Analysis of Submarine trailer: 'What are they selling?'

Our first impressions of the trailer is that the genre of the film is one of: coming of age and comedy type of movie. This comes through thick as the story line is revealed as a: teenage boy (the stereotypical type with a few differences here and there) goes through his life wishing that he was noticed more. He finds a girlfriend, they break up, and here we have his life. Still on first impressions and going from the raw story line that we can gather instantly, the movie could be said to be compared to 'Diary of a wimpy kid' (a well known blockbuster) however with more of a narcotic twist to it. We can take our target audience from this, ranging from mid teens (16+) to late twenties early thirties? It's hard to tell exactly the ages it will appeal to due to personal preferences, but with the evidence from the clip we can see that late teenagers can understand the humour, as they've been through it not long ago. For the late twenties/older thirties, they also can watch the movie and reminisce how their teenage years fared and although not in the same way as the teenagers, can somehow relate to the movie themselves.

Instantly we can see this is an independent film as there are no special effects, nearly all of the shots we see are on location, and the feel of the movie is very raw. This idea of an independent movie is then reassured when we see the opening credits publishing the companies behind the movie being: The Weinstein Company, Film 4, and the national lottery.

Not only is this trailer selling us: a target audience, comedy/coming of age genre, and a fabulous 80's lifestyle, we also get a projection of love interests. Although not stereotypically shown as we see nowadays in romcoms, it's still present due to nearly all of the trailer devoted to Oliver expressing his undying love for a girl. However, the feelings are not reciprocated, selling the audience a love that no doubt they've experienced. This concept of someone that we love so much, and they don't feel the same is so easily related to, complimenting the coming of age genre quite nicely. 




At the start of the trailer, the soundtrack doesn't start until the companies are shown. Instead, we are introduced by the sound of type writing, an occurring theme throughout the trailer. This gives the movie an 'old school' touch, as type writers were commonly used years ago when computers weren't invented. This helps us with the time period, and therefore is selling to the audience the 80's lifestyle.
On the left are the examples of the type writing effect used within the trailer, to help create the 80's feel:

In 'The Third Man' sewer scene, how is claustrophobia and disorientation created?

Brief summary of The Third Man
The Third Man is a great example of a Noir film. It characterises all that is Noir with the stereotypical shadows, the dark story line, and so on. The plot to The Third Man is:
'An out of work pulp fiction novelist, Holly Martins, arrives in a post war Vienna divided into sectors by the victorious allies and where a shortage of supplies has lead to a flourishing black market. He arrives at the invitation of an ex-school friend, Harry Lime, who has offered him a job, only to discover that Lime has recently died in a peculiar traffic accident. From talking to Lime's friends and associates Martins soon notices that some of the stories are inconsistent, and determines to discover what really happened to Harry Lime.'  With actors such as: Joseph Cotten, Orson Welles and Alida Valli and a director of Carol Reed, it has a famous cast, making the film a popular success.

There are six different aspects in which the techniques can be categorised into, these are: sound, location, lighting, editing, camera and action. It's with these different aspects in which the atmosphere is dramatically controlled, and therefore can project the feeling of claustrophobia and disorientation towards the viewer. 
Below is the full video of the sewer scene taken from 'The Third Man': 

Sound
Sound is a very key aspect to the claustrophobia/disorientation effects that are being made in this scene. Sounds are constantly around us, and in this movie the dramatic extent to which they use this technique is to quite a phenomenon. The different sounds that we can distinguish from the clip are:

• water running
• banging/echoed voices
• wind
• feet pounding on the floor
• German/English accents

For a first, when within the tunnel, the constant sounds of the crashing water from the waterfall surrounds the scene and over powers all other noises. Claustrophobia is created using this technique as the characters are metaphorically trapped by the sounds constantly around them, echoing off the not so distant walls, whilst creating the realism that running away from the sound is much more difficult than running from each other. This also accounts for disorientation as Harry (the man running from all the police) can't distinguish the water running to the men's voices, to the feet running with the water being so loud it drowns out the more important sounds that are more vital to his escape.
Disorientation is also made by the different accents being used. On the outside of the tunnel we here distinct German accents, calling for the police to go into different entrances to the sewers and then on the inside of the tunnels we here English accents. This contrast in different languages is enough to disorientate any normal person in a perfectly simple situation, so when you put the cross of dialect to a man running from police in a completely unknown setting? Then disorientation is quite obvious.

