La Haine Film Clip Analysis

La Haine Film Clip Analysis 

How far does the impact of the films you have studied

 depend on distinctive uses of film techniques? 

In the film La Haine the use of key cinematic techniques is important in representing the key ideas and beliefs of the characters in the film. 

The film is shot in black and white, this shows the definite message of racial oppression throughout the narrative, and re-enforces the idea that the live in a place with old fashioned views on how ethnic minorities are oppressed in modern day france. also through out the film there is a constant use of slow paced editing this is shown especially in the scene where Vinz and Hubert go to the police station to collect Said, this helps to show their facial expressions as they witness the the damage and distraction in the station. Personally i feel that this scene helps to show the reality of the damage caused by the riots and how it has made a clear divide between the police force and the youth. This is also re-inforced by the use of shallow focus to state the obvious divide between the teenagers and authority. 

Also in this shot we see Hubert in the foreground and the police in the background in a long shot. This highlights a clear conflict emphasising the conflict. 

Furthermore in the Police Station as Said is walking towards the stairs the camera tacks his movements and he is in the centre of the frame showing that he is the main focus, but when he reaches the stairs the Police officer pushes him aside (out of the centre of the frame) this shows his dominance and how the Police are in control. I feel that this is a powerful shot and completely summarises how the ethnic minorities are oppressed and pushed aside throughout the film. 

After the police station scene the camera tracks the three lads as they walk away. the camera is hand held and follows them with one singular shot the slow paced editing, i feel, shows how in the rough French urban estates time goes by very slowly. Furthermore I believe it shows how the characters are united. However as Hubert finds out that Vinz had a gun on him the camera instantly cuts to show him and Vinz as being opposed. This is done through the 180 degree rule, Hubert and Vinz are now not shown in the same shot again in this sequence. However Said is often shown in shots with both characters. This help re-enforce the theme of him being the idea of fraternity as he attempts to keep Vinz and Hubert together. Fraternity is one of the three words in the french motto. This conflict between the characters shows how without proper role models and guidance the characters will resort to what they have learnt from western culture (violent films). This is a key motif to Vinzs character as he is often shown throughout the film quoting violent films and pointing his fingers in a gun shape. This behavior is also show to transfer from him own to a small boy who watches and mimics Vinz in the cinema in Paris.

Clip 5

in car fixed shot 

shallow focus close ups Vinz 

long sustained shots 

slow pace of editing 

tracking shots highlights facial expressions 

shallow focus shows opposition and separation between youth and authority 

continuous shots 

vengeance graffiti  

Siad is in cetre of the shot but is then shoved aside by the police officer highlighting a definite conflict (put in his place) possible racism 

hand held tracking shots as character walk continuous 

Hubert in centre Said is in the centre which enforces the idea that he represents Fraternity 

Division 

180 rule separation two shots 

dysfunctional family 

Film Question

Does the way Stanley Kubrick presents power figures in his films make him an auteur?

Stanley Kubrick is considered to be one of the best directors of the 20th century having made classic films for the majority of his life. He is also widely recognized as being an auteur with his own unique stylistic approach to film making. Those familiar with Kubrick’s work can probably spot how he conveys his own personal opinions and ideologies through certain characters in his movies and the way they are treated by authority. The focus films that I am studying are Full Metal Jacket, A Clockwork Orange and The Shining.

I have chosen these Films to focus on because they are all from different Genres and they all show an idea of a controlling higher power and characters struggling to cope. Which help point out how Kubrick is a auteur. My main focus film is Full Metal Jacket (1987)[1], this is because of the extensive highlighting of corrupt authority figures and the theme of hierarchy.[1] Full metal Jacket shows the protagonist Joker to become more and more of a killer as the story progresses through its three stages, Training, Early Vietnam and The Girl Sniper. 

