Section C, US Film comparative study.

Focus on

•  Double Indemnity (1944).

•  The last seduction (1993)

-Focus on the MACRO elements: Narrative / genre, character types, themes and issues.
-Context - Social, political and historical.

Conventions of film noir. 

• Film noir deals with money, sex and murder.
• Black and white, small budget, often produced by small companies.
• Narrative: Often an innocent guy with a stable life (job, relationship) - something happens to get him caught up in a situation he has no control over 'WHY ME?' - gets caught with a 'femme fatal' who often uses men for sex and forces them to help her to kill. 
• It's full of innuendo. 
• Haze code (heavy censorship).
• Strong female character - sexually confident, not afraid to kill.
• Main protagonist is a man, innocent, empathy from the audience - film is told from protagonists POV.
• Male gaze.
• Femme fatal - long fingernails (which resemble claws), smokes, long hair and tight clothing.
• Urban settings, shows places never seen before in film; hard, low key lighting.
• Most important element of film noir is the strong / empowered women - (femme fatal).
• Love takes the form of possession / obsession. 
• Lighting techniques are used to alter psychological response. 
• Foreground and background actors can't see each other, the foreground actor faces away from the background actor as they look at the back of the foreground actor's head.
• Film noir is reality - filmed on location. 
• Budget often determined the look of the film - used natural lighting. 
• Contrast between black and white / good and evil. 
• Cinematography - shows realism, hand held cameras make it seem more real - deep focus (being able to see the full environment) allowed scenes to be filmed without cutting. 
• Settings - on location, urban areas.
• Shows a dark side of America.
• Deals with issues like Holocaust / nuclear. 
• 1948 - 1959 was the film noir period. 
• 70's / 80's - film noir re-interest - best example - the last seduction.
• Love, violence and murder.
• Mean streets (1973) - attempt of film noir but in colour.
• Showing change in society - war, fear, return of men from the war - psychologically affected. 

A hard day's night 1964.

Focus on: Gender, sex / sexuality, age, class, youth and Britain.

Class.

• At the centre of the narrative is four working class heroes which is typical of most of these types of films from the 1960's.
• In terms of class, there were changing attitudes and the rise of the working class was evident in this film; this is illustrated with the scene on the train with 'the city gent'.
• Not only are these lads working class, but are from the north (Liverpool) - An area that had often been under represented in the media before.
• Class is often one of the areas that is showing conflict within the narrative. 

Age.

• The prominence of youth is evident in this film.
• In terms of the representation of age, the film, as with others are centered around young, male protagonists - again this shows the way in which youth had come to prominence during this period.
• Within the narrative, conflict is very much present between the 'lads' and the older generation - who want to keep them down and in their place - this can be seen to mirror many young people's experiences during the 1960s.
• The theme of freedom and breaking free is evident with the lads as with other films like Alfie. 
• An interesting challenge to the older generation with Paul's grandfather who is a mixer. 

Sex/Sexuality.

• The film does not really touch on issues to do with sex/sexuality as with other films of this period. The producers were deliberately doing this in order to gain a wider family audience for the group and to promote a 'clean cut' image.

Britain. 

• The film very much reinforces London as being the capital of swinging Britain, elements such as music, fashion, hairstyles all contribute to this.

--------

• The film touches on and makes fun of the new industries of the media and marketing which emerged in this period. 
• Link to part one on youtube : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkKra3_pfBY&feature=related

Part one -
there's a clear generation gap and the prominence of youth is easily identifiable, the 'lads' annoy the city gent and don't respect his wishes, asserting their dominance. The sequence starts with the Beatles running down the road in attempt to escape their fans - they then jump on a train where they end up in the carriage with 'a strange old man' who is Paul's grandfather - who is constantly referred to as a 'clean, old man' - a joke from a previous tv series which appeals to the older members of the audience.

Condensed Producers and Audience Notes.

