Thursday, 27 January 2011
Secrets and Lies-FIVE
Mise-en-scene: Dog placed on a table with a red cloth, which matches the red clothing of the owner, shows a connection between them. Also has a dog on her jumper, showing she must have a big love of dogs. Stands out from the rest of the scene. Central to the scene. Dog looks relaxed, despite the excitable owner combing the dog, fussing over him.
Light and Sound: Owner talking and fidgeting noise. Camera click and flash.
Britishness: Lady proud of her dog. Britsh people with dog as a mans best friend.
Color: Red blanket stands out. Blanket matches the woman's clothing, shows the focus on these two characters.
Stereotypical: Owner fussing over her pet. Proud of her dog.
Secrets and Lies-FOUR
Mise-en-scene: Wearing white clothing to show the angelic mood of the scene. Baby does not look very comfortable and is very small so is not very old. The baby isn't wearing anything, and along with the white background shows purity of the scene and the new born baby.
Light and Sound: White light is used to seem happy and angelic. New baby gives a ‘happy glow’. Click and flash of the camera. Bright, filler lights from the side to soften the faces and add more 'glow' to the scene. Make the two characters seem more angelic with softer faces.
Britishness: English accent.
Color: White and pure. All concentration on the characters in the centre.
Stereotypical: Stereotypical happy glow from the new mother.
Secrets and Lies-THREE
Mise-en-scene: Woman dressed as a stereotypical nurse. Her body language is stiff and serious, showing her approach to her job, as she stands behind a chair which is there as a prop for the picture. Facial expressions are serious and showing no emotion; she isn't easily amused and works in a serious role in her job. Only smiles quickly when the photographer says a joke.
Light and Sound: flashes of light when the picture takes, same as before, natural light is used the rest of the time.
Britishness : stereotypical nurse and outfit.
Color: the lady's blue dress stands out and shows the character is the focus of the scene, not the chair.
Stereotypical: Nurse; serious looking and takes their job seriously
Secrets and Lies-TWO
Mise en scene: stereotypical clothing for a boxer; boxing gloves and shorts. Facial expressions show aggression and enthusiasm and passion about his boxing. No hair or make up, its kept simple to show he just concentrates on the boxing. Smiles in between photos to show he’s proud of himself and his work, most likely vain.
Sound and light: flashes of light when the picture takes. Rest of the scene is naturally lit.
Britishness: not applicable.
Color : the gloves and shorts are bright red, so they stand out and are the main focus in the scene to show what the character is doing.
Stereotypes: black man boxing
Secrets and Lies-ONE
Mise en scene: Dated clothing and hairstyles, show date of film. Formally dressed except the child. Dressed scruffily and casually. Stereotypically stood, the mother is more enthusiastic than the rest of the family and the grandmother doesn’t really look like she knows what’s going on. Women look like they’ve made an effort to wear make up. Grandmother is wearing glasses shows her age. Mother is in the centre of the shot to show she’s central to the family and she’s the only one that is enthusiastic about it as she keeps talking to the photographer. Father and son are hiding behind the mother showing thy don’t really want to be there and feel awkward and ‘protected’ by the mother and grandmother. Facial expressions on the son make him look fed up and bored. The father keeps pulling faces and deep breathing to show he’s preparing himself to pretend he wants to be there and that he is fed up of being fussed over about his tie and papers in his pocket. The mother is smiling and over the top with her emotions to show her enthusiasm about the picture and the grandmother looks confused about where she's meant to be and laughs randomly.
Sound and Light: Classic photographic lighting studio, sets the scene. Standard lighting with filler light on the side to soften the faces. People talking and its as if we’re overhearing the conversation. Flash of the camera and the sound of a camera clicking shows the audience a picture has been taken.
Britishness: Classic family. Mum, dad, child and grandmother. The way they’re dressed. Their accent. Mother is head of family and in control. Son is fed up.
Color: two characters that are fed up with it are wearing dull colours and the other two characters are wearing more vibrant colours to show their more enthusiastic approach to the picture.
Thursday, 20 January 2011
Children of Men Essay
Children of Men, released in 2006, directed by Alfonso Cuaron and featuring Julianne Moore and Clive Owen, is set in London in 2027, where the human race can no longer procreate. The opening shows the changes in the world, helping to establish and help the audience understand what is going on in this time on Planet Earth.
Even from the beginning of the opening sequence, the audience are able to hear news reporters reading out news headlines that inform the audience on what's happened in recent years, setting the scene for the rest of the film, in just the first few seconds. These voices are heard whilst there is nothing visual on the screen, the screen is black, which also makes it easier for the audience to concentrate on what is being said.
