Blade runner Techniques and main message

Erik Meyer

sleeper movie analysis

com  101 and 103

In the movie sleeper by Woody Allen, the film conveys a message or theme that we cannot predict the future. The film uses certain techniques  to get this message across to the viewer. Woody Allen of course, does this in a humorous , and somewhat serious way by putting political, and social references in the film that the viewers can understand at the time.

Some references that he used for example was when miles is delusional and is acting like Blanche dubois and luna is acting like stanley kowalski, them playing reverse gender roles makes it hilarious and  streetcar desire was a pretty well known book/play at the time. Also the leader for their government is similar to hitler in a way in that it shows him with a german shepard, (hitlers dog) Also all the police, security and guards, scientist and people have to obey to his law. Another war world reference was when miles had to be the robotic butler at a party and one of the guests at the party was wearing a swastika symbol on his shirt. another political reference wa when miles told luna not to follow the underground leaders plan and not to go back to him because either way leaders of different forms are always going to want something that the other leader despises.

Some social references he put in there were the orb at the party, that was representing hallucinogenic drugs. Also  When miles comes across the sex machine, and him and luna are talking about sex, luna mentions they teach you how to perform sex in school just in case the machine breaks down, also that she has a P.H.D. in oral sex. Another scene when miles tries to retrieve food and grabs enormous fruits and vegetables, conveyed the meaning if we could genetically modify food like that in the future . Another funny scene was when the government wanted to clone the leader back using just his nose. Also as soon as the movie starts out there unwrapping aluminum foil off of miles, thats when viewers know from the starts that it is a comedy.  Him putting these ideas/ references in the movie creates humor.

Some techniques that were used to create a feel and flow to the movie were all the transition shots from one area to the next. This made it clear where they were and did not confuse the viewer. There were some scenes where lighting help create a more serious or less serious mood, it also made some buildings inside look vast with deep space and the police chase scenes where flat which helped add to the funny factor of seeing the police chase miles. Also when  miles was getting chased by the police they would speed everything up to give it more action and humor and the police kept blowing themselves up. Also there was an interesting use of color in the film. The police were  orange/red color which represented conflict. Most citizens and scientist wore white, which represented  wealth and convenience of an easy life. The security and guards were all wearing black, which also symbolized conflict and that they worked for the leader. Most of the city buildings were square and had vertical lines in them that represented strength and power of their government.

The director uses a variety of elements like shape, lines, colors,affinity and contrast of tone,and lighting to create the film, this is what make the film the way it is and helps convey the idea that we cannot predict the future.

Fahrenheit 451 movie techniques and elements used

Erik Meyer

Fahrenheit 451 movie analysis

103

In the movie Fahrenheit 451 the director uses certain techniques and elements of visual language to help show the message of the film; that knowledge is power and that a government could take away the power of their citizens.

In the film the director uses irony to help construct the film. Instead of the firemen going around helping, saving people, and putting out fire, they are doing the exact opposite. In a sense the fireman are the police in this film, they go around and make sure nobody has any reading material, or knowledge. The film uses color to help show this. All the firemen are in black a color that represents pure destruction and evil. In some scenes were walls are yellow, it usually means something bad is going to happen, its caution. Where there are scenes where their are red walls or a lot of red in the environment surrounding the characters there is usually conflict.

Another technique they use are the reaction shots of the characters and close ups to add action, suspense, or distress. It shows what the character is thinking and feeling at that moment in time, it lets us tune in and understand that character, putting the viewers in the characters point of view. There was also transition shots and shots of the environment to show the viewers where the characters were, the setting of the movie.

Lighting is also another element that is used. In scenes where the firemen go inside Houses or libraries to find hidden books the lighting is low to create a tension, raise the action and show the viewers that something is going to happen. This something is the firemen throwing the books on the ground and  them all on fire. Then the fire with low lighting, symbolizes destruction and evil, and corruption of the government.

The director also use an high affinity of tone between all the firemen by them all wearing black. There is also of course a high contrast of tone between the fire fighters and the civilians.

The director uses visual language to show that knowledge is power and that a government can help take that away, the director uses lighting, tone, and color different kinds of shots with the camera to show this. This why the film is the way it is and why visual language is important to a film

Break down of Marty Friedman's music video Hyper Doom

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tPny5Bx-LLs   

So just To give a little info on Marty Friedman, He was the guitarist for a band called Megadeth  from 1989 to 2000, He was also in a band called cacophony. Although hyper doom is a short video, there is  lot of cool shots in this. First I would like to start by pointing out how the shots go with the rhythm of the song frequently. This happens especially in the begining. Around 0:27 the song starts building climatically, and tenses up, the shots also add to the intensity as each chord changes so does the shot.Around 0:50 the pace of the song slows and there id a shot of the band bumping fists then there's is a couple of shot transitioning them form back stage to on the stage, there is also a pick slide that goes along with the pace of the shots, it was also a transition point for one part of the song to the next. Then you see a lot of quick shots of each member at the pace of the song along with the audience and showing fans having an awesome time. You can also notice there is some white crooked lines in the shots almost making it look like old film, it was an interesting touch. There was also different  colors of rays of light that panned with each shot. I also notice throughput the video there numerous settings were the video was shot. Through out the video It transitions to different settings. One was the stairwell, another one was the back stage, the stage, outside in front of buildings and outside on the streets. Another thought that comes in to play is what kind of music video would people think of that has no words to it, this song was an instrumental. This is also why it varies from so many other music videos, and its only two minutes long. The video was filmed on his European tour, so it was a bunch of various mixed up shots from different venues and places. I think it was well composed for its purpose but, im also surprise that he would release a two minute music video. Some of his other videos ranged from 4 to 7 minutes long, so this one seemed kin dove random for the length of it at least, but it was intended. Overall I think its  great video,, I also wonder how many shots they had to compress in to a two minute time period, come to think of it it almost sounds a little difficult. There is a great amount of shots in the video too . When you watch this video it could seem jumpy at first even know there are a lot of shots but once again it goes with the rhythm really really well. As the song speeds up so do the shots, as the video sloes down so o the shots. Tell me what you guys think was it even worth shooting a two minute video, How many shots do you think were selected but not used, or overall how many shots were cut, theses are thoughts that tend to go through someones head, who watches Mary Friedman's Hyper Doom Video.

