What is the importance of mise-en-scene and/or sound in creating meaning and generating responses in the film you have studied?
In City of God there is a scene in which a character called 'Knockout Ned' house is destroyed and people are killed. The mise-en-scene shows that they are a poor family within the favela's like everyone else however you can see they have worked hard to get what they have by the shots showing the audience their possessions.
The scene starts just after Li'l Zè has sexually abused Knockout Ned's girlfriend. Inside the house the audience can see the family together, the camera's close ups help the audience to gain the emotion from the actors performance as a part of mise-en-scene. This enables the audience to sympathise and gain the preferred reading of the fact that they are a close family. This calm situation then becomes the complete opposite when Li'l Zè is calling Knockout Ned outside. The camera changes to become hand held creating a sense of realism and panic. Additionally a couple of seconds before this you can see a contrast in high key lighting and low key lighting within the room which can then link to the fact that the family has inner conflict between them with some wanting to do good and some wanting to go and fight against lil ze.
flash forward
takes you away from realism
shows that he's decision is made as soon as he picks up the knife
Thursday, 8 October 2015
Thursday, 1 October 2015
Alfred Hitchcock Catalogue- In what way does Alfred Hitchcock's specific use of suspense make him an auteur?
In what way does Alfred Hitchcock's specific use of suspense make him an auteur?
Item 1: Psycho (Focus Film 1)
The genre of Psycho is horror, this is my focus film because the auteur uses a lot of simple effects like sound and lighting to give the audience suspense. Hitchcock successfully abides to the horror genre due to the pattern of 'damsels in distress', which are repeatedly used in the majority of his films. In the iconic scene of the women getting stabbed in the shower, Hitchcock creates terror among the audience and uses the point of view shot of the murder to reflect the fear of the woman. Suspense is created in many scenes for example the shower scene is probably the most suspenseful in terms of the whole film and the build up before it goes to the death scene. This film text is going to be used in order to display the most iconic Hitchcock film scenes to establish why he is the master of suspense and how this does make him an auteur.
Item 2: Vertigo
Is a psychological thriller based on the novel, 'D'entre les morts' by Boileau-Narcejac, Hitchcock successful captures the theme of fears, this is because the main character, John develops the fear of acrophobia, which is the fear of heights and vertigo, which is a sensation of false/rotational movement. The camera shot that acts as the turning point of the plot, is when John is hanging from the gutter pipe and looks down; this creates the fear which plays a big part of the narrative. The camera shot is looking between two buildings using a bird-eye shot. This creates empathy and fear amongst the audience because it is used as a point of view shot, defining him as a auteur. By using these shots he is able to create a large amount of suspense, is John going to fall? is John going to survive. By using these shots and having the narrative already explain his fears to the audience he is able to go and be a director and instead of state, he can create the fear all with the use of suspense.
Item 3: The Birds
This is another one of Alfred Hitchcock's films based on Daphne du Maurier book of the same title. Immediately the film is a Horror/Thriller hybrid which means a massive cause for suspense which makes it easier for Hitchcock as a director to portray he's use of suspense which makes him a great auteur. He shows this though his use of sound, he creates tension within the audience.
Item 4: Dictionary definition of an Auteur.
Item 5: The Genius of Hitchcock; Sight and Sound Magazine, August 2012, Page 40.
"I'm 47 years old now, and every day when I go into the shower and turn on the tap, I think of Psycho (1960)" - Del Toro.
Page 41
"Drama is life with the dull parts cut out"- Alfred Hitchcock
Page 42
"All so different - so which one of those is Hitchcock? He's all of them. Over the course of more than 50 films, he became a genre himself."
Within this magazine I will use various quotes in order to back up my response to how Hitchcock's use of suspense makes him an auteur. I will be using quotes from Hitchcock himself and Del Toro. Which shows both his own and another point of view.
Item 6: Hitchcock is still on top of film world, Roger Ebert
"By making a cameo appearance near the beginning of almost all of his films, he became personally famous at a time when most people never ever thought about a film's director."- Roger Ebert.
