Unit 26
Task 1
Horror genre analysis:
Horror as a genre of fiction has been around far longer than the moving image has. It had previously existed as folk tales and books, however the horror genre has moved to the big screen with complete fluidity.
In 1896, a short silent film by the name of ‘Le Manoir du diable’ appeared, also known as ‘The Haunted Castle’, or ‘The Devil’s Castle’. It was a short skit about the Devil and some of his cohorts, but was not meant to evoke a reaction of fear, but instead was meant to be amusing. It’s themes however are dark enough that it can still be considered an early horror film.
Another early foray into film named ‘L'arrivée d'un train en gare de La Ciotat’ could be considered an early horror film, because the reaction it got was one of terror. As the train pulled into the station, members of the audience thought that a real train was coming directly at them, and fled to the back of the theatre for safety. This could be considered an early horror film, despite the fact it was not intended to elicit a fearful response.
In 1910, the Edison studio produced the first film version of Frankenstein, which was thematically and visually meant to evoke a fearful emotional response, and likely did.
As film progressed, the horror genre expanded and produced classics such as Nosferatu, Bride of Frankenstein, The Mummy, The Wolfman, The invisible man, and Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.
The horror genre began a trail blazing course across cinema as a form of entertainment, both terrifying and exciting audiences around the world.
As horror progressed, sub genres appeared, including Slasher films, psychological horror, supernatural horror, zombie films, and much more recently: found footage horror.
Each different form of horror builds off primal fears, which were prominent in the public mind around the time that sub-genre of horror was popular. For instance: the found footage sub-genre of horror was popularised in a time when the domestic technology like smart phones and hand held cameras were being used more and more. In the same time, the legitimacy of the truth we portray of ourselves, with smartphones on social media was being called into question, a fear stemming from (surprise, surprise) the unknown areas of technology, and the uncertainty of what extent technology may control our lives.
Found footage horror films have also become popular because they represent a form of hyper reality. FFHFs do this by pertaining to be more real than a normal horror film, implied by the name ‘found footage’, and by the fact that they are recorded as if they were made on smartphones or home movie cameras. This brings the film out of the zone of fiction, and blurs the lines of reality.
The relationship between producers and audiences is a reciprocal relationship: the producer makes content which is aimed at an audience in order to turn over a profit, and the audience pays money to view the product. The relationship between producer and audience can often seem distant though, since a film that is critically acclaimed may not make much money, whereas CGI-festered action films can take home huge profits, even though they get terrible reviews on a regular basis, and not just from official establishments, but from normal regular people who view the film in the cinema. For this reason, more of the same films get made, even though they’re not favoured, because they make money at the box office, time and time again.
The only research filmmakers need to do to decide what kind of films to make is to look at how well previous films have done in the box office, or in some cases what kind of films have been damned enough by reviewers that similar efforts should not be attempted again.
The research done by the audience about the films they want to see is also nearly as minimal, requiring little more than a brief look at a few interviews, a few minutes to watch an advert for the film, a glance at what actors, writers, directors or producers have worked on the title, a look at what genre the film is, and then decide ultimately if that’s something they would be interested in.
Films are marketed to a target audience that the filmmakers think will enjoy their product the most. Filmmakers will often come up with a product and then target it to the audience it fits best to. Marketing to a target audience can be as easy as including a song that the target audience might enjoy or recognise, but often the key themes and genre of a film will be enough to market it to a specific age group: for instance, teenagers are more likely to enjoy films in the genres of action, comedy and horror because they feature themes that are rather irrational or juvenile.
In 1939, Agatha Christie, famed mystery murder novelist, wrote one of her best-known books ‘And then there were none’, a story that is considered the original model for the slasher genre. Featuring a closed environment (An island cooped up in a storm), a group of people (each accused of a wrong doing), and an unknown killer, picking off the members of the group, one by one.
‘And then there were none’ set the foundations for what would quickly become one of the most popular subgenres of horror film: the Slasher film. The Slasher sub genre of horror film was arguably popularised by Alfred Hitchcock with his 1960 ‘Magnum Opus’: ‘Psycho’, also featuring a closed environment full of suspects. ‘Psycho’ met with critical acclaim for its originality and excellent use of tension and violence, and probably propelled the Slasher genre because of its unique and impressive execution for its time.
Recently, a movement of indie horror film producers has helped to reduce the distance between the audience and its producers. Independent horror films have become examples of how to make cheap yet effective films that pander to its target audience with ease. The first Paranormal Activity is arguably the first of these independent horror films to spark this evolution in horror film production.