The message of Wall-e

Erik Meyer103

WALL-E movie analysis

In the movie WALL-E by Disney-pixar, the movie is made up by certain techniques, pacing, setting, characters and a interesting story line to help show a message.

In the beginning of the film it shows wall-e a robot that is given human characteristics. The way the robot goes about cleaning up the earths trash and making buildings out of it shows he has human traits. While he cleans he sings a tune he plays on a mp3 player at his home. He also has a friendship with a cockroach that stays with him at his home. The way they represent wall-e as a character, other characters also seem to underestimate him. The way he was designed with camera like eyes, tracks for feet, and a trash compactor for a torso, he differs from the female robot eve. Eve share human qualities like wall-e by sharing a love emotion for wall-e, but also can float,fly really fast and be super destructive, with an arm blaster. They way they make these characters has a strong effect on the movie itself,and the viewers.

The settings in the movie are another big factor,or part of the puzzle that helps construct what the movie really is about. Earth were wall-e lives is a wasteland. The way how the sun shines down on the city and shows how theres nothing there but trash and buildings of trash, a abandoned world. The ship in outer space where the humans live/where Eve lives is an unfortunate and funny site. The ship itself is way too convenient for people, in a sense where everyone is lazy and fat. It shows how no one ever walks/exercise, and everyone just eats and floats around and the robots do everything for them. It is appeared to be like a paradise with futuristic buildings and technology but, it also shows that to much of it is a bad thing.

The pacing of the movie helps the viewer stay in tune really well. They did this by not staying on earth too long, then having wall-ego after Eve, and then end up on a ship that is run by robots. The main conflict of the story happens on the ship. Eve finding the plant is really the start,or rise to the climax. Then they resolved it by the humans returning to earth and planting plants in hope to regrow earth,and make it a livable planet.

There is also a lot of transition and reaction shots throughout the movie that make the movie flow really smooth, or chaotic. Like The shots with wall-e and eve sitting watching the sunset are smooth but when there rogue robots on the ship there is a lot of quick shots.

Lighting and color are used a bit also. The way Eve has blue digital eyes and a white smooth/shiny body make her look like a futuristic robot compared to Wall-e who looks a bit outdated compared to her. The ship is mostly white which helps it look futuristic. The way the robots can wall-e a screen pops up red and yellow screen with words saying foreign contaminant also adds to action and symbolizes a conflict. Also the main robot of the ship who controls auto pilot, auto refuses to go to earth and is represented evil by having a red glow to him. When the captain and auto are fighting the lights are off creating tension and action.

The characters eve and wall-e having human emotions such as love, the setting of abandoned earth and a ship ran by robots controlling people, lighting and colors affecting the tone or mood of the scene help get a message across to the viewers. The message is clearly put that too much technology, can be a bad thing and that living on a ship in outer space can be avoided if people of the earth can understand to take care of it better, because its are home and without it we can’t live properly.

Elements of the movie Brazil by Terry Gilliam

Erik Meyer

Com 103

Brazil movie analysis

In the movie Brazil directed by Terry Gilliam the director uses certain elements and techniques to help tell a story of a guy and a woman living in a psychopathic totalitarian government and them struggling against it.

In the movie, the setting is very dark and bland. Every one were sam works wears grey suits and work in a factory like fashion, everyone's working on the same task or similar ones. Not only is his workplace in a high affinity of tone and color but the outside city is all industrialized. An industrialized city with a totalitarian government nicely shows a world of despair. Also when Jill and Sam are driving to different places throughout the city the view of the world is covered up by billboards, hiding the wasteland of the world; seeing no trees or sign of nature anywhere. The billboards create what a “perfect”society should look like or have and it  has a influence on it’s people too. The police or guards were an all black uniform and almost appear to be soldiers more police and are meant to look this way to plant fear in the people.

There is also different usage of shots throughout the movie. In one scene there is a mirror used to show multiples of sam and jill almost creating a deep space and suspense. There is also certain transition shots that are made that ad to the flow of the movie and keep the viewers in tune.

The pacing of the movie was also another technique the director used to help craft the movie. How the movie goes in and out from sams job to when sam falls asleep and has dreams of him flying after the girl in his dreams and then fighting things like the golem or samurai to save her.Also when sam makes love to jill and the over shot of the bead curtain closing, makes the viewer think the movies is about to end, but then something dramatic happens. The guards or police come and capture sam and then shoot jill. Then when sam is getting tortured he has a vision that tuttle and jill save him and he lives happily with jill free from the government. The viewer now think the movies over , but then it goes back to sam being tortured showing that he lost his mind. In the parts where he is flying in the clouds there's a lot more lighting but, when he starts to fight things that are evil there is an abundance of shadows and low lighting. In others scenes of the movie there is also low lighting of a high affinity of tone , like sam's apartment and when mr tuttle shows up, he appears as a rebel and he is.

the director uses certain technique  like changing the pace of the movie or amount of lighting, using the affinity of color and tone to help make the movie; to show what it truly means.

