Decisions on Film Names

We had a meeting on deciding a name for our Opening Sequence. Firstly we had an idea to have the name 'The Hidden', as it could relate to both Efosa and Jess. Efosa because we don't see him until the end of the opening and Jess because she is kept hidden from the rest of the world as they keep her in a garage.

Despite this we came up with a second idea, which was 'Captured'. We thought this was better as it has a double meaning as not only Jess is captured, Efosa takes a picture of Jess at the end so this also links in with the Film name.

Comparing Pillow Talk and Fringe Essay

Essay on the comparison of Pillow Talk and Fringe

In this essay I will be comparing the editing of the two extracts from the films Pillow Talk and Fringe. Pillow Talk is a 1959 romantic comedy film directed by Michael Gordon. It features Rock Hudson, Doris Day, Tony Randall, Thelma Ritter and Nick Adams. The film was written by Russell Rouse, Maurice Richlin, Stanley Shapiro and Clarence Greene. The other extract is from Fringe which is an American science fiction television series created by J. J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci.

There is a strong comparison between pace in the two extracts. Fringe is fast and has lots of cuts whereas Pillow talk’s Pace is a lot slower and the transition between shots is a lot slower. For example, I watched 20 seconds at the beginning of Fringe and Pillow talk and in Fringe there were seven cuts, however in Pillow talk there were none. This is a perfect example of how in Fringe the pace is very fast which gives us the impression that the film is very fast paced and full of action, in comparison with Pillow talk which we would imagine to be a much nicer romantic film as it has much fewer cuts.

Pillow Talk has a much plainer approach of editing as the cuts are much slower and there isn’t much variety, whereas with Fringe there is a much more versatile approach to the editing. For example there are dissolves and wipes but in Pillow Talk there are simple cuts which follow the actress along to other settings. Despite making the extract a lot faster and more interesting it may make the actual concept of what is happening quite confusing for the audience whereas the straight forward approach that Pillow Talk uses would make the audience understand what the film is trying to get across better. The reason for the difference in editing cuts may have a lot to do with the time in which the film was created. Pillow Talk is a much older film so the budget and technology may be a lot lower compared to a modern type of editing like Fringe.

There are quite a few similarities throughout Fringe and Pillow Talk for example, both extracts use mid two shots to help the audience establish characters but in Pillow talk this is the main shot that is used where as in the Fringe extract the shot that is used the most is a close up. This could be because they don’t want any background in it and only need to see their face, but this is different in Pillow talk because the background in it is quite important. This is because the mise-on-scene used in Pillow Talk helps the audience to establish time period and setting. For example their clothing and make-up are quite old fashioned, and so is the décor of the house. In comparison, in Fringe this is very different because we only see their faces as they are close ups, so the only background we see looks like futuristic technology, which makes us understand that this is a more up to date series.

On a whole the two different extracts contrast greatly so the audience’s responses to both would be totally different. The differences in genres have a lot to do with the difference in response. Fringe is a sci-fi television series whereas Pillow Talk is a romantic comedy. The audience for Fringe is more likely to be male and Pillow Talk is more likely to be female, which is obviously just stereotyping, but obviously the reactions from these audiences could be totally different. One way the audience may have a response opinion would be on the cuts. The audience may find it easier to follow what’s going on more in Pillow Talk because there are not as many cuts and the scenes flow more clearly. For example when the lady is standing at the sink and the camera pans round and follows her to the phone so you can see where she is walking. If this was to happen in Fringe then they would use a cut to film the scene answering the phone.

Personally, as a member of the audience watching both extracts, I much preferred Pillow Talk as it suited my choice of film genre better than Fringe. I preferred the slow pace and the subtle hints of a ‘rom-com’ coming through. Fringe, was personally much too fast and I don’t like Science Fiction in the first place so the extract wasn’t particularly enjoyable for me. Despite Pillow Talk being much before my time, I enjoyed the fact that the mise-on-scene reflected the time period of the film like the telephone, the clothing of the people and the music that is played in the bar they go for a drink in. I felt like I could relate to the film more and put myself in the shoes of the main female character. All of which made me prefer Pillow Talk to Fringe.

