Precious

This idea of horror being meta is very visible, particularly in this weeks screening of The Cabin in the Woods – self reflexivity within the horror genre has been something I feel horror has been doing for as long as I have been watching. Growing up watching Scream, I Know What You Did Last Summer etc. were all very self aware of genre conventions and how the audience perceived them. Though what is interesting within the newer films such as Cabin in the Woods is the idea of toying with the modern technologies of today’s society.  The fear of being watched, the need to publicise everything – an overall paranoia. This kind of portrayal is what I find most intriguing about genres – is there ability to clearly reflect the time and culture of their production. On the psyche of the times. This consciousness of being engaged with technology and using that to incorporate into the horror genre is an excellent example of when we see a tension between honest feelings and reflections of our society, intertwined into films. This is what makes them so priceless as artefacts.

2FAST4ME

Action films such as The Fast and The Furious are nothing new, they’re extremely popular – fitting comfortably into the ‘blockbuster’ category of films. They bring crowds, cost incredible amounts and for what they lack in plot they make up for in fast paced thrilling ACTION. No blockbuster would be safe without this element – the fire, explosions, car chases … give the people what they want. Maybe, most people. The editing of these action films are most interesting – the rapid cutting used to intensify action segments. Unstable camera work provokes feelings of nervousness and intrigue as we wonder what will happen – thankfully it is not us in the driver seat of this dangerous ride. The protagonist experiences the speed and endures the danger so that we can happily enjoy it all from the comfort of our movie seat – these movies are made for movie theatres after all.   This idea of us enjoying action films is intriguing, and leads me to wonder – do we see all movies to experience. In terms of genre films, can we say that for all genres if it applies to action.  This is an interesting question, one I do not have the answer for.

 

 

 

Bottled Up

The focus for this week was ‘bottle dramas’, a genre I had not previously heard of prior to this studio – although I am familiar with the foundations of the concept… Many TV shows do this from time to time to save money, and also it allows creativity flow in different ways. The constraints on location, allows the exploration to form within the dialogue and actors. A key element to the bottled drama is the editing, a large amount of cutting and frame changing is necessary to continue to engage the viewers and in some ways it shapes the story. Convergence frequently let the camera go out of focus, it used fast cut aways and this contributed to the feeling of confusion, suspense and fear.  The frequent change of camera angle and shot allows the film maker to create a space the audiences become familiar with – as found within Roman Polanski’s Carnage we think have seen the apartment however, the different angles used gives us a fresh look.

Photos from Carnage
We can see just one in the thousands of different shots found within the same environment.

maxresdefault

images

carnage-roman-polanski

 

Horror vs. Film Noir

This week we focussed on film noir, after doing my project 3 on noir I feel rather in touch with the bare essential foundations of film noir. The ‘genre’ of film noir is fairly contested as many believe noir is not truly a genre rather it is a mood and tone. Not signalled by conventions of settings or conflict – like those of the western or musical breed. However, I do dispute this in my most recent project as  I believe the city setting of the noir contributes something crucial to the tone/mood which is so deeply engrained in the genre. In project brief 4 I am thinking of potentially focussing on horror and film noir as a hybrid. The fusion of these two genres will be interesting – unsure where to direct my focus though the neo-noir intrigues me as it often plays with a more horror noir feel than those of the original film noir genre.

Noir here, noir there.

Film Noir is pillar of genres within filmmaking – its inception nearing 80 years ago and still to this day we see its characteristics, elements frequently and don’t forget homages. The main criteria of a noir film is its lighting, the mood and tone set by the lighting are in my opinion the most key features of the films. Without the tone and mood the film loses its sense of darkness, mystery, corruption.  Film noirs time of birth ties deeply to the political, social events of the time and we too can see them change within the films as time goes by. A feeling of moral decay and loss of integrity is laced within these films – particularly within the urban city. The noir without the city – what would it be? I plan to explore this in my project brief 3, I believe the permits the film to be film noir… The environment of this so-called rotting metropolis portrays perfectly this dark bleak city accompanied by dark social times.

Some examples of the legacy of Noir –
‘Neo-noir’ 

L.A Confidential 
la-confidential

The Man Who Wasn’t There

ManWhoWasntThere83-580x250

Sing it

One Night The Moon is not your average musical – rarely do the cast members break the fourth wall and address the viewers directly. However, it does use singing as a mode of expression for the film’s characters and it helps move the narrative along in some ways. The musical numbers within the film are strongly tied to the feelings and current happenings within the narrative.

I hear ya

The discussion of ‘horror’ as a genre is an interesting one – there is many sub genre layers that are considered horror including thriller, torture porn etc. etc. How can they all be placed under the same umbrella? Interestingly, as pointed out in the reading by Julian Hanich – the categorising of horror has little to do with (in comparison with other genres)  tropes, conventions and inner workings of the films rather they are adjoined by the feelings/reactions they elicit. The fear, suspense, dread we collectively enjoy and react to, sitting in a theatre, watching a horror film is precisely what makes it a ‘horror’ film. These feelings are often unique to these films – Hanich mentions everyone ‘feels the difference to a terror scene’ referring to the overwhelming feeling of dread as you watch helplessly.

