Reflective analysis

Reflective Analysis

I have produced a short experimental film called ’Alone’ based on the philosopher ’s essay: Abiding Loneliness: An Existential Perspective On Loneliness. Her philosophy of loneliness being part of the human condition is the central focus of my film. To show this I decided to use an experimental film method as I did not feel that a mainstream method would be suitable for the idea. This was due to mainstream films having more of an exciting and unrealistic narrative whereas experimental film shows the parts of life that are considered boring and therefore are usually kept out of mainstream narratives. However I subverted one of the main conventions of experimental film, I decided that I wanted my screenplay to have a basic linear narrative and to adapt the conventions and use them in my screenplay.

I wanted to focus on the cinematography of my screenplay because I knew that was where I could experiment and play around with different shots and ideas the most. I watched Stan Brakhage’s ‘Mothlight’ and liked that he didn’t use a camera and instead put seeds and moths onto the film stock.I decided to use Stan Brakhage’s method of not using the camera and just using the film for my scene where ‘Lucy’ rubs her eyes.  I thought back to times when I have been bored and thought about what I do when im bored. I then remembered how people rubbed their eyes when they are tired or bored and all of the colours and shapes that you can see from this I had the idea to paint the colours onto the film the way Brakhage did with ‘Mothlight’.

I also decided to use a sepia tone over one of the scenes in my screenplay to represent how the world lacks colour when you are alone. One of my inspirations for the sepia tone was the start of ‘The Wizard of Oz’ and how her world is shown as dull before she escapes to Oz where everything is suddenly shown in bright colours. I adapted this idea to the park scene by adding point of view shots of common occurances that take place in the park and then adding the sepia tone showing that Lucy can't see any colour in the world. I felt that this related with my theme of loneliness. I thought the idea of using the sepia tone could represent how boring and dull life is when you are alone.

Another one of my main influences was Maya Deren’s ‘Meshes in the Afternoon’ because watching this film gave me the idea of my screenplay being centred around the idea of being lonely. I also incorporated the idea of the woman with the mirror face into my film and adapting it to the idea of Lucy looking into the mirror and seeing herself.
I wanted my screenplay to be centred around a female protagonist who was dealing with loneliness and being excluded by her friends. I used a female as the protagonist because it was easier for me to write from my own perspective about things that I had experienced that I would have reacted differently to if I were a male. I felt that I could also be more creative with cinematography if I wrote it with stereotypical gender roles. Using stereotypes helped me come up with ideas as they are already established for me to understand. The fact that I used stereotypes in an experimental film was a mistake because stereotypes are meant to be used in mainstream films to cater to their passive audiences.   Therefore if I did the screenplay again I would get rid of the stereotypes and instead cater to my target audience who are active.
I believe that my screenplay lacked detail in the mise en scene because I just listed the basics in a couple of scenes especially in the scene in the words when I described what ‘Lucy’ could see while she was in the park. This meant it would be difficult to understand why the mise en scene is there in the first place and how it fits in to the screenplay.

I set my screenplay in a few different locations. However only three of the locations were important to the narrative but because I was doing an experimental film I knew that the convention of showing the audience everything was important. Therefore I had to include other locations while she made her way to the main locations, such s when she is walking to the park. It didn’t fit into my narrative of her living next to the woods and living in a perfect cul-de-sac so I added filler locations to show her journey. I decided to use the mise en scene of the cul-de-sac houses all being identical to symbolise how Lucy always felt like the odd one out and how people are stuck in a robotic like state of normality.