The last news headline we hear, as the shot changes into a shot of what appears to be a cafe, is one about the youngest child in the world being killed, just aged eighteen. This is very confusing to the audience as it begins to make them ask questions, such as why the youngest person is only eighteen and why so many people have crammed into a small cafe to watch this one news story.
Clive Owens character, Theo Faron, is seen entering the cafe, pushing past the crowds, drawing the audiences attention to him, which makes him considered to be a main character in this film. This is made more definite when the camera moves forward to follow Theo out of the cafe and into the street.
Out on the street, the differences that 2027 holds compared to modern day London are more apparent, helping to set the scene of the film even more so that the scene in the cafe with the news.
The whole mood of the scene is dark and miserable, with lots of pollution and no real, natural light around. There isn't much colour present except for a few dull blue colours and some red in posters and the typical red London buses, the rest is dark greys and blacks. Along with this is the familiar city sounds of car engines and horns that the audience can relate to if they've ever been to a large city or watched other films or television programmes featuring a large city. The camera continues to follow Clive Owens character outside and pans round him to face back the way the character had just come from. This then means the camera can see the explosion from the cafe and using a point of view shot, runs back towards the explosion to show the chaos that has ensued after the explosion with other characters also running around in terror and confusion.
The explosion is the last thing to be seen in the opening sequence, so this adds more questions to the audiences minds, making them want to watch more of the film.
There is also only ever two cuts throughout the opening sequence, keeping the audiences attention where the director has intended and they cannot get confused, if there is more than one shot being focused on, which here there is not.
Most of the sound is non-diegetic and builds up the suspense of the opening sequence and is cut short as the explosion goes off, expressing the impact of it in the audiences mind.
Personally, i was instantly hooked to the film, asking all the questions i believe were encoded into this sequence by the writers and director. I want to watch the rest of the film to know what's going to happen and why the explosion had taken place in the first place.
Even from the beginning of the opening sequence, the audience are able to hear news reporters reading out news headlines that inform the audience on what's happened in recent years, setting the scene for the rest of the film, in just the first few seconds. These voices are heard whilst there is nothing visual on the screen, the screen is black, which also makes it easier for the audience to concentrate on what is being said.
The last news headline we hear, as the shot changes into a shot of what appears to be a cafe, is one about the youngest child in the world being killed, just aged eighteen. This is very confusing to the audience as it begins to make them ask questions, such as why the youngest person is only eighteen and why so many people have crammed into a small cafe to watch this one news story.
Clive Owens character, Theo Faron, is seen entering the cafe, pushing past the crowds, drawing the audiences attention to him, which makes him considered to be a main character in this film. This is made more definite when the camera moves forward to follow Theo out of the cafe and into the street.
Out on the street, the differences that 2027 holds compared to modern day London are more apparent, helping to set the scene of the film even more so that the scene in the cafe with the news.
The whole mood of the scene is dark and miserable, with lots of pollution and no real, natural light around. There isn't much colour present except for a few dull blue colours and some red in posters and the typical red London buses, the rest is dark greys and blacks. Along with this is the familiar city sounds of car engines and horns that the audience can relate to if they've ever been to a large city or watched other films or television programmes featuring a large city. The camera continues to follow Clive Owens character outside and pans round him to face back the way the character had just come from. This then means the camera can see the explosion from the cafe and using a point of view shot, runs back towards the explosion to show the chaos that has ensued after the explosion with other characters also running around in terror and confusion.
The explosion is the last thing to be seen in the opening sequence, so this adds more questions to the audiences minds, making them want to watch more of the film.
There is also only ever two cuts throughout the opening sequence, keeping the audiences attention where the director has intended and they cannot get confused, if there is more than one shot being focused on, which here there is not.
Most of the sound is non-diegetic and builds up the suspense of the opening sequence and is cut short as the explosion goes off, expressing the impact of it in the audiences mind.
Personally, i was instantly hooked to the film, asking all the questions i believe were encoded into this sequence by the writers and director. I want to watch the rest of the film to know what's going to happen and why the explosion had taken place in the first place.
Wednesday, 19 January 2011
Pillow Talk vs. Fringe
Both extracts from 'Pillow Talk' and 'Fringe' show didn't styles of editing and pace. Pillow Talk was released in 1959, directed by Michael Gordon and featured Rock Hudson and Doris Day. This factor contributes greatly to the different styles of the editing as the way movies and television series are filmed has changed over time, as technology has changed and better equipment is used, as 'Fringe' was broadcast in 2008, over 50 years after Pillow Talk.
The pace and editing of both extracts also backs up this point about technology, as Fringe has almost double the amount of cuts as Pillow Talk, making the pace a lot less slow and boring for the audience and also because of the fact that the technology in 1959 may not have allowed the editors of Pillow Talk to create such a fast, flowing pace.
