Showing posts with label G321 Thriller research. Show all posts
Showing posts with label G321 Thriller research. Show all posts
Tuesday, 17 March 2009
Tuesday, 16 December 2008
Evaluating the mise-en-scene in The Shining.
This is the scene towards the end of 'The Shining' where Danny is escaping through the maze in order to get away from his maniac father. Stanley Kubrick utilised many generic codes and thriller conventions in this scene to create suspense and to attract the auience's attention.
Sound:
Diagetic:
Heavy panting, breathlessnessFootsteps, crunching of the untouched snow
Non-Diagetic:
Threatening background music,
Very loud, creates tension and excitement.
Lighting:
Shone from below the hedges, creates an eerie, dark, gloomy scene.
Lights up all the pure white snow, makes it look heavenly
Bright surroundings compared to the dark shape of the boy.
Location:
A maze. Creates sense of entrapment, can easily get lost, nowhere to hide, dangerous- have to be aware of every opening around you, dead-ends – cause people to get stuck and have to turn back and change direction.
A lot of snow – not ideal conditions for running/escaping in, and makes it hard to see where you are headed.
Costume:
Not ideal for being out in freezing conditions, just a jumper, trousers and shoes. No props used by the boy.
Camera Angle:
Audience can only see behind the boy, can’t see where the boy is headed. Means audience can see if anyone is following him and can see what the boy can’t see. Mid-shot. Character in the centre of the frame, running towards the camera.
Signifiers of Location:
Extreme amount of snow – scene shot somewhere cold – around winter time.
Monday, 15 December 2008
Thriller Conventions
- Crime at the core of the narrative.
- False paths, false clues, red herrings, enigmas (Anna in "The Third Man" is enigmatic/unreadable. Questions asked why she is still in love with Harry Lime who committed henious crimes against children by watering down penicillin.)
- Resolutions to the crime often ambiguous. (For example "Se7en" - the villain/psychopath has been hunted down but the detective's wife is murdered/beheaded, thus a dark ending.)
- Protagonist/main character is disempowered and drawn into a web of intrigue by antagonist (the person or persons opposing him or her. Holly Martens in "The Third Man" is drawn into a web of intrigue in post war Vienna and is mostly out of his depth.)
- Protagonist is often flawed (For example Holly Martens crashes into Vienna like an innocent and refuses to accept his limitations.)
- Extraordinary events occur in ordinary situations (In "Heavenly Creatures" two girls murder their mother on a walk in park land. Also, In "The Godfather part 1" where a mafia rival wakes up in bed with the bloodied head of his horse on the pillow beside him. In "Psycho" Marion Crane is knifed to death whilst taking a shower in an isolated motel.)
- Themes of voyeurism, (For example the point of view shot in the opening of "Psycho", the camera takes the audience through the window of a cheap hotel room where Marion Crane is having a rendezvous with a married man.)
- Elements of mise-en-scene frequently reflect the protagonist's emotional state. Shadows, lift shafts, alley ways, car parks, car bots, spiralling star cases all redlect the entrapment of the hero and the suggestion there is no way out. Wet streets and narrow roads indicate a fall into a world that is confusing. In "The Third Man" the tilt shots, noir lighting, spiralling stair cases, the sequence on the ferris wheel all connote the web of confusion Holly finds himself in. In Peter Weir's "Withness", after the child witnesses the mirder in the toilet John Book takes the child and his Amish mother, Rachel Lapp, into the unglamorous streets of New York, thus indicating her sense of horror and the murky unforgiving workd John Book exists in.
- The hero is often in peril towards the end of the film thus building up suspense.
- Deviant women/femme fatale is a convention of classic noir thrillers. This woman is usually unglamorous and seductive and draws the hero/protagonist into further peril.
- Themes of identity - who is the protagonist/antagonist.
- Line between good and evil often blurred. (For example "Blade Runner", a sci-fi film with thriller conventions. The replicant and Deckard, blade runner - roles are reversed at the end of the film.
- False paths, false clues, red herrings, enigmas (Anna in "The Third Man" is enigmatic/unreadable. Questions asked why she is still in love with Harry Lime who committed henious crimes against children by watering down penicillin.)
- Resolutions to the crime often ambiguous. (For example "Se7en" - the villain/psychopath has been hunted down but the detective's wife is murdered/beheaded, thus a dark ending.)
