As the film opens, it is the last Saturday in August, 1945 - and the Japanese have just surrendered. In the opening scene, the camera (very slowly) pulls back from the face of a man who is in Corleone's dark home office, where the Don ruthlessly holds court. He carries on with the crime family business during his daughter's wedding reception, that is being held in the bright, sunshine of the outdoor veranda of his Long Island compound.
In the underlit office, American justice has failed. The Don is a gentle, restrained, 62 year old aging man, sitting behind his study desk. His face has a bulldog appearance with padded cheeks, and he speaks with a high-pitched, hoarse, raspy, gutteral mumbling accent. On his lap is a cat whose head he lovingly and gently strokes. Although he moves stiffly, he wields enormous lethal power as he determines the dispensation of real justice - who will be punished and who will be favored. He is upset that the funeral director Bonasera hasn't asked for a favour earlier, although he now asks for murderous revenge (instead of justice). The Don promises justice - and then asks for a return favor as a friend.
The scene starts with a piece of traditional italian music. This sets the scene by gving the viewer an insight into how the film is going to be set, and also puts the film into context for the audience. The dialogue at first is about how proud Bonasera is to be American, and how his pride was undermined by his daughter's friends who beat her half to death. He begins to sob, showing his passion towards his country and his love for his family. When Corleone starts to speak, the volume appears to rise, highlighting his importance and stature within the group. This is again shown when Bonasera and Corleone are conversing. When Corelone is talking to Bonasera, the over the shoulder point of view shot is from high above, and shows Bonasera bowing to him in respect. Consequently, when Bonasera is talking, the shot is from just below his shoulder looking up towards Corleone, highlighting his power above everyone else in the room.
When the camera zooms out and shows the rest of the room and reveals several other people in the room, we notice they are all dressed the same; in smart tuxedos with slicked back hair.
Connotation
The italian music, accent and smart dress all link to organized crime, the backstreet crime linked with Italian-American culture and the Mafia lifestyle.
Also, the badly lit room they are in connotes to the mysteriousness which entwines with the theme of the Mafia, and organized crime in general.
Tuesday, 9 December 2008
Se7en - Thriller (codes)
Se7en is a well thought out serial killer film about a criminal that commits ritualisic murders inspired by the seven deadly sins, gluttony, greed, pride, lust, sloth, envy and wrath.
- The location of the film sets the scene up to build the menace and mood, whch is essential for this film.
- The sound design concentrates on both diegetic and non-diegetic aspects, but primarily on diegetic sound.
- The killer is not shown throughout the opening scences of the film, allowing the film to unravel and unfold slowly but in detail.
Monday, 8 December 2008
Leon-Thriller (Codes)
Codes:
Hitman - hired killer, mercenary
Connotation:
Human intervention, from greenery to the city, takes life, this links/goes with the beginning of the film.
- Long tracking shot (helps set the scene)
- Dialogue - first few lines in italian (gives an insight into the background)
- Long tracking shot tele-scoping down on the location.
- Yellow taxi (helps represent the location of New York)
- Shot changes from long to close up (close up creates a "hook")
- Spectacles show a trademark as most of the time the character is shadowed (helps link to a killer)
Hitman - hired killer, mercenary
Connotation:
Human intervention, from greenery to the city, takes life, this links/goes with the beginning of the film.
Codes and conventions of a Romantic Comedy
A romantic comedy are generally light-hearted movies with humorous dramatic stories centered around romantic subjects such as a "true love" in order to find the "perfect match." Romantic comedies are a sub-genre of comedy films as well as romance films. The basic plot of a romantic comedy is that two people, usually a man and a woman, meet and then part ways due to an argument or other contrived obstacles. Initially, these two people do not become romantically involved, because they believe that they do not like each other, because one of them already has a partner, or social pressures. However, the screenwriters leave obvious clues that suggest that the characters are in fact attracted to each other, or that they would be a good love match.