I will use this to back up the fact that Hitchcock became influential and he changed peoples thoughts on film within his time as a director within my presentation script.
Item 7: Alfred Hitchcock Book Quote
"In fact, the auteur theory itself is a pattern theory in constant flux. I would never endorse a Ptolemaic constellation of directors in fixed orbit. At the moment, my list of auteurs runs something like this through the first twenty: Ophuls, Renoir, Mizoguchi, Hitchcock, Chaplin, Ford, Welles, Dreyer, Rossellini, Murnau, Griffith, Sternberg, Eisenstein, von Stroheim, Buñuel, Bresson, Hawks, Lang, Flaherty, Vigo."
I will be using this quote which can be found on page 563 in 'Notes notes on the Auteur Theory in 1962' by Andrew Sarris. The reason that I will be using this quote it because within the book it explains the auteur theory and then the author states specific people whom he thinks are truly auteurs. Within this list is 'Hitchcock' which suggests that he believed to be an auteur not just by anyone but by a specialist.
Item 8: Quote from himself- Good Reads
"Always make the audience suffer as much as possible."
I think that this shows that Alfred Hitchcock purposely has in mind what the audience is going to feel at all times, which I think makes him an auteur because not only is he trying to tell the story he is trying to make the audience feel uncomfortable etc by using technical features to create suspense. I think that by him using the word 'suffer' additionally states to the reader on how Hitchcock is as a person as well as a director. It shows that he is trying to use suspense to specifically make the audience 'suffer' which potentially will make the audience remember his films more because of the emotional trauma they go through from his uses of suspense.
Item 9: Horror Films- James Marriott
"Psycho was,simply, an assault on the audience"- Page 94.
This quote will be used in my presentation script to show that Hitchcock is an auteur and backing up my argument that he takes some of his ideas from being based on real events. He clearly shows you them on screen to add to the reality of it to make the audience feel terrified.
"The only way to remove numbness [of civilisation] and revive our moral equilibrium is to use the artificial means to bring about the shock. The best way to achieve this, it seems to me, is through a movie. -Alfred Hitchcock." Page 2.
Item 10: Alfred Hitchcock- Screenwriter, Director, Producer, Television Personality.
"He described his childhood as lonely and sheltered, partly due to his obesity. He once said that he was sent by his father to the local police station with a note asking the officer to lock him away for 10 minutes as punishment for behaving badly. He also remarked that his mother would force him to stand at the foot of her bed for several hours as punishment (a scene alluded to in his film Psycho). This idea of being harshly treated or wrongfully accused would later be reflected in Hitchcock's films."
I will be using this quote within my presentation script to back up my point that Hitchcock may be such a great director because of his childhood and his influences.
I rejected this film because I didn't think it was helpful or supported my argument that Alfred Hitchcock is an auteur by the use of suspense. Additionally I rejected this film because I thought that it wasn't suitable enough for a contrasting debate.
Item 12:Quote - Alfred Hitchcock
I am a typed director. If I made Cinderella, the audience would immediately be looking for a body in the coach.
I rejected this quote because I think it shows him more of a daunting director rather than a suspenseful director.
Item 13:Quote - Alfred Hitchcock
Give them pleasure - the same pleasure they have when they wake up from a nightmare.
The reason I rejected this quote is because I thought that it doesn't specifically address Alfred Hitchcock's use of suspense therefore I did not find it useful
Item 14: Image of Alfred Hitchcock for Presentation Script
Bibliography
Item 1: Focus Film - Psycho
Item 2:Focus Film - Vertigo
Item 3:Supporting Film - The Birds
Item 4: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/auteur
Item 5: The Genius of Hitchcock; Sight and Sound Magazine, August 2012, Page 40.
