Wednesday 19 December 2012

Case study: The Third Man

Introduction
Shot in 1949
Directed by Carol Reed
Rated 8.4 stars out of 10 from 70,603 users
In the opening weekend it made:
$13,576 (USA) (9 May 1999) (1 Screen) (reissue)
It's Gross made was:
$596,349 (USA) (19 December 1999)
 47257 8.4
Females  6678 8.3
Aged under 18  334 8.5
Males under 18  282 8.7
Females under 18  52 7.4
Aged 18-29  22575 8.4
Males Aged 18-29  19968 8.4
Females Aged 18-29  2607 8.3
Aged 30-44  20823 8.4
Males Aged 30-44  18623 8.4
Females Aged 30-44  2200 8.2
Aged 45+  9610 8.6
Males Aged 45+  8042 8.7
Females Aged 45+  1568 8.6
IMDb staff  10 8.2
Top 1000 voters  721 8.3
US users  20247 8.6
Non-US users  33688 8.4
IMDb users
Also reviews suggest more males watch this film that females. Although males under 18 and over 45 have the best rating at 8.7

Sound
During the opening to The Third Man, the use of non diegetic is well presented because the theme is aimed at 'Harry Lime' or 'Orson Welles'.
This theme tune directed at the character of Harry Lime makes him seem an ambiguous villian or not very serious. It also points to 'Orson Welles' character as charming and sort of glamourous. 
There is also the use of a voiceover which helps to explain the story and introduce it to us and also introduce the characters to use as well so one can get a better understanding for them.

Camera Angles
 Throughout the Third Man there are various types of shots used and one that is used effectively is the high angle shot. Here is 'Holly Martins' as he looks for Harry Limes. And this shot is meant to be from a German who looks at him in this way. It suggests that he is small and isn't noticed as he is new to the country from the USA. In turn, this connatates that he is seen as a nobody.




There are also a good range of Tilt shots used within this film. The tilt shot is used in thrillers and many other genres which attempts to disorientate the audience but also makes it seem scary and provide that sense of nightmare. The shot also attempts to add the aesthetic interest to the scene from the audience.







In this film, there are so many close ups used which help to identify either objects used within a certain scene or to show characters emotions.

This shot magnifies what would be shown in a regular shot. It shows the certain object, in this case the cat.

This is a second close up shot which identifies the characters emotion as, in this case, being confused. This can be established through this close up shot unlike if it was shot from a high angle where this may be a little more difficult to see.






Here is the start of the film where close up shots are taken on the black market of objects and being able to identify them with this close up shot.













Lighting
In The Third Man, a lot of non-ambient lighting is used. One example of where the lighting is non-ambient is where a close up shot of Harry Lime is shown in the darkness. It shows the non-ambience as it looks as though a spotlight is being used to see the characters face whereas if that spotlight wasn't there, then we wouldn't have been able to see him. It means that this dark atmosphere is being made from ambient to Non-ambient as the area behind the camera has been set up with spotlights to hit that perfect position in order that his face can be seen.

Costume
In The Third Man, the costumes worn by many of the characters, especially males are your classic overcoat and trilby hat combo. This signifies what people back in these days would have worn during this period. The smart dress overcoat could easily be pulled off in thrillers made and potentially in our thriller although it may be ignored and dress and make the thriller modern.
Another costume part in this period would also be the Bow Tie which portrays the character as some what being untrustworthy.

Location
The Third Man is shot in the beautiful city of Vienna. It is also shot during a period where the second world war has just come to an end. This shot below shows Vienna as actually being quite a dangerous place due to the fact that there is a body in the water and also that body is being surrounded by a lot of broken glass. This would have been because it is around 1946-1949 and the war would have literally just come to it's conclusion so there would have been a lot of work to get Vienna back to the way it would have been.

Thursday 13 December 2012

Case Study: Kill Bill 1

Introduction
Made in 2003
Quentin Tarantino directed and write the film.
The Bride wakes up after a long coma. The baby that she carried before entering the coma is gone. The only thing on her mind is to have revenge on the assassination team that betrayed her - a team she was once part of.
Rated  8.2 out of 10 starts from 388,436 users on imdb.

Camera Angles
During the introduction to Kill Bill one, there consists a strong use of close up shots. These types of shot help to establish the characters emotions on what they are feeling. It also helps to, on occasions, position the audience into the shoes of the character like a point of views shot. Bill here using his hankerchief shows it is actually Bill through the close up but also helps to signify his character. This hankerchief helps to show he is your typical cowboy character where also shows that he is an extreme killer. Here the blood also signifies his attitude being a dangerous person.
The hankerchief with Bills' name on shows he is a vain and conceited character while also being slightly egotistical about himself.

Sound
Throughout Kill Bill one, there is a lot of diegetic sound used. For example the footsteps which connate menace and fear.
The heavy breathing is also a good diegetic soung as it keeps the scene real and natural throughout this period. Lastly, the loading of the gun is also diegetic, where this helps us to establish that we now know what is going to happen to her.
The soundtrack of 'Bang Bang' by Nancy Sinatra is also a useful track that fits in strongly with the film. This helps to go well into the film as it signifies that her lover killed her which is ironic as that is exactly what happens to this women and Bill. This also links in well to Bill and his life of crime which shows him to be a criminal and the lifestyle he has of crime.