While the two people are separated, one or both individuals then realize that they are "perfect" for each other, or that they are in love with the other person. Then, after one of the two makes some spectacular effort to find the other person and declare their love, (this is sometimes called the grand gesture), or due to an astonishing coincidental encounter, the two meet again. Then, perhaps with some comic friction or awkwardness, they declare their love for each other and the film ends happily.
There are many variations on this basic plotline. Sometimes, instead of the two lead characters ending up in each other's arms, another love match will be made between one of the principal characters and a secondary character (e.g., My Best Friend's Wedding).
One of the conventions of romantic comedy films is the contrived encounter of two potential romantic partners in unusual or comic circumstances, which film critics such as Roger Ebert or the Associated Press' Christy Lemire have called a "meet-cute" situation. During a "meet-cute", scriptwriters often create a humorous sense of awkwardness between the two potential partners by depicting an initial clash of personalities or beliefs, an embarrassing situation, or by introducing a comical misunderstanding or mistaken identity situation. Sometimes the term is used without a hyphen (a "meet cute"), or as a verb, as in "to meet cute."
In many romantic comedies, the potential couple comprises polar opposites, two people of different temperaments, situations, social statuses, or all three (It Happened One Night), who would not meet or talk under normal circumstances, and the meet cute's contrived situation provides the opportunity for these two people to meet.
In movies, the attraction between the lead characters must be established quickly. The subject matter of romantic comedies are the obstacles that the potential pair must face before they can acknowledge, fulfill, or consummate their love, and the audience must care about the relationship enough to finish the movie. The meet-cute, by virtue of its unusual situation, helps to fix the potential relationship in the viewers' minds, and the spark of the meeting is the impetus by which initial vicissitudes of the developing relationship are overcome.
While the two people are separated, one or both individuals then realize that they are "perfect" for each other, or that they are in love with the other person. Then, after one of the two makes some spectacular effort to find the other person and declare their love, (this is sometimes called the grand gesture), or due to an astonishing coincidental encounter, the two meet again. Then, perhaps with some comic friction or awkwardness, they declare their love for each other and the film ends happily.
There are many variations on this basic plotline. Sometimes, instead of the two lead characters ending up in each other's arms, another love match will be made between one of the principal characters and a secondary character (e.g., My Best Friend's Wedding).
One of the conventions of romantic comedy films is the contrived encounter of two potential romantic partners in unusual or comic circumstances, which film critics such as Roger Ebert or the Associated Press' Christy Lemire have called a "meet-cute" situation. During a "meet-cute", scriptwriters often create a humorous sense of awkwardness between the two potential partners by depicting an initial clash of personalities or beliefs, an embarrassing situation, or by introducing a comical misunderstanding or mistaken identity situation. Sometimes the term is used without a hyphen (a "meet cute"), or as a verb, as in "to meet cute."
In many romantic comedies, the potential couple comprises polar opposites, two people of different temperaments, situations, social statuses, or all three (It Happened One Night), who would not meet or talk under normal circumstances, and the meet cute's contrived situation provides the opportunity for these two people to meet.
In movies, the attraction between the lead characters must be established quickly. The subject matter of romantic comedies are the obstacles that the potential pair must face before they can acknowledge, fulfill, or consummate their love, and the audience must care about the relationship enough to finish the movie. The meet-cute, by virtue of its unusual situation, helps to fix the potential relationship in the viewers' minds, and the spark of the meeting is the impetus by which initial vicissitudes of the developing relationship are overcome.
Preliminary Task
This task was used to help understand the basic skills of using a hand-held camera, from which we made short film. This film was a basic story-line of which someone enters a room, and hands over an object to a person already in the room. The film had to incorporate match-on-action, shot reverse shot and the 180 degree rule.
Codes and conventions of a horror
Films within a genre such as horror will generally make preferences to death, pain, fear and the dark side that exists within most people's sub-conscience. Other criteria will include a villian or supernatural force, blood, a chase and a helpless victim.