How Actor Experience effects the editing in fight scenes

Fights happen a lot in movies. Not only in actions or martial arts films, but in comedies, romances, and even dramas have their fair share of man-on-man action. And why not, they are a great way to have character’s settle differences, or to show off the skill of a particular character. Not to mention they are entertaining to watch.  Now there used to be two types of fights scenes in movies. The kind in which the actors knew martial arts and the kind where the actors didn’t. In the movies where the actors knew martial arts, fights scenes could be a lot more fluid and open, and the director, actors, and editor had a lot more freedom. I speak of these kinds of movies in a past tense because they are very uncommon nowadays and the movie market is for the most part dominated by the other kind, in which large amounts of cutting and tight camera movements have to make up for the actors combat inexperience.

An example of a good fight scene where the actors know how to fight is this scene from The Forbidden Kingdom: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4FuO99pYoQ . The advantage of having actors who know how to fight is that it give more freedom to the editor to create the scene he wants. In this example, you can see how the characters oppose each other evenly, and yet they come from different backgrounds based on their styles. You can tell who is winning the fight at any given moment, and there is even room to throw in some bonuses in there such as the one character using his bag as a weapon, or the animal sound effects when there was a shift in his fighting style.

In a movie where the actors do not have combat experience such freedoms cannot be taken advantage of. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFnmq5PPScA In this scene from the Bourne Identity, it is clear that the actors are going based on instruction from a fight choreographer on set. The camera is much closer to the actors at all times, and there is much less time between the very frequent cuts. The fighting style, something that can be used to express attributes about the character, is non-present in this scene being that the two characters are not able to act through their fighting. In the scene from the forbidden kingdom, the actors were able to alter their fighting styles in a manner that expressed differentiation in their background. The Forbidden Kingdom scene also had wider shots. This is a liberty that was not available when shooting because a closer shot makes less of the actor visible and thus, harder for the viewer to tell that all the actor is doing is one motion for the camera like a block or an arm break before the next cut.

These types of movies in which actors do not know how to fight make up the majority of films today. It should be the responsibility of an actor to learn at the very least basic of fighting if that actor expects to be in a film with fighting as to give the director, cinematographer, and editor more creative freedom. Sometimes less editing and less cutting is a good thing. As scene in one of my favorite fight scenes of all from Oldboy, which is done in a tracking shot with no cuts: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRBwvIX7Sao

Transitions- Emily Mortensen

Transitions in film indicate a passage from one scene to another. An example of transitions is a match cut. Match cuts are the basis for continuity editing because the cuts establish a logical flow to the viewers eye to form an obvious connection between the two. The audience is not surprised or confused by the change of shot and all together they the cut creates a smoother transition. In this scene from Breaking Bad the choice match cut is very clean and compelling to the audience. The pipe leaking becomes what drops into the tea in a totally different scene. It intertwines both shots and doesn't confuse the viewer from the change in topic. When shooting match cuts you will need to plan in advance because it will be easier to edit. A jump cut is the opposite of a match cut because the change in shot is noticeable on purpose. The editor wants to make the cut evident to the audience for a reason. For example, walking down a long flight of stairs. That can take up to 15 seconds, however a jump cut can help and cut it down to 5 seconds. However, this might be confusing or jarring to the viewer and a match cut makes the shot look smoother. Adding a shot of the viewers feet in a close up at the bottom of the stairs can make it known to the viewer that they're done walking. Another transition is fading to black, which is usually done at the end of a film or important scene. If fading out to black is over used it can throw off the overall rhythm of the film. Transitions are a key aspect to editing and should only be used to make a special emphasis on purpose.

Editing a Conversation Scene

Every Scene in a film is important, there should never be a scene that serves no purpose to the films plot, humor, action, or emotion. This includes scenes in which there is mostly conversation between the characters. Now, a scene of just people talking sounds boring, and it is if not executed correctly. Conversation is important in a film because it is the main way in which characters will interact. The viewer should be able to pay attention and be immersed into the film without being bored by a single shot of two people on either side of the screen passing words to each other. 

There is more than just talking that takes place in a conversation. The characters should be acting physically in a manner that is appropriate to their personality and mood. Perhaps one character is sitting in a chair while the other paces back and forth. The pacing can be expressed by the movements of the camera and the cuts made by the editor. When the character who is pacing stops to turn around, cut with the turning, to a new angle that shows the character from a new angle. This can be done in tandem with the character’s topic of discussion. Perhaps in synchronization with the turn and the cut, his subject, tone, or pace of speech changes. Change in the conversation is also something that can warrant a cut. If the subject of conversation shifts, a new angle should be presented as to express the new direction that the conversation is moving in. If a character clenches his fist in anger, a close up of his fist should be shown.

Another thing to keep in mind is that just because a character is speaking, the camera should not exclusively show that character, and the editor should not only show shots of that character. If the character points out some item of importance in the room, the editor should cut to a shot of that item. If a character’s words or actions trigger an emotional or physical response from another character, the editor should cut to the other character as to display that characters reaction.

Camera angling and shot placement can also play a part in how the scene flows. If one character is expressing dominance over another, the dominant character should be shot from a low angle pointing upwards, so the viewer is looking up to the dominant character. In that same scene, the submissive character should be shot from overhead, so the viewer only ever looks down on the submissive character, as to show that character’s weakness and submission. If two characters are working against each other or arguing, they should not be shown together in the same shot. Instead, they should be in separate shots, as to show their opposition to each other. In the same manner, characters working together who are in agreement should be shown in the same shot, as to express unity and understanding between the characters. These things should be kept in mind when shooting/editing a scene.