• Hollywood studio system - golden age between 1930 and 1948. 
• 'Big five' - Paramount, Loew's , Fox, Warner Bros and RKO.
• Smaller companies - Columbia, universal and united artists. 
• Each studio was controlled by a mogul. 
• Paramount had more than 1,000 theatres - best hold over exhibition. 
• RKO  was the least commercially successful and no longer exists. 
• MGM - most famous at the time. 
• Studio system end after world war two - which led to a decline in cinema going.
• Advertising budgets are extremely high. 
• Most films don't break even.
  
  Key words: Production line model; vertical integration; the package; treatment; blockbuster / high concept film.
  
  • No guarantee of financial success.
  • Hollywood often 'repackage' already successful elements.
  • Of every 10 films made in Hollywood, 6 will lose money, one will break even, one will make a small profit, one making a significant profit and an extremely successful one. 
  • Success is measured by profits.
  • There are 3 stages to film making - production, distribution and exhibition.
  •  Whoever invests in a film has significant power over its outcome.
  • Script treatment - Detailed storylines, possible stars and location.
  • green lit means that the studio agrees to fund the next stage.

Revision poster :)

As a rule, I dislike action films - but I found this one quite amusing and I'd watch it again - it had more appeal than other action films as they're generally full of gun action and car chases which don't interest me - although this film had a more complex narrative which I enjoyed because it wasn't just centered around the fact that he was a secret spy - it showed his dedication to love and how he'd fight to protect kids who were against him from the start.

Goldfinger (1964)

Consider - gender, sex / sexuality, class, age, Britain.

• Sexual objectification of women. 
• In the 60s, young men and women went to see popular films - the actors were always good looking which meant that the audience were aspirational. 
• Men didn't want to commit to relationships.
• Often low key lighting. 
• Reinforces traditional male traits - gambling and sports. 
• Women are reliant to men. 
• Men are power hungry.
• Working class are given dominance.
• Every man for himself attitude. 
  

Gender.

• The representation of strong, empowered, independent women is evident with characters such as Pussy Galore more so than Alfie.
• Although the representation is still very sexual in terms of presentation (mise-en-scene) and also within the narrative - women are there for Bond's sexual pleasure.
• Clearly these representations tap into the new found freedom's for women.
• Men are still seen as dominant (Bond, M ,Q and Goldfinger) still in many respects representing a patriarchal society (run by men). 
• The characters of Bond along with Alfie still reinforce traditional ideas and values about women - men enjoy the more sexually relaxed attitude these women have to relationships but within a patriarchal society - see these types of women are seen as a threat on the whole. 

Sex

• These films along with Bond very much represents the more liberal / relaxed attitude towards sex during the 1960's however the films are not progressive in terms of treatment of sexuality - Pussy Galore (a lesbian) is turned by bond. 
• The film very much reinforces heterosexuality. 

Class.

• Although the character of James Bond is clearly middle - upper class at the time of social change and rise of the popular working class hero in film fiction - Connery, who was a Scot, from a working class background - makes the character have a wider appeal to both young women and men. 
• The other characters such as M, Q, and Miss Moneypenny still reinforce traditional class status quo.
• The Bond films which present a very exotic mixture of fast cars, women, gadgets and foreign locations taps into the aspirations that the younger generation has. 

Age.

• The films although perhaps does not present explicitly youth culture - does celebrate youthful values and ideas - the film does represent generational conflict as between Bond and M and Q.

Britain. 

• Britain is still seen as a world player (having significance) although now down to U.S. and Russia, However Britain being seen as 'cool' is obviously represented through Bond.

Hollywood.

refer to
http://www.suite101.com/content/hollywood-film-production-how-has-it-changed-a332841

and for the film history of the 1960's -
http://www.filmsite.org/60sintro.html


:)

Statistics about the British Film Industry.

Taken from the UK Film Council website.

