Celine's Film Blog

CHARACTER first scene - Kilgore views himself as heroic  - he's confident in himself, abilities and men - Kilgore symbolises the American military  - his stance projects confident and his ego - he represents American victory following scenes - sort of 'nurturing' when bringing civilians into safety - calm under pressure - mixture of assurance with skewered priorities  - barely notices what's around him  - his attitude and posture to dangers differs from the soldiers around him - unusual multitasking and attitude  CINEMATOGRAPHY - Kilgore is on the centre of the frame, conveying his importance and how he dominates amongst the ones around him - American military go past dead women and children, suggesting a patriarchal society and what type of people were more vulnerable during that time - the low angle shot of Kilgore shows his level of confidence, power and authority - he's always physically shown at a higher level in contrast to the other soldiers EDITING - jum...

 HOW DOES THE DIRECTOR MAKE AN IMPACT ON THE AUDIENCE THROUGH THE CHARACTER OF THE GIRL? In the film "About A Girl", the director uses several different film form techniques which impact our depiction of the character presented. We are revealed with an unforeseen plot twist towards the end which completely shifts our perception of the character, leaving the audience in a disturbance.  The film is shot in a documentary type style, following the main character around with a hand-held camera while she speaks in an improvised dialogue, therefore, giving the film a realist style, engaging the audience as the experiences that she narrates are very common within the working class, which could be seen as relatable within the audience. While she is walking she proceeds to talk about her negative home life and her parental neglect. She comes across as loud and energetic yet the audience is aligned to empathise with her.  The film begins with an ambiguous long shot, with the girl da...

 OPENING SCENE APOCALYPSE NOW - The film begins audibly with the psychedelic pounding of helicopters passing from the right audio channel to the left, proceeding this the song "The End" by The Doors begins playing whilst being shown an establishing shot of a Vietnamese jungle, as the war helicopters pass by it. - As the song begins, the artist declares "This is the end, beautiful friend" as we see the forest getting bombed. - The song "The End" could also be a symbol of the main characters (Captain Willard) altering mental state. - The camera pans across the fire torn and smoky field of the forest war scene as it simultaneously dissolves together with the close-up shot of Captain Willard. - We are presented with many shots dissolving together over the close up of the Captain. - The ceiling fan of his room mirrors the blades of the helicopter, symbolising Willard's trauma and/or PTSD which may continuously torment him - The lighting and editing of this ...

            New Hollywood New Hollywood sometimes referred to as the American New Wave refers to a movement in American film history from the mid-1960s to the early 1980s Occurred when a new generation of young filmmakers such as Woody Allen and Robert Altman came to prominence in the USA These filmmakers influenced the type of films that were being produced, their production, marketing and the way major studios approached film making. It was the director rather than the studio that took on a key authorial role. The films made in this movement are stylistically characterised in that their narrative often strongly deviated from classical norms. A significant film of the New Hollywood generation was Bonnie and Clyde in 1967. After the demise of the Studio System and the introduction of television, the commercial success of films was diminished. The 1950s and early 1960s saw the generation of New Hollywood being dominated by musicals, historical...

SHADOWS IN THE DARK There’s rumours going around in town stating that there was strange appearances of figures within the old abandoned woods. They say that these figures stalk out of the woods at the midnight hour to pray on those lost in town to feast on; which is why they all go missing. On day a young teen named Alex decided to decided to go out and explore, by patiently waiting until 12am to go to these woods and encounter this figure herself. Further, as she approaches the edge of the woods, the temperature of her surroundings began to drop significantly. Her shaky hands rub up and down her arms in attempt to keep herself warm, whilst the air in front of her is appearing like thick smoke. Further on, whilst still trying to keep herself warm, she suddenly spots a looming shadowy figure within the woods, in between the distant trees directly watching her. Trepidation strikes her violently. She froze up completely and just observed the shadowy complexion stalk closer and closer to h...

HAYAO MIYAZAKI Situated in a park on the outskirts of Tokyo is the Studio Ghibli Museum, dedicated to the works of Hayao Miyazaki. Miyazaki is the most beloved director in Japan today, especially since his film "Spirited Away" won the Oscar for the best-animated film in 2002. His crafts have set a new standard for animated films today. Not only does he hand draw the characters and storyboards for the films he directs, but he also writes the screenplays, which blends Japanese mythology with modern psychological realism. He is an auteur of animated entertainment and perhaps the world's first.  Miyazaki's films are either original stories or his own adaptations of fairly obscure works. Though they contain set pieces of suspenseful action, he is particularly fond of airship battles and dramatic rescues in the sky. Some of his characters can be threatening or unappealing, but also complex and capable of change, like the moody young wizard in "Howl's Moving Castle...