Short Film update development

Added:
Wide shot of 'Happy Birthday' banners, the shot pans down towards a woman sitting on the sofa, she looks up and smiles at someone.
Mid shot of another girl who walks into the room mouthing 'Happy Birthday', she is holding a bag and a card, pan across to the woman on the sofa standing up and they hug. They sit down an the card is opened.
Close up of the card shows that she is a mother.
Close up of phone will be shown, she has received a text asking when she is coming over, she replies with a time.
Wide shot of the sky and lights from houses, date and time is shown at the bottom.
When the stalker is looking through the window the girl can be seen putting on her coat and scarf in preparation to leave.
Mid shot of her walking towards the front door.
Close up of her locking the door.
Handheld camera used, facing towards the girl, the stalker can be seen coming round a corner and following behind. The camera will stop and both walk past one after the other.
On her way to visit her friend she takes a shortcut down a dark muddy path. Girl walks around the corner.
The camera will now be at the other end of the path and as the girl exits and comes into view the stalker emerges and grabs her dragging her backwards.
The stalker walks away down the road or into the darkness holding a scarf that the girl is wearing. The film title 'Shadows' will appear.

Removed:
The shot when i was panning up the stalkers back because every time i did so i could not get the camera to focus.
I removed the shot when i was inside the house and the stalker could be seen outside because the reflection in the window also showed the reflection of myself and the camera.
The setting has changed because due to the lack of light in the woods. This is why i changed the plot and instead of going jogging the girl is walking to her friends house. All the scenes set in the woods have therefore been removed.
The girl no longer puts in headphones.
A low angle shot is not used but i may re add this to show the difference in power.

The Selfish Giant Analysis

The Selfish Giant is a 2013 British drama written and directed by Clio Barnard. The film was inspired by Oscar Wilde’s children’s book ‘The selfish giant’. It is about two thirteen year old friends, Arbor (Conner Chapman) and Swifty (Shaun Thomas) who seek wealth from a local scrap dealer. It runs for 91 minutes and made £602,866 in the box office.

The film contained themes of friendship, crime, jealousy, family, and devastation. The very first scene showed the first feeling of friendship when Arbor is angry and is banging against his bed. Swifty tries to calm him down by holding his hand. The grip Swifty has on his hand looks quite tight and eventually Arbor does the same. This shows the strong bond between them because the hold is quite tight. When Arbor is under his bed shouting, it almost seems like he is trapped, he is banging on the bed in an attempt to escape. This links to fish tank with the theme of entrapment. This film also links to fish tank because at the beginning it shows an establishing shot of a field with horses and at the start of fish tank and establishing shot is shown of her town. Swifty also had an abusive father and in Fish Tank Mia had an abusive mother.

Crime is shown when Swifty and Arbor arrive at a train track on a horse and notice some men cutting some wire for scrap, but when the men hide from others that arrive at the scene Arbor takes his chance to steal the wire. When Arbor and Swifty arrive at a local scrap dealer we also find out that the boys stole the horse which belonged to the scrap dealer.

Jealousy comes in a little later in the film because Swifty starts to bond with the scrap dealer Kitten (Sean Gilder) about horse racing and slowly starts spending more time with Kitten leaving Arbor to feel unwanted and jealous.

Although family is a theme it is not shown in a good light because Arbor is constantly arguing with his brother. His brother Martin (Elliot Tittensor) appears to be addicted to drugs including taking his brothers ADHD tablets. The siblings don’t get on and this is made obvious by their language. They are constantly swearing at one another and Arbor’s brother even makes fun of Arbor for his ADHD by calling him a ‘spaz’. The family is troubled and don’t get along, they always seemed to be in an argument throughout the scene. However in one scene when his mum is crying Arbor comes over and hugs her. A close up of this hug is shown to show that there is love within the family.

Devastation is the last theme to be shown when Swifty passes away, Arbor devastation is made clear and the performances here are spectacular. This is a really sad scene because throughout the film they the performances audience to like and get to know the characters so when one dies many emotions are felt. Before Swifty dies a foul is shown, and this foul has died by electrocution which foreshadows Swifty’s death later in the film.

The cinematography was really effective especially when they used the shadows to represent the people. When Arbor is first underneath his bed he is shown as a shadow which perhaps shows his unhappiness and that his life is dark. When both Arbor and Swifty where going out during the night, you saw them run across a field (with Swifty on a horse) and they were shadows. But they were soon lit up more because they are together so shows how calm Arbor is when he is with Swifty and how much more relaxed he feels with him rather than his family. The lighting was dark throughout; even during the day the sky was filled with grey clouds this shows that they will never have a bright day.

I enjoyed the scene after Swifty had died and Arbor was under the bed again because he was so upset and didn’t want to talk to anyone. During this scene a hand is shown grabbing Arbor’s and the hand is then shown to belong to Swifty. This was a powerful scene because although we know that Swifty is dead it makes us want to believe he is back. Swifty holding Arbor’s hand and he lay under the bed was also the first scene to be shown of the film. This makes us question whether it’s a new scene or a speechless version of the first one. I think it would have been quite clever to have shown one of the last scenes at the beginning.

The Selfish Giant Scene Analysis

The Selfish Giant is a 2013 British drama written and directed by Clio Barnard. The film was inspired by Oscar Wilde’s children’s book ‘The selfish giant’. It is about two thirteen year old friends, Arbor (Conner Chapman) and Swifty (Shaun Thomas) who seek wealth from a local scrap dealer. It runs for 91 minutes and made £602,866 in the box office.

The short scene at the beginning of the film we viewed contained themes of friendship and crime. The scene showed the first feeling of friendship when Arbor is angry and is banging against his bed. Swifty tries to calm him down by holding his hand. The grip Swifty has on his hand looks quite tight and eventually Arbor does the same. This shows the strong bond between them because the hold is quite tight. When Arbor is under his bed shouting, it almost seems like he is trapped, he is banging on the bed in an attempt to escape. This links to fish tank with the theme of entrapment.  The theme of Crime is shown when Swifty and Arbor arrive at a train track on a horse and notice some men cutting some wire for scrap, but when the men hide from others that arrive at the scene Arbor takes his chance to steal the wire. When Arbor and Swifty arrive at a local scrap dealer we also find out that the boys stole the horse which belonged to the scrap dealer.