• The core UK film industry now contributes approximately £4.3 billion per year to the UK economy – up by 50% since 2000, when the UK Film Council was created;
• In 2009 UK films took 7% of the global box office and 17% of the UK box office; Independent UK films took an 8.2% share of the UK box office, the highest figure of the last decade;
• UK film grossed $2 billion at the worldwide box office last year;
• UK box-office takings are at record-breaking levels, worth £944 million in the UK in 2009, up 62% from 2000;
• The overall territory box office gross for the UK and the Republic of Ireland exceeded £1 billion for the first time in 2009;
• UK Film Council investments in British films have been hugely successful – for every £1 we have invested, £5 has been generated at the box office;
• Over 173.5 million people went to the cinema in the UK in 2009 – up 31 million from 2000, the highest since 2002 and the second highest since 1971;
• The UK has more digital cinemas than any other European country – 365 and counting;
• Overall UK audiences had a far greater choice of films in 2009 – 503 films were released, 31% more than a decade ago;
• The UK film industry directly provides jobs for almost 44,000 people, with extended employment impact of 95,000 jobs;
• The film industry earns over £1.3 billion in export income from film rights and film production services;
• In 2009 alone, British films and talent scooped 36 awards.

British Film and Culture - Alfie (1965)

• Alfie is the protagonist.
• Male, early 20's, working class.
• These films had narratives that centered around these type of characters rather than middle aged, middle class males often seen in war films which were typical of British cinema in the 1950s.
• Alfie was portrayed as an anti-hero because of his behaviour - he also talks to the audience which makes the character seem more likable - his values and ideas about life and in particular his treatment of women is rather shocking.
• The casting of Michael Caine as Alfie and the breaking of the 4th wall means that the audience don't totally dislike him. 
• Alfie represents freedom of the 60s in terms of a very relaxed attitude towards sex.
• He's anti-marriage and really out for what he can get.
• He can also be seen to represent the beginning of the 'me' generation.
• The representation of female characters can be seen as progressive in some respects in terms of sexual behaviour although overall the women are presented in a negative manner apart from the doctor.
• The 1950's can be summed up using the word 'conservative' because at the time the Conservatives were in power and conservative in relation to the values of society. 
• It was a decade of social, political and cultural change.

Themes and Issues.

• The theme of sex and the fairly frank way it is dealt with in the narrative is something not really seen before in British Cinema, in particular themes to do with the 'pill' and abortion - very much reflects the period.  - the change in attitudes towards sex are more evident in the young rather than the older generation.
• 60's - working class became heroes - carpediem - seize the day. 
• Class - Class is represented as the working class being celebrated and showing little respect for the middle classes - a shift of dominance and power.
• The narrative at the end shows Alfie alone and reflecting on his behaviour coupled with the song 'what's it all about Alfie?' - the film can be seen to reinforce rather than challenge society's accepted values and norms to marriage and sex.
• Ruby very much turns the tables on Alfie and his sexual behaviour by seeing a younger guy.
• Some things are still taboo such as homosexuality. 
• The narrative represents London as being the place to be - where it's all going on - London is seen through the character of  Alfie as a place where anything is possible - a place of fun.
• Reinforces ideas of London's importance.
• The film's style represents elements from the kitchen sink dramas - gritty, realistic, urban, social issue narratives and the swinging sixties films - colourful, jazz / popular music soundtrack.
• Light comedy and reference to fashion.
• Kitchen sink drama are films that are domesticated and set around relationships.
• The film was backed by US film studio Paramount and represents Hollywood's confidence in the British film industry and also interest in this period.

Audience. 

• Alfie is aimed at a young (youth) audience - represents the way in with the media saw how commercially important  (£) youth culture was. 

Technology .

• IMAX - premium viewing experience.
• Blueray - Better image and film.
• Internet-  Great for advertising, downloading, marketing, creating hype and discussion.
• CGI - Computer generated images which make films a lot more dynamic, exciting and realistic.

-Computer games introduced new revenue for Hollywood - films are developed into video games.
-Digital cameras and editing -  advances in digital camera has improved the quality for film industries and made high-quality film making accessible to wider audience.

Producers and Audiences.