These rules can be seen in this scene from Silence of The Lambs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QU8jKn7sMwU

Don't Lean on Me- The Amity Affliction

            This music video is I think has many pros and cons that really shape it into a very cool and well edited video. The first thing that I think the editor did really well was keep the pace of the cutting with the emotion of the song rather than with the speed of the song. At the beginning of the video the boy is walking and there are very few cuts. Even after the band begins playing the cuts still aren’t really to fast. After the boy gets angry suddenly we not only see a huge increase in the cutting speed but also see the camera to become less stable then it was in the very beginning. Secondly, the editor does a really cool effect of cutting on the beat. During parts of the song where it builds up, such as the screaming right before the chorus, the editor cuts on every quarter note then increases to eighth notes and ends by holding a clip for a half note. This doesn’t stop there the effect is also used in other parts of the song and it works really well. The editor also does a similar editing technique during the clean singer’s chorus. The editor pretty much cuts on every snare hit during the chorus, causing the pace of the editing and the emotion of the video to change from chaotic to almost heartfelt. Finally, the coolest thing I think about this video is how the band moves with the boy from room to room with the boy. The best part to show this effect is at 1:24-1:27 in the video. I don’t know for sure but I think the editor cuts right when the camera goes behind the boy to give this illusion. Either way it’s very cool in my opinion.

            There were a few things I didn’t like about this video. One was the flashes over the cuts in some parts of video. I found they were sporadically placed and really just made me more aware that there was cutting happening, rather than disguising each cut. The second thing about this video is the way it was formatted. I understand that they were trying to make it almost seem as though it was filmed like a home movie or something, but I don’t think it really made any sense with the song or the storyline video itself. I just found it strange and more distracting than anything else. Finally, the thing I disliked the most was the storyline itself. The whole teenage angst thing has been popular for way to long and has just become more of annoying trend rather then actually addressing real problems of adolescents. Also in the end we found out it was dream. Basically the story was about a kid who comes home, is ignored, freaks out, cries, and then wakes up to realize it was some sort of nightmare? That’s kind of a ridiculous storyline that is just very flat.  

            Although the storyline was horrible in my opinion, the music and the effects used in this video were very good and were applied well.  

The Edge of Tomorrow

A movie that I just saw recently was The Edge of Tomorrow, staring Tom Cruise. In the film an alien race invades earth for some purpose and to try and defeat the aliens the humans send a D-Day style invasion of France to try and take back Europe. Now the story line is pretty strange and complex, but none the less very interesting. Essentially, the aliens possess a weapon that allows them to reset time every time a certain one of there soldiers die. Tom Cruise kills one of these certain aliens and its blood gets on him allowing him to use their time resetting power. He then uses this power to try and find a way to destroy the machine allowing him to use this power and the aliens HQ.

            The editing in this film I think was extremely good, but I almost felt as if the shots were a little in consistent. The way the editor was able to convey what was a shot back in time and keep it in an order that made sense was very impressive. One very cool thing the editor did was what the editor did in the scene from JFK we watched. The editor took the dialogue from where Tom Cruise and his constituents are making the plan for their invasion and put it under the scenes of them actually acting out that part of the fight. Another, thing that really impressed me was the way the editor edited the scene where the platoon is talking. The way the editor was able to keep a cohesive conversation going with like 10 different people involved was amazing and extremely well done. Finally the most impressive thing that I think this movie did was changing the mood of the same scenes simply only using editing. Throughout the movie you see the same sequence of Tom Cruise waking up and ending up at the military base multiple times. However, though it’s the same scene the editor was some how able to change the scene just enough to give an entirely different feeling, it was absolutely amazing.

            The only bad thing I noticed about the film as far editing, which I don’t think is even the editor’s fault, was inconsistent shots. For instance, in one scene Emily Blunt is entering a building with Tom Cruise. When the camera cut to the inside of the building, however, Tom Cruise would be entering first. These small inconstancies stuck out to me, but I believe they were so minor you probably wouldn’t even notice them unless you were really analyzing the film.

            In the end I believer this is a great movie with a very cool storyline that keeps you constantly interested.         

My Soul is Empty -Slaves

This is easily one of my favorite music videos as far as editing and even story line. Just a little background info about the band, Slaves is basically Jonny Craig’s bands in which he talks about his life experiences. Now Slaves just came out this year, though Jonny has been in many successful projects for over a decade. However, every time he seems to make it in a good band some sort of problem usually causes the band to break apart (mostly drugs). Now that Jonny is clean, this is almost his band where he talks about everything that has happened in his life.

               As far as the video is concerned, I believe it is the perfect example of taking very serious and complex topics and diluting them down into a simple to watch video. It is almost as if they intentionally made this video simple with a lot of subliminal messages so that way if the viewer watched it could be easily entertaining or intellectually riveting. The first time you watch the video and listen to the music, you would probably think its a break-up or messed up love song. On top of that it is almost as if this is just another typical scene kid band with them playing in a room with a random video of an attractive female cut randomly in throughout the music video. I believe the band did this on purpose to allow them to attain that fan base that likes music and music videos as such, but I think the editor (in sequence with the bands actions) edited it in a way that tells an entirely different story that the band actually wanted to convey.