Overall I feel that my screenplay lacks any real drama which may make it boring for the active audience to watch. It also wouldn’t challenge the active audience due to the narrative being cliché and having a unoriginal happy ending. I felt that while my screenplay had some creative ideas cinematography wise it still lacked a strong narrative, which was one of my aims. This resulted in the film being generic and lacking any real impact. However I believe that I did successfully show that loneliness is just a part of the human condition, just as  Michele A. Carter wrote. I showed this through the character of the Old man who had lost his wife years ago and was still lonely and that you just have to live with it.

aims and contexts

                 

              Aims and Context- 'ALONE'

•  Short film with experimental cinematography
•    Shown to a film festival audience
• Influences- Stan Brakhage (Mothlight)
• Target  Audience – cineliterate people

                                                                                                         

Screenplay idea

                                                       
                                                               
                                                              Genre: Parody
Influences:
Charlie's Angels
James Bond
Mission Impossible

Target Audience: 13-21 year olds

                     
Three female spies of different ages are sent on a mission, where everything goes wrong. Parodies conventions of spy films.

Conventions:

1. Gadgets
2. Fast Cars
3. Attractive women
4. City Locations

    Beatrice:

• Leader
• Sassy
• 65 Years old
• Orange perm 
• Pink Tracksuit
• Glases
• Stiletos 

      Agatha: 

• Ditzy
• Black hair 
• 18 Years old
• Patterned leggings 
• Dressing gown
• Flip flops 
• Trips over shoes and sets off the alarms
• Uses stairlift 

Margaret: 

• Eccentric
• Eco Friendly
• 40 Years old
• Green dreadlocks
• Over the knee skirt
• Wellington Boots
• Multicoloured knee high socks
• Deer stalker hat
• Provides the exposition 

La Haine- Essay

                                                                    

What is the importance of mise en scene and/or sound in creating meaning and generating response in the film you have studied ?


In the scene where we are first introduced to Vinz we see a close up of his ring introducing him to us. The ring has his name on and is a cheap gold ring which is similar to what American rappers and Hip hop artists would wear, this shows us Vinz's westernisation and his dependence on the American culture. The ring could also show Vinz as the liberty that the French motto refers to in "Liberty, Equality and Fraternity" as he introduces himself through his material belongings, unlike Said who uses criminal activities such as vandalism. A 360 shot is used in Vinz's bedroom to show us the mise en scene of the posters on his bedroom walls. Most of the posters on his wall are of people who were huge stars in America such as Marylin Monroe. Two of the posters/pictures on his wall were famous for the violence that was included in their jobs. Brett Hart was a wrestler for the WWF/E while the company was in its prime, this shows us that Vinz is viewing American scripted violence and is seeing Hart as a role model. The other picture on the wall was of Bruce Lee who was also famous for his martial arts and violent movies. The fact that Vinz has two violent men on his wall shows us that the only male figure he has to look up to are violent men.  The mise en scene of the posters can show us Vinz's morals and values, the posters of sexualised women, violent men and drugs shows us that Vinz's dreams of being the violent man and believes he will get the others as a result of this.

When we are shown Vinz's breakfast table we see his female family members at the table. The mise en scene of the table shows us that Vinz's family still has a place where the family can still be together however the mise en scene of the Television in the background shows the corruption the media is having on the family and many other families too. The mise en scene of the pictures on the side unit shows us that Vinz's grandma has strong family values and wants her family to be safe, there are also Jewish candle holders on the unit yet again showing us that she wants the family to stick to their religion, believing that God will help them escape the life of the other people who come from the projects.


When we are shown Vinz's dream sequence the non diegetic Jewish music that sounded upbeat, this showed us that while Vinz is asleep he is still influenced by the Jewish culture, whereas when he is awake he is dominated by the western culture. As Vinz wakes up the non diegetic music fades out.
The lack of music when they are vinz's bedroom highlights the importance of the mise en scene we are being shown in the 360 shot of his room. Kassovitz may have thought it more important for us to be solely focused on Vinz's moving away from his religion and his globalisation. When Vinz and his family sit down for breakfast we can hear the non diegtic sounds of the Television in the background, this shows us that the media is always there even when they are meant to be a family communicating with each other. At the end of the scene when we get a close up of Vinz doing the gun pose with his hands we hear a non diegetic sound effect of a gun shot. The gun shot sound is a recurring motif throughout the film which foreshadows the later events of the film.