My supporting films are A Clockwork Orange and The Shining both these films, like my focus film show themes of higher power manipulating the protagonists. In A Clockwork Orange Alex is controlled by the government and in the shining it is a supernatural force controlling Jack and Danny.
In Full Metal Jacket our protagonist is the character Joker. Joker along with several others has his real name replaced with a nick name in the very first scene by the Gunnery Sergeant. This is an example of how Stanley Kubrick represents how the American Military remove the true identity of the marines in the Vietnam war.[8] In a way to control them. The way that the soldiers accept these names also brings into question their personal self worth. In addition to this in the ending scene of the film we can see a group of soldiers walking off into the sunset singing but you cannot see their faces, they are simply silhouettes. [10] This shows the lack of identity amongst the troops, making them look like shadow puppets. I feel that this suggests how the characters in full metal jacket are puppets and under control from a higher power.

In one scene in Full Metal Jacket we can see Joker in a publishers meeting for the military newspaper in Vietnam and he is forced to rewrite the end of his article to include an enemy kill so it sounds 'more heroic'[1]. This is a direct example of how the main character is controlled by a higher power, and how they bend the truth.

In Full Metal Jacket the Gunnery Sergeant is abusive towards the troops and constantly puts them down, causing Pvt Pyle to have a breakdown. This shows the audience Stanley Kubrick's view of how the hierarchy of the military/ government is twisted through how the characters are mistreated. This is a common theme which I feel features in the majority of his films, For example in his earlier work such as Dr Strangelove Kubrick shows the American government in a comedic fashion with the character of "an insane US air force general who orders an unprovoked nuclear attack against Russia"[4] This is a great example of how `Kubrick has incorporated his opinions of the American government into his films.

Also after the release of Dr Strangelove, Kubrick was threatened by the FBI that they would begin an investigation into the set designs of Dr Strangelove because of the accuracy of the war plane’s interior.
In Kubrick’s film The Shining (1980)[3] we are shown how he is told to stay quiet about his ideas of the moon landing [14].

PLAY FAKED MOON LANDING..... source 14

this is another example of how he shows higher power to control his protagonist. Also it shows how he was personally effected by higher power which helps us to understand why he often shows his protagonists to be under the control of a higher authority.

One of my articles (adventures in the screen trade)[7] suggests that there is no such thing as an auteur in the film industry. The article suggests this because it takes a whole team to create a film however I know that from watching Stanley Kubrick a life in picture [13] that Kubrick would always personally oversee everything happening with his films and would often take charge of the camera and would not put anything into his films unless he was 100% happy with it. This use of his own personal influence and ideologies throughout all his films is what makes him an auteur. ‘Stanley Kubrick’s films are cold, soulless, disconnected and indifferent.’[11] Furthermore one of my other research sources helps to reinforce that he is an auteur. [6]

A Clockwork Orange (1971)[2] is ‘Part social satire, part discourse on the nature of free will’ [9]. It follows a young thug called Alex who after he is arrested is offered a treatment by the government which causes him to not cause crime however once he is released he is not able to to defend himself and is beaten and attempts suicide which causes the government to step in once the story gets to the papers, so they don’t do badly in the upcoming election. this is a perfect example of how the government have removed Alex’s free will, also it shows they only really care about Alex when it makes them look bad. This reflects how Kubrick views the government.

‘In terms of the characters Kubrick chose to film, the most predominant type was that of the psychopath. General Ripper (Dr. Strangelove), HAL (2001) Alex (A Clockwork Orange), Jack Torrance (The Shining) were all psychopaths, while Full Metal Jacket was concerned with how society tries to create psychopaths (and values them) in times of war. This is no doubt in part due to Kubrick's seemingly pessimistic view of man and society and how thin the veneer of civility can be.’ [9]

Kubrick is more than willing to change parts of other people work, For example The Shining by Stephen King, to convey his own views and ideas through his films.

Furthermore it Highlights how the soldiers in Full Metal jacket are faceless silhouettes at the end of the film as the walk of singing. [10]

Stanley Kubrick didn't write any of his films he picked books to adapt into films but only ones he thought were interesting.[13]

case study of The Dark Knight Rises and Superbad

•By looking at The Dark Knight Rises poster we can tell that this film is an action/superhero movie by the use of fire, explosions and the iconic image of batman, who is a famous superhero. The poster also has the names of lots of famous movie stars and the release date also indicates that this film with be a big blockbuster film because it will be shown in the summer when people are off school. The film is a 12A which mean a wide audience.