            First off, the video begins with the editor cutting back and forth between a woman smiling in a brightly lit area and Jonny Craig (the singer) in a dimly lit area with a light or actual footage of the female behind him. Right here I think the editor positioned these clips like this to show that the female represents the light behind the singer. While at the same time Jonny is saying “I want to get out,” making it sound as if he doesn’t want to be cast in the light of this female. During this beginning, the editor does something that is ultra important. He inserts two separate shots where the singer says “I’m sick of giving into these demons.” The first shot is of the singer pounding his arm, signifying that the demon is heroin. The second time the lyric is spoken; the editor throws in a shot of the female, no longer smiling. I believe this was intentionally done by the editor to show that the female symbolizes heroin as well. Further throughout the video the lyrics push this point. Right in the first verse Jonny says “Another hit, another mark. Small pinch and my whole world starts to spark. If I had another chance, I can’t say what I’d do. The minds a tricky thing when it comes to the loss of you.” All of these lyrics undoubtedly convey the use of heroin. The editor pushes this point by cutting to all of the singers actions which create this point, such as more arm hitting, gestures that indicate drug use, etc. Near the end of the song, the editor shows a clip of the female walking away and for the last shot he shows the singer getting up and exiting the room with the one light right behind him. This represents to me that his use of heroin is gone and he is no longer covered in the darkness of heroin’s light. Finally the last thing the editor does really well is cutting at the pace of the song. During the slow parts of the song, the editing is slow and even sometimes disguised by fades. During the fast parts of the song he cuts quickly adding to the heaviness of the instruments and power of the chorus.   

             

To edit or not to edit. That is the question.

Although editing is a vital process which helps get the message/feeling across to the viewer, many forget the effect of a simple long take. A long take or oner is an uninterrupted shot in a film which lasts much longer than the conventional editing pace either of the film itself or of films in general, usually lasting several minutes. Long takes are often accomplished through the use of a dolly. Long takes of a sequence filmed in one shot without any editing are rare to find. But often times, letting a moment play out itself has enough, if not more of an effect on the viewer. Here are two examples of this. 

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=27d138zhyZQ

Here we have a music video which consists of one long take and relatively slow zoom. The video opens up with what appears to be an empty, lit up warehouse and the singer comes in and  throughout the video we get a steady zoom until it's the end of the song and we get a close up. This approach is simplistic yet still every enjoyable. 

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=m86ae_e_ptU

In this example we have another music video using a long tracking shot but the artists uses hand held, dollys, and other methods interchangeably. This cut-free method isn't something new to these guys and you'll see it done repeatedly within most of their videos. What makes this different from the example above is the sense of interaction you get. Here you feel like you're involved and even without cuts it's still entertaining! 

So although editing is important, sometimes less is more.  

varsity blues

In the opening montage you hear Mox, the main character, talking as you see images of West Canaan, Texas. One of the images is of a referee, the god of the football field, from a very low angle making him seem even more foreboding. In fact, all images of the ref throughout the movie are from low angles. When we first meet Lance, the star quarterback, the camera is at a low angle again. He steps out of his house into the light of the sun while trumpets are sounding, all in slow motion. Later in the movie it is said that Kilmer, the coach, has made Lance a god and the sound, along with the camera work in this moment, accentuates this statement. Varsity Blues is an excellent movie. It has a wonderful use of low angles, montages, slow motion, sound, and color. The way Brian Robbins combined these aspects in each scene, hightens the emotion of the scene. Ultimately I think you're supposed to realize that we put too much pressure on people to be a hero for us, and if they let us down, our whole world can fall apart. We need to learn to stand up for ourselves, instead of waiting for someone to come along and do it for us; otherwise we'll remain followers all our lives.

The movie SCREAM

People flock to horror movies each year. Usually to be scared. Another is to solve the question of Who done it? Unfortunately, a lot of these horror movies fail to scare people or make the killer so obvious the audience gets bored. Occasionally, there are a few horror movies that stick out. Scream, directed by Wes Craven, is one of them. Wes Craven is always toying with the viewer's fears. Always finding ways to scare the audience at every turn. He also plays with the viewer's head, and has them second guessing themselves. How does he do it? Well, as one of the characters in the movie exclaims, "There's a formula to it. A very simple formula. Everybody's a suspect!" This paper will discuss how Craven uses sound, camera shots, and mise en scene to scare the viewer and keep them guessing as to who is the murderer is . 
Different shots give the viewer information about what is going on in the scene. Wes Craven chooses his shots carefully. For example, there's a full shot of Sidney from behind. She has just gone in the closet (mentioned above) and the camera follows her from behind. After watching many horror movies, the full shot with the character's back to the viewer can mean danger. Sidney is right in the middle of the shot, leaving both sides of her open. The murderer could jump out at her and tackle her. This shot could also be of the killer following her from behind. Again, Wes Craven is setting up the viewer. Another shot is the close up. The killer is talking to Sidney on the phone. The shot is from the shoulders and up. Sidney thinks the caller is a friend playing a joke on her. She's about to hang up when the caller says that if she does she'll "die like her mother." The shot then goes to a close up of Sidney's face. The viewer can see that Sidney realizes that the caller isn't a friend playing a joke on her. The viewer can also see that she's frightened. Close ups deal with psychological effects. The viewer sees a character upset, they will react to it. This close up just made things scarier. Finally, my favorite shot in the movie is an extreme close up. The principal has just been stabbed by the murderer. The murderer wears this costume called "Father Death." As the principal lies on the floor dying, the camera cuts to an extreme close up of the principal's eye. In the reflection of his eye, the killer appears (in costume, of course). This shot is a really cool effect in general. I believe the purpose of the shot deals with death. The very last thing the principal sees is death looming over him. It's symbolic.  These are just a few elements Wes Craven uses to scare the viewer. He likes to play with the viewer's head, making them question everyone's motive. But don't worry, it's just a movie. Or, as Sidney says to her boyfriend Billy, "But this is life. This isn't a movie." To which Billy responds, "Sure it is, Sid. It's all, it's all a movie. It's all one great big movie. But you can't pick your genre."

