Masculin, Feminin
Question- In what ways does Godard break from the IMR?
Breaking away from establishing shots
-In the beginning, there was no establishing shot. We went straight to viewing Paul reading instead of showing where the movie would be taking place. Different filming other than the shot/reverse/shot
-Godard constantly breaks away from the normal shot/reverse/shot by filming only the person who is speaking or only the person who is listening.
-The first instance of this was in the beginning restaurant scene, where Paul is talking to Madeline. This occurs again in the bathroom scene when Paul is asking Madeline questions to see what her thoughts are and if she likes him. During their dialogue, the camera is mainly on her and only shows Paul as somewhat sad and unconfident. Madeline appears to be more focused on herself, by constantly fixing her hair and putting on makeup. She hardly makes eye contact with Paul and does not want to answer many of his probing questions. I thought that this showed her disinterest in Paul, at the time, and how vanity was a key characteristic of Madeline.
- There were many other instances of only one person being filmed in an interviewer style, such as with the beauty winner and with the girl Robert liked.
- Another way Godard transitioned away from this typical filming method was to film all of the characters in a line. He did this when the characters went to the diner and sat next to each other while eating, instead of sitting across from each other which is typically done in Hollywood movies and in real life.
The Degree Rules
- When filming Paul and Madeline talking at the restaurant in the beginning scene, the camera defies the 180 degree rule and does a 360 to the people arguing behind them.
- Godard used a 90 degree turn, unlike the usual 30 degree rule, when filming the interview style scenes by switching from Madeline looking in the mirror to Paul talking.
Temporal and Spatial Jumps with Roman Numerals
-Godard used the black slides with numbers instead of dissolves to indicate a change in time and scene. These slides divided the movie up into different sections and showed the progression of Paul and Madeline’s relationship.
A different take on parallel editing
-The use of simultaneous actions with the surrounding noises was another way Godard tweaked the IMR. He would use outside sounds from cars as the sounds of his characters’ movements to make them more prominent in the story.
-Examples: At the second scene in the coffee shop when Paul replies to Robert’s provocative question, his answer is muffled under the outside sounds of a truck honking and when wiping his face, it sounds like a car’s windshield wipers.
At the restaurant in the opening scene, the gun shot fired from the woman who was arguing with her husband is heard as the door slams shut.
Interesting discoveries from the movie
- The noise at the beginning of the movie and during every number slide (used for transition between scenes) was the sound from a typewriter. I did not know what this meant and how it correlated with the movie until the end scene when we find out that Paul has died and the police or detectives are typing out the story of how the girls knew Paul. This showed that the movie was a recollection of Madeline and the other girls meeting Paul, which may be why it was mainly in an interviewer style.
- When Madeline is being asked how Paul died, she does not seem to be sad that she has lost him, but again plays with her hair.
- I thought that Madeline’s friend was not interested in Paul, but was interested in Madeline since she was jealous of Madeline sitting next to him at the movie and played with Madeline’s face once when Paul was not looking, but whistling. Maybe the friend pushed Paul out of his apartment and killed him because of this.
Midnight in Paris
Question- What can film do that other mediums can not?
- In the intro to the movie, Woody Allen had the main characters begin their dialogue during the opening credits. Because you could not see their faces when they were speaking, I was able to focus on their words and the attitudes that came across. Other plays and mediums can not help direct us to what we should focus on and what we should not focus on in this depth.
- Allen brought pictures to life through the showing of Monet’s inspirational water lilies followed by the actual paintings. Plain pictures or paintings can not come to life in the way that movies have this effect.
- Allen brought pictures to life through the showing of Monet’s inspirational water lilies followed by the actual paintings. Plain pictures or paintings can not come to life in the way that movies have this effect.
What is Woody Allen trying to say?
- Woody Allen was able to connect two decades and have them occur simultaneously whenever the 1920s car would pick Gil up. When watching the film carefully, the new cars of 2010 were still visible in the background until after the 1920s car had driven to its destination. Another time that the connection of two decades was observed was when Gil purchases Adriana’s diary and has the French historian read it to him. In Adriana’s diary, we learn that she is in love with Gil by comparing him to her other lovers. This is the first time that Allen verifies that what Gil is experiencing is actually occurring in reality.- There is parallelism when Adriana talks about wishing that she was living in the turn of the century instead of in her current time period. This mimics what Gil had been saying about being bored of his current life. Parallelism is again shown when Adriana and Gil venture into the early 1900s and again, in the final scene, when the new girl Gil meets says that she loves to walk in the rain, just as Gil had been mentioning throughout the whole film.