There is a great extract from the clip where Harry is near to freedom and his hand is stretching out from the drane. Here, all the other noises are cut from the scene and just the sound of wind blowing on his fingers is left lingering in the scene. This gives a sense of freedom to the character, although this freedom is short circuited . However, still enforcing the claustrophobia concept as his fingers are being squeezed through such a small space and such little of his fingers are being shown making it a very tight shot and the feeling of being very enclosed.

Another great extract from the scene is where harry is in the middle of the tunnel and is surrounded by different openings, one of which will be sure to lead him to freedom, however sounds are coming from every direction of people shouting and running and talking that either entrance could lead to a fatal disaster. Referring back to the video, this can be scene at the time of 6:19 minutes - 6:48 minutes. This is disorientating in itself, as each entrance brings another voice, as well as another accent, and of which entrance it's even coming from he's unsure of. The thought of the voices closing in on him also can bring about the claustrophobia concept.

Editing
Editing helps with the disorientating of the characters with the scene mentioned above in the sound section. Through the time of 6:19 minutes and 6:48 minutes the editing of the film helps to create the illusion that all of these people are saying these different things through different openings, making disorientation a key aspect.
Also, the constant changing of overground to underground shots makes the whole scene contrast. By showing the overground scene as very open and free, when they cut to the underground scene everything becomes a lot more enclosed and inevitable. 

Camera
The use of different angles and shot types within this sequence leads to a most intriguing sight. the first technique i'm going to be focusing on is the use of tight shots. All through the clip we see multiple characters in tight spaces, as the camera focuses in and makes everything seem claustrophobic. 

Above are a few examples of the tight shot I mentioned. In nearly all of these shots they are using a close up or mid shot. This in itself is used to show emotional responses, and in this situation using a mid shot just enhances the panic harry feels and the urgency the policeman feel to try and get this man. However, in the bottom left hand corner, they don't use a mid shot but yet use a long shot. Even though it's shot from further away it still gives the feeling of entrapment as it's only given a little space for the character to be seen in. This gives a sense of little space in the setting, enhancing the whole claustrophobia effect.

The next technique I'm drawing focus to is the movement of the camera. Throughout the scene the camera doesn't actually move, but stays still for the most of it. This allows the characters to run in and out of the shot. This doesn't create an effect of claustrophobia as such, but can make the viewer disorientated as we will see one group of policeman running in and out of the shot, to another group of policeman doing the same etc. and it may be hard to keep up with who we are watching, and in which direction they're all going. However, the camera does move at certain points, a rather abstract shot that is used is when Harry jumps onto a ladder. Here, they shoot it from almost a worms eye view and make a semi circle motion, swooping underneath him as he jumps onto the ladder. Almost imitating his movement with the camera. This is a very odd shot to use, however works fantastically with the disorientation concept as we're so used to the camera action being still and non-moving (well, with the odd slight movement) that when this is shown, the viewers are left baffled.

Another type of shot they use is a tilted shot. To the left is an example from the sequence. As you can see they used the tilted shot only so slightly, not enough for you to notice that something is somehow awkward about the setting, but enough for it to look unusual. With this slight tilt, it makes the shot disorientated in itself, and complimented with all the confusion of the action in which this shot is sandwiched with, disorientation is a major factor. 



Action
Throughout the sequence, the feeling that there is a lot going on all at once comes across very strongly. However, action wise? There really isn't much in variety to comment about. Although! It isn't about quantity, it's about quality and this video is packed with it! The main actions that we see throughout are:

• Running
• Shooting
• Searching
• Stopping and breathing

Although minimum amount of actions are used, they are used quite effectively. To create disorientation within the scene entrapment is used, this sense of trying to find a way of escaping and at each turn there seems to be less hope. Also, the aspect of trying to escape helps with the claustrophobia. For, to see a man constantly searching, in what seems to be such an open wide space can make it seem very small.
The searching of the character Harry compliments the action of the running, enhancing the agitated state in which the police and detective seem to be in not being able to find this one man among nearly a hundred policeman. As well as enhancing the disorientation, we can also use the searching action to compliment the claustrophobia effect. Elaborating on this idea, by using a lot of characters to search for one creates this image of lots of people in small spaces, therefore creating a claustrophobic effect.