American Beauty

American Beauty 

I remember the first time I saw American Beauty, I was still living at home and I was about 19. I grew up knowing it was a critically acclaimed film that my parents did not enjoy. My father once told me that the only reason it won best picture was because the writer was gay. He also said that the reason he didn’t like the film was because it portrays homosexuals as being perfect. I am happy to say that I have grown up to view things differently than my father. After seeing this film for the first time I didn’t understand it much. I knew the overall plot and most of the reasons for the characters actions but I don’t think I fully got the whole film. The other night I viewed American Beauty for the third time and I think I actually understand it now.Obsession with beauty is probably the most important aspect of the film. Angela is the driving force behind the emphasis on beauty within the film. Her character has been brainwashed by society to believe that people will only like her if she is beautiful and sexy. Countless times throughout the film Angela is talking about sex, guys and modeling. At one point in the film Ricky comes up to talk to Jane and after he walks away Angela says, “what a freak, like he didn’t even look at me”. At the end of the film, Ricky and Jane eventually break this move towards narcissism. All the comments and messages about self-beauty and self-image brought across in the film are constant bashes and remarks about mainstream America. This theme is included in hundreds of films but I feel it’s so harsh and in your face in American Beauty that it ends up being extremely effective.

The mirror by TARKOVSKY

The mirror is a travel through consciousness and dreams. Tarkovsky presents us the promenades of his own mind and rambles around composition and the use of ideological montage, he achieves to communicate a tension among his characters, each one is aware of their own Heideggerian cast condition.At the begging he shows a miraculous scene, premonition of the upcoming fusion between the kingdom of reality and the kingdom of dreams where stutterers are healed like in a dream and out of nowhere. In each cut we have long episodes where psychological time is protagonist, few action happens in that moment. Close ups to melancholic faces and ontological dialogues around the question of the objects that surround them as dasein. Tarkovsky creates characters that don’t exist by themselves but immediate and regular according to certain situations but changing as the plot does. Some characters just appear once and, without apparent reason, but they are who uncover themselves through an immediate regularity.

Each emotion is revealed without quasi-curatorial complex discourses, we get first-hand impressions. The composition keeps a clear link between the understood through the visuality of the regular and immediate. Tarkovsky achieves a fusion between formal and intellectual elements inside the filThe film also presents us a thought-flux which easily things this and, after some time, it dreams that. It’s an introspective experiment that superposes personal matters over the reinforcing of a specific plot. The scenes are stories and explorations by themselves, explorations about the alien and the known, symbols that remit us to Art matters.This stress on ontological matters gives us a film where time doesn’t matter, where emotion will be protagonists. Where the mother is perpetually sad, symbol of a lost fight, and Mary and Alexei will be identical reflections of Natalia and IgnaFinally, any character will win the fight against cast condition. The unique way Tarkovsky finds the visual verse, a poem through the image, we get a weighty interest in visual composition, a beautiful collection of images in movement, while the plot is almost let away. An art film that is a deposition of intellectual efforts to reassess oneself existence through the use of personas. A mirror that reflects in another one, infinite number of incomprehensible images that gave us an ending where temporal phases fuse.

The Film Crash

pretty much guaranteed to be shocked and uncomfortable, I know we were and we weren't expecting the tirade of abuse, one of the more uncomfortable aspects of this scene is that it's from a white man to a Persian, whom he thinks is actually an Iraqi. A very disturbing scene, and something that the movie is all about. The abuse doesn't just stop at the white American on Persian, it moves to Latino against Chinese, Chinese against black, black against black, black against white, white against Chinese, and so on. One of the best moments of the movie is at the beginning as two black guys come out of an uptown restaurant in a very white neighbourhood and one begins to rant about how badly they've been treated. "The waitress treated us like dirt, assuming that we're black we wouldn't tip her." he roughly said, and his friend turns to him, "well how much did you tip her?", "That's not the point". 

There are some poorer aspects to the movie though, I felt a couple of the scenes were presented in quite a contrived manner, and instead of events leading to them being quite explainable or understandable, they felt strained and stretched. A perfect example of how this could be avoided was with the second Newton-Dillon scene, no explanation, no lead up, the event had just happened and the important thing was the story that unfolded before you and the aftermath. That's real life, often things happen and there's not a need to overly explain the lead up. 

The movie is telling us that if we take some time to get to know the people around us, perhaps make conversation and don't stereotype them, we may just get along a little better. Lives might even be saved. Don't make the mistake that it's all happy though, it isn't. Even those who think they have made the connections already, haven't done so on anything more than a superficial level.Overall the messages are strong, uncompromising and often quite bleak. Do not make a mistake, this is real life and not a nice fluffy bunny tale. Despite some moments that are a little contrived, there are a surprising amount of exceptional performances to be seen and the story gives you a real kick in the head about how we really should be as people. Thoroughly recommended.

Parallel Editing- Emily Mortensen

Parallel editing or "cross cutting" is when two stories are told simultaneously and the two scenes are intercut to establish continuity.  This technique is usually used when something is happening at the same time but in different locations. Cross cutting became known after Edwin S. Porter began to experiment with this technique in The Great Train Robbery (1903). After, many other filmmakers in the industry took the idea and used parallel editing to its full potential. This type of editing adds suspense to the scene because in the end the two come together for a climatic or suspenseful part or theme.