We later find out that Arbor suffers from ADHD because he gets angry easily and has to take medication to calm himself down. This is shown when Arbor returns home and gets questioned about the money he ‘earned’. He becomes aggressive when his mother asks for the second time. He starts to knock cereal off the side and throw things whilst cursing at the same time. Their wealth can also be seen here. The cereal he knocks off are ‘value’ cereals and his mother is unable to pay for the truancy fine that Arbor has caused from not attending school.

The relationships between family members are also made obvious. His brother Martin (Elliot Tittensor) appears to be addicted to drugs including taking his brothers ADHD tablets. The siblings don’t get on and this is made obvious by their language. They are constantly swearing at one another and Arbor’s brother even makes fun of Arbor for his ADHD by calling him a ‘spaz’. The family is troubled and don’t get along, they always seemed to be in an argument throughout the scene.

The cinematography was really effective especially when they used the shadows to represent the people. When Arbor is first underneath his bed he is shown as a shadow which perhaps shows his unhappiness and that his life is dark. When both Arbor and Swifty where going out during the night, you saw them run across a field (with Swifty on a horse) and they were shadows. But they were soon lit up more because they are together so shows how calm Arbor is when he is with Swifty and how much more relaxed he feels with him rather than his family.

My Brother The Devil analysis

My brother the devil is a 2012 British film written and directed by Sally El Hosaini. It is set in Hackney, London and is a social realism urban story.  The film includes the themes of Anger, destruction and survival. Anger and destruction are portrayed throughout because the film features in two brothers and their gang and the rival gang. Survival is a key part in this film because the film is about two brothers growing up in gangland London.

Before the film starts we see a series of various photos of groups of teenagers in different locations. This is the starting point that gives us a general insight into the sort of setting that will be used and almost what some of the film will entail. In between these images it shows a boy who we later find out is called Rashid or Rash (James Floyd) boxing.  As the film progresses it may seem that he is boxing to defend himself against others in his neighbourhood. Another boy who appears younger; Mohammed or Mo (Fady Elsayed); is show leaving school as close ups of shirts being signed are shown. Both these small clips at the very beginning set the scene and characters. Although we are unsure who these people are we can presume they are going to be the protagonists. After this the images are shown again and one by is pictured with what look like drugs which give us an insight to what these boys lives may be like.

When Rashid boxing is shown again it is in slow motion which may be portraying his focus. Other slow motion shots are used throughout the film to maybe show the tension. The slow motion shots make me quite curious because you try and imagine what that person is thinking and how they are feeling.

The handheld camera is used to show their lifestyles and status in society. When Mo is terrorised by his brothers rival gang constant close ups are shown of the boys in the gang. As these close ups are shown the camera is moving around which puts the audience in Mo’s position as if we are being pushed around and that is the view we can see. Also as he runs from the gang to camera is following behind him still using handheld camera to emphasise his instability.

Both gangs meet up at some point in the movie. Demon the leader of the rival gang has a dog and constant close ups of the dog are shown to portray to danger of the situation. In this scene Demon lets his dog of his leash to attack someone. During this time a lot of noise it being made, shouting, cussing and sounds of the fight occurring. However the boy that the dog attacks stabs him which causes everything to become silent. This is effective because it shows the shock of everyone in the area. It is also continuously silent as Demon (Leemore Marrett Jr.) stabs Rash’s best friend and fellow gang member Izzi (Anthony Welsh). The silence when Izzi was killed was a surprise because I thought there would be more of a reaction from Rash’s gang. Instead both gang’s ran off which made it seem like although the gangs fight no killing it ever involved.

I liked the shots used when Rash was running away from the scene because included in this was the sound of his heavy breathing which portrayed his terror and the unpredictability of what just happened.  The sound of the police sirens where also in the background and when Rash was underneath a bridge you could hear the sound of a train going past above. The train got louder as it passed and then everything went silent which makes me think that Rash zoned out and wasn't really thinking of anything he was just stood there in a daze.

The only light in the house when Rash returned home was candle beside his mum as she slept and when he attempted to turn on the lights no lights turned on which emphasises there living situation and lifestyle because it shows they are poor as they can’t pay for the electricity.

The best shot for me throughout the movie is when Rash gets a gun and is standing in the bathroom loading it and practicing because he wants to take revenge. When he holds it up towards the mirror it is dark and he looks as if he is dressed if pyjamas but the camera suddenly switches round to the other side of the wall which is also Rash holding a gun up to the mirror but he is fully clothed and it is daylight. This is used to quickly switch between the time which it is set; the night before and the morning. His clothes are then the same when he arrives at the tattoo parlour which highlights what the mirror shot was about.

In one scene Mo is sitting with his two friends Aisha (Letitia Wright) and Jamie (Aaron Ishmael). Aisha is listening to music through her headphones but if is quiet and slightly muffled; they are letting us hear what Mo can hear in this scene. But when Mo puts o the headphones instead we can hear the song clearly and louder again giving us things from his perspective.  It seems like they what us to relate with Mo because we keep seeing things from his point of view. Aisha is holding a sparkler and different views of the sparkler are shown but when the sparkler goes out the music stops as well and everything is silent.

I enjoyed this film because I think this film showed all the different struggles that people go through, in this film it ranges from life in a gang to homophobia. It focused on the two brothers and what they did to find their true identities

Short film coursework development

Name: Stalker

Genre: Thriller

Themes: Helplessness, Crime, Anger

Setting: The setting will start within a street of houses. It will be very dark and houses will be shown. It will then be set in a lit bedroom. Nearer the end of the film it will be set in the woods where the girl will go jogging.

Character Development: None of my characters have names because there is no talking in my film. This also means that no script will be created.

• The female enjoys pop music because when she is jogging and puts in her headphones this is what plays. She also likes to keep fit and this can be shown when she goes jogging. She is also very relaxed.
• The other character in my film is the stalker and no information is ever found out about this person.