Item 6: http://www.rogerebert.com/rogers-journal/hitchcock-is-still-on-top-of-film-world
Item 7: http://dramaandfilm.qwriting.qc.cuny.edu/files/2011/06/Sarris-Notes-on-the-Auteur-Theory.pdf (Page 563)
Item 8: http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/35957-always-make-the-audience-suffer-as-much-as-possible
Item 10: http://www.biography.com/people/alfred-hitchcock-9340006
Item 11: Rejected Film - The 39 Steps
Item 12:http://vickielester.com/2015/02/27/i-am-a-typed-director-if-i-made-cinderella-the-audience-would-immediately-be-looking-for-a-body-in-the-coach-alfred-hitchcock/
Item 13:http://www.alfredhitchcock.com/brand/quotes/
Item 14: http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=alfred+hitchcock&view=detailv2&&id=3E593C137F588E0FE8D2A507014959FC1586FAC6&selectedIndex=1&ccid=WDGCo8MR&simid=608048253340552157&thid=OIP.M583182a3c311a83d52ee5f9fcb73b433H0&ajaxhist=0
 |
| Psycho (1960) Dir. Alfred Hitchcock |
The genre of Psycho is horror, this is my focus film because the auteur uses a lot of simple effects like sound and lighting to give the audience suspense. Hitchcock successfully abides to the horror genre due to the pattern of 'damsels in distress', which are repeatedly used in the majority of his films. In the iconic scene of the women getting stabbed in the shower, Hitchcock creates terror among the audience and uses the point of view shot of the murder to reflect the fear of the woman. Suspense is created in many scenes for example the shower scene is probably the most suspenseful in terms of the whole film and the build up before it goes to the death scene. This film text is going to be used in order to display the most iconic Hitchcock film scenes to establish why he is the master of suspense and how this does make him an auteur.
 |
| Vertigo (1958) Dir. Alfred Hitchcock |
Is a psychological thriller based on the novel, 'D'entre les morts' by Boileau-Narcejac, Hitchcock successful captures the theme of fears, this is because the main character, John develops the fear of acrophobia, which is the fear of heights and vertigo, which is a sensation of false/rotational movement. The camera shot that acts as the turning point of the plot, is when John is hanging from the gutter pipe and looks down; this creates the fear which plays a big part of the narrative. The camera shot is looking between two buildings using a bird-eye shot. This creates empathy and fear amongst the audience because it is used as a point of view shot, defining him as a auteur. By using these shots he is able to create a large amount of suspense, is John going to fall? is John going to survive. By using these shots and having the narrative already explain his fears to the audience he is able to go and be a director and instead of state, he can create the fear all with the use of suspense.
 |
| The Birds (1963) Dir. Alfred Hitchcock |
Item 3: The Birds
This is another one of Alfred Hitchcock's films based on Daphne du Maurier book of the same title. Immediately the film is a Horror/Thriller hybrid which means a massive cause for suspense which makes it easier for Hitchcock as a director to portray he's use of suspense which makes him a great auteur. He shows this though his use of sound, he creates tension within the audience.
Item 4: Dictionary definition of an Auteur.
- "a film director who influences their films so much that they rank as their author."
Item 5: The Genius of Hitchcock; Sight and Sound Magazine, August 2012, Page 40.
"I'm 47 years old now, and every day when I go into the shower and turn on the tap, I think of Psycho (1960)" - Del Toro.
Page 41
"Drama is life with the dull parts cut out"- Alfred Hitchcock
Page 42
"All so different - so which one of those is Hitchcock? He's all of them. Over the course of more than 50 films, he became a genre himself."
Within this magazine I will use various quotes in order to back up my response to how Hitchcock's use of suspense makes him an auteur. I will be using quotes from Hitchcock himself and Del Toro. Which shows both his own and another point of view.
Item 6: Hitchcock is still on top of film world, Roger Ebert
"By making a cameo appearance near the beginning of almost all of his films, he became personally famous at a time when most people never ever thought about a film's director."- Roger Ebert.
I will use this to back up the fact that Hitchcock became influential and he changed peoples thoughts on film within his time as a director within my presentation script.