- Gil kept mentioning hat he wished he lived in the past. He also incorporated this into his book by having the main character work in a “nostalgia” shop. He had “Golden Age Thinking,” the idea that a different time period would be better than the person’s current life.
- Inez kept agreeing with everything Paul said, even though he was usually wrong. Inez even mentioned how she had been in love with Paul during her college years. This was a foreshadowing of the love affair she would have with Paul during the nights Gil time traveled.
The Grapes of Wrath
Question- What are some moments that are purely cinematic in this film?
- The passage of time is tweaked in this movie. This was first seen when the film quickly transitioned from a day scene to a night time scene while Casy, the former preacher, and Tom were walking to the Joad's family home. When the Joads are driving across country, we are shown different state signs and highways to reveal that their journey has taken much time.
- Many flashbacks are included in the beginning of this film to let the audience catch up on the information that Tom is learning from Casy and Muley about the farmers being forced off their land. This is different from books and other types of story telling since we are able to visually see exactly what occurred in the past through the stories that are told on screen.
-We were able to see two viewpoints at once, when the Joads are first driving through the desert. The truck's windshield reflects the shocked and saddened facial expressions of the front seat passengers as they look out onto the desert. This special effect of being able to see their faces and what they are looking at, simultaneously, is something that only the cinema can provide to its audience.
- The audience was also given the viewpoint from the front of the car when it was driving into the transient camp in California.
Interesting discoveries from the movie
- There is framing in the scene where Tom and the truck driver are talking. The driver's window frames their faces as they drive, creating a box within a box effect.
- John Ford, who directed this film, played with shadows and the use of light to create different and unusual angles for settings throughout the movie.
- Tom sees how everyone has changed, just like their lives, when he comes back from the penitentiary. All of his family immediately says that they are "fine" and doing well, even though Tom can tell that they have been starving and have lost much. The first thing his mother does when she sees him is to straighten out her dress, probably because she is embarrassed by the way she looks and how she has nothing, compared to before. This is shown again when his mother tries on her earrings in private but decides not to wear them during the trip.
- It is very ironic that once Tom gets out of the penitentiary, he enters a whole new type of prison. He and his family are treated like prisoners when forced out of their homes and have to find work in California that undervalues them and makes them survive on bread and water. Keene Farm, where the Joads go to stay and work as peach pickers proves to be just like a jail since it has a fence surrounding the land, they are forced to stay inside, and there are guards around every corner. Keene Farm reminded me of the holocaust camps since they starved their people to death while they worked them to the bone.
Psycho
- When Marion is driving and imagines what her boyfriend, sister, boss, and others may say after finding out about the stolen money, the audience is given insight on these thoughts. This happens again in the final scene of the movie with Norman speaking as his mother would and thinking about the fly on his hand.
- We have the viewpoint from Marion during the first half of the movie, such as when viewing the street from the driver's side, until right before the shower murder, when we take on the viewpoint of Norman as he looks through the peephole into Marion's room. After this, we see through the eyes of many different characters, including the Private Investigator, Marion's sister, and Norman's mother.
- We never see the complete image of Norman's mother until the very end of the film, but we do see her perspective in the killings and as the Private Investigator falls backwards down the stairs.
- During the murders, we never see grotesque images, but only a montage of images. Many are of the thrusting knife coming towards the victim or of the victim falling. This montage has a profound effect on the audience though, since the killings become emotional and the audience is able to interpret them on their own.
Interesting discoveries from the movie
- The exact time and location are told in the beginning of the movie.
- The main character, Marion, dies in the first half of the movie. This is uncommon in films.
- Alfred Hitchcock is outside of the office where Marion works and looks directly into the camera for a split second before Marion enters.
- The placement of the money on the bed makes it look like it is "looking" up at Marion and judging her for stealing.
- Norman is very nervous when he first meets Marion and can not speak without stumbing his words in front of her. When showing her to her cabin, he cannot say "bathroom." He also says he knows nothing of birds, but stuffs them and also says that Marion eats like a bird, foreshadowing the murder of her. Norman also shows his insanity for a brief second when he gets angry at Marion when she suggests that he put his mother away.
- Marion's last name is Crane, a type of bird.
- The themes of this movie are "everyone is in a trap (like a bird)" and "buying happiness."
