The Art of Watching Films - Essay Example

The Art of Watching Films Films are made for entertainment. But providing entertainment alone is not the sole purpose behind filmmaking. There are many elements that are usually incorporated in the ambit of cinematic explorations. The term ‘motion picture’ clarifies cinema pretty well in that it renders a dynamic attribute to still imageries which are shot for the sake of filmmaking. There are two factors involved in film critiques – its artistic value and how well it does commercially. A film is deemed successful if the former factor is taken care of by the production unit so that the latter factor, which is to a great extent discretional to viewers and critics, qualifies automatically. But this is not as simple as it apparently looks like. Time and again in the history of cinema, the chemistry of success has eluded the most talented of filmmakers and producers. It’s been seen an umpteen number of times that films that had promised sensational performances fell flat on their faces upon release. On the other hand, many films that had initially been panned by critics managed to generate remarkable following later on. Despite this ambiguous analogy with no particular frame of reference to success, cinema is widely acknowledged to be a potent aesthetic medium, much in the same league of painting, music, literature and drama. In defense of cinema as a visual medium of singularity, Boggs and Petrie (1999) argue that films are different from literature or other art forms in that they capture the essence of good, old-fashioned private reading just as much as the tokens of mass culture. In a way, motion pictures are compendiums of all the aesthetic and technical details associated with other independent art forms. It compounds within a single unit narrative of the novel, interplay between the audio and the visuals of the drama, synchronization of music, and textures of painting. The final outcome from such a blending is quite unique to say the least. This is because motion pictures allow for a freedom of watching as well as interpreting. There is always a mobility of expression and sense of displacement involved with films, which are conveyed through the deployment of light, sound and dialogs (p. 2). Moreover, the use of space can be regulated at will by using rapid camera movements. This also allows for alterations in perspectives for the viewers (Manchel, 1990, p. 98). The flashback technique adopted in many films entails a flexibility of temporal movements back and forth, thus giving the viewers ample opportunity to ponder over the projected past and present. As for the content, films can be made on a broad array of subject matters depending on its category and target audience. The treatment of film contents, too, can be strictly objective where the viewers’ participation is made distant from the narrative to disallow personal bonding with the characters and situations, or it can be subjective in linking the narrative implicitly with the viewers’ responses and emotions. In this paper I am going to elucidate three points pertaining to cinematic analysis – how to analyze a film, how we find and interpret meaning in films, and my own personal criteria for film assessment. In relation to the points mentioned in the thesis statement, it is imperative that I should be looking into both the technical as well as the aesthetic aspects of filmmaking. But no analysis of any genre of creative art is possible unless the critic is not drawn into the beauty of what he/she is going to analyze. Stepping into the shoes of a film critic, I have to first of all ensure that watching a film is not an irksome task for me. It is not. The pure enjoyment factor behind watching movies drives me to theaters every weekend. Garnering DVDs of the latest blockbusters and some of the cult classics is another passion I sincerely dote on. I have been watching movies since my high school days and have always been curious enough to critically examine the tools and technologies that go into the ominous task of filmmaking. The digital revolution in recent decades has contributed enormously in heightening the visual experience of cinemas. Almost any modern film made on a substantial budget would guarantee a dazzling screen experience to the viewers. At the same time, the aesthetics are likely to be maintained as well in the visual rendering of scenes and their subliminal messages. This technique, which I find particularly interesting in movies, is known as cinematography. Cinematography is at the heart of filmmaking in that it adds to the language of the film by using a mixed bag methods and techniques. I would like to discuss two films which I have found to be cinematographically excellent. Psycho (Hitchcock, 1960) and Traffic (Soderbergh, 2000) are set apart by four decades in terms of production. Moreover, the black and white world of Hitchcock no longer existed by the time Traffic hit the theaters. Yet there are cinematographic nuances that both films embody with unerring precision. In Psycho, Hitchcock deployed a technique which constricted the flow of time to create a world of depression and motionlessness for the male protagonist. The filmmaker achieved this by manually regulating camera dynamics and also by using the chiaroscuro effects of lighting. Now as we travel 40 years ahead to Traffic, the projection of lighting once again comes to the fore, connecting subplots together