In this scene from the film The Silence of the Lambs  parallel editing is used. The scene is a great example of cross cutting because it creates immense suspense. Another example of parallel editing is used in the baptism scene from The Godfather. It creates a theme showing Al Pacino's life is a contradiction. In one scene he is in a church and the other shows him in the mafia killing people. The scene is a paradox and the theme is evident with the technique of parallel editing.

Scott Pilgrim VS. The World

“Scott Pilgrim VS. The World” is a great movie for someone who likes comic books and video games. It’s a movie that is not only comedic, but perfectly touches on the awkwardness of life. The best part of the film is the post production. This movie was not only edited to create the film, but also to create a video game feel. Essentially what makes this film so unique and interesting is that it is very unrealistic and well if you haven’t seen it you should. Examples of the humor of the film is that they will have words appear on the screen when words are said or emotions are felt. This is an example of how this film looks. It’s obviously strongly influenced by video games. This is another example of how the film brings in “cartoon” type things and make them real world. The acknowledgement of the black bar on her mouth is funny because it’s something added in post production, but in this movie it’s supposed to actually seem like it’s real. The editing keeps the movie moving and constantly changing. Every transition between settings is spotless. The scenes move quickly because it’s constantly cutting between shots. This gives the effect of how this is an action movie in a technical sense. There are many fight scenes within the movie for example this one. It cuts between shots much as any action film would. But it’s done so by also adding outrageous effects in both sounds and visually. Like the sparks that fly when the weapons hit, and the sound it makes are unrealistic in the best kind of way. There is also this fight scene which includes a lot of editing effects. All of the slow motion and fast cuts mixing creates an intensely interesting effect. By combining the opposites the mind is forced to focus more so, it’s engaging. Also this movie resembles the way Anime’s are made. Anime’s are a Japanese cartoon movie style that when there is fig hint includes a lot of cuts. They like to dramatically zoom into weapons and certain parts of a scene to create emphasis and drama. They like to zoom into characters as well. This scene has a close up of the faces, the foot being caught, and them unsheathing their weapons. This is done because this movie is based on a comic while also trying to follow the video game feel. Anime is closely related to comics and to video games since they’re all the sam principle and follow the same rules. Also the fact that when he’s thinking there is a needle the appears in his brain pointing from not understanding do understanding is hilarious, and its the little things like that in this movie that make it so great. 

Hybrid Earth -Erra

In this music video for the song “Hybrid Earth” by the band Erra, I found many interesting editorial tools used and also many intellectually provocative subliminal messages.

First, thing straight away when watching the video was the strong use of chiaroscuro lighting. I believe this type of lighting was used to set a mood of a dark and distorted feeling. On top of that the editor used a strange effect where small bits of what looks like symbols and writing are used in bursts over the video. Another major editorial point I saw used was the editor seemed to use a lot of fast cuts in the video, but the clips of video he was cutting were in slow motion. It almost enhanced a strange and unusual dark undertone about the video. Finally, the editor used a lot of jump cuts. These jump cuts and strange symbol marking inserts were perfect in helping to portray a dark, chaotic video.

The other thing I found that I had to look a little deep into the music and the video to find was intellectual message. I’m not sure but I believe this song is about the struggle between mother nature and man. the first indicator I saw to initiate this idea is the lyrics. The screamer is singing about mankind being connected with some sort of power and how we're using it to destroy. The first verse he says:

“Interlaced fingers. The locking of hands.

Omnipotence entwined with man. Alteration before conception.

The pretense to coalescence to form this imperfect plan.

Unconsciously bound to one another. Liberated emotions are becoming smothered.

Dynamics of the absolute contort our narrow view. We were not meant for this hybrid   birth. Inhumanity crowns the Earth. This hybrid birth.”

I believe the lyrics are saying that we are so blinded by the “omnipotence twined with man” or the power embedded in our minds that we are using this to create these “imperfect plans” which destroy our planet. Right after the screamer sings this the clean singer sings a line that I think only further this point. He says, “Momentum is your venom. Clinging to progress, we embrace the toxin. Children of the ancients, you've forgotten innocence. Unkept instincts, enslaved, inefficient.” I believe this is saying that our momentum to obtain our so called “progress” is the venom that is killing us and our world. He also then calls upon us asking if we have forgotten innocence or beauty with in our world. The furthering the point he says that any thoughts of actually realizing what we are doing to this planet, are either just not enough to do anything and therefore just enslaved. The final part about the lyrics that I believe further this point is line where the screamer says, “ Self-proclaimed behemoths. Bound by our own desire. Seduced and expired.” This basically sums up the point that humanity has crowned itself ruler of the planet and we are seduced by the idea of getting stronger and more powerful. Unfortunately that idea of growing our power will ultimately lead to our demise.

Now, as for the video. The video I believe is exactly what pushed my belief that this is a struggle between man and mother nature. First off, we see a woman chasing a man. I believe the woman is representative of mother nature and the destruction she can bring. She clearly chasing him with violent or destructive intentions, however at the sametime in the middle of the video we see her lit as if though she is an angel. She has a bright light behind her and only part of silhouette and face are shown. Giving me the idea that she is more than just a normal women and that she is almost divine. The second point that I saw was throughout the whole video we see the man running away. In almost every shot we see him running from behind him, he is running into darkness. On top of that this whole event is happening in the woods which I believe is absolutely no coincidence. Also, the man is constantly struggling to climb this hill while no matter what the woman easily follows behind. This almost represents mankind's struggle to progress while at the same time no matter what, mother nature is right there behind us. Finally, when we see the man reach the top of the hill he turns and stands facing the woman, almost in an intimidating nature. At the same time the screamer says, “Self proclaimed behemoths.” The intentional juxtaposition here is undeniable. Finally the next shot after the man’s defiance is a shot of the woman walking away with his hoodie. At the this point the screamer says “Seduced and expired.” showing the final demise of man to mother nature with our ignorant belief that we are more powerful.