• High concept films - Post generic (hybrid) -  a combination of two or more different genres.
• Back in the 40's / 50's / 60's Hollywood movie making had pure genres e.g. gangstar. 
• British films, as a rule are not 'high concept'.
• Summary of post generic - hybrid genres - romance for girls - action for boys - generally one storyline.
• Extended montages - described like pop videos.
• All high concept films have soundtrack albums released as a marketing technique. 
• 1910 - the star was born. 
• A name on an advert make people view the film.
• Stars are mainly based on looks.
• Aspiration is key.
• Recent stars don't like to be classed as 'celebrities.'
• Stars are people who are limited to one genre - there's a difference between actors and stars - actor's aren't tight-casted.
• In the olden days - stars were taught how to act.
• People become stars because they're 'different'.
• Hollywood invented the star.
• The star is very important today.
• They have a lot more power than they used to contrasted to the 'golden era'.
• Financially stars do very well. 
• BUT they have limited choices within their film roles.
• Stars MUST be individual, have something about them that makes them stand out.
• Perfection is key for stars in terms of appearance.
• Stars in the past - most of them had jewish origins.
• Stars set an example to the public, generally the most popular stars have the 'ideal' appearance - people aspire to look like them. 
• Stars are 'tested' in different roles to see which they were most successful at.
• Screen persona is important.
• Nowadays the public want to know everything about the star.
• Their private lives were fake - just another role.
• They are forced to make a lot more sacrifices - e.g. leaving the family behind to travel abroad.
• Stars make the decisions not the companies.
• They are heavily involved in the production of the film.
• There careers can end quickly if: - they change their appearance dramatically. - they're a one hit wonder. - Immoral actions.

In summary -
- Key elements to a star is finding the right screen persona.
-Development and promotion of star image - creating the star.
-Have to develop the star - change personal image with the development of time.
-Keep going with work - keep yourself in the limelight.

The pitch / The script.

• A good pitch is saying it as if you've just made the film.
• End of days didn't do well - it didn't make half as much money - cost 160 million and only made 65 million.
• Each studio gets pitched 700 ideas a year - most of them lose money.
• Big studios need to earn more than 300 million dollars a year to make a profit.
• Cost 100 million dollars for blockbuster movies.

The script.

• The script is the key to a good film.
• Directors fight for an amazing script.
• Most scripts follow one of 7 core narratives.
• 370 million dollars made by 'there's something about Mary.' 

The green light

• The star of a movie is mainly what gets a movie green lit.

The star / Hollywood

• The stars are the people who 'sell' the film. 
• 10% of the profits go into the stars pockets.
• In the old days, Hollywood stars were under 7 year contracts and were told what to do (had little freedom)
• Directors - have a lot more control nowadays than they used to. 
• The producers - are there to keep everything on track.
• Most Hollywood films lose money.
• Lightening in a bottle illustrates how hard it is to create a successful film.
• Stars sell movies.
• The stars judgement isn't always the best one - most famous actors are generally tight-cast which means they tend to play the same character types over and over.
• Charlie's angles was directed by an inexperienced pop video director.
• It was doomed to fail but Columbia tried hard to get it back on track with 18 writers.
• 6 out of 10 movies fail.
• Out of these - one breaks even  - two make a little money - three make some money and four of them make a major profit.
• Bonfire of the vanities failed miserably. 
• Town and country- greatest flop of all time - took 100 million dollars to make but only made 6 million.
• Characters have to be likeable or movies fail.
• Failure effects everyone in Hollywood.
• Profit = success.
• Success is measured in 3 ways - Commercial  (money) , Artistic success (great movie visually) and Critical (critics reviews.)
• The story - they get ideas from books, magazines, video games, comic books and old TV shows.
• Dreamworks is owned by Steven Spielberg.
• Everybody within Hollywood production was stuck in 7 year contracts.
• Bill Mechanic was the Fox Studios chief for about 6 years.
• Summer is the season where Hollywood goes all out with film premières every week.
• Within 2-3 hours- Hollywood knows if a film is successful or a complete flop. 
• Everything rides on the opening weekend. 
• Top 10 films are reviewed every week.
• Internet is good and bad for Hollywood (good for advertisements but bad for reviews and bad publicity)
• Movies can lose 10 million in the first weekend if there's major lack of people.
• A film has to make 3 times as much as production to break even.
• Production takes 15 hours a day, 5 days a week for a 12 week total. 
• It costs up to half a million dollars a day in production for a Hollywood film.
• Pay and play system is when Hollywood employs the best actors to participate in their films - and even if the film fails, the actor still has to be paid.
• It cost 100 million dollars to make Gladiator.
• The sets and the play and pay contracts cost 10 million dollars.
• The star gets 10% of the money that the film makes.
• Within the last 20 years, actors have become more picky and demanding about the content of the scripts.

