Genre Study

Genre Study- Thriller

The genre I would like to make my movie would be a thriller. The types of films that are classed as thrillers are movies such as: 

Thriller movies generally consist of a 'battle' between the main protagonist character and the main antagonist character. After several events in the story ( that build tension and suspense) the protagonist and the antagonist most often come face to face for one final 'battle'. The main aim for the protagonist is to achieve justice whilst the antagonist aims to destroy any hope of this.

Conventions of a Thriller

The thriller genre can be split into different categories. For example an Action thriller would have different conventions to a Psychological thriller. Another example is a Crime thriller such as Pulp fiction. These are usually about a failed crime or about committing a crime. Usual conventions include guns, shootouts, kidnapping and murders. While a Horror thriller are usually about scaring people- it always has the element of fear, either mentally, physically or emotionally. It usually includes the element of suspense to keep the audience's attention. An example of this is the movie House Of Wax which creates this idea of suspense and surprise by making the main villain not who the audience thought it was.  

The usual conventions in a thriller movie include:

• Quick cuts- These add tension and excitement to the scene which keeps the audience's attention. 
• Changes in angles- These help show who is more dominant in the scene and helps the audience realize who has the most power and who has less. This helps establish what type of people the characters are because if a low angle shot of the antagonist(s) is shown such as in Reservoir dogs : 
• 
• Music- The music in thrillers are normally very intense and therefore create tension.
• Montage of shots- These are usually shown in flashbacks and add mystery to the movie.
• Diegetic sounds of breathing- These add tension and suspense to the movie.
• Close ups- This type of shot is used to show the characters emotions as quite often it is unclear what the character is really feeling as they are portrayed as the strong 'hero' type character.
• Quick shots of the antagonist character- This is used to add mystery to this characters identity and therefore adds mystery to the film. 
• Lighting- The lighting is often low key and adds mystery and tension to the movie.

Important elements

The setting/ location for any thriller movie is very important as it helps the audience establish a recurring theme. Most thrillers start in an urban type setting. Voice overs are used to narrate the story in some movies such as in Fight Club. This helps add mystery to the movie and it also helps the audience understand more about the movie and its plot.

The titles/ credits in thriller movies are often done over a black screen with non diegetic music being played over the top to set the scene. In some thrillers an event is shown before the actual titles, this helps the audience establish what the film could be about. This also adds mystery and gains the audiences attention. The opening credits often show the most important film companies or actors names first before the actual title of the movie. This is due to marketing/branding and who's in the movie often influences the number of people that watch the film. 

The style of thriller movie I am hoping to make is a: Neo Noir. A neo noir is an updated version of Film Noir, with themes and situations that are much more modern. An example of a movie which is done in the style of Neo Noir: 

Sin City is a Neo Noir movie released in 2005. The unique selling point of this movie is that as well as being edited to be black and white, certain colours such as red, yellow and green are shown. These help show emotion as well as certain themes such as the colour red being used to represent blood/death and the colour green being used to represent envy or even wealth and greed. The element of adding colours to a black and white movie was something that hadn't previously been done before and was a big success by adding this never before done element. 

Conventions of Film Noir

• The typical setting of a noir film is usually very urban. This includes empty streets and alleyways. Industrial settings such as refineries and train yards are also sometimes used. Damp streets and streets after raining is another convention but adds an element of sadness to the movie- usually to reflect a hidden past the protagonist has. 

• Darkness and smoke/fog are often associated with this type of film. It gives a mysterious edge to the movie as well as a sense of danger. Cigarettes are also shown in Film Noir movies which adds to the smoke effect and creates mystery.
  
• Lighting is one of the most important convention of a Film Noir movie. It is best if it is Low Key lighting which creates shadows which always face the main character. Venetian blinds are often used to create these shadows on the characters face and suggests to the audience that there is more than what meets the eye so it adds mystery.

                                           

•  Reflections are also used to add mystery to the characters and is often used to reflect how the character is feeling. 
• Jazz music is regularly used in Film Noir movies as well as the sound of heavy breathing, voice overs and even silence. These help build the story and add tension to the scenes. 
• The main type of characters shown are usually: The protagonist who is normally a detective type person, a female "Femme Fetale" who tries to distract the protagonist , the antagonist usually a criminal of some kind and corrupt police. 

Feedback - Miss Spencer

Your analysis for a Rom Com has some interesting points, you have thought about some camera angles and the setting and mise en scene. However it is too vague on the rest of the areas you could analyse.
At the moment it is at a level 2 - in order to improve use the DISTINCT formula, come and see me and I will give you some more resources to explain this if you are not sure.

