In the
opening to “No Country For Old Men”, the title of the film and who made it is
immediately shown. A voice over in an American accent is used whilst showing
landscape establishing shots, which tells the audience the location of where
the film is set (Texas) and suggests it’s wild west, which fits in with the
title. The main character is established in the opening scene as being evil, as
he’s shown being put into a police car by an officer. This is a convention
because it sets up the narrative as the main character goes on to strangle the
police officer. The very slow pace editing helps set the opening scene and makes
you notice the genre and location of the film. Usually there is music in the
opening of a film, however The Coen Brothers don’t, they simply use a voice
over, which gives away the genre of the film as being unpredictable. The target
audience is established early on as adult, and you can tell that it’s sinister
because there is a murder early on. No country for old men shows a good example
of the use of camera angles, there is a massive variety of shot types and
lengths which shows a diverse opening scene, and in my opinion a very effective
opening to a film.
‘Saving
Private Ryan’, opens with an older man visiting a World War 2 cemetery, it is
very slow pace editing to set the mood/tone and theme of the film. It then cuts
to the invasion of Normandy and the boats are about to land. All the sounds are
natural which sets a narrative that they’re in a war and will most likely be
killed. The main character is established early, you can tell as an extreme
close up of Toms Hanks’ face is shown. When men are pouring out of the
shuttles, there is a significant contrast from when the men are under water and
the men are above the water and facing battle. When the soldiers are underwater
there is a dream like atmosphere as there is no sound, however when they come
out of the water the sound of explosions and gunfire. The rapid switch between under
and above water is significant in the fast change of undertaking small battles
throughout their mission to save Ryan. The camera is used really effectively as
its handheld point of view, which gives you a good insight into the reality of
the landing of Omaha beach. The close up of Tom Hanks’ face is used to show his
fearful expression and the blood down his face shows the violence and brutality
of war. When the gas tank explodes a long shot is used to show the men caught
in the fire, again using a point of view shot, in addition a sound of shell
shock is used to show so you can only faintly hear the explosions and screams
of the soldiers and their outfits are incredibly authentic. Then a shot of a
soldier who’s arm has been blown off and he is searching for it beneath dead
soldiers and you can see by his movement that he is desperately searching for
it despite his surroundings and shows no sign of pain. In my opinion this film
gives an accurate depiction of what the Second World War was really like and what
it was like for the soldiers who fought for a just cause. The use of mis-en-scene
is used to great effect, all the scenery and props are incredibly realistic and
this helps to build that wartime atmosphere portrayed throughout the film.
Initial
Ideas
My
first idea is a piece of film, that will be a sort of realistic
documentary, where I will use a hand-held camera to film. The genre
is a sort of tense thriller, and it's target audience would be young
adults from about 16 to 30 male or female, who like these types of
films. It will give the audience a good atmosphere and feel of the
type of film it is just in the opening. The first scene will be the
lead character pulling up outside a house and as pulls up he will
turn on his camera, and explain what he's doing there. He waits in
the car for a bit until he is met at his window by a man. They
exchange some dialogue in which lies are told, then he is told to go
up to the main house to collect his merchandise (the audience at this
point may or may not have an idea what the merchandise is). The Main
character however is in debt with these people and is warned who is
boss and he hasn't got much time. It will then continue to him
driving away and figuring out a solution and way of making money. He
Plans a bank robbery with the help of a professional bank robber. Alternatively maybe a series of convenient stores.
My second idea to the beginning of a film is that it will be for people aged 16+ male or female and the genre will be a sad/reality of someone's life halfway through. It is set in the country side and will open with countryside scenery and then gradually a character is introduced in some of the shots, it will be a mountain/jump bike rider going across the fields and forests until he reaches an old unstable bridge and debates going over it and risk falling into the ice cold water, or take the long route round to a safer bridge, the decision leads to him ending up in the water and cant get out of the fast flowing river.
History
of Genre
A
thriller is a very broad genre and like most genres go across
literature, TV and film. The main elements of a thriller are
suspense, tension and excitement, all of which I hope to create in my
main task. Also by the end of my clip I hope that I leave the
audience with anticipation and a sort of uncertainty, like a cliff
hanger, as thriller films tend to be adrenaline rushing and fast
paced. A thriller is a villain driven plot and puts obstacles in the
way of the hero which he or she must overcome. The protagonist in
these films is set against a problem, escape, mission, or mystery, no
matter what sub genre it falls into it will emphasise the danger the
protagonist faces. The tension with the main problem is built on
throughout the film and leads to a highly stressful climax. The
cover-up of important information from the viewer, and fight and
chase scenes are common methods in all of the thriller sub genres,
although each sub genre has its own unique characteristics and
methods. Early thrillers started around 1920-1930, the first film was
made by Alfred Hitchcock “The Lodger” and was a suspenseful Jack
the Ripper story.
Definition: A
thriller provides the sudden rush of emotions, excitement, sense of
suspense and exhilaration that drive the narrative, sometimes subtly
with peaks and lulls, sometimes at a constant, breakneck pace
thrills. In this genre, the objective is to deliver a story with
sustained tension, surprise, and a constant sense of impending doom.
It keeps the audience cliff-hanging at the "edge of their seats"
as the plot builds towards a climax. Thrillers tend to be
fast-moving, psychological and threatening, and they will have chase
scenes, and at times involve larger-scale villainy such as espionage,
terrorism and conspiracy, alongside action.
Audience
Research
The
target audience of a thriller film varies, it appeals to a wide range
of people, usually over the age of about 10-12+. No Country For Old
Men, is considered one of the best thrillers in recent memory and
they're rated R. Their target audience is probably for the younger
male adults. Gender is a big factor, most thrillers depending on the
content are for the male gender, such as films like No Country For
Old Men, the A team, etc. however films like Black Swan are targeted
more for the female gender. Some thrillers would be considered
borderline horrors, called sub genres, films like The Village where
the demographic changes to younger female based genre, of which most
horrors are based. The stereotypical person to be watching a thriller
would be males, from young adults to older adults, however most films
nowadays have a sub genre because if the film has a wider range of
genres it's going to have a much wider audience. This means that
films will appeal to a much larger amount of people and not be
constricted to particular themes or ideas in the film, which will
lead to the eventual success of the film.
Media Institutions
Similar
companies that make the same kinds of films to what I plan on making
are 20th Century Fox,
Paramount pictures and universal studios. These are the main
competitors in the film industry how due to convergence, multi media
conglomerate film studios like these occasionally club together to
release films that they want to make a huge amount of profit from,
such as avatar. Plus all these companies have achieved creating a
massive amount of revenue in the industry, which is why they're so
popular. This is mainly due to new technologies such as the internet,
which allows these companies to broadcast teasers and other ways of
getting a larger audience. The internet has also helped to release
new material that these companies produce by allowing people to
purchase the products online or renting them for a few days for a
faction of the price. They have all released a large amount of films,
some independently, some with the convergence with other companies,
and each film released gains more and more popularity and
recognition. The advertisement gained from new technologies such as
TV has had the main effect on the industry and brought about a large
amount of initial recognition. However smaller independent film
releases don’t have that privilege as they don’t have the
required funds enable to advertise their films, so they’re forced
to advertise their releases in cheaper ways. These ways are
definitely not as effective as a major conglomerate film release, but
it still manages to get their material out and seen by a smaller
audience. They can Show their content at film festivals, in smaller
independent theatres, and this is a good way of getting their new
releases out, however it is a smaller market and won’t appeal to a
wider range of people. Independent film producers Steelmill Pictures
and Wellington Films released “London to Brighton”, which managed
to get a 5 star rating and a best English film of the year award.
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