Testing.

• Test screen - showing a film before the première to gage how successful a film is going to be in advance.
• Independence day - number one hit of 1996.
• Negative feedback from test screening can mean re-shooting many scenes.
• 267 million at box office -my best friend's wedding - 6 brand new scenes were shot after testing.
  
  Marketing.
• Stars have a limited screen persona - can only stick to one genre and character type.
• Actors / actresses aren't limited - they can play a number of different roles.
• 50-150 million goes into marketing.
• Hannibal took 350 million at the box office.
• 2 types of posters - taster and proper poster.
• Posters have 2 second reads.
• 5 minute interviews with main stars - showed on a number of different channels to same target audience.
• There was problems with the production of Doctor Doolittle because Eddie Murphy was found with a transvestite prostitute which could have put the production in complete jeopardy
• Titanic went way over budget (by 30 million) and cost Fox a total of 150 million to produce but it made 1.8 billion dollars so it was one of the best selling films of all time. 
• The producer's role is to make sure that everything runs smoothly.

Editing.

Editing creates emotion within the audience.

• Intercutting - Bringing two shots together that aren't related - e.g. fire brigade and place of fire.
• Linear editing-  Where a film starts at the beginning and has a clear middle and end. 
• Non-linear editing - A film that doesn't start at the beginning.

-Establishing shot - put in to set the scene.
-Eyeline match - when the setting is established and the characters eyes meet the camera.
-Match on action - editing shots of the same action to gain suspense.
-Cross cutting - Two scenes of action - cutting between them.
-Elliptical editing - Editing out the boring bits and just keeping main points.
-Montage editing - Showing the development over time or editing shots together that wouldn't have an impact individually but work well together.
-Shot reverse shot - Cutting backwards and forwards between two characters to add focus.

Styles -

• Straight cut.
• Jump cut (interrupting an action)
• Dissolve in / out.
• Graphic match cut - one image dissolving into another that are related which are cut and matched together.

Sound:

• Sound can set the right atmosphere, mood, time and place. It can develop the story and inform us about the characters.
• There are two types of sound:
• Diegetic- sounds that characters can hear within the film.
• Non-diegetic - sounds that characters don't hear e.g. voice over.
• Sound track has many features:
• Dialogue.
• Sound effects from within the film created by foley artists.
• Music.

Cinematography Continued..

-Camera movements - convey identity and place.

• Pan - moving right to left steadily showing surroundings.
• Tilt - movement of the camera from top to bottom (vertically.)
• Hand held camera - camera is much more fluid, no fixed means of support. 
• Tracking shot - horizontal movement of the camera usually on a 'dolly' on tracks.
• Crane shot - Camera can be raised / lowered - zoom in and out on a crane.

-Camera angles - conveys power. 

• High - conveys vulnerability
• Medium - conveys everyday life.
• Low - conveys power / authority.
  
  -Camera focus - conveys atmosphere.
  -soft focus - not well defined, gives a sense of romance / unconsciousness.
  -Hard focus - really well defined, gives a feeling of seriousness.

Cinematography

Camera shots (convey emotion).

Swinging Sixties - British Cinema 1963-1973

60'S = CHANGE = CONFLICT.


What was British society like in the 1960's?

