Film Theory and Analysis Lesson 5

Film Theory and Analysis Manu Scansani Office Hours: (Room 1#511) Monday 11.45/12.45; Wednesday 16.00/17.00 QQ: Niko Brauer Office Hours: (Room 1#519) Thursday 12.30/14.00 QQ:

Film Screening (next week) No Film Screening and Film Corner next week, due to Tomb-Sweeping Holiday on the 5 th of April. Film Screening and Film Corner will start again from Monday 12 April, at (same rooms).

Essay Reminder Remember: by next week choose the film you want to write about !!!!!!!!! Please, remember to choose only an English-speaking film (No Chinese films). If you want to write about more than one film, you need to submit a topic by next week, explaining how you will link the films you chose. Next week Manu & Niko will held a “Essay Clinic”, to help students understand how to write an Essay. Learning how to write a good Essay is essential to succeed in your final Dissertation ( 毕业论 文 ).

Film Competition Soon at Star College. Start thinking about an idea, prepare a team and be ready to start (April).

This Week Narrative – Recap Characterization – why do we like a character? Social Drama (American Beauty) – why don‘t we like watching them?

Narrative: recap Everything that you see happening on screen is part of the plot of the film (= every action happened in the film). When you tell your friend about the film, you will re-tell its story – including what you don’t see on screen, but what is implied. – i.e. Forrest Gump: You do not see Jenny giving birth to small Forrest, so it is not part of the plot. That small Forrest is her son, is part of the story, however. The narrative describes how this story is told on screen (it describes its formal structure).

Narrative: 6 elements of the Classic Hollywood system The Hero/Protagonist Main character of the film; drives the story forward; the audience identifies with the hero and his/her motives Cause and Effect There are no coincidences; nothing happens randomly, events are logically consistent even in fantasy worlds Omniscient Narration The story is presented from several viewpoints, not just that of the main character; broader perspective Motivation There is nothing in the film that has no reason for being there; It can advance plot, create realism, provide context or it has aesthetic value Elision Alfred Hitchcock: Cinema is “life with the boring bits cut out.” Only significant scenes are shown – triviality is omitted; the protagonist’s intentions will be fulfilled unless obstacles.  Editing ( 剪接 ). Narrative Closure The plot is fully resolved; there are no loose ends; the events of the film culminate in a spectacular climax (=final part of a film).

Narrative: The Classic Three-Act Linear Structure ActTimeFunction Act I0-30 minsSet-Up Inciting Incident, Turning Point I Act II30-90 mins Development (Conflict and Confrontation) The Point of No Return, Turning Point II Act III mins Resolution/Denouement Climax, Resolution

The 3 Acts Structure [Act 1] Inciting incident – the hero faces a problem Turning Point I – the hero acts on the problem for the first time [Act 2] The Point of No Return – the hero decides to pursue the problem Turning Point II – The hero is defeated and changes the approach to the challenge [Act 3] Climax – the hero faces the problem Resolution – The hero reflects on the problem

Characterization Characterization and performance are essential to the success of a movie. Characters can either develop the plot (protagonist, antagonist) or serve a function, supporting the other characters.

Characterization: Protagonist ( 主演 ) The protagonist is usually the main character, but not always. Defined by three main features: -Drives the story forward; -Appears on screen for the most amount of time; -Is the one with who the audience is most likely to identify with; The personality of the protagonist, depends on the genre: blockbuster/epic/action = hero, comedy = idiot/fool, social drama = pitiful person, noir film = bad guy.

Secondary Characters Antagonist ( 敌 手 ), also called Villain, is the most important among secondary characters. Forces of Antagonism don’t need to be necessarily human (they can be persons, things, society or nature). He/she/it represents the person or the things that poses a limit to the attempt of the protagonist to reach his final goal. The CLIMAX (Act III), always features a final confrontation between the protagonist and the antagonist.

Characters Protagonist  Antagonist Clip: “Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace”

Secondary Characters MIRROR: He/She/It offers the main support to the protagonist and helps the plot by offering emotional and psychological support to the protagonist. Sometimes, our knowledge of the point of view of the protagonist is solely offered through conversations with the mirror. ROMANCE: She/He is the love interest of the protagonist, offering the decisive support for the love story in the story. In Romantic Films, the romance character is the final goal of the protagonist in the plot (Jack and Rose in “Titanic”).

Understanding Characters FilmProtagonistAntagonistMirrorRomance TitanicJackCal/ Iceberg/ Class Division Most of the Crew Rose MatrixNeoAgent SmithMorpheusTrinity Lord of t. RingsFrodoSauronGandalfHome? Harry PotterHarryVoldemortDumbledoreGinny Forrest Gump American Beauty

Star System It was developed by Hollywood to help the film industry to gain attention of the audience even outside the cinemas. The Star System would help the industry in 2 ways: -It would provide the audience and the producers with celebrities to be used for new productions; -It would allow the audience to gossip about celebrities while waiting for new films to be produced; There is not such thing as “bad publicity”, because stars will always increase their popularity even as a consequence of negative events (divorces, sex scandals, drunk driving, etc.).

Hollywood Stars… Who is your favorite actor? Would you go to watch a film just to watch that actor? -Humphrey Bogart (“Casablanca”) – CLIP -Johnny Depp (“Pirates of the Caribbean)- CLIP -James Bond : Daniel Craig (“Casino Royal”) – CLIP -Marlon Brando (“The Godfather”) – CLIP

Social Drama Social Drama is just one kind of Drama. [Drama = realistic characters in conflict with themselves, or other forces of nature]. Social Drama are films whose central narratives are concerned with social problems (poverty, inequalities, prostitution, drug abuse, etc.). There is often an intensely emotional content. Clips: “The Kid”.

Social Drama: Narrative In Social Dramas the protagonist is initially unaware of the existence of the problem. The protagonist then becomes conscious of the problem and becomes committed to fighting against it. The protagonist is helped in this process by a minor character who helps him/her understand the true nature of the social problem. The protagonist finally confronts the problem, is victorious (or defeated) and the film ends.

Readings for next week Must make sure to have read by next week: Unit 1: History & Genres Unit 2: Character and Performance Unit 3: Narrative Unit 6: Blockbuster Films Unit 7: Comedies Unit 8: Social Drama Film

Films analyzed For next week, you MUST have watched at least the following films (if you watch more films, you increase your chances of having a good score in your final essay and exam). -The Matrix -Forrest Gump -American Beauty