BY CHLOE SPILLANE

Children of Men Essay

How effectively does the opening sequence from 'Children of Men' (2006) use the forms and conventions of film openings? What is your personal response as a member of the audience?"

Opening sequences are extremely important. They help the audience to get an overall idea about films in a variety of different ways. We are introduced to characters, we establish the narrative structure, we are made to be interested in the rest of the film, we establish core themes and core iconography is introduced and finally our expectations are established through the use of generic conventions.

The typical conventions of an opening sequence consist of narrative functions, audience expectations, generic tropes and how we establish characters. I will be looking at how effectively the opening of ‘Children of Men’ uses them.

Firstly I will begin by looking at the way in which the narrative function is used in the opening to be effective. The colour is the first thing that immediately strikes the audience. Throughout the opening colour is dull, we are constantly shown dark tones consisting of greys, browns and blacks. This could be hints of the world’s industrial past which is why everything is murky. The dark grey colours hold connotations of stability, as the colour is half way between black and white. This contrasts greatly with the state of the world’s current situation in the film, as it is far from stable. All of this is effective as it is another way the audience are helped to establish the time and place of the film. The light throughout the film is again quite dull and dreary and the only light that is used is natural light from outside and obviously the only artificial light seen is from the televisions that the people are watching the news on. Props in the opening play quite a big part in terms of helping the audience to start to understand characters and setting. Firstly in the coffee shop at the beginning there are people in the shop who have props and costumes which help us to understand who they are and their significance to the situation. There is an old lady at the front with a dog which helps us to see that there are still animals living on the planet despite the fact that all humans have become infertile. Also there is a policeman in a typical London police uniform, at the back of the shot which helps us to see that the film is set in London. Another way this is shown is through the traditional red buses driving past the window of the coffee shop. Outside the shop when the man leaves, firstly we see the bike types of transport which look as if they are from China or India, which gives the impression that what has happened with the world has in some ways made it merge into one big country. We then see who we believe to be the main character putting some sort of alcohol into his coffee which forces a variety of questions into the audience’s minds. For example; Who is he? Is he an alcoholic? Is there a reason for him drinking? We start to want to know who he is and are immediately drawn into what will happen in the film. All of these elements of the opening all contribute to the audience’s expectations of the film, if the film has a good opening the audience will assume that the rest of the film will also be good and will therefore want to watch it.

Audience’s expectations are established through generic conventions, through the opening we are able to establish the genre of the film. At the end of the opening we obviously see the main part of action which is the explosion of the shop where we see a woman walk out holding her arm, which has been blown off in the explosion. The audience now can see it is clearly of the horror/action genre. The sound used here is non-diegetic and it also reflects the genre as it is a loud screeching sound which immediately makes the audience think of horror. Another way the audience forms expectations is through the use of characters. Firstly, the actor who plays the character is very important as this will make them have preconceptions of what will happen in the play, as they will link it to any other films the actor has been in. Props, Costume and other mise-en-scene, all contribute to the expectation of the character for the audience. As in Children of Men, we see the main character, who is played by Clive Owen, with alcohol which immediately helps us to try and understand his situation.

The camera movement throughout the extract is mostly hand held which could reflect how the world has been made unsteady from all that has happened with the population becoming infertile. At the beginning of the extract sound is used in a clever way which grabs the audience’s attention and informs them that the information being told is important. It is diegetic sound of a news report revealing to the audience the worlds situation which helps them to establish the setting and time. It is played on a black screen which means there is nothing else for our attention to be on other than the sound.

My personal opinion on the opening would be that it is extremely interesting and grabs the audience’s attention immediately with its confusing television broadcasts and unusual storyline. I felt like I could relate to the story as it was set in London, but also felt a bit strange because it wasn’t London as we know it today, it was future London. I loved the use of enigmas. My mind was swarmed with questions, how is the youngest person on the planet 18 years old? Why did London look so different? Who was this man who we assume to be the main character? Why is he drinking alcohol? Why did an explosion happen? The film opening is clever as it draws me in and makes me want to find out more.