed when they are startled
#5	Outdoors	MS	LA	Pan – Tilt	Outdoors, black and white; slight pan right and tilt up to show wind blowing through trees
#6	Bathroom	MCU	EL	Tracking	Bathroom, dim light; track left to right shows young woman looking in mirror when she is startled
#7	Unknown	XCU	EL	Trucking	Black and white, extreme close up of woman’s hands buttoning a sweater
#8	Front Yard	MS	EL	Tracking	Front yard, night, raining; slow track backwards as distressed woman walks towards camera
#9	Unknown	XCU	HA	Trucking	Black and white; extreme close up of a car
#10	Study	MS	EL	Pan - Zoom	Study, dark lighting; medium shot of man covered in blood, pans and zooms to show empty spot on gun rack
#11	Doorway	MCU	EL	None	Black and white, medium close up of girl opening a door
#12	Front Porch	MS	EL	None	Black and white, medium shot of little girl in dress holding a sparkler
#13	House entry way	MS - MLS	EL	Pan – Zoom – Tilt - Steady cam	Inside house, dim lighting, MS of woman, pans to follow and zooms out to MLS, tilts down as she sinks to the floor
#14	Carnival ride	MS	EL	None	Black and white, night; medium shot of woman riding a carnival ride
#15	Outdoors	MS – MCU - CU	EL – HA – LA	Handheld	Outside, daytime; grainy handheld shot of plastic bag blowing in the wind
#16	Above neiborhood	XLS	HA	Zoom out – Tilt up – Traveling shot	Outside, daytime; An aerial view of a suburban neighborhood that zooms out and tilts up to expand it’s view

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Screening Checklist

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

1.         Determine whether or not the cinematographic aspects of the film—the qualities of the film stock, lighting, lenses, framing, angles, camera movement, and use of long takes—add up to an overall look. If so, try to describe its qualities.                                                                                                                                                             -The film does seem to achieve an overall look. There are lots of long takes, and because of the extensive use of the POV shots, and the individual whose view it is, many of the scenes are slightly out of focus and framed in a way that makes it so that you can’t see every thing that is going on. For example, much of a person’s face may be out of the frame.

 2.        Take note of moments in the film in which the images are conveying information that is not reflected in characters’ action and dialogue. How do these images develop the film’s themes, narrative, and meaning?                                                                                                                                                                               – There are a couple of scenes that do this very well. The first is a scene in which Mr. Bauby is shown suspended underwater encased in a diving suit. This image is actually shown several times throughout the film. The second is a scene that shows Mr. Bauby in his wheelchair, sitting on a small square platform in the ocean, surrounded by waves. Both of these scenes serve to illustrate his feeling of being trapped, unable to move.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

3.         Pay close attention to the length of shots in the film. Is there a recognizable pattern? Are long takes used? To what extent? For what purpose?                                                                                                                                    – There are quite a few long shots and long takes in this film. In fact most of the scenes with Mr. Bauby use these techniques, which is fitting given that he is completely paralyzed (except for his left eye) and thus spends a lot of time sitting in one place, and the camera reflects that. There are also entire scenes that are shot exclusively from his point of view. So for minutes at a time you see everything from one camera angle that never changes.

3.           Keep track of instances in which the film uses shots other than the medium shot (MS)—for instance, extreme close-ups (ECUs) or extreme long shots (ELSs). What role are these shots playing in the film?                                                                                                                                                                                                       –There are several extreme close-up shots in the film, and most of them focus on Mr. Bauby’s left eye. These shots focus on the only part of his body that that he has any control over, and which he uses to communicate. These shots emphasize the fact that his eye is perhaps the most important part of his body. 

4.         Are high- or low-angle shots used in the film? Are they POV shots, meant to represent a character’s point of view? If so, what does the angle convey about that character’s state of mind? If not, what does it convey about the person or thing in the frame?                                                                                                                                   – The majority of the low and high angle shots in the film are used during the scenes that take place before Mr. Bauby was paralyzed. These shots convey more of a sense of movement and freedom, than the shots that take place after his stroke.

5.         Are the compositions of shots balanced in a way that conforms to the rule of thirds, or are the elements within the frame arranged in a less “painterly” composition? In either case, try to describe how the composition contributes to the scene overall.                                                                                                                                    – There are of course shots in the film that do adhere to the rule of thirds. But the shots that stand out are the many POV shots. These are definitely much less “painterly” as they are composed of whatever happens to be within the view of his left eye. These shots serve to give the viewer an idea of what his life is like.                                                                                                                                                                                                               

6.         Describe the extent of camera movement in the film. Is the camera moving solely to produce visual excitement? To demonstrate technological virtuosity on the part of the filmmaker? Does it play an important role in developing the film’s narrative?                                                                                                                                        – The camera movement plays a large role in developing the narrative of this film. During the POV scenes it helps to communicate what Mr. Bauby is feeling. For instance if he rolls his eye or looks away from someone, the camera moves accordingly.

7.         Note when the cinematography calls attention to itself. Is this a mistake or misjudgment on the filmmakers’ parts, or is it intentional? If intentional, what purpose is served by making the cinematography so noticeable?                                                                                                                                                                           – The cinematography calls attention to it’s self whenever it changes to Mr. Bauby’s POV. This is obviously intentional, as it let’s the viewer know that once again they are seeing things from his point of view. When this happens, the framing changes, things become more out of focus, and the camera moves around a lot more.