Journey to Italy
Pick one shot to analyze.
1st Order: Denotation- What is the image, camera movement, etc. literally denoting?
The shot I chose was when the hotel staff rush to open Catherine's car door. The camera then shows how Alex (her husband) and Catherine walk into the hotel without talking and are barely next to each other. This shot also shows couples in the background who walking arm in arm or holding hands while exiting the hotel. The camera slowly turns as Alex and Catherine exit the car and walk up the stairs of the hotel. The camera comes close behind the two, while still being far enough away to capture the other couples walking towards the camera.
2nd Order: Connotation- What cultural codes contribute to our understanding of the shot?
Alex and Catherine have been married for 8 years and are not in the "honeymoon" stage of their relationship anymore. There is a distance created between the two of them in this shot. Our culture relates distance with a loss of affection and closeness to love.
3rd Order: Myth Production- To which myths might this shot contribute?
A myth that can be produced from this is that "chivalry is dead." Because he is the husband, Alex is "supposed" to be the one to rush and open Catherine's car door and to be respectful and walk with Catherine to the hotel, as the other men do in the shot.
The Hurt Locker
Find 3 moments and answer the question- How does this movie portray war/violence/death through its use of aesthetic techniques? (ex. slow motion, camera angles, character development (visually), acting, lighting, etc.)
1- Camera movement to show they are at war-
Hectic movements of the camera in the beginning scenes depict the chaos of war. People are shown running in all directions to escape the danger of a potential bomb. The depiction of the area is shown with jerky movements and quick shots. This shows how random attacks are common in war and that when they occur, disorder and pandemonium ensue.
2- Slow motion to show death-
When the first bomb goes off unexpectedly after a terrorist activates it, the bombing is slowed down so every scene of the death of the soldier is visible. The soldier is first sent flying into the air while a montage of slow motion shots of dirt flying off the army jeep, the explosion, and debris from the bomb are placed strategically in this drawn out scene. Because of the long length of the shots, we can understand how fast life can be taken from someone and see the pain in his comrades' faces in this unexpected tragedy.
3- Acting to show violence-
The actors played strong, uncaring men who were involved in violence in their everyday lives. Portraying American soldiers, they showed no emotions when threatening the various civilians that came into their paths during their missions, even if the civilians were not threatening them in the least way. They instead used loaded guns and negative remarks to drive the people away. An example of this was in the scene where a taxi man drives up and one of the soldiers pretends like he will shoot him until the taxi drives away. Back in the base camp, the soldiers were shown continuing in their violent ways, by passing the time playing vicious video games, which involved killing people for entertainment, and listening to harsh, heavy metal music.
Melancholia
This film is very different from any movie that I have ever watched. The storyline is much slower and drawn out which has the audience guessing throughout the entire movie. The film is broken into two narratives, one about Justine, an unhappy bride who suffers from depression, and one focused on Claire, Justine's sister who has to take care of Justine after her divorce while taking care of her child and husband.
Opening Scene
- The film began with a view of the planets coming into allign. It seemed like I was watching planets slowly shift into place for the longest time and I was confused as to when the movie would begin.
- Slow motion shots, which were so slow the images were barely moving, of Justine and Claire during the chaos of the planet, Melancholia, crashing into Earth, were interdispersed inbetween the shots of the planets.
Part 1
- In the opening scenes, Justine and her newlywed husband are seen being driven around a hill to their wedding reception. At first, Justine's husband seems upset about the slow progression around the hill but Justine calms him down and laughs about the craziness of the situation. This depicts the happiness and love they shared despite all odds.
- This misleads the audience into believing that the story will focus on their happy relationship and not on Justine's depression, which was always hidden from her new husband until the end of part 1.
- Justine's depression becomes more and more apparent once they reach the reception when Claire asks if Justine will behave.
- I thought that Justine's mother also suffered from depression since both mother and daughter were very similar in their mannerisms, such as removing themselves from others at the party to become lost in their own world and be by themselves (taking random and unnecessary baths). Justine even reaches out to her mother for support, but is not met with affection.
- The filming was choppy and very slow moving and made me feel as though this was done intentionally to show how Justine experienced her life, being only aware of certain moments while others were too slow to pay attention to.
Part 2
- This part focused more on Claire and her fear of the planet, Melancholia, colliding with Earth. 