Item 7: Alfred Hitchcock Book Quote
"In fact, the auteur theory itself is a pattern theory in constant flux. I would never endorse a Ptolemaic constellation of directors in fixed orbit. At the moment, my list of auteurs runs something like this through the first twenty: Ophuls, Renoir, Mizoguchi, Hitchcock, Chaplin, Ford, Welles, Dreyer, Rossellini, Murnau, Griffith, Sternberg, Eisenstein, von Stroheim, Buñuel, Bresson, Hawks, Lang, Flaherty, Vigo."
I will be using this quote which can be found on page 563 in 'Notes notes on the Auteur Theory in 1962' by Andrew Sarris. The reason that I will be using this quote it because within the book it explains the auteur theory and then the author states specific people whom he thinks are truly auteurs. Within this list is 'Hitchcock' which suggests that he believed to be an auteur not just by anyone but by a specialist.
Item 8: Quote from himself- Good Reads
"Always make the audience suffer as much as possible."
I think that this shows that Alfred Hitchcock purposely has in mind what the audience is going to feel at all times, which I think makes him an auteur because not only is he trying to tell the story he is trying to make the audience feel uncomfortable etc by using technical features to create suspense. I think that by him using the word 'suffer' additionally states to the reader on how Hitchcock is as a person as well as a director. It shows that he is trying to use suspense to specifically make the audience 'suffer' which potentially will make the audience remember his films more because of the emotional trauma they go through from his uses of suspense.
Item 9: Horror Films- James Marriott
"Psycho was,simply, an assault on the audience"- Page 94.
This quote will be used in my presentation script to show that Hitchcock is an auteur and backing up my argument that he takes some of his ideas from being based on real events. He clearly shows you them on screen to add to the reality of it to make the audience feel terrified.
"The only way to remove numbness [of civilisation] and revive our moral equilibrium is to use the artificial means to bring about the shock. The best way to achieve this, it seems to me, is through a movie. -Alfred Hitchcock." Page 2.
This will be used in my presentation script because it shows Hitchcock's thought of view on society.
Item 10: Alfred Hitchcock- Screenwriter, Director, Producer, Television Personality.
"He described his childhood as lonely and sheltered, partly due to his obesity. He once said that he was sent by his father to the local police station with a note asking the officer to lock him away for 10 minutes as punishment for behaving badly. He also remarked that his mother would force him to stand at the foot of her bed for several hours as punishment (a scene alluded to in his film Psycho). This idea of being harshly treated or wrongfully accused would later be reflected in Hitchcock's films."
I will be using this quote within my presentation script to back up my point that Hitchcock may be such a great director because of his childhood and his influences.
Rejected Items
Item 11: The 39 Steps |
| The 39 Steps (1959) Dir. Alfred Hitchcock |
Item 12:Quote - Alfred Hitchcock
I am a typed director. If I made Cinderella, the audience would immediately be looking for a body in the coach.
I rejected this quote because I think it shows him more of a daunting director rather than a suspenseful director.
Item 13:Quote - Alfred Hitchcock
Give them pleasure - the same pleasure they have when they wake up from a nightmare.
The reason I rejected this quote is because I thought that it doesn't specifically address Alfred Hitchcock's use of suspense therefore I did not find it useful
Item 14: Image of Alfred Hitchcock for Presentation Script
Bibliography
Item 1: Focus Film - Psycho
Item 2:Focus Film - Vertigo
Item 3:Supporting Film - The Birds
Item 4: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/auteur
Item 5: The Genius of Hitchcock; Sight and Sound Magazine, August 2012, Page 40.