 Lighting

Due to this being a noir style film, we can tell instantly that lighting will have a fantastic effect on the mood/atmosphere of the scene and ultimately adding to the disorientation/claustrophobia affects I'm discussing. First we notice that a lot of artificial light is being used from the torches of the policemen. This luminates a specific spot in the scene making the image seem fragmented and therefore disorientated. This effect can also make the illuminated image seem enclosed and quite tight, bringing in also the claustrophobia effect. An example of this is shown on the right. Here, we can see the flash light acts as a vanishing point, allowing us only to see the edges of the tunnel around the shaft of light that is at the opening of the tunnel. This makes the scene seem very claustrophobic as we can't see the whole surroundings, putting us out of our comfort zones. The aspect of the darkness makes our eyes strain, also putting us outside our comfort zone and therefore making us more disorientated as we try to focus on images in the dark.

Dark/dim lighting surrounds the images all the way through the sequence, creating dark shadows across the tunnel walls from the characters as well as shadows across the characters faces. In relevance to the shadows across the characters faces, this creates moral ambiguity within the scene as well as helping to disorientate us into who the character is. The deep/dark lighting (as well as being a key noir feature) makes us disorientated as our eyes are not capable of adjusting fast in the dark as quite obviously we live in the light of day, therefore (as mentioned above) the usage of the dark lighting and dark shadows confuses our eyes as we try to adjust. 

Above are some great examples of the use of shadows and lighting to create more of a claustrophobic state than disorientation. In the bottom two, we see the shadows line the walls of the tunnels only allowing us to see parts of the tunnel. This is claustrophobic as it gives a sense as in the walls may be closing in or getting smaller due to the lack of sight with them. In the middle picture on the top row, disorientation takes place as we're shown a shadow however we have no body to match it with, therefore it could be that of a policeman's, harry's etc.

Location

Finally, we come to the location/setting of the whole sequence. There are only two locations used, and these are: underground and overground. In the overground scenes we see the city life: the busy buildings, cars moving everywhere. To the contrast of the underground scene: the sewers, tunnels, water running etc. The switch from the open air and the freedom of being overground makes the sewers seem much more closed and trapped, really putting into place the claustrophobia. 

From left to right: Overground, Underground

How is new technology changing the way that audiences consume films?

How is New Technology Changing the Way That Audiences Consume Films

Film Noir: Collage, German Expressionism, Aesthetics

German Expressionism
When studying the origins of such genres as horror and film noir, it is necessary to be aware of the influence of German Expressionism, a style of film making developed during the years in Germany, particularly in 1920's Berlin.

German expressionist movies tended to emphasise cinematography above plot and narrative (focusing on the images being shown rather than the words spoken); often very slowly paced, for example, they were generally beautifully photographed, and this visual clarity had a pronounced effect on later German cinema. Danish cinema in particular was seen as being hugely influential, both in terms if style (lighting, scenic design and camera placement) and content (urban setting, focus on the criminal underworld and designed to deliver visceral thrills).

Images from German Expressionist movies

German film, in common with that of other nations, started to become more of an 'art form' in the years after world war 1 but, although the film industry was booming, the Germans could not compete with huge American budgets. As such, directors such as Lang and Murnau experimented instead with light and shadow (leading to the chiaroscuro style of lighting (essentially very low-key lighting designed to emphasise extreme pockets of light and dark) which is possibly the key feature of film noir, and, as such, much neo-noir and, more generally, horror and crime genre film ever since). In keeping with the shadowy aesthetic, themes tend to be dark (something of tradition in German literature); crime, soulessness and, in general, the darker side of human nature are emphasised. The influence was driven forward when Nazis took control of Germany and many of the directors, cinematographers and so on who had crafted this style fled to America.

The texts most commonly used as examples of German Expressionism (or heavily influenced by it) are those by Fritz Lang 'Metropolis' (1972) and 'M' (1931).

Here is an example of German Expressionism, from the movie 'Nostferatu' by Murnau (1922).

Collage of images from the noir genre.