The pace and editing of both extracts also backs up this point about technology, as Fringe has almost double the amount of cuts as Pillow Talk, making the pace a lot less slow and boring for the audience and also because of the fact that the technology in 1959 may not have allowed the editors of Pillow Talk to create such a fast, flowing pace.
In’ Pillow Talk’ the camera keeps the whole room in shot while two characters are talking and stays at a mid-shot throughout. We, as an audience, see the whole conversation from an onlooker’s point of view, whereas the extract from ‘Fringe’ cuts between two people to see the point of view of the characters and for us to see the facial expressions and reactions of the characters as the conversation takes place. They use straight cuts between the two characters to show the quick pace of exchange between the two people and adds more interest and intensity to the scenes for the viewer.
The colours used in both extracts affects the mood and emotions of the scene and of the characters. For example, Pillow Talk uses much more colour then Fringe which uses more dull, subtle shades. The red of the ladies dress in Pillow Talk helps add to the love aspect of the scene and the fact that this character is central to this scene and needs to be focused on because the audiences eyes are instantly drawn to her. The use of such a vibrant colour can also suggest the characters feelings and that she wants to stand out from the crowd. The use of darker colours in Fringe makes the scene more sinister and serious, helping to establish the mood of the television programme, letting the audience know what can be expected later on. It also makes the characters seem like they aren't wanting to stand out, they'd rather hang back from the crowd and stay hidden almost.
From an audiences point of view, both extracts are looked at very differently. Fringe can come across as being a bit too full on for some people who aren't used to it and can make some people feel as if they need to keep up with the quick pace and feel as if they aren't able to which can put them off. However, for others it can bring excitement and be more intensity if they like the sci-fi genre. On the other hand Pillow Talk can make the audience feel more at ease with its more relaxed pace and style of editing and not feel like they have to keep up with it constantly, this also has its flaws as some viewers may find this boring and will stop watching after a while.
For it's time, Pillow Talk was an excellent film, but as technology changes so does the audience and what they want to see within a film. So, nowadays audience would find something such as Pillow Talk less appealing than something like Fringe that is more interesting in the style it's been made and appeals more to younger people who have grown up with films and television programmes edited in this way, unlike an older generation who would have been used to more slow paced scenes, with very few cuts.
Overall, the two extracts, 'Pillow Talk' and 'Fringe', are very different in the pace and style of editing, due to their target audience and changes in technology. If Pillow Talk were modernised or Fringe was made in a similar time to Pillow Talk, there wouldn't be a lot of difference except for genre. However, the quick, non-stop cuts and zooms throughout the extract from Fringe, make this a much more interesting and enjoyable watch for the modern day audience.
The colours used in both extracts affects the mood and emotions of the scene and of the characters. For example, Pillow Talk uses much more colour then Fringe which uses more dull, subtle shades. The red of the ladies dress in Pillow Talk helps add to the love aspect of the scene and the fact that this character is central to this scene and needs to be focused on because the audiences eyes are instantly drawn to her. The use of such a vibrant colour can also suggest the characters feelings and that she wants to stand out from the crowd. The use of darker colours in Fringe makes the scene more sinister and serious, helping to establish the mood of the television programme, letting the audience know what can be expected later on. It also makes the characters seem like they aren't wanting to stand out, they'd rather hang back from the crowd and stay hidden almost.
From an audiences point of view, both extracts are looked at very differently. Fringe can come across as being a bit too full on for some people who aren't used to it and can make some people feel as if they need to keep up with the quick pace and feel as if they aren't able to which can put them off. However, for others it can bring excitement and be more intensity if they like the sci-fi genre. On the other hand Pillow Talk can make the audience feel more at ease with its more relaxed pace and style of editing and not feel like they have to keep up with it constantly, this also has its flaws as some viewers may find this boring and will stop watching after a while.
For it's time, Pillow Talk was an excellent film, but as technology changes so does the audience and what they want to see within a film. So, nowadays audience would find something such as Pillow Talk less appealing than something like Fringe that is more interesting in the style it's been made and appeals more to younger people who have grown up with films and television programmes edited in this way, unlike an older generation who would have been used to more slow paced scenes, with very few cuts.
Overall, the two extracts, 'Pillow Talk' and 'Fringe', are very different in the pace and style of editing, due to their target audience and changes in technology. If Pillow Talk were modernised or Fringe was made in a similar time to Pillow Talk, there wouldn't be a lot of difference except for genre. However, the quick, non-stop cuts and zooms throughout the extract from Fringe, make this a much more interesting and enjoyable watch for the modern day audience.
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