- In the end, Claire's husband kills himself since he can not bear to live with his life when he knows it will soon be over and Justine tries to calm Claire and Claire's son by building a protective shield or cave around them so no pain will come to them.
- In the end, Claire's husband kills himself since he can not bear to live with his life when he knows it will soon be over and Justine tries to calm Claire and Claire's son by building a protective shield or cave around them so no pain will come to them.
- The filming was amazing in these last scenes since I felt as though I was actually there with the characters, sitting in the teepee, feeling the effects of the collision with Earth. This movie had a very well rounded beginning and ending, which were completely connected.
The Prestige
Beginning is Ending
-This opening scene shows the audience the two sides to magic. The beauty in a simple trick and the deadliness when the trick goes wrong.
-This scene is also very important because of the narration in the background which was for the murder trial. The three parts to every magic trick are told and described, which explains the third and final act of “The Prestige,” which is necessary to complete a magic trick and has the object that disappeared reappear for the audience.
-After this opening scene, the movie goes back in time to show the past lives of the two main magicians. This scene is replayed again towards the end, which gave repetition in the story.
-The death of Angier’s replication parallels with that of Angier’s wife. Borden wrapped the wrong knot on her wrists and, because of this, she died on stage during a trick, trying to escape the same type of water filled, glass container. Borden relives this image twice and is found guilty of the Angier’s death. In Angier’s mind, this punishment is in place of the death of his wife, which he always blamed on Borden.
Magic Within Magic
-The audience is able to see the behind the scenes of how the magic tricks are created and how they are able to fool all viewers. With regards to the “best magic trick on Earth,” where the magician would disappear from the stage through a door to reappear through another door on the opposite side, Borden used a twin to mislead the audience, while Angier use real magic. Angier duplicated himself using the electrical light waves and, after each trick, would kill his duplicate by drowning them.
-Borden never told anyone about is twin. He did not even tell his wife, even though she suspected him of not loving her at times and with cheating on her with his assistant, which he never once did since his twin had been living out that part of their life. Angier only revealed his method on his deathbed, knowing that Borden would not be able to tell anyone since he had to go into hiding.
-This magic within magic alters the audience’s reality of what is real and what is an illusion.
Interesting Discoveries from the Movie
-The film editing is cut fast to hold the audience’s attention.
-The film reel has an older feel to it, which reminds us of the time era this story is set in. -Flashbacks are common in this film to describe events that shaped a character’s personality. These are important for the audience to understand the character and why they act the way they act.
-The camera angle is mainly directed straight towards the main focus. Sometimes, we are viewing the scenes from one of the character’s perspectives, but never from those that are about to die.
-Angier without the “i” spells anger, which he holds onto throughout the movie.
A Single Man
1. I noticed three novels, After Many a Summer, The Metamorphosis, and Breakfast at Tiffany’s, that were placed throughout the film. These books all relate to George’s current state of mind.
After Many a Summer
3 Moments from the Film-
Children of Men
One Moment Recap- Scene from the death in the car ride during the first half of the movie
- At first, Julian and her ex-husband, Theo, are playing with each other. They are shooting a ball into each other's mouth. It seems as though they are flirting and are finally reconnecting.
- A car on fire suddenly appears out from the woods and flies down the hill, stopping in front of them. Julian thinks they can make it past the car before it reaches the end of the hill and tells them to keep moving forward.
- They do not have enough to pass the car and have to reverse down the path when people run out of the woods, coming after them with sticks, clubs, and other weapons. It seems as though this is a random attack on them.
- Someone throws flames onto the windshield of the car in an attempt to set them on fire, but it does not work.
- It looks like the people in the car have evaded the attack when two people on motorcycle drive up to the car and shoot Julian in the neck. They then try to shoot at Theo, but he opens the car door and hits one of them.
- The hole through which the bullet came through in the windshield is seen expanding until the windshield completely breaks. Right after this, Julian dies.
- Cops are seen going in the opposite direction towards the murderous people, but eventually one cop car turns around and heads for those in the car.
- The people in the car are scared and show the two cops their passports, but Luke pulls out a gun and kills the cops dead.
- The final scene of this shot shows the two dead cops lying on the ground in the same position as Julian in the next scene.