Lighting
In Kill Bill, there is a very large amount of noir styled lighting which helps to establish the flashback in the opening scene. This shot which is consist with the noir opening gives a tribute to the noir tradition. The shot which is already used in Camera Angles, also helps to start to establish the genre of the thriller and make it into a hybrid film.
Both of the these shots show that brilliant sense of the noir tradition and creates the thriller genre instantly through this technique.
Enigma
There are many moments of enigmatic effect even in the first scene where we are posed with many questions and leaving us pondering what the answers to these would be. For example we ask ourselves:
Who is this woman?
Why did Bill decide to kill this woman?
What does Bill actually look like?

In my opinion I think that this film is absolutly stunning example of the noir thriller genre. Some of the shots presented in it are excellently shot and helps to provide a sense on excitement and also keeps us on the edge of our seats as we want to know what happens next in the film, wile also supported by all these questions we are faced throughout the film.

Thursday 6 December 2012

Possible locations for thriller

The first possible location is Riverside.
This could be a useful location to use for our thriller film due to the reasoning that if we could imagine this place at night it really could be something quite frightning and help make our thriller film look realistic and successful. Here, we are also able to see the vanishing point which can make somebody look as though they are walking towards some sort of danger. We can also establish the claustrophobic space which can also show the thriller genre right there.
We could also say that the street lights at this time would be on because we would probobly should during the night and darkness as you are able to establish here. This could be very useful especially if it would be a foggy/misty night as it would help to show that sense of the enigma. This would also be a strong location as we have the street lights and darknes which create a sense of mystery and also the water and shiny ground as well in the foreground and background.
This also maked for quite a spooky location because we can see the street light being projected through the trees which gives that sense again of nightmare.


The second possible location is Norwich city centre
This would be a sensible location to use because their are a lot of tiled streets which if shot on the correct night could be a fantastic generic signifier for our thriller due to the fact of the shiny streets; it would make for a thriller full of horror and mystery. It would also be an excellent location for our shoot because again we have the claustrophobic nature of the scene which would be a nice feature to use, especially using certain types of shots such as the tilt and also low angle shots which will show the menace of the location.


I went out and took this shot at night looking at the town hall. This shot would also argue the case for a possible location for shooting as this slight low angle shot with also a sense of a tilt creates that menace to the building, while also supported using the lights around and on it creating that sense of power and status and also nightmare as somebody would be intimidated at this not knowing what the buliding would be.
The last possible location could be Eaton Park
I have choosen that Eaton Park could be a beneficial location due to the reasoning that I have been here during the dark hours of the day and I might say that it has the potential to give a frightning experience which would be absolutly perfect considering we are aiming to create a thriller film.

This would also be a first class place for our thriller film because there are many areas to it that can use many generic signifiers such as the vanishing point shown, skateparks and sports courts that, when deserted can show the enigmatic effect combined with ambient lighting from small floodlights. I took thsi and thought this would be decent to shoot a thriller because it provides a sense of innocence to it however in our thriller film would be a false accusation.
I also decided to go out during the dark hours of the day and took a good few pictures that attempt to show how spooky, menacing and enigmatic this location really could be!

These two pictures try and show the vanishing point aspect of the park and gets the enigmatic effect questioning is there anything in the darkness coming towards you?
These pictures intext well with the vanishing point of Essex Boys. These pose the question as to what is going to happen if they continue through the tunnel or even keep walking into the darkness as we are unsure as to what is actually there. It also portrays somebody/driving into danger or putting themselves into trouble. For example, Essex Boys signifies the barrell of a gun sight.





These next three pictures help to show the spooky side of the park, helping to also connate the mystery and sense of an abandoned place or deserted place,

On the right shows a sense of claustrophobia and entrapment which can portray our story to be where a character has no where to go and run away to, which interlinks with Kill Bill one where the women has no wear to run to as she is injured and eventually is murdered.
The picture seen left shows abondonment really well as the low angle makes it look scary, plus if it can be established that the ice seen on the seat and on the frame are covered in ice which makes for more of that spooky nature.
Just a few more pictures that try and give that enigmatic sense to the location and scary feel to it and also gets you wondering what is around or in the second pictures case, what is that light in the background of the darkness?

Can you see the light in the dark? This makes you wonder what the light is, in the distance if it is anybody at all. The worms eye shot shows that sense of someone being alone and also being isolated as no body else is anywhere to be seen in this vanishing pointy. 
This picture, especially the padlock which keeps the public from entering any further through this gate makes the enigma even more of an enigma becuase we are blind as to why this section of the park has been cut off from society. The cobwebs on the right of the gate also makes for that spooky nature to the location.

These last five pictures I took, I feel are the best of the whole lot because they show such a spooky side to Eaton Park and an excellent sense of the enigmatic feel!

This picture to the left and above shows that enigmatic sense and also that sense of a dark and cold atmosphere which can show a person entering the unknown in a way which can intertext with Essex Boys as the young man is shown to be driving against his will into the unknown.
The frozen water in these pictures makes you think well what is happening. It could show the fact that someone may not want to be there as you can see the water here although also are unaware of what is on the other side of the frozen pond as it is surrounded by darkness.

This is such a successful picture as it looks so spooky with the mists around the frozen water, while also having an unknown building in the background using this slight tilt.
This shows a sense of abondonment where the building is shown to be quite creepy and uses that enigmatic effect as you do not know what the building suggests or if there is anybody in the building itself. The high angle shot also makes it look very menacing to the naked eye.