- Protagonist/main character is disempowered and drawn into a web of intrigue by antagonist (the person or persons opposing him or her. Holly Martens in "The Third Man" is drawn into a web of intrigue in post war Vienna and is mostly out of his depth.)
- Protagonist is often flawed (For example Holly Martens crashes into Vienna like an innocent and refuses to accept his limitations.)
- Extraordinary events occur in ordinary situations (In "Heavenly Creatures" two girls murder their mother on a walk in park land. Also, In "The Godfather part 1" where a mafia rival wakes up in bed with the bloodied head of his horse on the pillow beside him. In "Psycho" Marion Crane is knifed to death whilst taking a shower in an isolated motel.)
- Themes of voyeurism, (For example the point of view shot in the opening of "Psycho", the camera takes the audience through the window of a cheap hotel room where Marion Crane is having a rendezvous with a married man.)
- Elements of mise-en-scene frequently reflect the protagonist's emotional state. Shadows, lift shafts, alley ways, car parks, car bots, spiralling star cases all redlect the entrapment of the hero and the suggestion there is no way out. Wet streets and narrow roads indicate a fall into a world that is confusing. In "The Third Man" the tilt shots, noir lighting, spiralling stair cases, the sequence on the ferris wheel all connote the web of confusion Holly finds himself in. In Peter Weir's "Withness", after the child witnesses the mirder in the toilet John Book takes the child and his Amish mother, Rachel Lapp, into the unglamorous streets of New York, thus indicating her sense of horror and the murky unforgiving workd John Book exists in.
- The hero is often in peril towards the end of the film thus building up suspense.
- Deviant women/femme fatale is a convention of classic noir thrillers. This woman is usually unglamorous and seductive and draws the hero/protagonist into further peril.
- Themes of identity - who is the protagonist/antagonist.
- Line between good and evil often blurred. (For example "Blade Runner", a sci-fi film with thriller conventions. The replicant and Deckard, blade runner - roles are reversed at the end of the film.
Wednesday, 10 December 2008
Revised: Notes on the shower sequence in Psycho
During the shower sequence in Hitchcocks "Psycho", diagetic sound is present. However it sounds as if it has been enhanced, as the water is the main sound heard, and it very loudly and thunderously hits the surface of the shower curtain and floor. This sound can enforce the feeling of the claustrophobic space, a convention of the thriller genre.
The shower itself symbolises Marions vulnerability as it is a small, confined space. There is a close up of the shower head, which shows its importance. The shower creates the idea of Marion 'washing away her sins'. The only barrier for Marion in the shower is the curtain, and this is not a very effective use of protection. Also, this curtain isn't transparent, and Marion is standing with her back to it, so the audience is able to see what Marion cannot, the shadow behind her.
Throughout the murder of Marion Crane, several close-ups and extreme close-ups are used. At the end of the murder scene, a fading shot is used, with an extreme close-up of marions eye cross-fading into water running down the plug-hole of the shower.
The shower itself symbolises Marions vulnerability as it is a small, confined space. There is a close up of the shower head, which shows its importance. The shower creates the idea of Marion 'washing away her sins'. The only barrier for Marion in the shower is the curtain, and this is not a very effective use of protection. Also, this curtain isn't transparent, and Marion is standing with her back to it, so the audience is able to see what Marion cannot, the shadow behind her.
Throughout the murder of Marion Crane, several close-ups and extreme close-ups are used. At the end of the murder scene, a fading shot is used, with an extreme close-up of marions eye cross-fading into water running down the plug-hole of the shower.
Notes on the symbolism of 'birds' in Phsyco
During the film 'Physco', Marion Crane meets Norman Bates. Norman strikes the audience as an odd character, he lives in the middle of nowhere with his mother, as he likes to think "a man's best friend is his mother", and he also has a hobby in stuffing birds. This hobby of stuffing birds is significant as it symbolises morality, and paralysis of freedom, this also reflects Marion's plight.
The significance of the birds is shown in the names. Marion's surname is the name of a bird, Crane, and thus, the stuffed birds around the room anticipate Marion's fate. Normans suname is Bates, and this indicates someone who lures prey. This suggests Norman is a predatory character, and menace and tension is established. Norman also tells Marion how she eats like a bird, and how birds are passive. This is significant as the audience knows that Marion has quite a passive personality.