1. The opening scene of the train coming into the station was beautifully done. It appeared, at first, to almost be a cartoon, instead of a live movie since it was created using CGI technology. The movement of the train coming into the station while people passed by, reminded me of the Lumiere brother’s simple film of a train appearing at a distance and seeming to come into the audience. This effect was reversed in this scene, with the train moving from the audience’s perspective to the crowds at the train station. Similar scenes to this are replayed again and again throughout the film. The train is seen approaching rapidly when Hugo is on the tracks. This fast movement of the train is again used when the train inspector and his dog are chasing after Hugo.
2. During the first scene in which we see the automaton, Hugo looks into the distance and behind him appears the shadow and sound of a movie reel projection. This image triggers a memory of the day Hugo’s father shows him the automaton that he saved from being thrown away at the museum. To me, this transition is comparing past moments to movies that we have already seen. Both need the person to think back to an event that already occurred and put all of their attention towards that one memory.
3. Directly after the scene where we watch Hugo’s father die from opening a door in the museum to find fire, flames, and smoke, we are introduced to Hugo’s uncle. When the uncle comes through the doors of the clock shop, where Hugo and his father worked, smoke from his cigar fills the screen, just as it did in the previous scene. This may symbolize the death of Hugo’s life as he knows it.
-The movie continuously showed the inside workings of different machines, from the giant clock of the train station to the inner workings of the small mechanical mouse. These devices were very intricate and only trained people, like Hugo and Melies, could understand the exact details to how they actually operated. This movie was somewhat of a puzzle also, since only viewers who had a background in film studies would understand all of the cinematic facts and hidden signs.
- Hugo has to fix the automaton in order to fix Melies, in order to fix his own broken life.
-There are dreams within dreams in this film and movies within the movie. This is one of the cinematic tricks that appear in the film.
The Metamorphosis is about a man who transforms into an insect-like creature and eventually dies because his family suffered from having to care for him during the transformation. After his death, his family is relieved and goes on to live a wonderful life. This is probably the way that George believes his death would affect his friends lives. He believes he is not wanted and is bringing down the people he cares for the most.tells the story of a man who fears his upcoming death. This is the opposite of how George looks at death, wishing it would approach him quickly and even going as far as to take his own life to do so.
In the end of Breakfast at Tiffany’s, the main character, Holly Golightly, breaks off her relationship to “Fred” since to know what she has, she needs to lose it. This applies to how George felt when he lost Jim and also when George realizes, at the end of the film, what he would lose in life if he were to take his own.
2. When George watches the owl slowly fly away, time seems to stand still. The camera then shifts to the image of a glistening full moon in the night. Owls stand for wisdom and protection and the moon may stand for a new day approaching. This is the point where George decides is life is worth living and understands that killing himself would not be the solution.
3. The color blue is first discussed by George and his student, when they are choosing which color pencil sharpener to purchase. George’s student says how blue symbolizes spirituality. This color appears throughout the film, as the color of the student’s eyes, the color of the little girl’s dress, and as the only color in the Psycho poster. The color blue encompasses the screen during the underwater shots of George. Towards the end of the film, he comes up to the surface to breathe, just as he lets go of the idea of suicide.
Interesting Discoveries from the Movie-
-George sees and hears minutes and seconds pass him by during his last day alive. These seconds are heard in slow motion, clicking away. His clock stops at the end of the film, signaling that his end is near.
-The opening dream scene of George viewing Jim’s dead body and kissing him on the lips is mirrored by the ending, in which Jim does the same to George. George’s death is also foreshadowed when he wakes up from the dream lying in the same position as Jim with an ink mark to his side.
- No words are needed during the scene where George goes to Charley after Jim dies and breaks down crying.
- We view the gun from George’s perspective.
- The scene with the children from across the street with their arguing parents: George is viewing their activities from his window and it seems as though it is a flashback to when he was younger. Then the mother waves back at George and we realize that this is happening in real time.
- The invisible minority is referring to being homosexual. The camera scans to the two boys sitting together in the lecture hall.
- All images from George’s perspective have a grayish tint except those sights that seem to make George happier, such as the secretary’s smile, the students playing tennis, and when talking to the little girl from across the street.
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| George's student and Lois |
- George takes the time to compliment people at work and who work for him who he has never acknowledged before.
- George’s student represents himself and his best friend, Lois, represents Charley. This is magnified, literally when we see the similarity in the eyeliners of the two women and when they smoke their cigarettes.
- It is ironic when George tells Charley to stop living in the past and to start living for the future. This is advice that he should be taking himself.
-In the final scenes, George suffers from a heart attack and dies. This is ironic since George had been taking what appeared to be aspirin all day long.
Hugo
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