The relationship between horror film fans and horror film producers is slightly more unique than the relationship between the fans and producers of other genres. Horror accommodates fans much more than any genre like romance or action, because horror is a concept that can be replicated in so many different forms. Its almost certain when watching a horror film that there is something that each viewer will enjoy, and that will stick with them until after the credits have rolled. Strictly speaking, horror stays with us simply because it stimulates the sense more than a film about love or comedy. It’s rooted in our most basic reactions, and allows us to rationalise fear as a human response; to tell ourselves that most of our fears are completely irrational, and for these reasons, people who enjoy and cope with horror films are much more likely to see any random horror film, and enjoy it, than someone who loves rom-coms.
Unit 26
Task 2
Auteur theory:
An Auteur is a different breed of filmmaker to your typical director. An auteur is someone who has a distinct style of filming, directing, cinematography and basic control over all of the image sections of whatever films they make. An auteur is given as much creative freedom as possible, with as little input from any outside party as possible. For instance, Quentin Tarantino is an auteur because he has a distinct visual film style, and his films all carry similar themes and styles. The most easily recognisable trait of Tarantino’s filmmaking style is the non-descript dialogue that characters engage in on screen, dubbed ‘Tarantino dialogue’, a concept conceived by Tarantino because he thought that there was a lack of realistic dialogue in films.
Auteur theory was developed in 1954 by François Truffaut, an idea that was inspired by the beliefs of Andre Bazin, who believed that directors should have total creative control over how their films are made, shot and produced, in a similar fashion to authors of books, hence the name Auteur, the French word for Author.
The auteur I will be looking at is Christopher Nolan. Nolan can be considered an auteur because his films all visit similar themes such as redemption obsession, guilt and order and chaos. Nolan has employed the help of Hans Zimmer as the composer for many of his films, which has helped his films maintain a similar mood, even when they aren’t part of a series. Nolan also incorporates a neo-noir style into all of his films that is recognisable throughout his body of work.
The first film of his that I will be looking at is the Dark Knight, the second instalment of his Batman ‘Dark Knight’ trilogy, a more realistic adaptation of the Batman story, which is possibly his most critically acclaimed film.
The Dark Knight explores many of the key themes that pop up in Nolan’s films, however it is the best example of some of them, such as ‘The sliding scale of idealism and cynicism. The Dark Knight is the best example of this because it features the villain that is most opposite to Batman: The Joker. Batman represents idealism by wanting to restore order in Gotham by driving crime away as a vigilante, whereas the Joker is representative of cynicism because he is a villain behind a mask of face paint and a lack of an identity, whose motivations are described by Alfred when he says ‘Some men just want to watch the world burn’. The back and forth exchanged by Batman and the Joker at points in this film is indicative of the theme of sliding between idealism and cynicism. The same theme appears in all the Dark Knight trilogy, however it is most notable in ‘The Dark Knight’ because the Joker makes Batman nearly powerless, not by breaking his body like Bane does, or by conquering him psychologically like Scarecrow, but by taking away everything that Batman loves, his friend, his city, and his actual love interest. The Joker defeats Batman without resorting to violence against him, and so is his ultimate enemy, and thus represents the most extreme end of the sliding scale.
The second Nolan film I will be looking at is Inception. Inception is possibly the best example of the neo-noir theme that Nolan’s films follow, since it revolves around espionage with the use of fantastical technology, however Inception is also probably the best example of redemption in Nolan’s films, since the main Character Dominic ‘Dom’ Cobb undergoes the act of redemption.
Dom’s reason for accepting the job that Saito offers him is so that Saito will clear Cobb’s name so he can see his children again. Cobb practised his talent for inception on his wife, Mal, but it took her over and she committed suicide in disbelief that the world was real, and under the certainty that in death she would find the real world. Dom blamed himself for her mental deterioration, however he couldn’t let his children grow up without a father, so he asks Saito to clear his name as payment. It turns out that Mal is stuck in limbo, an area of raw consciousness, and is able to track Dom down and sabotages all their attempts to implant a thought in Fischer’s head as a form of revenge on Cobb for not joining her in limbo. Cobb eventually confronts Mal in limbo, where he confesses to what he did to her, and that he was truly sorry, but he couldn’t join her in limbo. This practice is cathartic for him, and he is able to find redemption in the terrible things he has done.
Cobb’s redemption is so great because he is able to perform in amongst a mind-bending maze of dreams and complications made by Fischer’s sub-conscious protecting itself from any attacks.