• Centered around a young protagonist.
• Decade of opportunity and ambition.
• Hard working, little pay.
• The pub was popular.
• Men seem careless, women stand up for themselves.
• Full of gossip.
• Parents leave their children at home to go to the pub.
• Men are often drinking alcohol.
• Marriage is important. 
• Young people were prominent .
• Decade for young people - central character is young.
• 60's was a decade of change.
• Hardly no morals / conflict.
• Emphasis on fashion - reaching out to the young target audience.
• Young people often spoke their mind and offended people as a result.
• Marriage is a must, divorce is difficult.
• Decline in cinema-going.
• Sexual revolution begun.
• Homosexuality = prison.
• 1967 - homosexuality was legalized.
• Sex is used to sell (advertisements / film)
• Conflict between generations - young / old.
• 1967 - Abortion was made legal.
• Carry on features nudity for the first time

Black and white film 'Saturday night, Sunday morning'

• Drama dealing with real issues, realistic.
• New wave /kitchen sink drama.
• Stars Albert Finney.
• Set in Nottingham.
• About a man who works in a factory.
• Working class guy.
• Gritty, realistic.
• Increased use of hand-held cameras.

Compared to the 1950's.

• People knew their place in society,rigid structure in terms of class.
• Strict moral codes.
• Sex before marriage was wrong.
• Abortions were illegal - marriage was solution
• Safe, dull,conservative, drab and homophobic.

What is a british film?
- Set in the past.
-Low budget.
-Music over footage doesn't extend narrative.
-Lack of special effects.
-No 'stars'
-Very character based.
-More complex narrative.
-Flashbacks.
-British funding.
-British actors.
-Represents aspects of Britain / multi-cultural society.
-Humour / Irony. 
-Relatively dark.
-Normally based on events/ books.
-Historic / periodic films.
-Story has to be to do with Britain.
-Has to look British (setting)
-Britich director / screenwriter.

What are the problems that the British film industry has?
-Stuck on a relatively low budget.
-Lack of famous actors to promote films.
-Promotion isn't a strong point of the British film industry.
-Often boring settings.

Kramer vs Kramer

Task:Think about how the representation of men has changed since the 1980's.

*Kramer vs Kramer.

-Breaking down of marraige -> divorce.

-Men are materialistic.

-Care about commitments.

-Dismissive of wife.

-Doesn't appreciate what he has until it's gone.

-Sadness = anger.

-Men are useless in the kitchen.

-Caring of children.

-Shows emotion.

-Reinforces expected gender roles (Ted Kramer)

-Joanna leaves her son - never been seen before - rejects stereotypical role.

-Ted Kramer becomes more sensitive and challenges the stereotypical representation of men.

Alfie. (1965)

-No respect for women,refers to her as 'it'.

-Men are insulting towards men.

-'She's a standby and she knows it and any bird who knows their place can be quite content.'

-Married women appears 'loose' and 'easy' -shows sexual revolution.

-London looked very traditional (big, red busses; postboxes etc.

-Reinforces expected gender roles.

-Male dominance.

-Class - Lower class can't look after their children as well as rich people can. 

-Everyone for themselves attitude.

-Ideas of commitment,marriage and romance is made fun of if represented by men.

-Promotes a negative representation of women - just as sexual objects.

-Men show a lack of commitment in relationships.

-Women are portrayed as wanting love in a relationship compared to men who just want fun with no commitments.
-Individual.
-Doesn't care about boundaries.
-Characters are frank about sex - it signaled the beginning of the sexual revolution.
-Doesn't take life too seriously.
-Men have the same, swept to the side hairstyle.
-Dress conservatively.
-Married women weren't off limits.
-Persuasive tone.
-Addresses women as 'girl' - not respectful enough to use their names.
-Not keen on settling down.
-Unwanted pregnancy-common.
-Abortion is shown to be immoral. 
-Men are demanding and assert their authority.
-Imply that women are dumb and easy.
-Refer to women as 'it'- no respect.
-Insults women.
-'Women know their place'
- Recommend stealing.

Alfred Hitchcock's 'Strangers on a train'

1st film ever made that dealt with stalking - made in the 1950's.

Use mise-en-scene to identify the characters Bruno and Guy.

Costume.

• Two main characters are both wearing suits which shows they're wealthy.
• Guy's wife wears a traditional dress, shows she's not well off.
• Bruno has his name embroided on his tie.