Quentin Tarantino- Auteur theory- Violence

         
             
   A 'specific' kind of graphic violence is heavily featured in Quentin Tarantino films, does this make him an auteur? 



Item 1: Kill Bill Volume 1 - 2003 (Film)

I have chosen to use this film as my focus film because of its numerous use of graphic violence throughout the film. This film will back up my idea of Tarantino being an auter through his use of graphic violence to show the theme of vengeance in the film. The film sometimes uses a comic book style of violence to dull down what we are being shown whilst at the same time showing us gritty and harsh themes in the scenes. The Bride is the character we see using violence the most in the film because she is the one who is seeking vengeance.


Item 2: Pulp Fiction - 1994 (Film)

I have chosen this film as my focus film because it shows Tarantino as an auteur more than it does in some of his other films, such as 'Jackie Brown. The use of graphic violence in a matter of fact way shows the audience that these kind of things happen in everyday life. The comic timing of Travolta's reaction to the fact he shot someones head off shows the viewer the casual reactions to murders and death and almost makes the audience laugh, this shows that Tarantino has a desensitised view on violence.


Item 3: Reservoir Dogs - 1992 (Film)

I have chosen this film because of it being the first film that Tarantino directed so therefore i can get a better view at where the use of graphic violence started. The film ' Reservoir Dogs' features a famous torture scene which is one of his most famous scenes from all of the films he has done. The character of Mr Blonde is the most violent in the films. The film is most famous for its' graphic use of torture in one of the scenes, this scene makes the viewer uncomfortable. However the camera never shows us the ear being cut off as it looked too unrealistic when they shot it. On the other hand it is more disturbing when you don't see the shot as your imagination sees it in more graphic detail.

Item 4: Quentin Tarantino Hollywood's Boy Wonder - 1994 (Documentary):
This documentary discusses Tarantino's childhood and when his interest in violence in movies began. It also has interviews with Tarantino himself and others who have worked with him.


Item 5: Quintessential Tarantino by Edwin Page (Book):
This book is useful and is from a book about Tarantino so is a credible source from someone who knows more about Tarantino's films than I do. Therefore this book will increase my knowledge on Tarantino and his views.


Item 6: Tarantino A to Zed by Alan Barnes and Marcus Hearn (Book):
This book contains a section on violence in Tarantino's films which will help me discuss and back up my theory on him being an auteur. This will be useful to me because it contains information about my focus films in particular.

Item 7: Virgin Film Series Tarantino by Jim Smith (Book):
I have chosen this book to prove that Tarantino is an auteur because it has a famous film critic in it who disagrees that Tarantino's films are violent. This book is useful as it shows a contrasting opinion to mine, which will help me develop my ideas further and use his opinion in contrast with other critics who do believe that Tarantino's films are violent.


Item 8:
Movie Greats: A Critical Study of Classic Cinema-Phillip Gillet- 2008 (Book):
This book is useful to me as it has a whole chapter dedicated to my focus film 'Kill Bill Vol. 1' the book mentions the context of the film and also features information regarding Tarantino's use of violence in the film. There is a really good quote by Thane Peterson in the book which highlights Tarantino's use of violence.


Item 9:
CBSNEWS (Article):Jamie Foxx, Quentin Tarantino speak about movie violence in wake of Newtown, Conn., shootings- http://www.cbsnews.com/news/jamie-foxx-quentin-tarantino-speak-about-movie-violence-in-wake-of-newtown-conn-shootings/
Donald Bowers- :
This article is useful as it has some context against as well as it mentions the Newtown shootings in relation to Tarantino's violence.

Item 10:
USA Today (Article): Tarantino grilled on NPR about movie violence- Bryan Alexander:
This article also focuses on Tarantino's opinions about the Newtown shootings and how the events were influenced by violent films.