Task 1
Horror genre analysis:
Horror as a genre of fiction has been around far longer than the moving image has. It had previously existed as folk tales and books, however the horror genre has moved to the big screen with complete fluidity.
In 1896, a short silent film by the name of ‘Le Manoir du diable’ appeared, also known as ‘The Haunted Castle’, or ‘The Devil’s Castle’. It was a short skit about the Devil and some of his cohorts, but was not meant to evoke a reaction of fear, but instead was meant to be amusing. It’s themes however are dark enough that it can still be considered an early horror film.
Another early foray into film named ‘L'arrivée d'un train en gare de La Ciotat’ could be considered an early horror film, because the reaction it got was one of terror. As the train pulled into the station, members of the audience thought that a real train was coming directly at them, and fled to the back of the theatre for safety. This could be considered an early horror film, despite the fact it was not intended to elicit a fearful response.
In 1910, the Edison studio produced the first film version of Frankenstein, which was thematically and visually meant to evoke a fearful emotional response, and likely did.
As film progressed, the horror genre expanded and produced classics such as Nosferatu, Bride of Frankenstein, The Mummy, The Wolfman, The invisible man, and Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.
The horror genre began a trail blazing course across cinema as a form of entertainment, both terrifying and exciting audiences around the world.
As horror progressed, sub genres appeared, including Slasher films, psychological horror, supernatural horror, zombie films, and much more recently: found footage horror.
Each different form of horror builds off primal fears, which were prominent in the public mind around the time that sub-genre of horror was popular. For instance: the found footage sub-genre of horror was popularised in a time when the domestic technology like smart phones and hand held cameras were being used more and more. In the same time, the legitimacy of the truth we portray of ourselves, with smartphones on social media was being called into question, a fear stemming from (surprise, surprise) the unknown areas of technology, and the uncertainty of what extent technology may control our lives.
Found footage horror films have also become popular because they represent a form of hyper reality. FFHFs do this by pertaining to be more real than a normal horror film, implied by the name ‘found footage’, and by the fact that they are recorded as if they were made on smartphones or home movie cameras. This brings the film out of the zone of fiction, and blurs the lines of reality.
The relationship between producers and audiences is a reciprocal relationship: the producer makes content which is aimed at an audience in order to turn over a profit, and the audience pays money to view the product. The relationship between producer and audience can often seem distant though, since a film that is critically acclaimed may not make much money, whereas CGI-festered action films can take home huge profits, even though they get terrible reviews on a regular basis, and not just from official establishments, but from normal regular people who view the film in the cinema. For this reason, more of the same films get made, even though they’re not favoured, because they make money at the box office, time and time again.
The only research filmmakers need to do to decide what kind of films to make is to look at how well previous films have done in the box office, or in some cases what kind of films have been damned enough by reviewers that similar efforts should not be attempted again.
The research done by the audience about the films they want to see is also nearly as minimal, requiring little more than a brief look at a few interviews, a few minutes to watch an advert for the film, a glance at what actors, writers, directors or producers have worked on the title, a look at what genre the film is, and then decide ultimately if that’s something they would be interested in.
Films are marketed to a target audience that the filmmakers think will enjoy their product the most. Filmmakers will often come up with a product and then target it to the audience it fits best to. Marketing to a target audience can be as easy as including a song that the target audience might enjoy or recognise, but often the key themes and genre of a film will be enough to market it to a specific age group: for instance, teenagers are more likely to enjoy films in the genres of action, comedy and horror because they feature themes that are rather irrational or juvenile.
In 1939, Agatha Christie, famed mystery murder novelist, wrote one of her best-known books ‘And then there were none’, a story that is considered the original model for the slasher genre. Featuring a closed environment (An island cooped up in a storm), a group of people (each accused of a wrong doing), and an unknown killer, picking off the members of the group, one by one.
‘And then there were none’ set the foundations for what would quickly become one of the most popular subgenres of horror film: the Slasher film. The Slasher sub genre of horror film was arguably popularised by Alfred Hitchcock with his 1960 ‘Magnum Opus’: ‘Psycho’, also featuring a closed environment full of suspects. ‘Psycho’ met with critical acclaim for its originality and excellent use of tension and violence, and probably propelled the Slasher genre because of its unique and impressive execution for its time.
Recently, a movement of indie horror film producers has helped to reduce the distance between the audience and its producers. Independent horror films have become examples of how to make cheap yet effective films that pander to its target audience with ease. The first Paranormal Activity is arguably the first of these independent horror films to spark this evolution in horror film production.