Horror films are also designed to elicit tension and suspense, taking the viewer through the agony and fear of the victim.
John Carpenter's "halloween", Wes Craven's "scream" and "The texas chainsaw massacre", all stick to these traditional conventions of horror films. All three male antagonists are evil personified, wear masks, chase helpless female protagonists and kill people with carving knives or other similar weapons.
Horror films are generally set in an idyllic suburban neighbourhood, which are the embodiment of hapiness and peace until stability is disturbed by unusual occurences.
Most horror films follow a typical story line of a lonely female alone in her house late at night, when either a phone or a door bell rings, an she happens to pick up the phone or answer the front door, only for the rest of the story to unravel from behind this. Much of the story line is predictable an typical of a horror film, eg, the female answering the front door, despite the logic of what is to happen next.
Horror films are also designed to elicit tension and suspense, taking the viewer through the agony and fear of the victim.
John Carpenter's "halloween", Wes Craven's "scream" and "The texas chainsaw massacre", all stick to these traditional conventions of horror films. All three male antagonists are evil personified, wear masks, chase helpless female protagonists and kill people with carving knives or other similar weapons.
Horror films are generally set in an idyllic suburban neighbourhood, which are the embodiment of hapiness and peace until stability is disturbed by unusual occurences.
Most horror films follow a typical story line of a lonely female alone in her house late at night, when either a phone or a door bell rings, an she happens to pick up the phone or answer the front door, only for the rest of the story to unravel from behind this. Much of the story line is predictable an typical of a horror film, eg, the female answering the front door, despite the logic of what is to happen next.
Codes and conventions of a thriller
Thrillers are types of films known to promote intense excitement, suspense, a high level of anticipation, ultra-heightened expectation, uncertainty, anxiety and nerve-wrecking tension.
The conventions of the thriller are to d with sound and editing:
eg, quick cuts and camera angle changes, music that gives tension and is passey when appropriate. It can be to do with lightng, especially the use of shadow, along with mirrors and stairs.
If the genre is to be strictly defined, a genuine thriller is a film that relentlessly pursues a single-minded goal to provide thrills and keeps the audience cliff-hanging at the "edge of their seats" as the plot builds towards a climax. The tension usually arisies when the main character (s) is placed in a menacing situation or mystery, or an escape or dangerous mission from which the escape seems impossible. Life is threatened, usually because the principal character is unsuspecting or unknowingly involved in a dangerous or potentially deadly situation. (Plots
of thrillers involve characters which come into conflict with each other or with oustide forces--the menace is sometimes abstract or shadowy.
They often take place wholly or partly in exotic settings such as foreign cities, deserts, Polar regions or high seas. Thrillers often overlap with mystery stories, but are distinguished by the structure of their plots.
Sub genres of a thriller are:
The conventions of the thriller are to d with sound and editing:
eg, quick cuts and camera angle changes, music that gives tension and is passey when appropriate. It can be to do with lightng, especially the use of shadow, along with mirrors and stairs.
If the genre is to be strictly defined, a genuine thriller is a film that relentlessly pursues a single-minded goal to provide thrills and keeps the audience cliff-hanging at the "edge of their seats" as the plot builds towards a climax. The tension usually arisies when the main character (s) is placed in a menacing situation or mystery, or an escape or dangerous mission from which the escape seems impossible. Life is threatened, usually because the principal character is unsuspecting or unknowingly involved in a dangerous or potentially deadly situation. (Plots
of thrillers involve characters which come into conflict with each other or with oustide forces--the menace is sometimes abstract or shadowy.
They often take place wholly or partly in exotic settings such as foreign cities, deserts, Polar regions or high seas. Thrillers often overlap with mystery stories, but are distinguished by the structure of their plots.
Sub genres of a thriller are:
- Action thriller - in which the work often features a race against the clock, contains lots of violence and an obvious antagonist.
- Spy thriller - in which the hero is generally a government agent who must take violent action against agents of a rival government or terrorists.
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