10JZ Film Study 2014

By the end of this Unit students of 10JZ will be able to:

1. Identify camera shots and angles.2. Identify and describe characters.3. Discuss themes and their impacts.4. Write an essay focusing on characters and

themes using visual and verbal features.5. produce a static image that reflects the theme

of the visual text (film)

Learning Intentions

The drama, the attraction, of film lies not so much in what is shot – that's the drama of subject – but in how it is shot and how it is presented through editing.

– James Monaco, How to Read a Film

Put the following into either diegetic or non diegetic sound

mood music sounds made by objects in the story 

voices of charactersnarrator's commentary

sound effects which is added for the dramatic effectmood music

music represented as coming from instruments in the story 

Themes

Each film has a central theme running through it. The most common themes in films describe an opinion about society, human nature, or life in general.

Below are the 10 most common movie themes. With a partner rank them from 1st – the most

common to 10th

• Individual vs society – man facing conflict as he deals with society• Loss of Innocence – the classic coming of age story• Man vs himself – characters involved in an internal struggle• Death as part of life - the inevitability of death• Triumph over adversity – main character facing an obstacle that they

need to overcome• The Battle – conflict between two parties (individuals, countries or

worlds) • Revenge – focused on the journey that leads to the revenge• Good vs evil – hero's vs villains• Love conquers all – characters fight the undeniable fate of true love• Man vs nature - man vs the total obliteration of mankind

conflict resolution

Marty v his brother Kile. Kile seems to support Marty by giving him his gun.

Marty and Clyde – passed off as banter. comes to a head in the forest; Marty wins by physical strength; Clyde is beaten - temporarily

Clyde v Rocky and Marty over trying to punish George

Clyde agrees to what he thinks will be 'good clean fun'; conflict resurfaces after the trip starts

Millie v. Sam – she wants no part of the plan Sam agrees - the plan is abandoned

Sam's conscience v. Rocky over how to deal with George and then whether to continue

Rocky comes up with an acceptable plan; he argues but agrees to give it up

Marty v Rocky over abandoning the plan unresolved - Marty has no intention of giving it up; the rift grows until their friendship ends and Marty leaves

Marty v George George is pushed into the river.

How to deal with the fact of George's death – initially Marty v Clyde; becomes Marty v the rest

Marty bullies Clyde into accepting his decision to bury the body.

Finally, the rest unite against Marty and insist on telling the truth.

Inner conflicts – especially Millie, Sam Initially acquiescent, they decide the truth must be told.

Inner: Clyde – between his desire to do what is right and the code of loyalty to the group

He remains silent but is a vocal part of the group that opposes Marty in the end.

Sam v Rocky over how to handle the situation. Sam tells Rocky he does not trust his judgement.

Sam and Rocky 1) Describe the relationship that Sam and Rocky have. Find a quote/example that supports this.

2) Describe how their relationship changes after George’s death. Find a quote/example that supports this.

Characters - relationships

• Bullying• Revenge and Consequences• Coming of age/loss of innocence

Select two themes. Write your own definition for each one and describe 2-3 events from the film (with quotes) that illustrate each theme. Try to discuss a range of visual and verbal techniques.

Themes

Describe what you believe to be the most important event in the film. Find two to three quotes/examples that refer to the event.

What does the event show the viewer about:• Each character involved• The themes in the film

Important Event

• Describe the sequence in Rocky and Sam’s room at the beginning of the film.

• Describe the sequence in their room at the end of the film.

• How has the lighting, music and actions changed?

• What does this reveal about how the character’s have changed?

• How do the changes link to the themes?

Beginning and End

• The whole movie is about loss of innocence and decisions. And their big choice is whether they're going to grow up to be the bad person or the good person. And that's the decision that they have to make.

• What begins as a trip down a river and a childish prank soon turns into an eye-opening encounter with the enemy – a harrowing journey into wilderness and an event that will force them to grapple with the very meaning of friendship and responsibility.