Item 6: http://www.rogerebert.com/rogers-journal/hitchcock-is-still-on-top-of-film-world
Item 7: http://dramaandfilm.qwriting.qc.cuny.edu/files/2011/06/Sarris-Notes-on-the-Auteur-Theory.pdf (Page 563)
Item 8: http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/35957-always-make-the-audience-suffer-as-much-as-possible
Item 10: http://www.biography.com/people/alfred-hitchcock-9340006
Item 11: Rejected Film - The 39 Steps
Item 12:http://vickielester.com/2015/02/27/i-am-a-typed-director-if-i-made-cinderella-the-audience-would-immediately-be-looking-for-a-body-in-the-coach-alfred-hitchcock/
Item 13:http://www.alfredhitchcock.com/brand/quotes/
Item 14: http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=alfred+hitchcock&view=detailv2&&id=3E593C137F588E0FE8D2A507014959FC1586FAC6&selectedIndex=1&ccid=WDGCo8MR&simid=608048253340552157&thid=OIP.M583182a3c311a83d52ee5f9fcb73b433H0&ajaxhist=0
Wednesday, 30 September 2015
La Haine
What is the
importance of mise-en-scene and/or sound in creating meaning and generating
response in the films you have studied.
Mise-en-scene is important in any film. This is because it
enables the viewer to see more than just the characters within a film. It can foreshadow
events by showing images in the background that are similar to events within a
film etc. This can then create meaning within a film and build the story up.
Mise-en-scene can also tell you a lot about a character, for example if a
character is wearing white, they would be seen as angelic and innocent.
Therefore all of these things have created a general response from the
audience. Which adds to their general knowledge, this helps them form an
opinion of characters and scenes.
In ‘La Haine’ when we first meet Vinz we see him in his
bedroom and as the camera moves in 360 degrees shot we see his bedroom in
detail and through the mise-en-scene we are able to tell a lot about him. La
Haine continuously uses 360 degree shots to enforce the quote, “The world only
goes round by misunderstanding”- Charles Baudelaire. This quote suggests that
the lack of knowledge in a society will create a vicious cycle of struggle for
the minority.
From this mise-en-scene we tell he is a religious man, by
the traditional Jewish candles. The fact it is in his bedroom, indicates to the
audience that he holds strong religious values. There is also a portion of family
photos in his room, which also shows that he is family-orientated. This helps
the audience see him in a positive aspect because he is a family man and this
stereotypically, is the characteristics of a good person.
We can also tell from his bedroom, that he is highly
influenced by the all of the American culture. This is shown through
mise-en-scene because he has posters of Marilyn Monroe, Bruce Lee and American
Wrestlers. This shows that he wants to live the American dream and one day earn
enough money to support his family. This also links to the dreamer aspect of
Vinz, this would allow the audience to be able to empathize with his situation
and connect with him.
His room also includes stacks of American branded shoes and
he is wearing a Spider-Man top. This shows that he is attempting to live like Americans
and it is a form of escapism. This is evident because although he lives in
France, he is wearing American influenced clothes and has American posters. Which reflects on how bad French society is;
by dreaming of America, he is escaping his problems. The mise-en-scene also
shows Vinz asleep, which adds to the dreamer characteristic in him and helps
re-enforce that idea.
The start of the film it has already been established that
it is set in France through location and establishing recognisable shots in the
projects. He lives in a multicultural estate, which influences the audience to
believe that he struggles to get by due to the range of minorities living in
the projects. Due to his Jewish background, the audience can see that he is an
outside to the French culture.
In the first narrative dialogue in the opening scene, there
is complete silence. Silence can be seen just a powerful as sound, this is
because the silence enforces the importance of what the narrator is saying.
Silence also causes the audience to pay close attention to the words being
used, causing it to become a significant effect. The narrator says, “As he
falls, he tries to reassure himself by repeating; so far, so good...” this is
said to give the audience the impression that the society that they live in,
barely let’s the minority get by. This idea is then enforced by the
mise-en-scene a few seconds later, as the bottle rag bomb is thrown at the
world. This foreshadows the riots and violence that is later carried within the
film. The fact that the narrator says, “tries to reassure”, shows that the
people within the projects are unhappy and they are not assured of their stability.
This particular mise-en-scene causes an indication of corruption within the
world and supports the earlier quote by Charles Baudelaire, that the world is
highly misunderstood.