Outline: A moving Close up of someone's feet are shown walking along a pavement in the dark. When the feet stop walking a shot pans up somebody's back towards a window. When the camera reaches the top of the person's back an over the shoulder shot takes place to face the lit window. Someone standing in the room can be seen.
The Camera enters the lit room and a mid shot of a girl is shown, the dark figure outside can be seen through the window. An over the shoulder shot of the girl will be used to show the girls perspective. Firstly it shows her looking at her phone, then she looks out the window turns back to the phone and quickly looks towards the window again. The figure can be seen the first time she looks out the window but the second time the figure will be gone. The girl will now leave her house and a long shot shows the girl leaving and jogging down her path. The camera turns towards her as she jogs past and down the road. She can be seen putting her headphones in, this is when music starts to play.
On her journey jogging the girl enters the wood. A mid shot of the girl jogging is shown and a handheld camera will be used at the same time to put the audience in her position. Music from her headphones can still be heard. A person is seen running past. After seeing the figure a mid shot is still used as the girls removes one headphone and looks around. A crack of twigs is heard so she turns around. When she turns back a figure is stood in front throughout this whole sequence a mid shot is used.
A low angle shot is then used as the person wraps something around her neck. A struggle is shown from the low angle and this shows the stranger is more powerful. An establishing shot then shows the person walk off into the woods leaving the girl on the ground. The film title will appear as music plays.
The credits will roll.

Sleeping With The Enemy scene breakdown draft

The film extract that I have chosen to breakdown is from the film Sleeping with the Enemy. It was directed by Joseph Ruben and written by Ronald Bass. The genre of the film is a thriller with the themes of love, revenge, betrayal, determination and freedom. It is about an abused woman who attempts to escape and start a new life without her husband. The scene from this film I have chosen to analyse is when Laura Burney (Julia Roberts) thinks that her husband Martin Burney (Patrick Bergin) has found her and is somewhere in her house.

At the very start of the scene Roberts notices her window is open and the wind is blowing causing it to constantly hit the wall behind it. The sound of the window banging and the pan towards the window causes you to focus on the window so you are not expecting anything else. When she goes to close the window, the window creaks and a reflection of a man is seen behind her so the creak becomes high pitched music. The music is used just as the reflection appears giving it a dramatic effect, causing the audience to react; this music is effective because it is tense and unexpected. The camera shot that is used when she closes the window is a close up of her back so that when she turns around and screams you can see the emotion in her face. Although her emotions are not shown for long because the camera quickly turns the face the person in the reflection. Rather than being her husband it is Ben Woodward (Kevin Anderson). When it returns to the close up of Roberts her emotion is made obvious as the relief can be seen in her now relaxed facial expression.

The couple (Anderson and Roberts) are seen having a picnic outside the house. The camera is behind the bushes and is panning across. The camera being behind the bushes is a very effective technique because although we do not know if anyone is watching them the camera use implies that they are and it hints at where they could be by having leaves across the camera. The sound of crickets can be heard and a dog barking. Both these sounds are usual. This may be to show how normal her life is since she left her husband.  When they are sitting outside on the grass a light is in-between them, light is usually used to show safety because in most thrillers or horrors it is constantly dark to create an eerie atmosphere. However this light is soon blown out and the darkness surrounds both characters perhaps because Anderson is soon to leave Roberts so it is showing danger. When the couple kiss sudden dramatic music starts to play. The music is used to make the audience feel on edge and to change the atmosphere from the romantic atmosphere that just ended. The camera continues to pan through the bushes and follow Roberts as she walks into the house signifying that it wasn't both people that were being watched and implies heavily that it is someone that is looking for her.

The same music plays when she enters her house and again the camera looks as if someone is watching her. The camera is down the hallway and moves to the side as she comes further into the room almost as if it’s hiding from her. The camera returns back outside where again it is in the bushes, but this time it is looking at her through the window. It pans forward and the camera pans right to keep her in clear view as she leaves the room. This makes it seem like someone is watching her to find a way in. The camera is now placed in the living room where a close up of a tape player is shown which implies that the tape player will have something to add to the suspenseful scene. After pressing play Roberts walks up the stairs and the camera is placed in front of her. Although a close up is not used her emotions are obvious within her facial expressions.  I think the shot is closest to a mid shot. Her facial expressions change from worried to a smile as it seems she is telling herself that nothing is wrong.

When she walks into her bedroom handheld camera is used this may show that she is slightly scared and confused.  The sound of running water can be heard and a close up of an overflowing bath is shown to emphasise what she is walking towards and make it clearer to the audience what is happening because when it first shows the bath it is quite difficult to understand what is happening. I really like the next shot because it is used with very interesting angle. The view is from under the water in the bath and the water ripples as she pulls out the plug. Her face is slightly blurred when she pulls the plug which may show her confusion because she doesn’t remember leaving the bath on. The music hits the highest pitch when she turns round to find a door slightly open, this was used because in thrillers they usually use high music when something tense is going to happen or has just happened. However her fire alarm goes off before she is able to open the door. This is when the music stops playing.

Handheld camera is again used when she runs down the stairs. When she pulls out the plug for the toaster it sparks will signifies danger. After stopping the alarm she notices all the towels lined up neatly which reminds her of her husband who had OCD. From watching the rest of the film this will make the audience feel anxious because they will also be reminded of the husband. Tense music once again starts to play creating suspense and a shadow is shown on one side of her face the Black shadow implies the way she is turning or where she is going is unsafe. A wide shot of the cupboards is shown to inform the audience about where she is looking. The music hits the climax and the volume is loudest as soon as she opens the cupboards. A Handheld camera follows her back and she slowly walks into the shadows, this contrasts with the light that was used earlier to show her fear. The camera then follows Roberts as she runs from the room towards the front door in order to escape. A close up of the same tape player shown earlier is in front of the front door to let the viewers know what to expect. As a close up of Roberts is shown the camera moves towards the right to show an out of focus Bergin walk into the room. As Bergin gets closer he moves further into the dark shadows and becomes focussed. 

Initial idea for my short film

The idea for my short film is a film called Stalker. It would be a thriller with the themes of helplessness, crime and anger. My intended audience is male and females who are adults who are perhaps 16-40+ because it contains some violence and this range of audience are mature. It is also aimed at people who enjoy thrillers and/or crime thrillers. I will attempt to create a tense atmosphere with the use of lighting; most likely dark and the use of music; suspenseful music will be used to make the viewer think something is going to happen and to make the atmosphere tense.