 
•The trailer for this film uses many different devices to engage with a specific audience. Such as the frequent use of showing action sequences and explosions this helps to attract an action film audience.

•We can tell that this is an American blockbuster movie because of the use of showing the production company logos at the beginning of the trailer. Also the batman series is a huge franchise now and in the trailer contains the famous batman logo. Also this film contains many big stars and there names are all in the trailer. 

•This film is an independent film. We can tell this by the way that the poster uses a quote from MAXIM which is a men’s magazine. This also helps give a representation that the film is aimed at men. Also the quote helps to promote the film and indicates that the film is a comedy. The film doesn’t have any major film stars in it this shows that its an independent film. Also the poster says that the film was written by the same people as other successful films.

•In the trailer for Superbad we can can tell that it is an independent film by the use of associated market by saying that the production company has made other famous films. Also it shows the logo for the production company. The trailer confirms that the film is a comedy. But doesn’t reveal much of the plot but does however convey that this film is a teen movie. 

Alien Scene Analysis

Alien scene analysis 1:

Chestburster

This scene of Alien is the most iconic scene about this classic Science Fiction Horror because of a great number of film techniques. Even today thirty three years after its release it still seems to haunt many viewers and is often to most discussed scene when people talk about Alien.
This scene is set in the crews eating quarters where the crew are all eating dinner in celebration of Kane’s release from the infirmary. they are all wearing casual clothes and some are in the company uniform which shows they live on the ship and have worked there too. The lighting of the setting is very high key which helps convey the feeling of safety and happiness, However the mood soon changes when Kane unexpectedly starts violently choking and gasping in pain. This sends the crew and the audience into concerned state where they have no idea what is happening. As the crew being to panic and struggle to hold Kane down the audience also begins to panic. This is due to the eyelevel mid shots which contain many different characters, resulting In a sense of claustrophobia , a common fear many viewers may share. The use of recreating phobias is a common convention of the horror genre which was not normally scene within science fiction films. Also one thing that helps contribute to the feeling of panic is the fact that the crew are in deep space meaning that there is no escape and no way of getting help.
This concept of horror and bloody deaths was not often seen in science fiction films in the era Alien was released in, most people had seen Star Wars and probably expected Alien to be quite similar but in fact they are entirely different, Star wars has only one scene containing blood throughout all six episodes.
the chestburster scene is filmed in shallow focus and everyone in each shot is tightly framed forcing people to watch the gruesomeness of Kane’s pain and the graphic emerging of the alien itself. To get an understanding of the crew’s emotions and feelings there is a number of midshots showing their body language and their facial features, also it cuts from person to person In a shot reverse shot pattern and each cut Is a straight cut. These straight cuts are frequent and happen quickly, making the viewer feel like a bystander and actually part of the scene.
Throughout Kane’s death and the Alien’s birth there is the non diegetic sound of a heart beating over and over. This gets louder and louder throughout the scene and gives the viewer a feeling of panic and really has a shocking impact when the Alien finally brakes through Kane’s chest and the crew fall silent. this is where we get a close up of the Alien and in shallow focus we se Kane’s arms shaking as his dieing body spasms on the table.
The theme to this brutal scene is birth which is often seen as a clash to what birth Is like, because birth Is often seen as painful but also beautiful because of the new life created however in this scene the alien is born but in a terrifying way which kills a crew member and leaves the crew and the audience in total shock and fear.