in a seamless thematic continuity. Here the director resorted to both lighting and camera effects such as washouts and tonal modulations to shoot in different locations (Pramaggiore & Wallis, 2005, pp. 98-99). The usage of striking colors as opposed to subdued patches is also an effective cinematographic ploy. In a famous scene in Schindler’s List (Spielberg, 1993), a little girl appears in a red coat amidst a binary color setting. This is one of the best symbolist statements to have ever conceived of by a director. Just a few on-screen moments while the girl walks by as Schindler watches create a lateral continuity from what is shown early in the film as despicable horrors of the Holocaust to the latter subversions of innocence. The cinematic success lies in the fact that viewers’ attention is immediately grabbed by the red coat, for the surrounding color setting is considerably toned down. This particular scene, I feel, is an exceptional demonstration of cinematography. Narratives and plot progressions directly influence the viewers’ understanding and interpretation of films. The linear narrative method with a brief flashback in the beginning of The Shawshank Redemption (Darabont, 1994) suits the film’s pace. The Shawshank Redemption begins with a courtroom scene in which a banker named Andy Dufresne, accused of cold-blooded murders of his wife and her lover, is being interrogated by the District Attorney. The scene then cuts back briefly to an earlier episode that has led to the accusations against Andy and returns to the trial again. This subtle back and forth movement prepares the premise for suspense in the viewers’ mind. Not before half the film is over do the viewers have any clue as to who the actual murderer is. What the initial flashback also does is building the entire plot, characterizations and dialogs around it. Therefore, the cinematic impact of a brief flashback is quite extraordinary in The Shawshank Redemption. Moreover, the voiceover method of storytelling adopted in this film engages the audience and makes them think, but without pushing them to draw any kind of hasty conclusion regarding how the plot is going to unfold. This type of reflective and layered narrative technique is extremely rare in the fast paced, action packed Hollywood blockbusters of contemporary times. What I like most about Shawshank is how it lets me enjoy the moments as they occur, not to mention that the underlying philosophical messages and interpretations come along with the plot progression. No matter how many big names are there in the casting or how impressive the budget is, a cinema in the post-silent era draws its sustenance from screenplays. Firstly, there are cultural references galore to famous movie quotes from popular films. The metrics of popularity in terms of mass approval cannot be achieved without witty and piercing dialogs. Secondly, dialogs help establishing a character’s image in the psyche of ordinary theatergoers. My repeated viewing of The Silence of the Lambs (Demme, 1991) reinforces my belief in the métier of dialogs. The character of Dr. Hannibal Lecter, which was portrayed by the revered British actor Sir Anthony Hopkins, is a remarkable oratory creation from the psycho-thriller genre in Hollywood. Dr. Lecter also appears in Hannibal (Scott, 2001) and Red Dragon (Ratner, 2002), the sequel and the prequel to The Silence of the Lambs respectively. What makes his character immediately likeable despite the gruesome display of horror and insanity he unleashes is his swashbuckling demeanor which is methodically but rather oddly at times backed by the gift of the gab he demonstrates. Roger Ebert, the eminent film critic, affirms that “He is a dispassionate, brilliant machine, superb at logic, deficient in emotions” (Chicago Sun-Times, 2001). Dr. Lecter’s character is a milestone in mainstream Hollywood movies in that it reminds the audience of all the sophisticated machineries of evil. His wit and power of persuasion is incisive, capable of penetrating the most hardnosed of human defenses. Some of the most memorable cinematic moments of sparkling wit I have ever relished come from the scenes involving Clarice Starling-Dr. Hannibal Lecter duets. The lengthy tirades between them, which are often interlaced with dry repertoires, make for a pleasurable viewing of the film. If the entire movie is seen as a model of successful filmmaking, the dialogs do share a major stake in the deal. I want to bring forth Clerks (Smith, 1994) to underline the definitive impact of humor on mainstay movies. This movie violates most of the accepted norms of presenting a sober comedy and yet, pulls itself through by sheer timing and dialogs. The character of Randal is relentless in enthusiasm and raunchy pranks on women. There is very little insight to characters to be expected from these films, but the viewers are assured of crack-jawed laughing for more than one and half hours. Not many instances are found in comedy genres where the scripts can hold onto such nonstop profanity without galling the audience (Berardinelli & Ebert, 2005, p. 99). Motion pictures combine the visual flow of images with sound, but the vocalizations are not just restricted to dialogs. Background musical scores lend the ambiance for cinematic fulfillments. The Oscar winning film Jaws (Spielberg, 1975) testifies to this claim pretty well. What makes John Williams’ theme composition really bone-chilling in Jaws is