The Quantum of Solace analysis is more detailed, with good use of technical language like diegetic sound and POV shot etc.
However again you have not covered all of the technical code areas (SMEC) and not used distinct. I would like to see a lot more work go into improving these analysis as I firmly believe you are capable to producing more detailed and focused analysis.
Sin City is similar to the previous analysis, and again although there is a lot of good analysis you need to add more technical language and think about DISTINCT.

Level 3 (low)

Romantic Comedy Movie Analysis - Music and Lyrics

Music and Lyrics Analysis

This romantic comedy is about an old 80's pop singer and a woman who waters his plants, who have to write a new song for a well known singer. 

In the opening the first denotation the audience sees is the logo for Village Roadshow Pictures. This connotes to show that the movie was made by a well known movie production company. The next scene is a close up of a keyboard being played so up beat music is also heard in this scene. Due to its upbeat tempo, it makes the atmosphere very fun and relaxed. Red and white text is shown at the bottom of the scene. It suggests that the scenes shown ( the opening) is done in the style of a music video set in the 1980's. The type of song being sung is a love song which immediately links to the genre of this movie- a romantic movie. Several shots of different instruments being played adds to the tempo of the song and again makes it appear very lively and fun. 

The next couple of shots vary from long shots to medium shots of "very corny 80's dancing" which connote to show the audience the "comedy" side of this "romantic comedy" hybrid. It is very up-lifting and would  make the audience laugh. Transitions from each shot are added to add to the effect of an old music video when video editing was not so good as they are now. A long shot of a corridor is next shown with a woman walking out through the door at the end. This connotes to a side story inside the music video. A medium shot of one of the singers and the woman are then shown to suggest that he doesn't want her to leave him. The 180 degree rule is obeyed here when over the shoulder shots are taken between these two characters as he tries to convince her to stay. A slow motion scene of the singer falling down adds to the cheesy drama of this scene. It connotes that the mans heart is breaking from this woman leaving him which adds to the comedy convention of this hybrid genre. 

 

During the next hospital scene, the camera zooms into the singer and then a "wiggle" effect is placed over this scene. This connotes to suggest the singer is dreaming about the woman. A green screen is used to add images of nice places behind the two characters running on the screen. This again shows that the movie is very corny but filled with elements about love with hints of comedy. When the song finally finishes, a voice over of a mans voice is heard talking about an old eighties band called "POP!". This connotes to show that the film is set in modern times and that this band has now broken up.

This film would influence my film opening, as it uses lots of long and medium shots. I would be able to add lots of these types of shots to my opening so that the storyline is shown. It also puts the credits on the bottom hand of the shot which is good because it saves time for some of the movie scenes. However this film wouldn't be a very good influence on the way I filmed my movie because the style this movie opening is shot in is a 'music video style' which wouldn't suit the genre of movie i would want to make. 

Action Movie Analysis - Quantum of Solace

Quantum of Solace- Movie Analysis

The opening starts with several well known movie production companies such as Metro Goldwyn Mayer (MGM) and Columbia. This instantly tells the audience that this movie is a high budget movie as large companies have helped to make it. An establishing shot of a mountain side near water with fast pace music denotes to show that this movie is an action film as the camera also pans across the water towards the mountain. Several fast shots of speeding cars are shown to add excitement to the scene and make the audience very excited as action is instantly shown.  

Close ups of the cars connotes to suggest that they are very expensive and that the owners of the cars are very wealthy. It makes the audience wonder who is driving these expensive cars so recklessly. An extreme close up of one of the characters eyes shows how intense and focused this person is on driving the car and not crashing. This also adds to the intense atmosphere of the scene by making the audience feel the tension. 

Diegetic sounds of the cars speeding down these tunnels, crashing into other vehicles and gunshots adds to the exciting atmosphere being created. All the editing of the car chase scenes are fast past and quick and are action packed scenes. These types of shots are a common convention of action films as it keeps the story interesting and exciting. 

Point of view shots (P.O.V) of the characters driving the car add to the intensity of the scene as it connotes to show what the characters are seeing and how extreme the situation they are in really is. Long shots of cars rolling down hills after being pushed off the edge of the road are often shown to add to the dramatic atmosphere being created. Glass shatters from broken windows in front of the main character and connotes to suggest that this person lives in a very shattered world like glass, it is very easily broken. 