Alien scene analysis:

Here kitty

Within this scene the crew has been sent to search the entire ship in order to locate and capture the small Alien, that has recently burst out of, the now deceased, Kane.
Engineer Brett splits off from his search party after running into Jones, the ship’s cat.
Brett follows the cat into what seems to be some sort of dark engine room where water is dripping down from above this simulates rain and is a form of pathetic fallacy. The rain may reflect Brett’s mood and his thoughts on what had recently happened to Kane in the eating quarters. After Brett has entered the engine room he then lifts his head and allows the water to drip onto his face this may show that he wishes to be cleansed after seeing The Alien’s birth.
When Brett enters the engine room it is calm and the only sounds we can hear are the diegetic sounds of hanging chains jiggling above and the hum of the engine this gives the viewer the feeling of safety and danger like it’s the calm before the storm and something very important is about to happen. This is accompanied by the non diegetic sound of a heart beating. This sound was also to be heard when the Alien first emerged signalling the viewer that it may be near. Furthermore as Brett walks his footsteps echo loudly in the engine room giving the viewer an idea of how big the empty the room is and the thoughts that there could be something big lurking in the shadows.
This scene is shot in a setting where the lighting is very low key and most of the light comes from above. This is often seen to be a sign of purity and a religious reference however in this scene it is the alien that descends from the light above showing it as an evil angel of death.
The way that this scene is shot is very similar to the style of film noir. Film noir is very dark (low key) and often uses pathetic fallacy, for example rain which creates a shiny surface which the little amount of light that there is can reflect on to outline objects and people. This has been done here in ‘the here kitty’ scene with the dripping water. Also in film noir there is a lack of colour because film noirs where films before the age of the colour camera. This lack of colour has be replicated in this scene by the dark metallic setting of the engine room. This use of the film noir effects was not seen before mixed with the Sci Fi genre, normally the settings are bright and warm whereas in this scene we get the feeling that the room is damp and cold.
The first time see the light from above is through a point of view shot. This makes the audience feel as though they are in the scene. And that they are experiencing what Brett is. Later there is a high angle shot which looks over Brett as he wonders around the room. This shows his vulnerability and that he is small and powerless, it also reveals the bigger Alien to the audience for the first time this time the shot is a high angle which shows how in this situation the Alien has dominance and it a possible threat.
When Brett locates Jones he crouches down and the camera shows a close up of his face in shallow focus where the viewer then sees the aliens tale uncurl behind him, the tale is out of focus. As Brett attempts to lure Jones out of his hiding spot the camera straight cuts from Brett to Jones in a shot reverse shot style every time showing the cat’s anxiety and the Alien creeping down behind the clueless Brett.
When Brett finally turns to face the Alien we are shown a close up shot of the of the Aliens mouth and jaw, this draws the audiences attention to its razor sharp teeth and how its mouth waters as it lingers behind him. This causes the audience to be scared for Brett and fear the Alien. This is when the non diegetic sound of the heartbeat returns to signify that the alien is about to strike, raising the audiences anticipation.
The camera then cuts to a close up of Brett’s stunned expression as he gazing in fear at the Alien towering over him. The camera then cuts back to an extreme close up of the Aliens mouth again which is opening to show its second mouth which was hidden.
The camera quickly changes as the Alien strikes Brett and then instantly changes to a close up shot of the cats face as he watches Brett screaming in pain as he is attacked by the Alien.

