Sunday, February 20, 2011

Mis En Scene - The Aviator

The Aviator is a film directed by Martin Scorsese, it's a face paced action film and a prime example of how exemplary mis en-scene can produce a captivating, good quality film.

The scene shows an adventurous pilot (De Caprio) test flying a new model of plane, in a desolate desert. Leonardo De Caprio's style of acting throughout the scene is exciting and fast paced which really conveys the films genre, being action. He achieves this through his personality, coming off as a bit of a dare devil as well as somewhat reckless with his immense speed of the planes crash landing and then casually standing on the side of the plane may also suggest a care-free attitude. The setting that the scene is taking place in is a desert surrounding with a testing ground for airplanes as well as a tarmac and a sandy cliff used for taking off. The deserty, sandy cliff and surroundings may be natural, but the tarmac and testing ground/sheds and planes would all be props and would have been built to match with the time and place of the clip. The lighting throughout the scene is particularly bright suggesting mid day to late afternoon. The harsh lighting gives off a yellowy, orangy tinge and really sets well with the surroundings that are mostly dirt and warm colours for example the sand. The colour of the plane is silver, with the bland surrounding colours this allows your eye to be more easily drawnt to the plane and therefore the centre of the action.

In conclusion the well formulated mis en scene combination results in a truly amazing film (clip) that captivates the audience, and takes them on a journey they will never forget.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Sleepy Hollow - Mise En Scene

Style of Acting - The style of acting is quite playful but also serious, with Johnny Depp bringing some comical aspects to his reactions when he is splattered with blood but the boy and girl reacting in horror. The acting style then transitions to playful and relaxed in the house scene.

Lighting - Throughout the entirety of the clip the lighting stays quite dark and when the scene changes to the house there is alot of contrast between lighting. Especially when the child is playing with his light and the shadows are on the wall, the spooky shapes really set an intense mood.

Setting - The setting initially is in a forest at a large, twisted tree, that then moves onto a high speed chase scene in the woods, which then moves onto a house when the scene changes entirely.

Props - The forest would have been made on a set, the tree was most definetley a prop as well as the sword, the heads that came out of the tree would've been made of rubber or silicon. The house also would've been made on a set and all of the props inside it would've been made as well. All props are extremley convincing and definetly realistic and well made.

Sleepy Hollow - Cinematography

Camera Movement - The movement of the camera is fluent and it gives the feeling that a person is watching it and moving (hard to explain?) but the movement is less stiff and therefore is more effective.

Camera Position - The position of the camera is often from a high angle suggesting that the main characters in the shot have less power. When the sword is first shown in a close-up the sword is taller and at a higher angle and position than Johnny Depp.

Speed - The Speed in the beginning of the scene is quite constant and normal, but then when the headless character emerges the pace begins to pick up and becomes quite fast, when the scene changes to the house with the younger child the pace has slowed down immensely.

Exposure - The exposure is fairly dark and remains so with mist hovering to a dark house. This is not only due to the fact that the time period of the day is probably afternoon/night but that the feeling of the movie is quite dark.

Focus - The focus of the scene initially begins with Johnny Depp and then transitions on to the child in the conclusion of the clip and the beginning of the new scene. The focus of the film constantly transitions from golden spiral to using the rule of thirds. This effectively helps to move the focus from the sword in the tree, to the different characters.

Perspective - The perspective of the clip is from a third person. The viewer is on the outside looking in.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Jeep Commercial Analysis

What comments can you make about the Rythm of this commercial?
The rythm of the commercial is fast and upbeat, it is also in sync with the music 'Don't Hold Back'. There are moments of slow motion but the clip is very short.

How does the editing manipulate the passage of time?
The ad's passage of time is edited to vary between day and night. As well as the speed of the shots, for example the sun setting is fast forwarded to make the sun set and represent the transition from day to night. The differences in time and scenarios represents the various uses of the car.

Are there any graphic matches and how are they used to enhance the commercial?
There is a scene where a person is driving and the side of their head is shown in a medium-close up, the head then transitions to a new person and this continues with different people for a short period of time. This technique suggests that anybody can own and drive the car.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Homework 8.2.11 - Genre Recipe

A group of 5 teenagers stay at a forest for a weekend camping trip. On the first night, a mysterious figure emerges from the forest and brutally murders one of the female teenagers, taking the body with him. The next day everone wonders what happened and go looking for the girl, they split up into groups of 2. One of the groups finds a warehouse full which looks like a mechanic's shed. Eventually when they're walking in the warehouse one of the males dies when an automatic nail gun randomly starts shooting and hits him in the head with numerous nails. The girl notices he's gone missing and becomes freaked out, she runs out of the warehouse, only to find the man she was with, hanging from the warehouse entrancem dead with nails sticking out of his head. She is then distraught screaming when a figure again emerges in the distance and throws a knife at her, she falls foward, dead. Later on the last two teenagers are almost killed by the mysterious figure but then hide together and when they decide to try and find a way out of the forest they discover a road which they walk down for hours, they then find a deserted motel which they stay in for the night [love sesh takes place], the next day they awake to noises of something rummaging, they then find that someone was trying to break into the bathroom window. The door handle starts turning violently, the male then opens the door with a knife in one hand only to find a police officer that says he got reports of a disturbance and asks to come inside, he comes inside and begins questioning the two. At the end of the story he picks up his radio and calls in that he couldn't find anyone at the motel. He then proceeds to take out his gun and shoot the girl in the leg, a fight breaks out between the male and police officer which eventually results in the the male grabbing the knife and stabbing the police officer [killer] in the neck.

Monday, February 7, 2011

Elements that make up a horror film

1. Antagonist or the 'bad guy' there needs to be a character that is evil
2. Protagonist or the 'good guy' this person should prevail in the end
3. Big twist or plot generally revealed at the end of the storyline or even in the last few seconds of the film or last sentence of the book etc.
4. A suspencful scene, there should be atleast one moment where you're on the edge of your seat in anticipation
5. The ending of the film should either result in the death of the antagonist and then a suggestion that they are still alive or a massive twist that suggests a sequel
6. Violence or physical or mental trauma should somehow be involved in the storyline, alongside (7.) some horrific scenes involving blood and gore
8. A supernatural aspect, this may depend on the type of horror film