how it is first introduced to the movie. Followers of this phenomenal movie will agree that the opening sequence sets the pulse of the epic thrill to come in the remaining part. The calmness of the ocean is realistically complemented by the languid evening fiesta on the beach, participated by a bunch of drunkards. It is the soundscape of the environment which is intensified by the vibrating cello theme. This theme is played in the background whenever the killer shark approaches its unassuming prey. To quote Friedman (2006), “Throughout Jaws, Spielberg uses William’s theme to trigger apprehension in the viewers, to alert us to danger, and to replace our rational consciousness with an irrational fear” (p. 174). The music in Jaws has a dissociative significance too in the context of shark attacks (Powrie & Stilwell, 2006, p. 124). The cello is played at a distinct, low-pitched string just as the deadly predator swims toward its prey. As viewers, we are not shown the shark swimming. So the music gives us an eerie and extremely unnerving feel of the shark’s presence, even though it remains unseen. This kind of firm yet low-pitched tune implicates fear which is lurking beneath our conscious perceptions. Scenes involved with swimmers and surfers at the Amity Islands are chaotic but not unsettling. This is because the music has no role to play in the ordinary affairs of the ‘preys’, which are humans. In order to successfully interpret a film, viewers need to be acquainted with its genre. In simpler terms, film genres are categorizations made on the basis of contents and orientations. For instance, a romantic movie like Casablanca (Curtiz, 1942) has a sentimental and dramatic mood to it, which is duly supported by thematic elements. Again, The Godfather (Coppola, 1972) is a crime thriller that plots and explores some of the basic human vices or sins within a narrative framework. However, the genre concept is getting increasingly vaguer with experimentations that are being made in the past few decades. As it is, movies are reel representations of life. So it is nearly an improbable task to try and find unique meanings from each and every individual genre. Majority of the genres, perhaps with the exceptions of the neo-noir and the documentary, share common qualifiers among them. If we take for example a war film, we will find ample evidences to show that themes of romance, passionate crimes, and terror are woven into the broader category. Despite all the indeterminacy factors, genres are followed mainly for technical and commercial reasons. It is easier for the production unit as well as for the distributors to promote a particular film under a specific tag. Sometimes the genre films generate a cult following among selected groups of people. Many horror films in the late 1970s and the early 1980s are acknowledged to have huge cult followings. The minimum props to make a motion picture include a handheld camera and a few individuals. My personal opinion on movies is very much aligned with simplistic rendering of subject matters in an intelligent and neat manner. The film I’ll be dying to watch needs not be flamboyant in form or setup, but it must have clarity of expression and systematic projection of all the elements mentioned previously. Another thing I examine in movies is whether it preaches unnecessarily or not. I would rather prefer to watch an oddball Jim Carrey comedy promising pure entertainment than some strained and twisted productions claiming to disseminate moral virtues by placing trust on humankind’s good sense and sensitivity. The title card of Cannibal Holocaust (Deodato, 1980) claims to present a documentary on the barbaric nature of civilization in order to arouse the viewers’ discretion, but all I have found is a senseless exploitation film which is reprehensible in terms of the aesthetics of filmmaking and extremely weak in terms of acting and direction. In essence, I would like to conclude with what Hitchcock once said about Psycho: …I don’t care about the subject matter; I don’t care about the acting; but I do care about the pieces of film and the photography and the sound track and all of the technical ingredients…It wasn’t a message that stirred the audiences, nor was it a great performance or their enjoyment of the novel. They were aroused by a pure film (Ross, 2006, pp. 149-150). References Berardinelli, J., & Ebert, R. (2005). Reel views 2: the ultimate guide to the best 1, 000 modern movies on DVD and video. Boston: Justin, Charles & Co. Boggs, J. M., & Petrie, D. W. (2006). The art of watching films. Columbus, Ohio: McGraw-Hill. Chicago Sun-Times. (2001, February 18). The Silence of the Lambs (1991). Retrieved October 9, 2009, from http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20010218/REVIEWS08/102180301/1023 Friedman, L. D. (2006). Citizen Spielberg. Champaign, Illinois: University of Illinois Press. Manchel, F. (1990). Film study: an analytical bibliography, Volume 1. Cranbury, New Jersey: Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press. Powrie, P., & Stilwell, R. J. (2006). Changing tunes: the use of pre-existing music in films. Burlington, Vermont: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. Pramaggiore, M, & Wallis, T. (2005). Film: a critical introduction. London: Laurence King Publishing. Ross, C. (2006). The aesthetics of disengagement: contemporary art and depression. Minneapolis, Minnesota: U of Minnesota Press. Read More