The significance of the birds is shown in the names. Marion's surname is the name of a bird, Crane, and thus, the stuffed birds around the room anticipate Marion's fate. Normans suname is Bates, and this indicates someone who lures prey. This suggests Norman is a predatory character, and menace and tension is established. Norman also tells Marion how she eats like a bird, and how birds are passive. This is significant as the audience knows that Marion has quite a passive personality.
Notes on the Title sequence of Phsyco, Alfred Hitchcock, 1960.
During the title sequence of 'Phsyco' many aspects of a thriller are shown.
The dominant feature of the title sequence is the sound. The instruments used create a loud and threatening atmosphere, which helps to create suspense. The film opens with an establishing show of a city in Arizona. It is a birds eye view, including tall buildings, a lot of traffic, a general city atmosphere. The film then shows the date (Friday December 11th) and the camera zooms into a window, giving the audience a voyeuristic feeling.
In the room the camera has zoomed into, we are presented with a oman lyring on the bed, portrayed as the deviant femme fatale. This room is part of a cheap hotel, an unglamorous location. We are informed that the two people in the room are on a lunchbreak, which creates questions in the audience of whether this is a secret relationship?
As the films moves on, there is a sequence which suggests Marion Crane is running away. Previously, she had been given a large sum of money which she claimed she would take to the bank for somebody. The sequence includes Marion's underwear having changed from white in the title sequence to black, the wad of money she has taken, and her suitcase. The sound in this sequence is very important as it helps to build tension, the use of close-ups in this sequence also adds to this.
The dominant feature of the title sequence is the sound. The instruments used create a loud and threatening atmosphere, which helps to create suspense. The film opens with an establishing show of a city in Arizona. It is a birds eye view, including tall buildings, a lot of traffic, a general city atmosphere. The film then shows the date (Friday December 11th) and the camera zooms into a window, giving the audience a voyeuristic feeling.
In the room the camera has zoomed into, we are presented with a oman lyring on the bed, portrayed as the deviant femme fatale. This room is part of a cheap hotel, an unglamorous location. We are informed that the two people in the room are on a lunchbreak, which creates questions in the audience of whether this is a secret relationship?
As the films moves on, there is a sequence which suggests Marion Crane is running away. Previously, she had been given a large sum of money which she claimed she would take to the bank for somebody. The sequence includes Marion's underwear having changed from white in the title sequence to black, the wad of money she has taken, and her suitcase. The sound in this sequence is very important as it helps to build tension, the use of close-ups in this sequence also adds to this.
Sunday, 9 November 2008
The Shining Case Study
Name Of Film: The Shining
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Date of Film Release: 23rd May 1980
Country Where Made: USA/UK
Awards & Nominations:
2 Nominations – Saturn & Razzie Awards (1981)
1 Win – Saturn Award (1981)
Genre: Horror-Thriller
My opinion: The Shining is presented as a thriller in an entirely different style. The sudden snapshots of scenery and characters create a frightening effect, and the main characters descent into madness is shown very well and creates a lot of suspense.
User Ratings & Appeal To Males & Females: Overall, The Shining was voted 8.5 out of 10 by both males and females. Both male and female under 18 shared average votes of 9 out of 10, yet lower than the average vote of 8.6 out of 10 (males 18-29) and 8.5 out of 10 (females 18-29). This shows that the film has been aimed at a younger target audience.
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Date of Film Release: 23rd May 1980
Country Where Made: USA/UK
Awards & Nominations:
2 Nominations – Saturn & Razzie Awards (1981)
1 Win – Saturn Award (1981)
Genre: Horror-Thriller
My opinion: The Shining is presented as a thriller in an entirely different style. The sudden snapshots of scenery and characters create a frightening effect, and the main characters descent into madness is shown very well and creates a lot of suspense.
User Ratings & Appeal To Males & Females: Overall, The Shining was voted 8.5 out of 10 by both males and females. Both male and female under 18 shared average votes of 9 out of 10, yet lower than the average vote of 8.6 out of 10 (males 18-29) and 8.5 out of 10 (females 18-29). This shows that the film has been aimed at a younger target audience.
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