Movie Analysis
November 11, 2020
Any topic (writer’s choice)
November 11, 2020
Show all

Any topic (writer’s choice)

Below are the three prompts you have to reply to from this movie: https://fau.kanopy.com/playlist/10741221

1. How is your chosen scene constructed for an audience in terms of mise-en-scene, editing, camerawork, and sound? Describe the way in which this scene is stylistically presented to an audience using the terms we’ve learned in this class. It may be challenging to discuss all of these elements, but focus on the stylistic choices in staging, camerawork, editing, and sound that strike you as the most significant.
[Tip: With this description, notice how stylistic decisions establish connections or oppositions among people, things, actions, settings, etc.]

2. What is happening in your selected clip from a story point of view? In other          words, what important narrative developments are communicated by your chosen scene?

[Tip: The ease or difficulty of this section may depend on your scene selection. Classical narrative structures – such as those seen in Meet John Doe and Charade – are incredibly economical. In such cases, note how efficiently film style is used to communicate story information. Other films may be more expressive, emotional, or modernist and resist easy narrative summation. Nevertheless, do your best to relay the narrative import of your chosen scene and build on your observations from the first question.]

3. THE CORE: In light of your previous two answers, what is the central thematic point of this scene or sequence? How does it relate to the film as a whole? And, drawing upon your formal descriptions above, how does the editing, mise-en-scene, and cinematography come together in this instance to express a certain mood, feeling, or idea?

[Tip: The first two questions are meant to be purely descriptive.  But with this third question, the interpretation begins. Clearly, all of the clips Ive offered for you to view and analyze are significant in some way. Here, consider how your chosen scene crystallizes or highlights an important idea, feeling, or theme associated with the film as a whole. You may also reference other parts of the film that relate to your chosen clip to highlight its importance in the context of the total narrative. Remember: you are writing for a reader who has already seen the film. How can you persuade them to see the film in a new and interesting light?]

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