Item 11: Whatculture.com (Article):10 Iconic Bloody Moments In Quentin Tarantino Films:
This website will be useful to me as the key scenes from my focus films are discussed which will help me back up my argument that Tarantino is an auteur.
Item 12: Independent.com (Article): Quentin Tarantino's interview outburst tarnishes violent cinema- Robert Zak: This article focuses on Tarantino's reaction to more questions about the violence he uses in his films. This article also questions whether Tarantino should be made accountable for the influence he has and that he should contribute to a solution for the problem.

Item 13: The Telegraph (Article): Quentin Tarantino: violence is the best way to control an audience
This article is useful to me as it is a direct interview with Tarantino about violence, he makes some points about his violence and why he uses it in his films and how it affects him and his audience. I will use this article for my presentation script to prove that Tarantino is an auteur.

Item 14: Miramax.com- (Article/Interview): Tarantino's 'Cinematic Bloodbath':
In this article Tarantino discusses the types of violence he uses in my focus film 'Pulp Fiction', there are several good quotes in this article for my presentation script therefore this source is useful to me.



Item 15: Miramax.com (Photograph): Tarantino's 'Cinematic Bloodbath' This photograph will be useful in my Presentation Script as it clearly shows the different ways that people die in films directed by Tarantino. It also shows us the death count in his films and how the number increases in his newer films. 

Item 16: Interview with Channel 4 news: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrsJDy8VjZk 
I will be using this video to show how Tarantino reacts to questions about the violence he uses in his films and how it affects others.

Item 17: Statistics on gun crime: http://heedinggodscall.org/content/pfctoolkit-10 
This will back up my argument in the presentation script because it proves how gun violence has increased since Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs. 

Item 18: Teach Yourself Film Studies by Warren Buckland (2010)  
This is a book that discusses the auteur theory and includes quotes that i will use in my presentation script to help prove my argument that Tarantino is an auteur. 

Item 19: Kill Bill colour changes to Black and White http://movies.stackexchange.com/questions/222/kill-bill-colour-changes-to-black-and-white:
This website will be useful to me as it discusses the different reasons why Tarantino included black and white in my focus film, Kill Bill Vol 1. Therefore I can include this information in my presentation script.



Item 20: Quentin Tarantino’s playful violence and high body count https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2003/11/kill-n11.html
This is a very useful source for my presentation script as it discusses in detail the violence used in my focus film Kill Bill Vol 1.


Item 21: Cartoon Violence http://www.cracked.com/funny-3621-cartoon-violence/
This link discusses the use of violence in cartoons and has a good quote that I can include in my Kill Bill Vol 1 section for my presentation script.

Item 22: Animation sequence
http://movies.stackexchange.com/questions/4376/whats-the-reason-for-the-oren-ishii-animation-sequence
This website includes a piece of information that will aid



Rejected Items:
1. Quentin Tarantino On The Graham Norton Show Full Interview (11-1-13).https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-bPjtUvWTg This Interview Tarantino did on the Graham Norton Show was on the subject of my focus film, Pulp Fiction. However he did not discuss the violence shown in the film, therefore this interview is not useful to me as there are no quotes that I could use from it. 

2. How violent is Django Unchained compared to Quentin Tarantino's other movies -- Pulp Fiction, Inglourious Basterds, Kill Bill, etc.?
This article does mention the violence used in all of my focus films so would be useful to use when doing my presentation script. However the person who wrote the article is not a known film critic and therefore the quotes have no substance. 

3. Quentin Tarantino Is ‘Ill-Informed’ for Defending His Violent Movies, Says Harvard Psychologist- CeleBuzz.com- Although this article mentions Tarantino's opinion on violence it doesn't mention my focus films and there is no real information on the type of violence used itself. 

4. 'Jackie Brown'
I have rejected this film because it does not feature as much violence as my now focus films do, this film will not be helpful to my presentation script and offers no examples to prove that Tarantino is an auteur.