Figure / facial expression.

• Bruno gives direct eye contact when talking, creates a sincere message.
• Guy feels uncomfortable talking to his wife, he stands quite far away from her.
• Guy's response to being told about his wife's murder - he put on a shocked expression even though he already knew.

Lighting

• Frontal lighting is used - it's quite flat, low key soft lighting which gives the scene an everyday life feel.
  
  Setting
• Sat on a busy train got their own private seating area which shows wealth.

Props.

• Alcohol and food, condiments etc well furnished objects, again shows wealth.
• Cigarette lighter - used to implement Guy in the murder.

- The film is about two guys who meet in a train 'Guy and Bruno' who plot to murder each-others 'inconveniences' - After Guy's wife was murdered by Bruno, Bruno expects Guy to kill his father in return for his 'favour' but Guy refuses.

Bruno. 

• Costume - Smart, formal, personalised . tie, hat-  conceal identity. 
• His tie outlines his connection with his mum. 
• Facial expression: happy, over the top, angry, conceals his emotions.
• Lighting - Dark and mysterious.
• Props - Lighter, hat, glasses.
• Balcony shows that he has no boundaries.
• Hammer - Shows his strength.

Guy.

• Music - fast paced - tennis.
• Costume - formal, smart, blends in, plain, suit - expresses his individualism.  
• Simplistic, plain shoes.
• Facial expression - quite serious, worried, always alert.
• Lighting - Natural, symbolises normal life.
• Props = Lighter - his job. 
• Gun - pulls in and out of pocket , contrast between good and evil.

Lighting.

High key lighting - Very brightly lit, everything is clear.
Low key lighting - Small amount of light, not everything is clear.
Hard lighting - Focused on a certain thing that casts a define shadow.
Soft lighting - Shadow casts but not so well defined.

Lighting effects.
Frontal lighting - flat, not very well defined.
Side lighting - casts shadow over half a person / object = sculpts the object.
Back lighting - Can't see features but have clearly defined outline.
Under lighting - Features appear bigger - things appear more sinister.
Top lighting -  Sculpting the object, casts shadows, creates a good effect.


The letter - starring Bette Davis.

• After the shooting under lighting was used on the shooter to make her seem more sinister and when it zoomed in on her face the lighting changed to top lighting which cast a shadow over half of her face suggesting that she's unpredictable with her motives.
• When alerting the police about the shooting the police officers face is well defined because under lighting was being used - this is effective because it shows his response much clearer.
• Low key, hard lighting was used during the murder scene  - the moon goes behind the cloud and them comes back out which brings focus on the characters.

Figure Expression.

Movement of the body and facial expression.

The shining. 

• Woman (Wendy) is very emotional and on edge, heavy breathing and running away, wide watery eyes, shows she's scared.
• Man (Mr Torrents) is wary about entering rooms, moves slowly and cautiously looks around the corner - two personalities, emotionless, empty, lethargic, heavy looks mentally and physically exhausted. He becomes more animated, his body language and figure expression show his mental state.

Casino. - Robert De Niro's Character.

• Stands as if he has authority. 
• Maintains an emotionless expression on his face so others can't read him. 
• Runs a casino. 
• He's persuasive.
• Has a trustworthy tone of voice.
• Smokes in every scene, shows he has money.
• Maintains eye contact - intimidating.
• Thinks about his response to situations - constantly has a 'thinking' face contemplating his next move.
  

Use of props and lighting.

The avengers.

•  The use of lighting when 'mother' is talking is dimmed - makes him seem more sinister.
• Props used by John Steed, pocket watch, umbrella, hat and car.
• Has high morals.
• Upper class.
• Traditional.
• Professional.
• Very English (personality)
• Showing the stereotype of an English man and how a spy acts - umbrella shows that he's prepared.
• Associated with British weather, well made , traditional. 
• Classic Bentley car - traditional, expensive, classy.

Dr Emma Peel.