• The film's insight - powerfully articulated even if it is not especially original — is that modern adolescence is not far from the harsh, cruel state of nature. It takes only a few bad decisions or unhappy accidents to reveal the savagery that lurks behind smooth, civilised young faces.

Loss of innocence

• Have you ever been bullied before? Do you remember what it was like? How did it make you feel? How did it end?

• What are the key issues in the film?• Which of the characters do you empathise with the most? Why? Were

there any main characters you couldn’t empathise with?• Why do you think George lies about things to the group (such as

claiming he has smoked before)?• How does your opinion of George change throughout the film? What do

you think of him at the end? Is he a sympathetic character? Why/Why not?

• How do you think his dad’s suicide has affected Marty?• Do you agree with Marty or the others about telling the truth? What do

you think you would have done? Why?

Questions for discussion

• What do you think happens to Marty after the end of the film? How do you think George’s death has affected the others in the group? How do you think they have all changed by the end of the film? Who has changed the most?

• ‘You know when you said we could never be forgiven? I think you were right.’ (Sam)

• How has the sense of guilt affected the group? How do they deal with this? How would a Christian understanding of the cross have helped?

• ‘Since no one sees inside my mind, no one really knows.’ (George)• Do you feel differently about George after hearing the ending

speech?

Questions for discussion

• Who is to blame for George’s death? How much blame do Sam, Clyde, Millie share?

• How much is George responsible for his own fate?• Might George have changed if people were nicer to him? If these kids

had invited George on a trip just to be friendly, might this have made a difference to him?

• How ‘good’ an older brother are Rocky and Kile?• Why do the kids have so little faith in the adult world to help them

solve their problems?• What do you think would happen to each of them after this?• If you put these kids onto a continuum of cruelty, with Millie at one

end and Marty at the other extreme, where would you put Sam? Clyde? Rocky? George? Kile? Jasper?

Questions for discussion

• He uses dialogue to initially shock the viewer and then builds to a climax through contrasting lighting.

• Spatial Arrangement is used as an aftershock to provide a deeper understanding of the characters’ thoughts.

• We are shown that viewers feeling can be manipulated through film techniques just as well as acting.

• On top of being shocked the viewer learns about the consequences of revenge and other important ideas such as friendship.

• How?

George’s death was shocking and surprising.

• Camera Shots• Camera Angles• Clothing • Props • Lighting• Spatial Arrangement

Visual Features

•Dialogue•Music•Diegetic Sound

Verbal Features

• While they are travelling down the river on the boat Estes often uses pan shots that show George sitting on the bow of the boat and everyone else sitting at the stern. Highlights George’s isolation.

• Point Of View shots from both George’s and others’ point of view to again show us how he is isolated by himself at the front of the boat

• This is very ironic as the very tactics George uses to bully Sam at school are being used on George to get revenge. They are isolating George from them and when he tries to fit in they bully him. .

Truth or Dare Scene

POV shot. Natural Lighting

High Angle , Long Shot

POV Shot , Hand Held

Camera

Wideshot of group. Marty sitting opposite George about to fight

• Lighting was skilfully used by the director to manipulate the viewer’s feelings by creating different atmospheres.

• Prior to George’s death, the lighting was bright and natural. Estes made sure to bring attention to reflections and shadows which emphasised the sun. These scenes of nature were filled with tranquillity and gave the viewer a relaxed, pleasant feel.

Lighting

• All this suddenly changed when George was pushed into the river. Estes abruptly switched to a blue lens which put emphasis on moody, grey-green colours. The change gave the following scenes a feeling of sadness and despair.

• The sudden change shocked the viewer because the whole film prior to this scene had a bright, uplifting feel. Lighting was used by Estes to mould the atmosphere to suit the scene. Lighting is a shortcut for Estes to the viewer’s feelings. The unexpected change of colours came as a shock delivering the scene with more impact.

