Millies Film Blog

  Analyse how the following elements of  film form  are used to  create meaning  and guide  audience response (  understanding of narrative, setting,characters , plot, themes etc. ) in the  " Introduction to Rick's Bar " sequence. At first there is an establishing shot of ricks bar paired with a harsh search light that pans past the bar. The search light tries to find people and expose people by bringing them out of he darkness and into the light. The searchlight also indicates that the bar is being watched and monitored showing it is a dangerous place. The searchlight does not go into ricks bar therefore showing that Ricks bar is a place where people are free to do what they want without fear of arrest. In the shot we see Ricks name before we see or meet him, this shows rick is mysterious and well known around Casablanca.  There is a tracking shot where we enter the bar and follow the other guests inside, the searchlight goes past ...

 evaluate the two twists of high maintenance  High Maintenance is dystopian short film about a boring marriage where the partners are frustrated and unhappy. The opening shot pans from the back of the husbands head specifically focusing on the neck, this is foreshadowing as the wife later grabs his neck and turns him off as he is a robot. The room is dimly lit showing the atmosphere is intimate and romantic, however this is contrasted throughs the fact they are opposite each other but far apart. this physical distance reflects their emotional and romantic distance. The husband eats very mechanically with over exaggerated sound effects. This hints to audience he is a robot, he is also a computer analyst which shows he works with computers which would make sense considering he is one. The close up of the wife's shows and emphasises she is bored and unhappy with her husband. Throughout the first part of the short film there is a lot of over the shoulder shots where we see the wif...

 Evaluate how successfully your film develops one of the key narrative listed?  mention: mise en scene music sound characterisation editing plot effect on audience The film Portals creates a twist in the narrative at the end by using a reversal of fortune, making the character think they have escaped but then revealing that she has not actually escaped and it was a simulation. Through the film we get hints that the woman could be in a simulation, the way the gun randomly appears from the wall is like something that would happen in a video game. The barcode on her neck also indicates that she is part of a simulation.  The footage on the cctv also suggests that the woman is trapped in a simulation.  Near the end when it is revealed she didn't actually escape we hear doom laden music to emphasise the fact she is trapped. 

 Film Review  American Beauty American beauty is a romantic drama about a middle aged man who becomes obsessed with his teenage daughters best friend. The main character, Lester, has a seemingly perfect life with a successful wife and daughter. throughout the movie we discover Lester has a terrible relationship with his wife and daughter this causes friction and a poor family dynamic. Carolyn Burnham (Lester's wife) is shown to be a perfectionist who is often stressed with work, the movie also portrays that Lester and Carolyn have grown to become bitter towards each other and they often fight, Their daughter Jane has a poor relationship with her parents because they are so focused on their own problems they forget about her, Jane joins the cheerleading team with her friend Angela, Lester and Carolyn go to watch the school game to support Jane, Lester notices Angela and becomes obsessed with her and attracted to her. Throughout the movie Lester has sexual dreams about Angela an...