FILM OPENING ANALYSIS 2

The second film I chose to analyse was Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) Guy Ritchie.

In the opening minutes we realise that Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels is a British gangster movie. We instantly recognise this when we see the first character on screen selling goods, we realise they are stolen when the police turn up and start to chase the characters.

The cinematography involves a lot of mid-shots, close-ups and point-of-view shots; this gives a perspective of the characters buying the stolen goods. When the police chase happens there is one continuous tracking shot to give the audience a sense of the length of the chase. After this, the footage cuts to a slow-motion shot of the characters running away from the police down a flight of stairs.

 

Initially, the sound involved features no music but only the introduction to the main character in the form of narration. This is until the chase starts and some music begins to play, removing the audience from the chase and reminding them they are an observer.

FILM OPENING ANALYSIS 1

For my first film analysis I chose to do the opening 3 minutes of The Shining (1980) Stanley Kubrick.

The whole of the opening 3 minutes involves extreme long-shots that show a car driving down a long, winding road in some rocky mountains.

It grips you in a way that is different to many modern films; this is because it isn’t fast-paced but creates an enigma because the audience wants to know where the car is going and who is driving it. The opening titles involve light blue, upper-case text saying “A STANLEY KUBRICK FILM” that isn’t bold but catches your attention as it scrolls up the screen and the audience cannot ignore it.

The soundtrack in the opening 3 minutes is of slow, continuous and changing in pitch music.

The shots are on screen before cutting to another shot longer than modern day films, this creates a slow-pace that coupled with the sound creates an eerie feeling.

NEO-NOIR EXAMPLE 2

Brick (2005) Rian Johnson

Brick by Rian Johnson is a neo-noir that has a narrative that centres on a hard-boiled detective story. A high school student, named Brendan, attempts to solve the murder of his ex-girlfriend Emily after he finds her body lying in a storm drain. To help him solve the case he must become close friends with fellow high school students Laura, Tug, Dode, Kara, Brad and The Pin. All turn out to be pivotal in Brendan's quest to find the truth of Emily's death.

The film contains some typical noir characters such as Brendan who is the Hero and Laura who is the Femme Fatale. Smoking plays an integral part in the role of the Femme Fatale which is typical of a noir. The dialogue has characteristics of a film noir, this is highly evident in one scene where Brendan is talking to his vice-principal and the impression is created that Brendan is a detective and the vice-principal is a police chief.

Cinematography is used in a way that the camera work mirrors the quick and fast dialogue. Editing is also used to create the noir feeling, fades give the impression of changes in time, also fast-paced jump cuts add tension to a scene. Flashbacks were common in a film noir and Rian Johnson uses them in Brick when Brendan recalls the phone call he received from Emily two days before her death.

Brick received generally positive reviews and won the special Jury prize for originality of vision at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival. I feel the audience for Brick are people who enjoy off-beat entertainment as the film is a murder-mystery that features the important elements of a film noir.

NEO-NOIR EXAMPLE 1

Resevoir Dogs (1992) Quentin Tarantino

Resevoir Dogs takes place mostly in an abandoned warehouse after a group of six robbers, all of whom have psuedonyms and are unknown to each other, fail at robbing a jewelers after a police setup stops them. While at the warehouse the surviving criminals begin to suspect that one of them is an undercover police informant.

With Mr.Orange and Mr.White there is a sense of Hero and Femme Fatale.  Mr.White forms a friendship with Mr.Orange and when it comes to shooting him he cannot even though he has led all of the criminals to their downfall, this results in Mr.White being shot by the police.

WHAT IS NEO-NOIR?

Neo-Noir or Contemporary Film Noir, is a style of film modern film which features elements of Film Noir but with updated themes, style and visual elements. Neo-Noirs usually incorporate both thematic and visual elements of Film Noir.


Neo-Noirs reflect the classic Film Noirs in many ways, including giving the audience the same feeling of anxiety and insecurity. Film Noirs featured a lot of smoking, gangsters and henchmen in suits, Neo-Noirs tried to complement this, Film scholar James Naremore said 'the chief function of these four tough guys is to light cigarettes with Zippos and model a peacock collection of suits and accessories' when referring to the characters in Mulholland Falls.

However, there are many differences of Film Noirs and Neo-Noirs. For example, Neo-Noir films reverse the way that Film Noirs made the audience build a relationship with the Anti-Hero. Neo-Noirs also feature unconventional camera movements to remind the audience they are watching a film and not partaking in the story.


Examples of Neo-Noir include: Taxi Driver, Resevoir Dogs, L.A. Confidential, Thieves Like Us, The Long Goodbye, Mulholland Falls, Body Heat, True Confessions.

CLASSIC FILM NOIR EXAMPLE 2

Double Indemnity (1944) Billy Wilder

Double Indemnity is a classic example of a Film Noir as it features the typical storyline of a Hero, who is an insurance salesman, falling for the Femme Fatale who leads him to kill her husband to claim insurance money until it leads to their downfall. In this case there is a "double indemnity clause" in his insurance contract which pays out double, they go for this however it doesn't work out and the Hero shoots the Femme Fatale and he is caught out after a gunshot wound stops him from fleeing.

Early on in the film it is evident that the Femme Fatale seduces the Hero such as in the opening shot of the two meeting, it is a low-angle shot looking up at the Femme Fatale already showing she is superior. Also at the beginning of the film, the Femme Fatale wears an anklet that the Hero is seduced by which suggests she has already "captured" him.