Lighting

• Spacing is often underestimated as a visual technique due to the subtlety. However, it is crucial that we analyse it to understand the changing relationships between characters.

• Before George drowned, the group was tightly packed on the small boat and always shot in pairs or more.

• This especially applies to Sam and his girlfriend Millie who sat shoulder to shoulder throughout the whole boating trip. This symbolised that the group were close friends.

Spatial Arrangement

• This is a direct contrast to the scenes following the George’s death. Once the corpse was pulled out of the river, the characters were mostly shot alone symbolising individuality and absence of team work.

• In one particular scene, Estes has to use a long shot to capture all the characters. In this shot the viewer is surprised to see them scattered so far apart from each other. Also there is shock in seeing such closely established friends being distanced in that manner.

• The distance was used to show weakened relationships in the group. It also shows us the consequence of their actions. This shot marks the end of dramatic action and the start of emotional break downs.

Spatial Arrangement

High Angle shot to show their lack of power over

the situation

Wide Shot to show distance between the group

• George reveals his true personality and shows the viewer what little respect he has for the other characters. • As his hysterical voice grew louder and more irritating,

it built up the tension in the atmosphere – enhancing the initial shock. Estes used this technique as a base to build around with other techniques to escalate the scene to its climax.

Dialogue used in “Truth or Dare” scene

• Low Camera Angles to highlight dominance

Camera Angles

• High Camera Angleshighlight vulnerability

Camera Angles

• The use of natural lighting in the film made the river seem more realistic. Natural lighting is used almost entirely throughout the scenes involving the river. Being filmed on location, the use of natural lighting makes the river seem very real because of the documentary motif that it introduces to the film.

• The use of a hand held camera in the film Mean Creek makes the river seem more realistic. Throughout the filming of the scenes involving the river, the film is shot with the use of a hand held camera. The movement of a hand held camera is very jerky and bumpy. The effect created is similar to a home handy camera because of the uncontrolled shudders and bumps shown when it is used for filming.

Setting of the River

• The use of a blue lens after George's death makes the setting real. After the sudden death of George on the river, the film quickly switches to blue lenses, whilst retaining the hand held cameras.

• The use of the blue lens darkens the setting, and by retaining the hand held camera, a 'silent panic' is created as the gloominess begins to encroach on the characters.

• This makes the setting seem more realistic because as a viewer our interpretation of the setting is largely subjective, meaning that Estes was able to use blue lenses to enforce a realism about the setting.

Blue Lens

The kids on their way home , red symbolising impending anger and frustration .

• "The River" [sc. 18] features guitar and cello, enhanced and manipulated subtly to provide a sense that things are just a bit "off".

• "Panic Attack"[sc. 29] starts off with a slow cello playing a bass line, and then another joins in for the main theme, with a distorted and strained warbling cello in the background to create an unnerving effect. The music thus cues an appropriate level of distrust.

• The final song, "Angel on my Shoulder" is a touching eulogy for lost innocence and forever-altered lives.

• Music

Music

• Throughout the film there are little things people say that constantly remind us of Sam and the others’ real intention, to trick and betray George.

• For example, when George hands Sam his birthday present George says, “It’s a beautiful day for a boat trip with some buddies.” But we know they are not his buddies.

• When they stop for lunch at some rocks by the river and Clyde and Marty go off to talk they call George a “dumb, ugly pathetic piece of s**t.” Also, when George is drowning in the water, Marty says, “He’s calling for some friends to help him because that’s what friends do. That’s why you’re in the water, because you’ve got none.”

• All this dialogue helps to remind us throughout the movie that they are not George’s friends.

Dialogue

• Dialogue is used to give momentum to the upcoming shocking events.

• As George stood on the small boat, filled with rage, Clyde told him to “sit down” and relax.

• In response George verbally attacked him telling him to “shut the fuck up” and calling him a “fucking butt-munching faggot.”

• George then moved on to Marty and offended him on a deeply emotional level by referring to his dead father.

Dialogue