Redefinition

This week’s reading regarding females in action films, as we prepare to watch Aliens – the sequel to Alien. Alien is an iconic film, for many reasons, one large one being that the main protagonist and kick ass hero is A WOMAN. At the time of its release this was rather groundbreaking, though as the reading discusses Sigourney Weaver’s role as Ellen Ripley broke ground for the female action/sci-fi hero. The idea of woman being the Rambo of the movie was actually accepted – there was never a question or protest of ‘could a woman really do that?’ This is exactly how genre conventions are broken, this acceptance of woman in this new found spotlight – kicking ass and taking names is now nothing new, though let’s be honest definitely not frequent. Kill Bill, Tomb Raider, Charlie’s Angels – I believe this casting choice to be an example of how film/genres have the ability to normalise things – they reflect the current social/cultural climate as women in ’79 are fresh off the liberation and bra burning of the 1970’s. This is a powerful moment for women in film and the wide acceptance lead to the normalising of women in action films.

Project Brief 1

 

 

  1. Within this studio I would like to develop more competence and confidence in the full production of a video artefact, starting from the beginning to the end. I want the process to be familiar to me by the end, in particular growing my skills in handling and using cameras and developing concepts and ideas. Though what I most desire is training in the editing process, I wish to familiarise myself with this stage and develop strong skill using Premiere or other editing software. Through the learning of these different stages I can develop an independence and confidence in almost all aspects of the film making process. On a less hands-on note, within the studio I hope to open and explore the idea of genre, starting with its in inception within film. Following the conventions and concepts in their evolution over time, investigating how genre has been moulded throughout time to the current day. Through these studies I want to focus on the societal and political habitat of media artefacts, and the effects these external factors have on the production and implementation of genre within film. Examining the elements of particular genres, how they become outdated or implement new conventions and investigate how these are often interconnected to their original time period e.g. inclusion of LGBT characters and  plots. This studio will offer me a good balance of both practical and theory work, allowing me to experiment, working through ideas gained through the learnt information. I expect the screenings will benefit in my ability to identify and distinguish genre, getting down to the nitty gritty of the concept.
  2. The genre film I chose is The Godfather, it adheres to many crime film conventions. Whether you consider this a ‘gangster’ film or ‘crime’ they are largely one in the same, just a more specific genre title. The Godfather focuses on a mob family, they are Italian American immigrants now based in New York. The film focuses on the interrelations of the family with business partners, with a strong emphasis on respect, street codes and adherence to the cemented hierarchy. The Godfather puts a heavy focus on family, the Corleone family – what is expected of them and the inner politics at play. The film features many of the traditional conventions of a crime film – there is a significant amount of violence within the film, the cast is majority male, women play a sidelined role however, I do believe the role of Diane Keaton is at times more present than traditionally found in this genre. The Corleone family are wealthy, and dressed well in suits which help exude their powerful status. The origins of the family are somewhat of a ‘rags to riches’ tale, coming from Italy with nothing to become the greatest. Tapping into the ideals of the American dream which can frequently be found within crime/gangster films. Strong emphasis on family also brings us to the presence of traitors, those who have betrayed the family. This idea of deceit, betrayal and backstabbing are keys to almost all crime films – there almost always is a knife in someone’s back at some point within the film. This betrayal and how it is handled by the main protagonist cements his status as a masculine, ultra-powerful character. The Godfather adheres to majority of the expected crime films tropes though gives a highly authentic feel to them, complimented by a stellar cast and meticulous settings.

I Do…or maybe I don’t.

Putting a magnifying glass to Romantic Comedy as a genre is something I feel I have done before, prior to my official studies of film and genre. As a film genre Rom-Coms have to be the most easily distinguished and read. Despite the large quantity and variations within this genre there are always the marked queues – they have generally not strayed from the established formula in a long time.

This week’s reading The Comedy of Romance was interesting dissection of the Rom Com, there were a few key elements in which despite immediately recognising them as I read, I had not myself identified. The focus on renewal is clearly the foundation of 99% of Rom Coms however I had not realised how it boiled down to this – the necessary path to self discovery and obviously a repair – necessary for the couple to be together.

Rom Coms reinforcement of conventional ideologies and pushing of the idea of marriage being the holy grail of love between two people. This pushing of dominant conservative ideals is no surprise as the Rom Com aims to taste super sweet to the masses, not to upset people with the couple’s counter-culture decision to NOT marry after all. Would that be a happy ending?

This idea could be changing, as I discussed in my Project Brief 1 the subtle movement of many towards the left may see more and more Rom Coms toying with the idea of domestic partnerships (Shock!) This idea of genre conventions changing and evolving as we do, slowly but surely… Of course the idea of marriage is not one to resisted for any other reason than personal choice.  Tapping into the modern evolution of Rom Coms is interesting as it reflects the new social norms, particularly for couples – thinking of No Strings Attached in which the two main characters are ‘just sleeping together’.