After they kill the Femme Fatale's husband there is a downbeat atmosphere and they both seem depressed, this is what leads the Hero to confess he killed the husband to the insurance firm. During or after a depressing scene it is raining, this makes the viewer feel more of an effect. In the end we find out that the Femme Fatale was using the Hero all along and that she never loved him but just wanted the insurance money.


The film features a lot of single-source lighting, this casts deep shadows which is typical of a Film Noir. Sound is used in different ways such as when the husband signs the accident insurance forms there are slow, loud drums, used to create an impact. Also the music gets faster in some scenes to build tension, typical of any film.

Throughout the film it is evident that the couple will never get away with what they have done. Every time they think something is going their way another thing happens that could get them caught. Example of this include; the Femme Fatale's step-daughter finding out what happened to her mum and the black hat she saw her trying on, Keyes and his many "hunches" and Jackson saying it wasn't the Femme Fatale's husband on the train.

CLASSIC FILM NOIR EXAMPLE 1

The Maltese Falcon (1941) John Huston

The Maltese Falcon is about a private detective from San Francisco and his dealings with three adventurers who compete to gain the jewel-encrusted statuette of a falcon.

This is one of the most popular detective mysteries ever made and is considered by many as the first Hollywood Film Noir although it was low-budget.This stylistic film is a mixture of mystery, romance and is mostly known for a number of memorable performances of corrupt and deceitful villians, including "The Fat Man" or Gutman by Sydney Greenstreet. One of the Film's great assets is the cinematography which includes low-key lighting and unusual camera-angles associated with Film Noir.

CODES AND CONVENTIONS OF FILM NOIR

Film Noir’s primary moods were bleak and pessimistic and included moral corruption, desperation and paranoia. They took advantage of the post-war anxiety and fear of the cold war, this is evident in Kiss Me Deadly (1955).

Film Noirs were mostly shot in greys, blacks and whites, this showed the dark cynicism and emphasised the pessimism and anxiety of them. Settings were usually shot with single-source lighting in dark and gloomy rooms. Other settings included urban night scenes with deep shadows, rain-slicked streets and dark alleyways. On many occasions they featured disorienting scenes and skewed camera-angles, sometimes called a Dutch tilt. A great example of a Film Noir featuring this type of cinematography is You Only Live Once (1937).

The music in Film Noir was the heart and soul of the theme of the film and often had a melancholy quality. One of the main sounds in Film Noir was sultry jazz songs sung in smoky nightclubs.

Often a Film Noir story involved a cynical male character, known as the hero, who encountered a beautiful but promiscuous woman, known as the Femme Fatale. She would seduce him and manipulate him into becoming the fall guy often following a murder.

The heroes could be anything from hard-boiled detectives or private eyes to petty criminals or even murderers. Heroes were often low-lives involved in violent crime and corruption. They were usually sinister and disillusioned men that were struggling to survive until ultimately, they died. The Maltese Falcon (1941)

The Femme Fatales in a Film Noir were gorgeous, predatory and manipulative women. They would use their seductive skills to lead the disillusioned heroes into committing a crime of passion and twisted love such as murder. Whenever the hero in a Film Noir was a detective or private eye, he would become involved or trapped in a case that would lead to evidences of corruption, irresistible love and death. Whoever the hero was, the Femme Fatale would use menacing actions and bring them both to a downfall, such as Double Indemnity (1944).

The narrative of Film Noir was often complex and typically told with background music, flashbacks, witty dialogue and often first-person narration. A common plot of Film Noir was that a hero would suffer amnesia which made it easier for him to suffer his downfall at the hands of the Femme Fatale.

HISTORY OF FILM NOIR

During WWII, films which were usually sent over from America, had been stopped due to the focus on sending supplies. After the war there was an influx of films sent over from America which mostly featured similar undertones and narratives. Film critic Nino Frank noticed this and in France 1946 he coined the term Film Noir, which is literally translated as 'Black Film'.

The classic Film Noirs were made in America and the heyday years were post-war up until the 1960's. They developed after WWII, taking advantage of the post-war anxiety cast by the threat of the Nazis.

Film genre refers to the method in the narrative elements from which films are made. Film Noir is not considered a genre by many but rather the mood and style of the film. Film Noirs were didn't start of as big budget studio pictures but rather 'B' movies which were shown alongside a Hollywood 'A' movies. 'B' movies often used the old sets of 'A' movies and featured little known actors, directors and a smaller budget.

WELCOME AND COURSEWORK BRIEF

Welcome to my blog, my name is Ryan Connor and I attend Suffolk New College where I am studying AS level Media studies. The coursework in this subject consists of producing a three minute opening sequence of a Film Noir thriller.

Within this I must do research and planning, which will establish my aims on how I will create my opening sequence. The practical part of this coursework will show I can construct a completed Film Noir opening sequence. Once I have completed the film opening I will then complete an evaluation using all of my Media theory. Before I create my main piece of coursework I will complete a preliminary exercise consisting of a short film sequence.

The theme of the film opening I produce is “contemporary Film Noir thrillers”. While updating the Film Noir genre, it will also bring the codes and conventions to a new audience. I will be making the film in a group of four and each of us will undertake the many roles and responsibilities of producing the opening sequence of a Film Noir.