It would start with a close up of someone’s feet walking down the pavement. The environment would be very dark. The feet would stop walking and the camera would pan up the persons back towards a window with the light on and an over the shoulder shot will take place. The camera will then be inside the house showing a girl who is texting. A mid shot would be used here. Within the mid shot you’ll also be able to see a figure standing outside. The girl will look out the window but not register that the figure is out there so when she looks at her phone again she’ll quickly look back out the window to see nothing out there. The girl is then shown leaving the house to go jogging; various shots of her journey are shown. She will enter a wooded area with the use of handheld camera and the music from her headphones can be heard. She’ll see a hooded figure walk/run past in the distance. The girl will take one headphone out and look forward, after seeing nothing she will go to place the headphone back and hear the crack of twigs, she will turn her head and too look around and when she turns back forward a figure is standing directly in front of her. The camera will be within the trees showing a wide shot of the struggle between the two people as the figure attempts to strangle her. The girl falls to the ground and the figure walks off into the woods.

Prisoners Review - Chosen film

Prisoners is a 2013 American thriller film directed by Denis Villenueve and written by Aaron Guzikowski. The film runs for 153 minutes and had a budget of £28 million it went on to make £76 million in the box office. The plot focuses on the abduction of two young girls in Pennsylvania and the subsequent search. Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman) and Grace Dover (Maria Bello) go to their friend’s; Franklin Birch (Terrence Howard) and Nancy Birch’s (Viola Davis) house for a thanksgiving dinner. The families' six year old daughters, Anna Dover (Erin Gerasimovich) and Joy Birch (Kyla Drew Simmons), go for a walk outside with their older siblings, Ralph Dover (Dylan Minnette) and Eliza Birch (Zoe Borde). The children have to be forcefully pulled away from a parked RV by their siblings when they start climbing on it. After dinner, the younger daughters leave to go back to Anna's house to get her safety whistle she is supposed to carry at all times, but they never come back. Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal) is on the case but is having a difficult time solving it when he has to look out for Keller as well. Keller captures and imprisons the man he thinks is responsible Alex (Paul Dano), intent on beating him until he breaks – that’s a good thing, because the final product is a trip into darkness that makes even extreme vigilantism the least shocking element of its twisted story. The film was nominated for an Academy award for the best cinematography.

Prisoners is a complex story well told.  It’s gritty, violent and even nauseating at times.  It asks the tough questions and the answers don’t necessarily add up to happily ever after.  The torture scenes are difficult to watch.  The performances are strong.  And, the ending is as intense as it obscure.

The film’s title obviously refers to the young captives the two girls and the troubled Alex but it also extends to those who find themselves prisoners to their grief and guilt, and their subsequent choices and actions. None more so than Keller. Jackman delivers a searing turn as the proud father driven by a potent mix of rage, righteousness and love for his daughter, but who also seems to be dangerously spurred on by his own feelings of inadequacy. At one point even Keller himself becomes a prisoner.

 

Prisoners works as a superb, complex, edge-of-your-seat thriller. Roger Deakins’ cinematography is brooding and precise, while Villeneuve allows the plot twists to multiply and the tension to mount with expert discipline. The action did not speed up to join most of Hollywood thrillers, instead the filmmaker’s focus remains on mood and meaning, and he allows time to press down on us, just as it’s pressing down on each character in the film. We feel the heavy and unsettling passing of each day that the girls aren’t found and Alex remains in captivity. With a two-and-a-half-hour running time, it’s an emotionally exhausting journey, but it’s also riveting and wholly consuming. Some may accuse the film of exploitation, but this is a bold, brave and unforgettable piece of filmmaking that pulls you deep into the mix and doesn’t let go. No one escapes Prisoners unscathed, including the audience.

I enjoyed everything about the film. Especially the ending, it was superb you hear nothing but a quiet whistle then it leaves you on a cliff hanger, wondering what happened next. I thought it was great how all the little pieces of the film link together, like who the two accused men really are and how a past newspaper article links to them, even how a drawing of a maze was the key to finding out who the guilty party was. I would recommend this film to anyone.

Attack the block review - British Film

Attack the Block is a 2011 British monster movie. Written and directed by Joe Cornish in his directorial debut, it comes from the same writing and production stable as other horror/comedies such as Shaub of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and Scott Pilgrim vs. The world. It runs for 88 minutes and had a budget of £8 million, making £3 million in the box office.  Attack the Block is set on a council estate in South London on Guy Fawkes Night, and, with some coming of age themes, the plot centres on a teenage street gang who have to defend themselves from predatory alien invaders. Moses (John Boyega), a 15-year-old thug, is being busted for mugging a trainee nurse (Jodie Whittaker) when the first monster one lands and dispatches his would-be captors. Moses kills the creature and plans to sell the corpse, but then more of the bloodthirsty creatures start landing. The film focuses on a group of teenage boys; Moses, Pest (Alex Esamail), Jerome (Leeon Jones), and Dennis (Franz Drameh) and Biggz (Simon Howard).

The kids react to an alien like most inner city thugs would with a mixture of hostility, panic and confusion. Their innocence is proven when they take it to the block’s older drug dealer (Nick Frost) because he watches “National Geographic”. It’s their reactions that are both funny and realistically grounded that provides the film with its own attitude that stays consistent throughout it. Attack the Block is full of witty humorous dialogue and exciting ideas. It’s got a great set of young actors taking charge and very effective aliens that don’t disappoint in the special effects department. 

The excellent pacing is a main reason why the film never begins to flutter or slow down, there’s always something happening. It’s a thrill ride that never stops. The kids keep managing to find trouble with the aliens as well as other members around the block, barely escaping at times. The action is fierce and handled very well for a director who has never had an opportunity to handle large scale action sequences like this before. The choreography makes every movement easy to watch, and the night setting extracts tension in every shadow or dark corridor.

The aliens are simple in design but their appearance is an understatement for their devilishly vicious taste for flesh. They look like balls of fur with rows of sharp teeth that glow. It’s rare for a film creature to stay entertaining without wearing out its welcome, but Cornish does a praiseworthy job of adding new elements into the mix that changes up the proceedings. It helps too that the pouncing aliens are never given a proper origin explanation and are purely focused on ripping people to shreds. This lets you focus on the narrative alone not some random explanation to why they are here.

Pans Labyrinth review - Foreign Film

Pan's Labyrinth, originally known in Spanish as El laberinto del fauno (English: The Labyrinth of the Faun), is a 2006 Mexican-Spanish dark fantasy film  written and directed by Guillermo del Toro. It was produced and distributed by Esperanto films. The film runs for 118 minutes and had a budget of £11 million. It made over £51 million in the box office. The story takes place in Spain in May–June 1944, five years after the Spanish civil war, The narrative of the film intertwines this real world with a mythical world centered on an overgrown abandoned labyrinth and a mysterious faun creature, with which the protagonist, Ofelia (Ivana Baquero), interacts. Ofelia's stepfather, Captain Vidal (Sergi Lopez), hunts the Spanish Maquis who fight against the Francoist regime in the region, while Ofelia's pregnant mother (Ariadna Gil) grows increasingly ill. Ofelia meets several strange and magical creatures who become central to her story, leading her through the trials of the old labyrinth garden.