• Sophisticated.
• Independent.  
• Modern.
• Cultured.
• Prop = Sunglasses - gives mystery, reinforces her being sophisticated.
• Piano and flowers  shows she's sophisticated.

Costume, make up and hairstyle.

Annie Wilks - Misery.

• Very practical, does everything for herself.
• Follows a simple life - shown through make up and costume.
• She's a moral, religious person.
• Traditional.
• Her hair is away from her face, suggests she's organised.
• Boring hairstyle.
• Wears dull coloured clothing.
• Obsessive.
• Possessive, controlling.
• Hardly any make up suggests she doesn't care for her appearance or wants to be noticed.
• She dresses quite old fashioned and concealed which suggests she's not an open person / conservative.
• She's a nurse.
• Believes in God (wears a cross necklace)
• She's reassuring.
• The way she's dressed reflects her lifestyle.
• Not very confident, has low self esteem.
• Little social interaction.
• She's not sophisticated.
• Urban and rural clash between her and Paul Sheldon (the writer.)
• Isn't vain.

SWEET CHARITY. 

• bright coloured hair and make up - wearing red necklace and earrings to match her lipstick.
• Wears a black dress to contrast the red.
• Has a tattoo on her arm -  this shows that she's adventurous.
• Wears dull coloured clothes in public do she doesn't get noticed but when at work she wears bright colours to get noticed and attract attention of 'clients'.
• Confident on the outside but vulnerable on the inside.
• Wears revealing clothes.
• Quite feminine.
• Her clothes reflect that she isn't very wealthy.
• Has a bubbly personality / is optimistic.
• Where the film was set, people with tattoos were seen as criminals.
• Loose morals / easy going.
• Represents the new generation.

Film Language.

Mise-en-scene.
--> Setting, costume, make up, props, lighting, figure / facial expression.

What does the setting in '9 to 5' tell us about the characters.
- It looks quite run down and compact that suggests that the characters are middle class.
-Set in a big city, in the 1980's.
-The setting where the women and the men are have contrasting colours - the women have to work in a pale white / grey which isn't very inviting compared to the men who work in a dark, wooden, decorated area which is inviting and warmer.
-In this film it is about the conflict between men and women and their roles in society.

Fight Plan.

Character played by Jodie Foster.
-Protective of her small daughter.
-Smartly dressed - successful.
-Moving to New York with her daughter.
-Works as an engineer.
-Her husband died and she's been taking anxiety pills ever since.
-A troubled person - shown through figure / facial expression.
-Her world was her family and her job - shown through figure/facial expression and dialogue.
-Isolated person - shown through setting, lighting, cinematography, figure / facial expression.
-Very protective - seen through figure / facial expression.
-Serious shown through facial expression, costume and make up.
-A professional woman shown through costume make up and figure expression.
-Anxious and on edge - figure / facial expression.

Film Language -Kramer vs Kramer.

Men and womens traits and values are expressed well in this film.

Ted Kramer is portrayed as being/having:
-Poor time management.
-Dismissive of his wife and family. 
-Argumentative.
-Believes he's most important.
-Blames other people for things.
-Finds it hard without Joanna.
-Too committed to his work. 
-Confident, slightly arrogant (through his body language and facial expressions.
-Mainly seen in work environment.
-Has an affectionate side towards Billy. (body language)
-Works in advertising, does well in life.
-Fairly successful - costume, props and setting.
-At times, camera shots portray his loneliness.
-His sadness is portrayed through anger.

COMPARED TO HIS WIFE JOANNA.
-Sensitive.
-Stands up for what she believes in.  
-Confused about her feelings but not scared to show her true emotions.
-Walked out on her son.
-Protective.
-Insecure.
-Unstable.
-Emotional.
-Low self esteem. (shown through body language and facial expression)
-Conservative,dull person shown through costume, make-up and hairstyle.
-Quite successful.

WJEC - The exam board for film studies.
Useful websites:

• Yale film studies.
• BBC Film programme.
• Mark Kermode film reviews.
• Screenonline.org.uk
• filmeducation]
• IMDB
• Empire magazine.
• Media guardian.