Hanna

Analysis of Hanna clip 4

At the beginning of this clip we see Hanna (Saoirse Ronan) and Erik Heller (Eric Bana) running through some sheet on washing lines in a country that looks like a western European country so straight away the setting has been established.Also the white sheets could represent how Hanna is lost along with her innocence in all this madness. Then there is a close up shot of Bana looking desperately at Ronan trying to stop Hanna we then see that he is bleeding, sweaty and dressed in a suit which is dirty meaning that he has been running or fighting. Ronan is also shown to be tired and very pale or white which also shows Hanna’s purity and innocence.
As they converse the camera switches in a shot to reverse shot fashion to show the close up expressions of both characters, but then a dirty white land rover screeches to a holt and the camera straight cuts to a long shot of the car showing that both characters will soon be in trouble as two antagonists have arrive and are waiting at a distance.
The camera continues crossing from Bana to Ronan in a shot reverse shot but this time as they run in different directions this time with tracking shots of each character this provides the viewer with a feeling of intensity and pace hinting that much more is going to happen yet. Furthermore as Bana runs there is a close up of his feet this also helps to create the pace and urgency.
The camera then cuts to close ups of the two men in the car and their expressions and straight back to the fast approaching Bana who violently kicks the car door shut and initiates the chase sequence.
The dirty white land rover then races after him while a mysterious woman drives an expensive clean car another way this shows that she is their superior as she is smartly dressed and clean where as they are her henchmen who she sends to do her dirty work. This can be shown but the dirtiness of their car when it is compared to hers.
Later in the chase scene there is a point of view shot from within the land rover which makes the viewer feel as if they are in the car with the henchmen and part of the action. There is also another close up of Bana’s feet as he runs away from the car. This also helps to intensify the pace of the scene.
After the land rover crashes one of the men inside the car jumps out and climbs over the bonnet of another car stomping down as he does there is a close up of his foot this represents that he wishes to stomp on Bana and that soon there will soon be a fight scene. There is then an over the shoulder tracking shot of Bana as he runs and a long shot of the henchmen straight after a he pursues him. Both of these shots are in deep focus whish helps to establish the setting and sets the scene as being quite entrapping and dull.
Later when the henchman has caught up with Bana and they engage in combat the sequence goes from real time to slow motion forcing the viewer to watch in anticipation as they both battle it out.
The setting for this fight is in an abandoned childrens play area which has been riddled with graffiti and complete trashed. This may represent that because of these villains Hanna was robbed of her childhood and is now dangerous just like the park.

Pulp fiction

Pulp fiction film review for a blog

On the 21^st of October 1994 the legendary all time Tarantino classic pulp fiction was release in cinemas across the united kingdom. It grossed $213,928,762 worldwide. It left film critics in awe and entire audiences thinking, pondering. To this day no other film that has been done in this style has come close to besting it. Even the great man himself has struggled to create a film of equal or greater success. 1994 What a year to be alive.I wasn’t alive that year.
In fact It was 15 long years after 1994 before I would ever see Pulp Fiction. But when I did eventually experience the cinematic genius Tarantino’s film making, at first it just simply confused and frustrated me. I’d never seen any film done in this way or in this style before. No other film had left me so confused and full of so many questions. In the end I just thought pulp fiction was weird and instantly dismissed it.
However, later, I was left pondering too, like so many before me. I eventually decided to watch it again because I felt I had missed something. I had just let the film wash over me like a confusing tidal wave of nonsense. As I watched pulp fiction for the second time I started to break it down in my head and notice that everything was done for a reason. That Tarantino only wants us to see certain things and shows certain camera shots to make us see things differently, to remove the omniscience of the audience by restricting their view of the films events. He dictates what we see rather than us being all knowing and all seeing, turning the viewer into a questioning bystander. One way he does this is by revealing the film in a non chronological order, I personally feel he does this to keep the audience guessing and increase the films unpredictability factor. Another reason that Tarantino does this is to interlink the several almost separate scenarios into one mixed up storyline containing the same set of characters.
However the films major worldwide success wasn’t all down to Tarantino, the film was also made great by the peculiar and dramatic dialogue exchanged within the film by Samuel L Jackson, John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Bruce Willis, Harvey Keitel and obviously Quentin Tarantino as well, among various other big names. Pulp Fiction has so many famous quotes and is renowned for its crazy, violent and unpredictable situations. For example the scene where Vincent (played by John Travolta) accidentally shoots the character Marvin (played by Phil LaMarr) while driving in Jules’ (Samuel L Jackson‘s) car in broad day light at around nine in the morning in a quiet suburb.
It is for these reasons, and many more, that pulp fiction was nominated for such a mountain of movie awards including seven Oscars winning the award for best original screen play.
John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson and Uma Thurman all received an Academy Award nomination that year, and on the films release at the Cannes film festival Pulp Fiction was also awarded the Palme d'Or. And no wonder the film in my opinion the film is and will always be an epic.