Another establishing shot and high angle shot of the main characters car is shown driving through the city of Siena, Italy. This establishes where the past couple of scenes were shot and where the movie is set.  The city looks very old and is sun drenched while an expensive looking car (although now wrecked with gunshot holes and broken windows) drives through it shows that the main character has wealth and is not afraid to show it. A P.O.V shot of the car travelling through a brightly lit tunnel is shown next which connotes to add a sense of mystery to the scene. When the main character steps out of his car and opens the boot, a man is seen tied up. The first bit of dialogue in English is heard between the main character and the man in the boot of the car. This connotes to add mystery to the scene. It makes the audience ask questions about the movie such as who the man is and why he is tied up? 

The opening credits are then shown through a cartoons and with fast paced music. This denotes to show the audience what the movie is called and what the main characters are called and who played them. This connotes to show that the movie is an action film and is actually part of the James Bond films. 

This film would have a good influence on my own work because it is an action film with lots of types of shots- from establishing shots that show the audience the setting, to quicker close up shots that create tension.  This movie also uses lots of different angles to give the audience a view from high places and from lower places. I could use this in my film to create a sense of dominance or power. Then again this film wouldn't be a good influence on my work because it has lots of high speed car chase scenes which I wouldn't be able to replicate as it would cost to much and is to expensive to do anyway. Also the props used are far to complex to use in my own movie and wouldn't really 'fit' into the setting of my work.

Action Movie(Neo Noir) Analysis - Sin City

Sin City- Movie Analysis 

Sin city is an action movie which is edited to be a film noir. It includes many conventions of film noirs such as having smoking effects, shadows and it being in black and white but with only two colours shown in the opening scene. 

The first thing the audience is able to see is just a black scene. This connotes to show that death is an element of this film due to in action films when someone dies it usually fades to black and so by having the first scene as just black it shows black is imminent. The ambient sounds of traffic is heard during this scene which establishes the setting- the movie is in an urban setting (a city).


Old jazz music is part of the background sound, which also connotes to set the scene, as the first real scene is an establishing shot which shows that the movie is in black and white and a real life urban location is shown. Then a woman in red (one of the only colours shown in the movie) walks into the middle of the shot. The colour red is an obvious denotation and this could connote to the idea of danger and threat. A mans voice (a voice over) is heard as the woman walks to the balcony. This adds a hint of mystery to the scene. When the man walks towards the woman during a long shot, bright lights are shown behind him which suggests life and brightness, however the two characters have dark shadows cast over half of their faces (a convention of film noir movies) which connotes to suggest that they are in a "grey" area. They are stuck between good (light) and bad (dark) and adds mystery to the characters. 

Over the shoulder shots are used to show that the characters are having a conversation with each other and close up shots are used to show that they are the most important people in this scene. Not even the setting is as important as they are at this moment in time. A match on action is used when the man offers her a cigarette. Cigarettes are another convention of film noirs as smoking/smoke is often used to create an intense atmosphere which appears relaxed but it isn't really for the characters in the scene. 

  A close up of the woman's face is used when her eyes suddenly flash green. The colour green connotes to suggest envy and even wealth. This could show what this character is like, she's a wealthy woman but is envious of other people .A slow zoom in towards the man and woman's face is shown and adds to the tense atmosphere being created. Suddenly it starts to rain over the couple. This could connote to suggest that the rain is washing away the fears they have and that a new beginning is going to happen but it could also connote to the idea of foreshadowing a disastrous event later on in the movie and despair and hopelessness. While is rains the next scene shown is a white silhouette of the couple. This would lead to the audience believing that everything is going to be okay. 

  However the voice over continues talking and as the couple embrace a flash of white light suddenly flashes on scene. The man had shot the woman. The flash is very bright and would shock the audience as it is very sudden. The rain continues to pour down on the couple and then a high angle shot is shown of the man and woman on the floor. The added voice over still suggests that they are no longer the dominant ones in the scene and that the rain is falling on them as there is no longer any hope for her. 

This movie is a very good influence on my own work because it is a Neo-Noir style which gives it a unique selling point. The effect of black and white with only a few certain colours being shown is a great idea to use in my own work because it gives a mysterious effect to the movie and makes it much more interesting. The voice over element is another good idea that I could use in my own movie opening because it creates an atmosphere filled with mystery. However this movie isn't a good influence because changing the scenes I film to black and white when I edit my opening would be quite difficult to get right and only having one colour being shown is also fairly complex.