For much of the film, Ofelia's fairy-tale quest is secondary to the power vectors at work in the house. Tensions bubble between the Captain and Ofelia's weak mother, and especially the Captain and the housekeeper Mercedes (Maribel Verd). These are two marvellous characters. She has a quiet ferocity to match her cunning side, which makes her a splendid revolutionary heroine. The Captain  is the real monster of the story, with sadism bred in him by his own soldier father, and a macho theatricality that makes him a great movie villain. Lopez has played memorably creepy types in With a Friend like Harry and Dirty Pretty Things.

Despite its strong fantasy element, Pan's Labyrinth is definitely not a film for young children. Del Toro does not flinch from showing us war and rebellion as they really are, and there are scenes of shocking violence. Unlike previous attempts at this kind of blending, like Labyrinth and The Company Of Wolves, Pan's Labyrinth never allows the fantastic viewpoint to dominate, offering an equally strong parallel story. This is supported by a host of powerful performances, most notably from Maribel Verdu as Mercedes, a servant who befriends Ofelia. The charisma of the cast is vital in holding together a tale which includes so many different elements.

Pan's Labyrinth is sometimes weak is in the development of its fantasy characters. The faun is just a little too awkward and dry to convince; the fairies get too little room to develop; the monster which pursues Ofelia is hideous but too clumsy to be as sinister as it should be. I felt somehow this creature should have been in the film more. He was a rather creepy character and the one scene he was used in had me on the edge of my seat praying for Ofelia’s escape.

Ivana Baquero’s performance is excellent and del Toro demonstrates a remarkable ability to look at the world he has created from a child's perspective. Ofelia's certainty contrasts tellingly with the hesitation of adult characters to take action when they should, giving her a sense of purpose which remains when everything around her starts to crumble. It is here that the film really excels. 

Dirty Pretty Things analysis

Dirty Pretty Things is a 2002 British thriller directed by Stephen Frears and written by Steven Knight.  It was produced by Robert Jones and Tracey Seaward.  The film had a budget of about £6.2million and runs for 97 minutes, the film made 8.7 million in the box office. This film shows the main themes of Love, Crime, determination, revenge and escape. The themes of determination and escape link quite well together in this because both protagonists are determined to leave the UK and carry on their lives elsewhere. The theme of crime is shown throughout the film and Love is only made obvious at the end of the film. Revenge however is shown plainly in one rather queasy scene nearer the end.

Dirty pretty things is set in London and focuses on two illegal immigrants Okwe a Nigerian doctor played by Chiwetel Ejifor and Senay a Turkish maid played by Audrey Tautou who work at the same West London hotel. Both have come here to improve their lives but find that the system makes it difficult for them to keep living in Britain. The protagonist Okwe was forced to leave Nigeria for reasons that are gradually explained throughout the course of the film. Now he works as a cab driver by day and a hotel desk clerk by night. The hotel is a place used for drug dealings and the surgical removal of organs from desperate immigrants in exchange for passports. These are all carried out by the hotel’s head receptionist Juan (Sergi Lopez) known as Sneaky.

The title "Dirty Pretty Things" may refer to hotel rooms and the guests who stay at this downtown London hotel. They come in and "dirty" up the rooms and it is up to the two protagonists of this movie and the other hotel employees to turn the rooms back into "pretty things" once again.

The performances were sympathetic and engaging, and both Ejifor and Tautou portrayed their fear in an incredibly realistic way. They both made me worried for them as they were on the run from the dangerous side of London. This film revels in the silent situations it creates and allows the viewer to be challenged along with the character. We grow attached to Okwe, but his background is still shrouded in mystery. Lopez managed to make the viewers feel uncomfortable due to his sly, unnerving behaviour yet, and I was left throughout the majority of the film wondering whether or not he was the good or bad guy until he showed what he was really up too then he certainly made me 

cringe.

When we are first introduced to Okwe, he appears to be wearing quite shabby clothes with dull colours. This highlights that Okwe is not very wealthy. During the very first scene slow piano music is playing, this helps to create drama and makes the audience feel sympathetic towards Okwe. When Okwe talks to two business men at the airport to offer them a lift, the frame is positioned so the two men are higher up then Okwe highlighting their dominance as he stands behind them. Also Okwe is not given eye contact in this scene when he communicates with them. This helps to show immigrants are not treated equally and with respect. Where Okwe drives too is shown and it appears to be very run down. The lighting in dark and gloomy which implies it may be quite a dangerous place. Okwe speaks to another man but this time there is no clear divide and they are faced towards each other which shows they have the same status in society.

There was one particular scene in the film which I enjoyed and they used a lot of components in this scene to make it feel tense. Okwe has been told by a prostitute, Juliet (Sophie Okendo) to go and check one of the rooms, when he first enters the room a high angle shot is used to show Okwe’s vulnerability and makes him appear harmless. He enters the bathroom when he hears running water to find an overflowing toilet. Just before he enters the room the lighting is very dark suggesting to the audience something bad is going to happen.  He then goes on to search for the object that is blocking the toilet. He tries to get the object out with a bent hanger and shows an annoyed expression. The water starts to turn red which as this point, this made me worry because I was unsure yet I really wanted to know what was down the toilet. The camera shows a shot looking up towards Okwe from the toilet and he shows a shocked expression but as he pulls out a heart rather tense music starts to play. The music also begins to get louder as he pulls the heart out which builds tension and to add drama to the scene making the audience feel anxious. The music stops when the door slams implying someone has entered or left the room.

The camera shows a long shot of the hotel where Okwe and many other immigrants’ work and from this shot we can tell that the hotel uniform is red and the sign is red. This is quite significant because the colour red connotes danger and inside the hotel a lot of illegal activity happens. For example prostitution and immigrants trading in their organs for passports.