Style/Aesthetic look of Film Noir

Film noir offers a lot of aesthetic pleasing to the eyes, as it focuses more on the visual effects than anything else. It does this by effectively using shadows anywhere they can: the characters faces, buildings, walls, lamp posts, anywhere they can they create a shadow in the image. This creates enigma to the scene and adding mystery to the story line. The lighting throughout is quite dim, so that everything seems a lot more eery. A lot of artificial light is used in the mise-en-scene to make the image a lot more disfigured and disorientated, confusing the viewers. This compliments the mood of noir, as even from the name (the french word for black) it's a very dark, somber atmosphere in the movies, so dark lighting and misty shadows can draw out the unusual darkness that the genre is trying to put across.

An example of these visual effects is this image:

This uses dark/dim lighting to create a mysterious background for the character, then in the background we see the artificial light from the lamp posts (another common prop used in noir movies), then on the wall we see the classic shadow. However this time the shadow is quite sharp, this could mean that he's the only one there? As the rest of the shot is blurred out, making the character the main focus.

Preliminary Task

How does Casino Royale use conventions of 'Film Noir' and what meanings/connotations are created?

In the opening of the movie 'Casino Royale' (bond movie) it uses a completely different style to the rest of the movie adopting conventions of the genre noir. Apart from the obvious black and white colours used it also uses a ranges of techniques and styles to really create the feel of noir. Here are some examples from the opening, explaining what and how they have used these:

1. A low angle shot of a supposed detective 

This picture is shot at an obscure angle. Normally, in movies this angle might not be used in account of people's faces due to the un-flattery it possesses toward the person, however fitting into the noir theme it works quite well as the noir genre deals with tilted and odd angles to make buildings and people seem more eery and distorted to the viewer. The shadow across his face creates moral ambiguity, fitting in nicely with the dark theme that noir holds. Not only this but the shadow across his face is also echoed upon the building as a shadow is created on the right side of the man, creating an eery setting. From this we can see that artificial light is being made upon the building and man which is also another key aspect of the noir genre.The costume the man is wearing is classic 50's with: a bowlers hat, shirt, tie, and coat all leading to the suggestion that he is some sort of detective, which is also a key aspect of the noir genre.


2. Shot of the supposed detective, in an office, pointing a gun

This image uses a wide shot so that you can see more of the setting around him. However, the left side of the image (the lamp, which is a prop used commonly in noir films to create artificial light) is blurred so that the focus is drawn to the man holding the gun (another prop commonly used in noir films). The expression the man holds is serious and sombre, setting the dark atmosphere that noir is famous for. Another classic noir trait is the status of the higher class, this is portrayed in the image as we can see a view of lots of different tall buildings, giving the effect that the office is quite high up meaning that the man is of a high status/rank. Along with this, across the walls are yet more shadows, used in almost every scene in a noir movie, caused by artificial lighting to create a horizontal split of black and white.



3. Hero in some sort of room, looking pained 

This image is not stereotypically a noir image, however it does hold some of the qualities. One thing it does not possess is shadows, however the harsh colours of the black and white together brings across a very dark realisation, going hand in hand with the expression on the mans face. This in itself is a trait of the noir genre, as the image is focusing less on the visually obvious way in which noir is portrayed and more a deeper meaning. The shot is a close up, which instantly draws us to the face of the character, which, said earlier, is a rather dark expression upon his face. The clothes in which he is wearing is supposedly a suit, showing that he is of some class and fitting in well with the status aspect of the noir genre. And with an added prop on the left hand corner, blurred so that the focus is still on the character, that is the end of the similarities with the noir genre.



4. Long shot of the detectives office

This shot offers a lot of noir features. As a first, the view from the window suggests that the room is quite high up and so the person who owns it must have a lot of money to afford it and therefore of a higher class, fitting in with the status aspect of the noir genre. The angle used is that of an obscure nature, with a high angle, slightly looking down upon the room so that we can see all that's in it. The stereotypical office scene is put across here, which would fit that of a detective often used in the noir genre of film. The obvious shadows are flittered across the room, from artificial light coming from above, this is a very important aspect of noir. Also, the artificial light creates a divide to the room with one side being light and the other being dark, so we get a nice contrast.


5. Obscured shot of building

In this wide shot, it is angled at an irregular almost tilted angle to give the building a more sinister/surreal look. Enigma is created in the scene with the low dim lighting throughout the whole image and the artificial light from the lamp post creates a glow  at the front of the scene, using the noir technique of artificial lighting. The shadows across the building uses the noir aspect of shadows, making the building look more sinister and almost frightening. All of this adds mystery as to what this building is, and who is in it, leading into the darkness of the noir genre.