In the end I believe this music video contains a lot more than what it seems. Also, the music is awesome and Erra is incredible.     

Mr. Nobody

trailer

This is only my second blog, and probably my last, but I wanted to talk more in depth about this film and it's editing. This film is just amazing in the way it conducts itself. The film plays out as sort of montages of scenes that span Nemo Nobody's life at ages 9, 15, 35 and 118. What they'll do is they'll play a scene and then use something in that scene to transition into another alternate timeline of his, because the way the plot works. Nemo will be in his car looking at a train, and then it'll pan into him in that train looking out the window, but you'll know that it's a different timeline, because of his appearance. The way they edited the film you know which Nemo you're following, and which timeline he's in. The way the editing ties into the plot is that each scene is a choice that could have happened, and then they'll cut back and forth between each time line through that panning transition. And the cuts are always for the emotion. The editor really captured the feelings behind each character and the emotion they give and shared with the audience watching the film. The editor never forgot to include objective angles into the scenes to really grab the audience. There is the one scene where Nemo is chasing after the train to catch up to his mom. They could of showed a subjective angle and showed him grabbing for her hand, but what they did instead was they got really close to their hands to make you feel like you're right there trying to grab on. The film as a whole I personally believe is a master piece that everyone should enjoy, because I can't think of any other film that does what this movie does best.

To be an Editor

To look at a film and not even think about the editing is typical. The average person does not sit and analyze the film they’re watching based on the cutting technique the editor uses. What is usually misunderstood about editing is that it isn’t just taking clips and slapping them together. It is an art form; one in which the editor themselves are the artists. At the end of a shoot editors can end up with loads and loads of clips to sort through. It’s a tedious process to watch each one through and figure out what works best for a scene. Not only is he editing, but in a way he’s also directing because he is telling the film how to come together. Not only can the clips be thrown together though, but there are rules that must be followed. Rules that apply to the camera directors and director and anyone filming also apply to the editor. For example there is the 180 degree rule during conversations, where the camera shots should be at least on a 180 degrees line around the character. It creates less discomfort as the cutting is occurring and makes the shote seem to follow the people as they speak more so then just jumping around camera angles. So that’s an example of an instance where the editor has to also think about their job as a cameraman, and follow the way the cameras should be placed in the editing. There’s the obvious issue of continuity. If the shots do not make chronological order then you have failed as an editor and quit…make sure as the dialogue is progressing the conversation is matching up. Also movements. If they’re moving one way in one shot and then in the next shot their positon is very different it will suck the watcher out of the illusion of reality in a film, and make them realize they’re in fact watching a movie. One must pay close attention to the details. Not only should movements be fluid, but pay attention to where an object or position of something is in one scene compared to the next. My favorite game to play is “find the continuity error”. Of course not a game friends are a fan of seeing as I always blurt out the flaw amidst watching the film. It’s a good way to practice for editing though, seeing as if you can spot the error while watching the film, it should be easy to spot during the process of editing. Of course errors are a human trait and I am not one to blame continuity errors unless very significant and noticeable. Tangent aside…an editor is the director as I said. The story is being created in their hands. Many occasions the director isn’t there to watch the editing process, so you have to take what you think they saw in their mind through the shots, and combine that with what you feel is right. Editing is my favorite part of film. It’s enjoyable to take these clips that alone seem to make no sense, and put them together into something beautiful. An art form of the mind. 

13 Sins

I was browsing through netflix the other day and decided to watch this film called 13 Sins. Basically the plot of the film was a secret society calls everyday people and makes them do 13 tasks that get more gruesome each step. With each step they are given the reward of immunity from criminal charges and large sums of money. The thing that I found really interesting about the film was the use of close-ups with creepy non-diegetic music or sound. It gave me a strong feeling of angst and made me almost feel what the character was feeling. Though this was a great part of the film I felt like it was used a little too much and almost became slightly redundant.

One of the coolest things about this film was the intro when the the beginning credits were rolling. The intro just consisted of the camera panning over a wall with a map with different markers and a seal of presumably the underground society. The way it was filmed and put together was very interesting. Each scene would start off with almost a slow motion pan and end up almost shooting into fast forward. It was a very unusual effect and seemed a little awkward, but I felt that it fit perfectly with the creepy premise of the movie.

Finally the most interesting thing I found about the movie was its use of symbolism and small underlying details to tell a strange and freaky story. The whole idea of an underground society, which is supposedly made up of incredibly powerful people from every part of the world, who out of boredom bait common people with the reward of money for doing absolutely obscene crimes is an unusual concept and one that is very symbolic. I think this whole film was almost extreme representation of how so few people control so much of our world and we barely know who they are and what they do with this extreme power. Finally the thing I found to a bit clever was the constant use of flies as a symbol of the underground society. The very first task of the there 13 step game was to kill a fly and the next task was to eat it. Now knowing that in the Bible flies were used as a representation for death in the fourth plague of Egypt I presume the idea was that when the main character ate the fly he then became embodiment of death or evil. The underground society’s seal was also that of a fly, bringing me to conclude that they were also presumed to be the harbinger or bringer of death.

Overall I found this film a pretty good horror flick to watch if you’re bored.