Nearer the end of the film Okwe has made a deal with another man in the parking lot and the man asks “How come I’ve never seen you before” to which Okwe replies “because we are the people you don’t see” This reveals that throughout the film the producer may have been trying to show how different immigrants are to everyone else because they are always aiming to not be seen. At the start of the film the reveal of the unseen begins. Filmed in London it takes us to unfamiliar areas and denies us helpful establishing shots that orient us to the city we never see, for instance, Big Ben, Westminster Abby, or Piccadilly Circus. In doing so Dirty Pretty Things presents, a different London if it is even “London” at all. The film opens with Okwe soliciting fares for his cab however it’s not the iconic and “official” black cab of London but a simple passenger car at Stansted Airport. The kidney also resonates with the theme of invisibility in the film. Like the central characters of the film, the kidney, however vital; is an organ we do not see, at least not on the surface.

Other than the hotel nearly every location in the film must be entered through a maze of tunnels or back ways. Okwe accesses Senay’s apartment, for instance, by cutting through the back of a convenience store and going up a fire escape. His cab office, approached by driving through a series of tunnels, is tucked away under a bridge where trains endlessly roar past. Okwe’s friend Guo Yi (a Chinese immigrant) works in a dank morgue in the bowels of a hospital where he happily lets friends stay when they need a safe place. The fact that the morgue is connected to a hospital makes the pilferage of medicine rather easy and convenient which helps out Okwe with his money troubles and he works as a doctor on the side. Again all these separate escape routes show how the immigrants have desperation to stay hidden away from everyone else in the fear of being turned in to the immigration officers.

I enjoyed the film because I felt the performances were able to show a vast array of emotions and I could connect easily with the characters. Also it was good because this film isn’t just a mystery about downtrodden immigrants trying to survive. There are nice comic touches and a romantic side. 

Fish Tank Analysis

Fish Tank is a 2009 British coming of age drama with the sub-genre of social realism and was written and directed by Andrea Arnold. It was produced by Nick laws and edited by Nicolas Chaudeurge. The film won the Jury Prize at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival; it also won the 2010 BAFTA for Best British Film. The film had a budget of £1.8million and runs for 123 minutes, they made £1,451,678 in the box office. Set on a council estate in Essex, Fish tank is focussed on the story of 15-year-old Mia played by Katie Jarvis. She’s just been thrown out of school, has fought with her friends, and is heading down a route of self-destruction. Her sister Tyler (Rebecca Griffiths) is too young to offer any real support, and her mum Joanna (Kierston Wareing) is more interested in partying than raising her children. But one day her mum brings home her new boyfriend Connor (Michel Fassbender) and it turns her life upside down. The main themes in Fish tank are jealousy, betrayal and lust. They are all shown throughout the majority of the film. When Mia wakes up one morning to see Connor in the kitchen, she is torn between anger and lust. Soon the relationship between Connor and Mia’s mother blooms, and he begins to bond with the whole family, but just as things seem to be going well the bond oversteps the line.

Mia shows a passion for dance and when she’s dancing she gives off a natural warmth and energy that seems muted by trauma and social isolation when she’s at home and out on the streets. Dance seems to be Mia’s way of showing her self- expression. This trauma is shown a lot when she’s around her mother Joanne, as she’s not given any loving attention instead she’s given an occasional threat or insult. Social isolation however is shown when she finds the neighbourhood girls in a parking lot and ends up in scuffle with one of the girls. After head butting one of the girls the police and social workers are called and Mia is told she is being sent to a school for the troubled youth. Mia fixates on freeing a frail horse that’s alone and chained up and decides she wants to set it free. The horse represents Mia in this situation because the horse in isolated and is trapped by the chains just as Mia is isolated socially and trapped with her cold mother who couldn’t care less what she got up too. At the end of the film a balloon is seen flying into the air which shows Mia’s freedom when she leaves with her new friend Billy. Mia is attracted to this alluring white horse just as she’s attracted to Joanne’s alluring new boyfriend Connor.

Connor is remarkably unnerving in the film; Fassbender exaggerated Connor’s kindness just enough to make the scene feel uneasy but not enough to make you think he was deliberately aiming to be something other than a father figure. Eventually Connor does go too far with Mia, and Fassbender gives us a mixture of lust and guilt. But Mia allowed him because she has desperation for love and care, the things she doesn’t usually receive at home.  An older man pursues a teen-age girl, but there’s a stronger candidate her own age for her affections: Billy (Harry Treadaway), a skinny boy hanging around the neighbourhood, who’s shy and inarticulate but mysteriously unafraid of quarrelling with Mia.

 I did notice in moments throughout the film that slow-motion was used especially when Mia and Connor were together. They seemed to be used to show the tranquil, relaxing atmosphere that was not around whenever Mia was near home. It perhaps showed the few moments that Mia enjoyed in her life, the moments where she just wanted to slow down time so it would last forever, the moments where she felt companionship. Also close-ups and mid shots were used a lot with Mia and Connor together to perhaps show how close they were. Mia’s mum is absent during a lot of the film and when she is in the scene it’s for short periods of time usually using a close up or mid shot. Both of these shots only show part of the person which matches her lack of presence in her daughter’s life. The same shots featuring Mia and two different people portray very different stories about her feelings which is very powerful. The use of the handheld camera is used for the vast majority of the film but is used less during the middle of the film. This may be because at the beginning and end Connor is not around so in Mia’s eyes their life is so much more unstable but when Connor is around their lifestyle seems to be so much better and they come across as a secure family. At some point when Mia is dancing the camera shows her from behind and her whole body looks like a shadow which tells me that dancing makes Mia feel like her true self the part of her nobody else see’s because shadows only show you and they are always there but they only come out during the night just like this side of Mia only comes out when she’s dancing.

The film does seem to show the stereotypes of council estates. Mia is running around in a full tracksuit where as the other girls are wearing skimpy clothes including her mother. Parties seem to be happening everyday with music blasting throughout the flat even during the day. All the buildings are in terrible conditions with abandoned flats inside like the one Mia uses to practice her dancing, and troubled children wandering around everywhere shouting inappropriate words at each other. Within these stereotypes however Mia is not as exaggerated and is seen as more of a victim in this ‘Broken Britain’. She only shouts and fights back when she recognises something as dangerous or trouble and is not deliberately starting fights for no apparent reason like the initial stereotype of council estate teenagers. All the teenage characters are working class but the main male character is middle class which may reflect the dominance middle class people have over the working class. In this case Connor had power over Mia.  

