Edgar Wright - Shaun of the Dead

In my assessment I plan to discuss how Edgar Wright uses camera angles and shots for comedic effect. I will use many factors from other Edgar Wright films such as The World’s End and Hot Fuzz to support my points about these angles and shots.

The Shinning final image

I believe that this image shows that Jack has always been the caretaker there and keeps living the same life over and over. A line said in the movie by the former care taker to Jack is "you've always been the caretaker here". This tells me that the past caretaker that is talked about in the film by the hotel manager never existed, in actual fact Jack was the old caretaker and he will continue to be the caretaker at the hotel for ever.
Another point which proves this is the scene in the main ball room where he is remembering back to the 1920s ball. I believe this shows him having flash backs to one of his old lives. I think this because he is able to name everyone and interact with them all as if they where actually there.

Lecture 3: Auteur Theory

A Bit of History:

In WWII no British or American films could get into France due to the Nazi occupation so after WWII ended there was a influx of these films in France, and this is when directors became know a Auteurs.

The Definition of an Auteur:

An Auteur is someone who is recognised through things in there work like the actors used, the technical construct the dialogue and scripting and the theme.

However many directors have there own unique styles, themes and identifiable techniques they are not considered Auteurs.

Here is a List of Auteurs and Non Auteurs.

Auteurs:

• Akira Kurosawa
• Alfred Hitchcock
• Martin Scorsese
• Charles Chaplin
• Billy Wilder
• Roman Polanski

Non-Auteurs:

• Michael Bay
• Tim Burton
• Robert Wise

These are only some of the names in the film industry but there are many more.

J.J. Abrams:

We watched clips from three of J.J Abrams films and had to make notes on the Themes and Techniques we saw within the film. The table below is what I got.

Auteur Theory (Edgar Wright)

As we can see from the table above Wright has used a white, male protagonist in all three of these movies who is played by Simon Pegg, something I didn't mention is the fact that his side kick/partner in all three movies is Nick Frost. He also likes to work with the theme of redemption. In Shaun of the Dead this is with Shaun trying to prove himself to Liz and redeem himself for all the things his done. In Hot Fuzz he gets redemption when he proves that he wasn't crazy all along and the head of the police is killing people. Finally in The World's End he gains redemption by beating "The Golden Mile" with his old school mates.
Wright also likes to use artificial light that looks like natural light. He also likes likes to use the speech over an animation when explaining a plan. However, this isn't used in Hot Fuzz as there is no point at which it would fit. He also uses very natural colours as many of his films are meant to look realistic and not futuristic and far fetched.

Lecture 2: Cinematography

Camera movements can be used to tell the audience the emotion or the motive within a scene.
They can also be used to tell the audience what has happened.

Shots:

Extreme Long Shot - An extreme long shot is taken from a long distance to get as much as possible within the frame. These are usually used as establishing shots.
Long Shot -  A long shot is used to get the entire body of a character in shot. These are used when filming a character walking along/across the scene.
Medium Shot - A medium shot is when half the character is in shot usually from the waist up. This shot is used in conversational situations when dialogue is being shared.
Close Up Shot - This shot is when you can only see a single section of a persons body, usually the face. These are used mostly as reaction shots to capture a characters expression.
Extreme Close Up Shot - This shot is when something is shot for very close range, again usually the face but this time only a very small amount.
Insert Shot - These focus more on an inanimate object rather than a human being. They are used to show a persons possessions or the things surrounding them.

Camera Angles:

Birds Eye View - Any shot taken from over head, mostly top down. These are mostly use either as establishing shots or as a quick transition.
High Angle - This is when the camera is positioned high up looking down on the subject. This angle is used to show weakness and show small they are.
Low Angle - This is when the camera is positioned low down looking up at the subject. This angle is used to show power and authority.
Dutch Tilt - This refers to any shot that is on a tilt. It turns the horizon into a slope. This angle is used to create a sense unease and disorientation for the viewer.
Point of View - This is when we see the film through the eyes of a character. This is used to show what the character sees so we can get more of a personal feel for the character.
Eye Level - This shot is quite self explanatory as the camera is positioned at eye level with the character on screen. This angle is used to make a scene more personal as it shows the character as we'd expect to see him/her in real life.

Camera Movement:

Pan - The camera pans around the subject. These are used to show the action and reaction in the same shot, this is because the camera can first show you the action the pan to show the characters reaction.
Tilt - Camera tilts up to or down to or away from the subjects face. These are used to reveal something big, either a character or an object.
Tracking - The camera follows the subjects of the scene. It "tracks" them along the scene. This shot is used mostly to track the subjects of a scene as they walk along the scene.
Crane - This shot is taken from a camera on a crane arm. These are used for many shots such as establishing shots and long one take shots.
Zoom - In this shot the camera zooms in onto the subject. This is used to show tension as the camera
would zoom on the characters face to show a reaction.
Dolly Counter Zoom - This is like a zoom however it appears that the subject is zooming in while the background is zooming out. Again this would be used as a reaction shot, but it is slightly more comedic.

