CRITICAL APPROACHES ASSIGNMENT 4
Responses to Media Products
I've chosen to deconstruct a film in the genre of Action. In this report, I will be illustrating my understanding of the media product and analysing the themes and characteristics within the film which I have chosen.
The action film I will be deconstructing is Following, one of my favourites.
Following is a brilliant film written by Christopher Nolan in 1998. It was his first feature length film and he uses it to express his very unique film making style. The film was shot all in black and white and features the same actor as he used in one of his well-known shorts - Doodlebug. The film was made on a budget of a small £3,000 over the course of many weekends for a year.
Genre Characteristics
The film contains a lot of mystery, right up until the very end. This film is described as a Crime, Mystery, Thriller which I think describes it quite accurately as I was always on the edge of my seat when I watched it. The film is shot in a way that we get to see both sides of the story in parallel to each other, which allows us to see both characters as their stories unravel.
Codes and Conventions
Nolan is notorious for loving and continuously using film over digital video, which I believe adds to his style even further, especially in Following as it adds a grainy, gritty feel to the film.
Because he didn’t have a ton of money for film stock and processing on Following, Nolan wanted to avoid doing a large number of take, so he had his actors rehearse for 6 months, as if they were doing a play. “When there’s a little mistake, in a play, the actors don’t stop and go ‘I need another one.’ They just get through,” he said. “So I thought we could go to a location that we had for an hour, jump in, do a scene we’d done 100 times before and film it, and give them one or two takes—most of the film is first takes, some are second.”
Nolan uses an interesting technique when editing, He sets himself a very tight schedule in the very first stages of the process and never uses temp music, which he believes allows him to act more instinctively on his first thoughts when editing the clips together. He often uses editing as a way to represent the characters' psychological states, merging their subjectivity with that of the audience.
Mise en Scene
The use of black and white helps to tell the story and adds to the fact that there's something not quite right about the story and there is something hidden. The lack of colour also adds to the depressed feeling which follows the main character as he fails to find inspiration for his writing. There is a distinct grain in the film's image throughout the film, which also adds to the grittiness of the story and characters. The camera is hand held for a lot of the film, which gives the impression that the main character is quite unstable in life in that period of time.
Narrative Structure
The narrative is constructed in a non-linear way, which is very unique to Nolan's style. Following came shortly after Chris's short film, Doodlebug, which also portrays his style very prominently.
Representation
The film is constructed brilliantly with a great depth and understanding behind each of the character's and their personal backgrounds. The main character is a male, middle aged writer who is stuck for inspiration on his writing. The film begins with him looking for inspiration on the streets of London and he meets someone who ends up manipulating him into committing crimes for his own needs.
The young man, the main character of the film begins to have a love affair with the blonde woman, who he doesn't realise is Cobb's partner and she is only using him for their 'big plan'. The man is represented positively for the duration of the film, even when we realise that he's stealing and committing crimes, as we know as an audience that he has been manipulated to do so and actually, towards the end we should feel almost sorry for how unfortunate he has been. However, Cobb is represented quite well at the beginning of the film and just a bit mischievous, but it becomes clear that he is actually a very manipulative and negative influence towards the young man, who is very open to influence. Cobb uses his partner to entice him and get him on-side as he knows the young man is quite lonely and susceptible to this.
Genre Characteristics
The film contains a lot of mystery, right up until the very end. This film is described as a Crime, Mystery, Thriller which I think describes it quite accurately as I was always on the edge of my seat when I watched it. The film is shot in a way that we get to see both sides of the story in parallel to each other, which allows us to see both characters as their stories unravel.
Codes and Conventions
Nolan is notorious for loving and continuously using film over digital video, which I believe adds to his style even further, especially in Following as it adds a grainy, gritty feel to the film.
Because he didn’t have a ton of money for film stock and processing on Following, Nolan wanted to avoid doing a large number of take, so he had his actors rehearse for 6 months, as if they were doing a play. “When there’s a little mistake, in a play, the actors don’t stop and go ‘I need another one.’ They just get through,” he said. “So I thought we could go to a location that we had for an hour, jump in, do a scene we’d done 100 times before and film it, and give them one or two takes—most of the film is first takes, some are second.”
Nolan uses an interesting technique when editing, He sets himself a very tight schedule in the very first stages of the process and never uses temp music, which he believes allows him to act more instinctively on his first thoughts when editing the clips together. He often uses editing as a way to represent the characters' psychological states, merging their subjectivity with that of the audience.
Mise en Scene
The use of black and white helps to tell the story and adds to the fact that there's something not quite right about the story and there is something hidden. The lack of colour also adds to the depressed feeling which follows the main character as he fails to find inspiration for his writing. There is a distinct grain in the film's image throughout the film, which also adds to the grittiness of the story and characters. The camera is hand held for a lot of the film, which gives the impression that the main character is quite unstable in life in that period of time.
This trailer presents a good idea of what the film is about and the unique style it has, which Chris Nolan wanted to create. The music he has chosen to use creates an odd atmosphere which is slightly unsettling, however it goes really well with the narration over the film clips. The business a and rush of the streets contrasts nicely with the slower paced shots and scenes of the interrogation.
Narrative Structure
The narrative is constructed in a non-linear way, which is very unique to Nolan's style. Following came shortly after Chris's short film, Doodlebug, which also portrays his style very prominently.
Nolan's habit for using non-linear storylines was particularly influenced by the Graham Swift novel Waterland, which he felt "did incredible things with parallel timelines, and told a story in different dimensions that was extremely coherent".
Representation
The film is constructed brilliantly with a great depth and understanding behind each of the character's and their personal backgrounds. The main character is a male, middle aged writer who is stuck for inspiration on his writing. The film begins with him looking for inspiration on the streets of London and he meets someone who ends up manipulating him into committing crimes for his own needs.
The young man, the main character of the film begins to have a love affair with the blonde woman, who he doesn't realise is Cobb's partner and she is only using him for their 'big plan'. The man is represented positively for the duration of the film, even when we realise that he's stealing and committing crimes, as we know as an audience that he has been manipulated to do so and actually, towards the end we should feel almost sorry for how unfortunate he has been. However, Cobb is represented quite well at the beginning of the film and just a bit mischievous, but it becomes clear that he is actually a very manipulative and negative influence towards the young man, who is very open to influence. Cobb uses his partner to entice him and get him on-side as he knows the young man is quite lonely and susceptible to this.
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