Throughout the film there is constant background noise. There is never a scene where it is completely silent. A lot of the time there is shouting in the background if nothing else which adds to the thought that Mia may have had quite a troubled up bringing living in a area like this. However these sounds are ignored by Mia which tells us she is used to them. The sky is usually bleak and dreary but it is still quite bright.

The film is remarkable for its depth. It’s not drilling in a message about the hopelessness of poverty, nor is it stylising the lifestyle of those living on council estates. Alcohol, drugs and smoking are neither demonised nor glorified. This web of problems and possibilities is interwoven to create a film that succeeds in harnessing all of the dramatic power available in its desolate setting without draining it of its realism.

In my opinion all of these elements make for gripping viewing. I found that the compelling characters and their movingly real stories really interested me. It’s a hard-hitting drama with bags of character, loads of issues and an amazing central performance. 

Timbuktu review - BFI film festival

 

Timbuktu is a 2014 film written and directed by Abderrahmane Sissako; it’s a realistic drama which runs for 97 minutes.  The film features Kidane played by Ibrahim Ahmed a man who lives in the dunes of Timbuktu with his wife Satima (Toulou Kiki), his daughter Toya (Layla Walet Mohammed) and their twelve year old shepherd Issan (Medhi A.G. Mohamed).  One main theme is acceptance because Kidane learns to accept that it is safest for his family in the dunes and they won’t be around very many people he also accepts the fate that has been given to him by the new laws nearer the end of the film. Another main theme is family because they are all constantly looking out for each other and keeping each other safe. The young shepherd Issan is also treated as part of the family.

Kidane and his family live out in the dunes to keep safe away from the religious fundamentalists that now rule the town and cause suffering and hurt within the locals. Many everyday activities have been banned and the new courts issue appalling and irrational sentences. However Kidane and his family have managed to escape the chaos until Kidane carries out an awful act which forces him to face the new laws.

I felt that at times the storyline came across as quite confusing but within the narrative they were able to create a collage of stories that reveal the lives and deaths of the people whose lives have been engulfed by the extremists. I liked how the activities that took place between Kidane and his family were compared to the things the people in the town could do. At one point Kidane was playing guitar under the tent whilst Satima and Toya sat in freedom without worrying about keeping their heads covered at all times but back in town such actions resulted in public lashing or stoning to death which was shown in a brief yet alarming scene. These violent acts were very powerful and profound; they really gave you a strong insight into life outside 21^st century England.

The protagonist, Kidane had many different goals throughout. He carried out one main goal throughout the film which was to keep his family safe and make sure they were in no danger or affected by the jihadists. One of his goals was revenge after an accident with one of his cattle, the next was the chance to see his daughter after his life was overtaken by the law and lastly to save his wife. All these goals where made clear and were all shown well from Kidane’s perspective.

The very start of the film shows a gazelle running through the dunes which foreshadows the end of the film. At the start it shows a group of jihadists shooting at the gazelle; at the very end a man whose identity is unknown is shown trying to escape from the jihadists that are chasing him down once again with guns. This gazelle is the past representation of this man, which I think is quite clever because they showed you at the beginning what will happen at the end without the viewer realising it. The ending also featured Toya and Issan running through the dunes presumably towards each other, however we never actually got to see what happened to them so that is left for us to create our own visions.

Overall I think Timbuktu had quite a compelling message because it made me understand the lifestyle of people in other countries and made me feel grateful for mine. I do think that some of the characters needed a bigger or clearer role because I was unable to interpret the reason some characters were needed. The acting was very strong especially during of the upsetting scenes which made me greatly sympathise with the characters. 

Mean Girls - Meeting the plastics scene

We had to pick a favourite scene from a movie and I picked Mean Girls.

Shots:

1. Over the shoulder shot swapping between two characters x6 (17 seconds)

2. Long shot (2 seconds) 

3. Over the shoulder shot swapping between two characters x6 (16 seconds)

4. Mid shot (2 seconds)

5. Over the shoulder (2 seconds)

6. Medium close up (1 second)

7. Mid wide shot (4 seconds)

8. Close up (2 seconds)

9. Mid wide shot (3 seconds)

10. Close up (2 seconds)

11. Over the shoulder / close up (3 seconds)

12. Long shot (2 seconds)

13. Close up (2 seconds)

14. Mid wide shot (6 seconds)

15. Over the shoulder / Close up (1 second)

16. Close up (5 seconds)

17. Over the shoulder / close up (2 seconds)

18.Over the shoulder (2 seconds)

19. Close up (1 second)

Script:

Regina: Why don't I know you?
Cady: I'm new. I just moved here from Africa.
Regina: What?
Cady: I used to be home-schooled.
Regina: Wait. What?
Cady: My mom taught me at home...
Regina: No, no. I know what home-school is.I'm not retarded. So you've actually           never been to a real school before? Shut up.Shut up.

Cady: I didn't say anything.

Regina: Home-schooled.That's really interesting.
Cady: Thanks.
Regina: But you're, like, really pretty.
Cady: Thank you.
Regina: So you agree.
Cady: What?
Regina: You think you're really pretty.
Cady: Oh, I don't know...
Regina: Oh, my God, I love your bracelet. Where did you get it?
Cady: Oh, my mom made it for me.
Regina: It's adorable.
Gretchen: Oh, it's so fetch.
Regina: What is "fetch"?
Gretchen: Oh, it's, like, slang. From England.

Karen: So if you're from Africa...why are you white?
Gretchen: Oh, my God, Karen, you can't just ask people why they're white.
Regina: Could you give us some privacy for, like, one second?
Cady: Yeah, sure.

Janis and Damien (mime): What are you doing?
Regina: OK, you should just know that we don't do this a lot,so this is, like, a really      huge deal.
Gretchen: We wanna invite you to have lunch with us every day for the rest of the        week.
Cady: Oh, it's OK...
Regina: Coolness.So we'll see you tomorrow. 

Karen: On Wednesdays, we wear pink.

Shot sizes and sequences

Soft vs Wasp comparison

Soft and wasp are both short films. Soft was written and directed by Simon Ellis about a father and his son who are terrorised by the same gang and are forced to face confrontation. Whereas Wasp was written and directed by Andrea Arnold and is about struggles a young single mum goes through with many young children. Both of these films are in the genre of Drama.