Composition Scavenger Hunt

The first example of a framing device that I found was the rule of thirds: left, center, right. This image came from the film, Mystery Train. This shot is an obvious example of this framing device with each of the characters clearly occupying either the left center or right areas of the shot. This scene happens shortly after "Elvis" (left) shoots a store clerk. The fact that all of the characters are given equal screen space shows that while not all of them are responsible for what happened, they are all guilty, or would be found so if caught. Whatever the reason for their situation they are in it together.

The next compositional technique I found was deep space composition. This shot comes from a film called Stranger Than Paradise. The use of deep focus here is clearly evident. Both of the major elements of this shot, the woman and the airport, are separated by a large distance. As I haven't seen the movie I can't say for sure what the emotional element is. But from looking at the still, it seems pretty obvious that the airport is where the woman wants to go, but that for some reason she is unable to get there. But then as I haven't seen the film I could be completely wrong.

Next is lead room. This still from Stranger Than Paradise is pretty self explanatory. The woman is walking to what the viewer sees as left, and, as is typical for a shot of someone walking, the camera places her on the right of the screen, giving her lead room. This shot doesn't say much emotionally or psychologically; she could be walking anywhere for any reason. It's difficult to determine much from a shot like this without a little more context.

Next is symmetrical balance, and it doesn't get much more symmetrical than this. This shot from Mystery Train contains two characters sitting opposite each other, doing the same thing, even sitting in similar positions. Even the view outside the window is symmetrical, even though they are sitting across from one another and not looking at each other, the fact that they are the only two people in the frame, and that they have equally spaced within the frame shows that they are both of equal importance in the film. And the fact that they are both listening to the same music device shows that they are traveling together, rather than having met by coincidence. 

This still from Down By Law was the best example of the rule of thirds: top, center, bottom that I could find. It would also work as a left, right, center, however if you use the grid mentioned on the dvd, you can see that each of the characters faces is positioned on either the top, center, or bottom area of the shot. As for the emotional impact of the shot, the positioning of the characters could give some insight into their relative importance within the movie. The fact that the man on the right is more prominently shown in the frame suggests that he is the most important, or even the "leader" of the three.

Film Noir

In the documentary "Film Noir" there is a quote that I think fits the film LA Confidential like a glove. The quote is by Errol Morris, and he says that "Noir is concerned with error, with confusions." LA Confidential  is filled with any number of errors committed by the characters. One good example of this would be how the three main characters initially misjudge each other, or rather they let their first impressions of one another shape their attitudes and actions. Perhaps a better and certainly a more obvious example of errors and confusion in this film would be the initial conclusions that the detectives come to when investigating the "Nite Owl" murders. They once again fail to look at the evidence closely enough and end up accusing, and subsequently killing the wrong people. This feeling of confusion permeates the entire film, as the detectives struggle to determine the identity of those responsible.

Spotting the Femme Fatale in a noir film is not difficult. She is usually a very attractive, sexual and intelligent woman, however the Femme Fatale almost always has some sort of hidden ulterior agenda that conflicts with that of the protagonist. While she may appear to like, or even love the protagonist, she is usually using him to achieve her own ends. In these ways Kathie from "Out of the Past" fits the bill as the classic Femme Fatale. On the other hand Lynn from LA Confidential, while she does fit the intelligent, sexual woman, she is not a selfish person. She has no ulterior motives, and genuinely cares for officer White. Thus she is not a Femme Fatale.

Film noir is know in part for it's use of chiaroscuro, the use of deep gradations and variations of lights and darks in a scene. Another aspect of great importance to noir is the setting, usually but not restricted to an urban area. The art director (now usually called the production designer) of "Out of the Past" used these elements to great effect, to create a classic noir film. LA Confidential contains many of the same elements in it's design. The urban environment and the light dark contrast that helps set the mood. However, the fact that LA Confidential was shot in color seemed to lessen the effect of the chiaroscuro.

Out of the Past

When thinking about nondiegetic sound in Out of the Past, two examples come to mind. The first occurs when Kathie Moffat shoots Fisher. When this happens there is a sudden blast of music from the background. This sound serves to show how surprising and significant the gunshot was. The second example that comes to mind is just before Joe Stephanos tries to shoot Bailey. As he raises his gun the music increases in pace and volume, building the suspense. In both of these scenes, the music serves to get a certain reaction out of the audience, but as the music does not come from a source inside the story world, it is nondiegetic. As far as diegetic sounds go, probably the most memorable happen in those very same scenes. As two of the very few gunshots in the film, those sounds are very memorable, both are followed by the death of a character, and both occur within the world of the film, thus making them diegetic.

There are a couple instances of familiar images in Out of the Past that I can think of. There are several times in the film where you see Bailey driving a car with Ann. These scenes occur when he is telling her about his past with Kathie. These scenes in the car also tend to precede a pretty large plot development. For instance, it is during one of these scenes in which Bailey first reveals the truth about his past to Ann. Another of these scenes happens just before they arrive at Witt's mansion, in which he is reunited with Kathie. Finally, there is a similar scene at the end, the difference is that it is Kathie in the car with him instead of Ann. This scene immediately precedes the deaths of both of these characters.

Out of the Past has most of the elements of any film noir. From the world weary but intelligent and witty detective protagonist, to the seductive and deceptive femme-fatale. The plot structure is also typical of most films in the noir genre, in that the movie begins in the "present" time (for the characters anyway) but then begins to unfold in flashbacks, and eventually catching up again with the present, and continuing on. The dark tone and lighting are also that of a typical noir. The biggest way in which this film differs from most other film noir, is in the setting. While most films in the genre take place primarily in urban areas or big cities. Out of the Past on the other hand has many scenes that take place out in the country, in the woods, near rivers etc. Not only that, but many of the scenes take place during the day, something that most noir films do only rarely.