Conclusion
The use of noir conventions in the scene establish Daniel Craig's 'Bond' character at the start of the film as quite a disturbed character. At first we see him in the office of the so called detective, giving the image that he may be the antagonist of the scene. This is then reiterated by the sequence of Bond assaulting another man. Here, he preys on a (at first impressions) a innocent victim and kills him. However, the disturbed look that crosses his face afterwards reminds us that he has a conscience. We could compare this to a situation such as Jekyll and Hyde, as the characteristics are shown in the reactions of Bond. We see the cruel side of Bond (menacingly and quite brutally murdering a man whom we have no knowledge of) and then the heartbreaking face of a man facing the reality that he's just killed another human being.
All of this contributes to making Bond seem like he has a split personality, very noir however not very Bond. This is where the similarities soon end between the two movies.

Conventions of Film Noir

''Between the Great Depression and the start of the Cold War, 
Hollywood went noir, reflecting worldly, weary, wised-up under current mid 
century America. In classics such as Laura, Sweet Smell of Success 
and Double Indemnity, where the shadows of L.A. and 
New York pulse with killers, corpses, and perilous romance, 
failure is not only a logical option but a smart-talking seduction.''
- Vanity Fair March 2007

A brief summary of the 'Noir' genre

Film Noir originated from the french, meaning 'black cinema'. It was popularised in the 1940's-50's widely in Hollywood, with the early black and white  films such as 'The Maltese Falcon' 1941) and  'Double Indemnity' (1944). This genre of film saw the opening of dark, disturbing visual and thematic content to stir the thoughts of the consumers. It confronts a range of status values (focusing mainly on the higher class) and does not focus on the family life, quite like the many movies made before this era. Within the genre, criminal intent is found to be most prominent as well as incompetent in many the case (as in some of the films an innocent man is found guilty). The genre, containing all of this controversy in the dark theatrics after a war that stirred the world, also adopts some stereotypical views within the makings. Meaning, as well as using all this dark, deep, imagery and story line they also keep the familiar stereotypes of women being the damsel and the men being the hero.

The conventions of the noir are sectioned quite neatly into four main sections: Mise-en-scene, characters, themes and moods and camera work. Within these sections the genre can clearly be identified by prominent features that are echoed nowadays in crime thriller movies. With lots to comment on within each section I'm going to start with characters.

Characters
Within the noir genre there are key characters that make the story line and really build together the genre as a whole, these are:

• Cops
• Suspects
• Detective
• Love Interest
• Hero

The love interest is always a woman, as well as the man always being the hero. The Noir films divide women into three main categories, each depicting a different stereotypical view of how women should act within society.The first, the femme fatale: an independent, ambitious woman who feels confined within a marriage or a close male-female relationship and attempts to break free, usually with violent results. The next, the nurturing woman: a dull, featureless, and, in the end, unattainable, giving the man a chance at conventional marriage within the movie only to be denied. And finally the ''marrying type'': a woman who threatens the hero by insisting that he marry her and accept his conventional role as husband and father. Complimenting society's view of women, the stereotypical view of a man is also projected through the movies placing the man as: hero, detective, criminal, and husband. All main parts throughout the noir genre, as a woman's place was supposedly at home.

From left to right: Femme fatale, nurturing woman, 'marriage type'

The use of cops/detectives/suspects is very americanised, and being made in Hollywood, this has really projected in the characters. These characters are put across as very hard and careless to anyone's emotions. The detective in particular plays a role of great importance as he figures out the plot and makes use of it, unlike the cops who are his minions as such, trying to do his work but only really going round the basis of it. The detective is very particular, taking care of every detail put across to him, which echoes the noir genre. I mean this in a sense that the film is in black and white therefore we are focusing less on the colour and whats going on around the setting to more on the specific detail of what the characters are doing and saying and to what the plot might be.