During the film soft a gang of youths are shown using a handheld camera, throughout this the camera is shaking and is slightly out of focus which shows that it is bad quality which may be portraying the quality of life that these teenagers. Where as in the same film another teenager is shown with his dad and the camera is stable and focused. This is showing the difference between the lifestyles of these two groups of people. Only the handheld camera effect is also used during the film wasp which would be used because you can tell that the main family in the film are living in poverty and do not have a very good lifestyle so by the camera being unstable it lets you know their life is also unstable.

The theme of family is the one of the main themes shown in both. In each film the theme of family is shown to be important and a necessity. Both families in each are looking out for each other and they show a close bond. Conflict is also a theme portrayed throughout both films. In soft the conflict is used to show a division in social status with the father and son being a higher class which contrasts with the status of the teenagers. However in wasp the conflict is used to show how a mother would protect her child when somebody else causes her children harm.

In the film Soft the father and son are shown to be locked away with no escape when they are trapped in their house with the teenagers hanging around outside, they feel in danger and uncomfortable during this scene. But in wasp the mother finds her freedom when she finally gets to go out with a man who she has feelings for. This is a major contrast as it shows the change in situations. At the start of soft the father and son feel they have freedom however when the teenagers are outside they feel they have lost this privilege. This is the complete opposite to Wasp because the lady gains her independence as the film develops and looses her sense of entrapment.

I enjoyed both these films because they explore similar themes that occur in everyday life. This makes it easier to sympathise with the characters and connect with both of the films as a whole.

Get off My land Review

Get off my land is a short black comedy written and directed by Douglas Ray about a young couple’s walk in the countryside that leads to a confrontation with the land owner.

At the very start a close up camera view is shown of some legs and feet walking along a muddy path. One person wears boots and the other white trainers. This is a good way for the viewer to make a first impression on these characters. From this they can tell what sort of lifestyle these people are used to.

Throughout the film natural light was used which helped the viewer to focus more on the characters and story. When the couple are talking to the farmer and the camera is facing the couple more sun light can be seen behind and on them whereas when the camera gives a close up of the farmer there is not much light and in the background there are many dark trees which may portray that the farmer perhaps has a darker more dangerous side. When any character is shown close up during the confrontation the background is blurred so the viewer will focus more on the tense atmosphere between the characters rather than the environment.

The camera work also made the conversation between the three people more realistic because close up’s were used for the majority of the time which really put the viewer in the position of the character as if they were having the conversation themselves, what made it more realistic however was that the camera moves up and down when the close up’s are used which makes it even more effective because it almost makes it seem like you are viewing it literally from the other persons eyes and they are fidgeting as they listen.

However the camera shots do not vary very much away from close up’s. The close up’s are used mainly to capture the characters facial expressions during different points in the confrontation to show how they are feeling or so you can understand their reactions. But only two other camera shots can really be noticed throughout. Long shots are used usually to show the location such as when the couple are first walking through the peaceful country and medium shots are also used but these are used in the same way as the close up’s.

The film had a simple linear narrative, more elements of the story were revealed as the film went on, however one element of the film was continuously repeated and that was the element of which the conflict was about; trespassing. By reminding the viewer what the conflict is about we are able to understand the seriousness of the situation and the strain between the characters.

Not many sounds were used in the background which added to the films simplicity. Dialogue was more dominant throughout the film and the tone of the characters voices showed how they were feeling very clearly but nearer the end birds are seen flying away from the trees to show a sense of fear from the event that has just happened. This camera view was interesting because if showed the reaction to the event from another point of view in this case animals. 

The Walking Dead Review

The walking dead is an increasingly popular American post-apocalyptic horror drama developed by Frank Darabont into a television series. Adapted from a comic-book series of the same name by Robert Kirkman, this horror drama follows the survivors of an apocalyptic holocaust who are searching for a safe haven while being tracked and menaced by zombies.

The plot focuses primarily on the dilemmas that a group faces as they struggle to maintain their humanity during the day-to-day challenges of surviving in a hostile world. This includes battling the zombie hordes, coping with casualties, and dealing with predatory human survivors.

The first season mostly takes place in the Atlanta metropolitan area, where sheriff's deputy Rick Grimes played by Andrew Lincoln emerges from a coma to find his town abandoned with few people but far too many flesh-eating "walkers" who have died and come back to life now feasting upon the living.  Holding out hope that his wife Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies) and young son Carl (Chandler Riggs) are still alive, Grimes embarks on a frantic journey to find them, and encounters many other survivors and obstacles along the way.

The second through fourth seasons are set in the surrounding countryside of northern Georgia, as the survivors search for security away from the shuffling hordes of predatory "walkers" or "biters" (as the zombies are referred to in the show), who eat any living thing they catch, and whose bite is infectious to humans. Without screaming or sobbing the characters have moments when they transmit a sympathetic sense of emotional devastation.    

The way the zombies have been made to look captures the simple desolation of an empty city at the end of the world; the zombie makeup is gruesome, skin hangs off their bloodied faces, mouths ripped apart (yet still chomping pointlessly) and chunks of their faces missing whilst they are strewn within the wreckage of cars and bloody chaos, but all this detail just makes the whole show more captivating leaving the viewer wondering where the next horde of wandering zombies will appear.

The world as we know it is gone, and in its place, for now at least, are only two things to think about: the ferocious onslaught of ravenous eaters of human flesh; and the struggle, sometimes with other humans, to live another day.

In my opinion this television series has pushed the horror genre into an area that allows it to be explored further. Darabont portrays aspects that would not usually be used throughout classic zombie movies or other television series; they use things such as empathy that really helps you to understand the characters feelings of each other that creates a final opinion of each and every character for you. It’s even able to create an emotional attachment between the viewers and the characters where the emotion quickly breaks out as you watch the characters fall into the limp hands and mouths of the zombies.

About Me Video Evaluation

What went well : I think that in my video the camera quality was quite good. For this I used my phone which had a clear outcome The lighting also helped to improve this because it was not too bright but it was also not too dark so you could easily see me without the light affecting the camera. Although I could have spoken up I still feel that it was easy to understand what I was saying. I also managed to fit a range of information in under one minute without rushing.

How I could improve : In my video I feel that I could have spoken slightly louder so my voice was clearer when the video was being played back. I also think I could have been more creative with what I did whether or not I was in the camera shot. For example I could  have used writing and pictures to explain my answers because I did not necessarily enjoy being in front of the camera but in this case due to my decision of being in front of the camera I could have been more creative with the shots and backgrounds depending on what I was saying. 

Welcome... About Me :)