Transitions & Edits:

Cut - An instant transition
Fade In - The screen becomes lighter
Fade Out - The screen becomes darker
Dissolve - The end of shot A is briefly onto of shot B
Wipe - A line crosses the screen wiping away shot A and revealing shot B

Editing Techniques:

Graphical [PICTURE] - This is when you make a graphical match between to clips.
 Rhythmical [RHYTHM] - This is used to set the pace of a film. If the film has a fast rhythm then it there will be lots of short clips with fast cuts and if the rhythm is slow then it will have the opposite.
 Temporal [TIME] - This is when the a film uses something like a montage or the image of a clock shifting forward several hours to quickly show the passage of time.
Spatial [SPACE] - This is when several shots of things happening at the same time in various locations come together to create the film space.

Cross Cutting - This is when the editing cuts between many different events happening at the same time during a sequence in a film.

Kuleshov Effect - This is when a meaning is derived from the relationship between two shots.

Ellipsis - This is when the editor shortens the duration of a film by cutting out anything that does not need to be shown.

Context - Understanding films through context means knowing the conditions that surround the film-making and the reputation of the film.

Lecture 1: Mise-en-scène

Binary Opposition:

Using two colours that appose one and other to make it clear to the audience who the hero and villain is.

The Different ways to distinguish good and evil:

Bad Guys:

Dark Clothing
Colours

• Black
• Red
• Grey

Disfigurement

Holding a Weapon

Good Guys:

Light Clothing

Colours

• Blue
• Brown
• White

LA NOIRE Analysis:

The Detective in the middle is both red and blue showing that he has confliction in his line of work/life. This could also show that he has a split personality of good and evil which he has to fight with throughout the game. The detective is also wearing a red tie on a white shirt again showing that he is a conflicted character and that he is not all he seems to be. Finally he is wearing a brown suit, suggesting he is good. However, he is also carrying a gun (drawn) which shows he has an evil side.

The Police to the right hand side of this game poster are in red showing that they could be corrupt. This may be where the confliction for the detective comes in as he's not only fighting crime, he's also fighting corruption with in the police. Also the police seem to be stood around have a chat while there is the corpse of a man lying in the road infront of them. This again shows that they may be corrupt as this murder may be the doing of somebody who has paid of most of the police department.

Finally The Woman on the left. Firstly she is in blue which immediately makes us think she is a good person in this game. Also as blue is an authority colour this could mean she is in some kind of witness protection. However, because there is a blood splatter across her neck she could be the victim to a gruesome crime. The Woman's facial expression makes her look dead or stressed, I believe that dead is the more likely of the two.


Semiotics:

This is the study of signs, for example this is when we create a meaning from the things we see in a film. These can be connotations, which is what something represents, or denotations, which is the dictionary definition of an item.

Sounds:

Diegetic - These are sounds that belong to a scene.

Non-Diegetic - These are sounds from outside the story world.


Diegetic:

• Dialogue
• Sound Effects
• Ambient Sound
• Music that the character is listening to

Non- Diegetic:

• Soundtrack
• Orchestral sound effects (jump scares)

Iconography:

The aspects of a product we expect to see in a genre

Sci-Fi:

• Advanced Tech
• Astronauts
• Lasers
• Planets
• Stars
• Rockets
• Aliens
• Asteroids
• Space

Fantasy:

• Talking Animals
• Dragons
• Magic
• Swords
• Medieval
• Spells
• Monsters
• Creatures

Narratives:

Linear - A storyline that is presented in the order; beginning, middle, end.

Non Linear - A storyline that jumps around the products timeline using things like, flashbacks and dream sequences.

Stereotype:

Men:

• Strong
• Leader
• Colour Blue
• Hunter
• Violent
• Vulgar

Women:

• Weak + Defenceless
• Domestic
• Follower
• Colour Pink
• Motherly
• Gatherer
• Romantic
• Manipulative

Sherlock Scene Analysis:

Costume:

• Irene Adler was naked. She was using her body to manipulate John and Sherlock
• John was dressed in very neutral colours
• Sherlock was dressed in all black showing he was a kind of anti-hero

Dialogue:

• The dialogue is relatively slow and limited until the power shifts to Sherlock.

Camera Work:

• There is always an low angle shot on the dominate person and a high angle on the other person
• When Irene is in charge the shots are slow and very steady
• When Sherlock takes power the shots become sweeping and fast

Props:

• The fire John starts is used to create a distraction and to shift the power

Lighting:

• The person who has the power is well and evenly lit
• The other person has a half shadowed face.

Colour:

• The confident, Irene and Sherlock, are lit in a warm yellow colour
• The less confident and confused, John, are lit in colder blue colour

Music

• When Irene is in control the music is mischievous and fun
• When Sherlock takes control and Irene is covered the music becomes more tense and mysterious

Editing:

• The shots are long and drawn out when Irene is in charge
• When Sherlock takes control and starts explaining the "murder" the cuts become more rapid and hectic.