Camera Work
The camera work for this genre is very pronounced. It uses obscured and unusual shots, with extreme angles to emphasise the point they're trying to get across. Common shots used are:

• Close up/Extreme close up
• Extreme long shot
• Tilted shot

The camera work goes hand in hand with the theme, as this is what helps to intensify the mood/atmosphere along with the characters. The close up/extreme close up is used for the emotional response of the characters, which comes up quite often in noir movies. Also, with the close up and extreme close up it can make something being said seem much more important. For example: the detective is explaining what he has found about the suspect in matter, with a long shot and with the camera switching to a close up as he gets to the crucial part of explaining where everything fits in and starts to make sense, the atmosphere becomes more intense and we take more notice of what he is saying. 

This clip is an example of a close up used in the movie 'Mildred Pierce' (1945) an early noir movie. Here we see her walk through the shadows and we get a close up of her face as the camera turns to see what we suppose is her husband/lover with another woman. By going into a close up of her face, we take in the emotions she is feeling. And with any woman that catches her husband cheating? It's not a happy response. 

In contrast, an extra long shot is used quite effectively. Whether between two characters or with just one, this shot creates suspicion within the scene as dim lighting will compliment the scene. With the use of two characters however, the angel creates space between the two, and with distance, suspicion arises as to why there is space between the two? 

The tilted shot/obscured shots are used more with buildings, cars, and more the setting than the actual character. This is because it makes the setting seem more surreal, dark and mysterious. The obscured shots can also make the buildings/vehicles seem much larger than they are, and in effect make the building more of a focus than the character.




Themes/Moods
From a first glimpse at one of the noir movies the main themes that are emanate are:

• Discovery
• Bleak/Hard boiled
• Crime
• Status
• Lust
• Darkness
• Deceit
• Gender
• Betrayal
• Enigma

All of these themes/moods direct us to the crime/thriller era which noir consists of majorly. With the reference to the movies being: 'Bleak/hard boiled' and 'Enigma' it refers to the bluntness of the content of the movie. Unlike today where we have special effects and different techniques used to drag situations out for example a simple technique such as making something into slow motion. Noir uses none of this, and gives you the movie as it is, in content and production. 

The reference to lust, betrayal, gender and status is quite stereotypical in content as it doesn't really need an explanation, they speak for themselves as such. There will always be a female character to lure the hero in (quite like a siren), somewhere along the line someone will betray another in information or love wise. The gender reference is relevant to the point where the set roles are the men out to work, and the women at home. And finally status, as in most Noir films the characters are that of high class in society, as to even have a detective working on a case must give it of some importance and therefore the status most follow suit. 


Mise-en-scene
The mise-en-scene is what makes the scene, and this is split into four categories:

• Set/Location
• Lighting and colour
• Costume
• Props

Within the noir genre the main locations that there tend to be are: in street by a lamp post, on a staircase, on a bridge, and in an office. All of these settings are set to be very claustrophobic, making the character seem much larger and therefore more important in every scene of the movie. The setting usually has quite obscured shots, from worms eye view and mainly focusing on low angles to make buildings in particular seem much larger and surreal than they actually are.

On the right are two examples of settings used within the noir genre of movies, the top demonstrating an obscure shot and the second showing a eye level shot, to show a good contrast between the two.

Following on from the locations is lighting. The lighting and colour compliment the setting quite well. Being 'noir' as a genre, the black and white colour goes without saying. However the lighting emphasises the harsh colours, making the images quite sharp. The strong theme of lighting that runs throughout any noir film is the harsh shadows that follow the characters, in almost every night scene a very pronounced shadow will follow the character, giving a sense of eeriness and that someone maybe following. In most scenes there is only one source of light and it tends to be of a natural source, for example light from the window or from a lamp. A spotlight is also used, for example when a detective is standing in the moonlit street there is a spotlight from the lamp focused on them. By using this it draws focus onto the one character and also can be used to build tension within the scene.

From left to right: example of spotlight, example of shadow which comes across very sharp and strong, and the last a shadow example but not as strong as the last.

The costume has the stereotypical feel of the time period it was made in. So the glamorous 1950's style strongly comes through with the women especially, with: big skirts, long tight fitting dresses (for the femme fatale), hair in loose curls or pinned in buns around the face. For the men? Trench coats, and suits and hats. Not much to go on for the men, however simple and effective clothing is used however it very prominently brings across the detective/higher class feel to it. As well as this, the men also have props such as guns and cigarettes to keep the stereotypical view of a detective.