Film Analysis

 Independent company - a small, privately owned production company 

Conglomerate - a large and multinational production company 

Joint venture - the joining of independent companies, and conglomerates, to make a production to benefit all parties

The Big 6 - Main 6 companies that own the biggest market share in the film industry and have a lot of power and say over what happens

Verisimilitude - how real the world of the story appears to the audience - is it believable for example.

Diegesis/diegetic world - the world in which the film take places

Juxtaposition - placing one object next to another to create meaning

Narrative theory - theories that categorise narratives and find features common to them

Levi Strauss and Binary Opposition

- "Cinema is a set of universal rules, a set relations that could be described as the grammar of film".

- Levi Strauss theorised that since all cultures are produced of the human brain, there must be, beneath the surface, features that are common to all.

- Structuralism attempted to de-romanticise the filmmaker as auteur and apply a more scientific approach to uncover the underlying structures of films.

- Narrative tension is based on opposition or conflict. This can be as simple as two characters fighting, but more often functions at an ideological level.

    - Examples:

    - Male vs Female

    - Black vs White

    - Old vs Young

    - Rich vs Poor

    - Good vs Evil

    

Vladamir Propp

- He analysed the plot components of Russian folk tales to identify their basic narrative elements.

- He looked at one hundred folk tales and came to the conclusion that they were all made up of 31 plot elements, which he called functions.

- He also found tat spite the large number of characters which appeared in the folk tales, there were only 8 characters types. 

- 8 Character types

    - The Hero (quest and ends up with princess)

    - The Villain (against hero)

    - The Helper (helps the hero)

    - The Princess or prize (usually the price for the hero, the hero deserves her throughout)

    - Her Father (rewards the hero, usually identifies the false hero)

    - The Donor (helps the hero)

    - The False Hero (takes credit for the hero's actions and tried to end up with the princess)

    - The Dispatcher (sets the hero on the quest)

Eg. Shrek

    - The Hero - Shrek

    - The Villain - Lord Farquard

    - The Helper - Donkey

    - The Princess or prize - Fiona

    - Her Father - Fiona's Dad 

    - The Donor - Fairytale Characters

    - The False Hero - Prince Charming

    - The Dispatcher - Lord Farquard

Todorov's Theory

- Tzvetan Todorov proposed a basic structure for all narratives.

- He stated that films and programmes begin with an equilibrium, a calm period.

- Then agents of disruption cause disequilibrium, a period of unsettlement and disquiet.

- This is then followed by a renewed state of peace and harmony for the protagonist and a new equilibrium brings the chaos to an end.

- Equilibrium 

- Disruption 

- Realisation 

- Repair 

- New Equilibrium 

Shrek

- Equilibrium - Shrek living his normal day-to-day life.

- Disruption - Going to save the princess and obstacles come in the way

- Realisation - They have been sabotaged and she turns into Ogar.

- Repair - Trying to fight away the obstacles, he doest care she's an Ogar.

- New Equilibrium - Living happily with the Princess

Barthes - Action and Enigma Codes

- Action Codes - what will happen next...

- Enigma Codes - The audience question why... leaves them wondering

Denotation - what you can see, for example a red sports car

Connotation - the meaning you derive from a text, for example red=anger

Rick Altman argues that genre offers audiences a set of pleasures:

Emotional Pleasures - how does the text make you feel? happy, sad, nostalgic?

Visceral Pleasures - gut responses, excitement, fear, laughter

Intellectual Pleasures - does it make the audience think? 

Mise-en-scene

- Costume

- Props

- Colour palette

- Hair and makeup

- Setting

- Lighting

- Performance

Camerawork

- Camera movement

- Camera angle

- Shot size

- Depth of field

- Framing

Editing

- Pacing (slow/fast)

- Shot reverse shot

- Length of cut

- Straight cuts transitions - adds to realism

- Elliptical editing

- Continuous editing

- Chronological editing

Sound

- Sound FX

- Diegetic

- Non-Diegetic 

- Parallel

- Contrapuntal

- On Screen

- Off Screen

Get Out clip:

Sound effects:

- Man speaking - Diegetic, On screen

    - "I'm like a sore thumb out there" - black, stereotypically inferior

    - Pronounces "suburb" sarcastically - shows he doesn't fit in 

- Dog barking - Diegetic

- Crickets - Diegetic 

- Car engine revving - Diegetic

- "Run Rabbit Run" music - Began as the radio (Diegetic) but becomes the backing track (Non-Diegetic)

    - "Rabbit" - they are timid, weak, vulnerable and can't defend themselves, like the victim

    - As the car brakes the music says "run, run, run" - foreshadowing that he needs to run and escape

- Background music stops (no cricket or anything)

- As the camera shift, the car's music becomes off screen

- Car's music officially switches to Non-Diegetic - becomes more serious

- Along with the beat of the music, the man stabs him and makes aggressive sounds (fight sound effects - diegetic)

- Contrapuntal sound - music doesn't match the action - shows the killer doesn't care- jolly about it

- Shutting of the car door matches the final beat of the music - shows he didi it perfectly - accomplished what he wanted.

- End with a scary, violin music - non-diegetic. In a Minor Key which connotes negativity, jolty. Pitches, scraping of the violin is similar to chalk on a blackboard, panicky and unsettling. 

Mise-en Scene:

- At night - lighting is dark and gloomy, crime tends to take place in the night (foreshadowing)

- He's wearing jeans and a top - stereotypically black people aren't wealthy

    - Dark clothing - shows he's insignificant - shows how black people are treated and represented in the film.

- White car (binary opposition to the black victim) - connotes purity and innocent at first, but then juxtaposes it.

    - Then it shifts focusing on the red break lights - red connotes danger (foreshadowing danger)

    - Then is shifts to front headlights - acts as a spotlight which is targeting him (the victim)

- Attacker comes in, all in black clothing - connoting that he has dominance and power

- Attacker drags in like a dead rabbit - song is called "Run Rabbit Run"

Camerawork:

- Tracking shot - slow pace, tense and stalker-like

- Medium shot - focus of the character to get to know him

- Camera Panned around his 180 degrees - shows his location

- Over the shoulder shot - focuses on car in background

- Camera on his feet - watching him get limb and emphasises the song ""Run Rabbit Run"

Editing:

- Contentious shot - seems like we are watching over him, like he's got a stalker. - intense, we are waiting for a break to happen.

- Once he's dragged into the car, the editing cuts to a still long shot of the car, watching it drive away. As if we are observing the kidnap and there's nothing we can do about it.