After the bottle is thrown, the world explodes and the
narrator says, “It’s not the fall that matters, it’s the landing”. Causing an
interpretation that it’s not the journey that matters, it’s the end result.
This indicates that the rioters do not care how much of a fight they have to
put up, it’s the final outcome that is importance.
Thursday, 18 June 2015
Alfred Hitchcock
A2 Film Studies
Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock
| Born | Alfred Joseph Hitchcock 13 August 1899 Leytonstone, Essex, England |
|---|---|
| Died | 29 April 1980 (aged 80) Bel Air, California, United States |
| Other names |
|
| Alma mater |
|
| Occupation |
|
| Years active | 1921–1976 |
| Religion | Roman Catholic[1] |
| Spouse(s) | Alma Reville (m. 1926–1980; his death) |
| Children | Patricia Hitchcock |
Often nicknamed "The Master of Suspense",[4] he pioneered many techniques in the suspense andpsychological thriller genres.
After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, renowned as England's best director, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood in 1939[5] and became a US citizen in 1955.
Over a career spanning more than half a century, Hitchcock fashioned for himself a distinctive and recognisable directorial style.[6] He pioneered the use of a camera made to move in a way that mimics a person's gaze, forcing viewers to engage in a form of voyeurism.[7] He framed shots to maximise anxiety, fear, or empathy, and used innovative film editing.[7] His stories often feature fugitives on the run from the law alongside "icy blonde" female characters.[8][9] Many of Hitchcock's films have twist endings and thrilling plots featuring depictions of violence, murder, and crime. Many of the mysteries, however, are used as decoys or "MacGuffins" that serve the film's themes and the psychological examinations of the characters. Hitchcock's films also borrow many themes from psychoanalysis and feature strong sexual overtones. Through his cameo appearances in his own films, interviews, film trailers, and the television program Alfred Hitchcock Presents, he became a cultural icon.
Hitchcock directed more than fifty feature films in a career spanning six decades. Often regarded as the greatest British filmmaker, he came first in a 2007 poll of film critics in Britain's Daily Telegraph, which said: "Unquestionably the greatest filmmaker to emerge from these islands, Hitchcock did more than any director to shape modern cinema, which would be utterly different without him. His flair was for narrative, cruelly withholding crucial information (from his characters and from viewers) and engaging the emotions of the audience like no one else."[10][11] The magazine MovieMaker has described him as the most influential filmmaker of all time,[12] and he is widely regarded as one of cinema's most significant artists.[13]
biography
GO TO MOODLE GLOSSARY UNDER A THERE IS AUTUER BOOKS moodle magazines
MOODLE DOCUMENTARIES
QUOTES FROM ALFRED HITCHCOCK (typed in Alfred Hitchcock quotes on google)
http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/35957-always-make-the-audience-suffer-as-much-as-possible
^chosen quote source
The only way to remove the numbness [of civilisation] and revive our moral equilibrium is to use the artificial means to bring about the shock. The best way to achieve this, it seems to me, is through a movie.
Alfred Hitchcock
horror films
james marriott
page 2
biography
GO TO MOODLE GLOSSARY UNDER A THERE IS AUTUER BOOKS moodle magazines
MOODLE DOCUMENTARIES
QUOTES FROM ALFRED HITCHCOCK (typed in Alfred Hitchcock quotes on google)
The length of a film should be directly related to the endurance of the human bladder.
When an actor comes to me and wants to discuss his character, I say, 'It's in the script.' If he says, 'But what's my motivation?, ' I say, 'Your salary.'
A good film is when the price of the dinner, the theatre admission and the babysitter were worth it.
http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/35957-always-make-the-audience-suffer-as-much-as-possible
^chosen quote source
The only way to remove the numbness [of civilisation] and revive our moral equilibrium is to use the artificial means to bring about the shock. The best way to achieve this, it seems to me, is through a movie.
Alfred Hitchcock
horror films
james marriott
page 2
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