The relationship between horror film fans and horror film producers is slightly more unique than the relationship between the fans and producers of other genres. Horror accommodates fans much more than any genre like romance or action, because horror is a concept that can be replicated in so many different forms. Its almost certain when watching a horror film that there is something that each viewer will enjoy, and that will stick with them until after the credits have rolled. Strictly speaking, horror stays with us simply because it stimulates the sense more than a film about love or comedy. It’s rooted in our most basic reactions, and allows us to rationalise fear as a human response; to tell ourselves that most of our fears are completely irrational, and for these reasons, people who enjoy and cope with horror films are much more likely to see any random horror film, and enjoy it, than someone who loves rom-coms.
Unit 26
Task 2
Auteur theory:
An Auteur is a different breed of filmmaker to your typical director. An auteur is someone who has a distinct style of filming, directing, cinematography and basic control over all of the image sections of whatever films they make. An auteur is given as much creative freedom as possible, with as little input from any outside party as possible. For instance, Quentin Tarantino is an auteur because he has a distinct visual film style, and his films all carry similar themes and styles. The most easily recognisable trait of Tarantino’s filmmaking style is the non-descript dialogue that characters engage in on screen, dubbed ‘Tarantino dialogue’, a concept conceived by Tarantino because he thought that there was a lack of realistic dialogue in films.
Auteur theory was developed in 1954 by François Truffaut, an idea that was inspired by the beliefs of Andre Bazin, who believed that directors should have total creative control over how their films are made, shot and produced, in a similar fashion to authors of books, hence the name Auteur, the French word for Author.
The auteur I will be looking at is Christopher Nolan. Nolan can be considered an auteur because his films all visit similar themes such as redemption obsession, guilt and order and chaos. Nolan has employed the help of Hans Zimmer as the composer for many of his films, which has helped his films maintain a similar mood, even when they aren’t part of a series. Nolan also incorporates a neo-noir style into all of his films that is recognisable throughout his body of work.
The first film of his that I will be looking at is the Dark Knight, the second instalment of his Batman ‘Dark Knight’ trilogy, a more realistic adaptation of the Batman story, which is possibly his most critically acclaimed film.
The Dark Knight explores many of the key themes that pop up in Nolan’s films, however it is the best example of some of them, such as ‘The sliding scale of idealism and cynicism. The Dark Knight is the best example of this because it features the villain that is most opposite to Batman: The Joker. Batman represents idealism by wanting to restore order in Gotham by driving crime away as a vigilante, whereas the Joker is representative of cynicism because he is a villain behind a mask of face paint and a lack of an identity, whose motivations are described by Alfred when he says ‘Some men just want to watch the world burn’. The back and forth exchanged by Batman and the Joker at points in this film is indicative of the theme of sliding between idealism and cynicism. The same theme appears in all the Dark Knight trilogy, however it is most notable in ‘The Dark Knight’ because the Joker makes Batman nearly powerless, not by breaking his body like Bane does, or by conquering him psychologically like Scarecrow, but by taking away everything that Batman loves, his friend, his city, and his actual love interest. The Joker defeats Batman without resorting to violence against him, and so is his ultimate enemy, and thus represents the most extreme end of the sliding scale.
The second Nolan film I will be looking at is Inception. Inception is possibly the best example of the neo-noir theme that Nolan’s films follow, since it revolves around espionage with the use of fantastical technology, however Inception is also probably the best example of redemption in Nolan’s films, since the main Character Dominic ‘Dom’ Cobb undergoes the act of redemption.
Dom’s reason for accepting the job that Saito offers him is so that Saito will clear Cobb’s name so he can see his children again. Cobb practised his talent for inception on his wife, Mal, but it took her over and she committed suicide in disbelief that the world was real, and under the certainty that in death she would find the real world. Dom blamed himself for her mental deterioration, however he couldn’t let his children grow up without a father, so he asks Saito to clear his name as payment. It turns out that Mal is stuck in limbo, an area of raw consciousness, and is able to track Dom down and sabotages all their attempts to implant a thought in Fischer’s head as a form of revenge on Cobb for not joining her in limbo. Cobb eventually confronts Mal in limbo, where he confesses to what he did to her, and that he was truly sorry, but he couldn’t join her in limbo. This practice is cathartic for him, and he is able to find redemption in the terrible things he has done.
Cobb’s redemption is so great because he is able to perform in amongst a mind-bending maze of dreams and complications made by Fischer’s sub-conscious protecting itself from any attacks.