How the Films Reflect Political and Social Mores of the Society - Assignment Example

Running Head: FILM EXAM 3 Film Exam3 Name Institution Date Introduction Coppola’s The Godfather’s trilogies undertake the operatic montage notion further, to the extent of incorporating the opera into an end of the third film within the trilogy. This movie is a story of a Mafia Family. It gives insight into the life of Michael Corleone who was once a hero and avoided anything to do with the family. When his father is shot dead, he decides to take revenge on those who killed the father and joins the Mafia lifestyle. When his brother killed, Michael moves to a higher position and becomes the head of the family, and becomes cruel that both the father and the brother combined. The summative of each of the three parts not only provide the exemplary illustrations of the parallel editing, but also show the various ways through which films can be applied in the creation of temporary space existing outside the real time (Browne, 2000). Such process that involves foregrounding as well as heightening is very central for the prosperity of the operatic narrative that Coppola shifts it into the film medium and creates a specific cinematic form for it. Coppola's trilogy makes use of the operatic strategies all through the films and not only in their conclusions. The study examines the religious imagery that Coppola uses during the Baptism scene towards the end of The Godfather and how the ceremony heightens the tension of the scene. In addition, it evaluates the idea that films reflect both political and the social mores of the society at the time of their creation, concluding whether movies are driven by society or if society drives the entertainment sector in creating films. Question 1 Baptism Scene The baptism scene is where Michael is acting as a godfather during his nephew’s baptism. The baptism service of Michael Rizzi is mixed together with the murder of five heads of families. This scene introduces the complex person that Michael becomes as he leads a double life. Coppola, the writer of the movie, uses montage to give the image of Michael where he mixes religion and evil to show the complex nature of Michael. A new born child, who is sinless, is being baptized and the godfather who will take him through life is an extremely sinful person. He has organized for the murder that is taking place as he is taking the godfather vows (Browne, 2000). Religious imagery The writer has intertwined religion and violence in the last scene of the movie. Religious imagery is seen in scene where the baptism is being done in the Catholic Church and is being said in Latin. According to the Catholic religion, one is born with the original sin. A child baptism is a point where he or she is made pure from sin. During baptism, there is always a godfather who acts as the child’s guide to the religious life. The words of the priest are being heard as he continues with the ceremony at the same time when the assassins are preparing themselves for the action. The baptism is cut as the priest asks Michael whether he rejects Satan with all his works. Michael answers yes, and yet he is in the midst of committing a very serious sin. The writer creates an impression that a sin is being committed at the midst of the most pure moments, and by the godfather of the occasion (Browne, 2000). The act of baptism and the presence of the new born baby are signs of good which is also a sign of religion. Baptism is a religious activity where a child who is born of sin is separated from sin in the act of baptism so that he can lead free life. Since this is a child, there must be a godfather who will take the baptismal vows on behalf of the child. Use of the Montage The climatic twin of the baptism scenes towards the end of the movie are the leading progression of the events in The Godfather. Imitating the Eisenstein’s pioneering practice of alternative montage such as various actions and the events that take place simultaneously as sequential within the film. However, montage acts as editing together of the selected images. At the ending scenes of The Godfather, Coppola creates a seemingly montage that is realistic, although it heightens the various ironies in the fall of Michael, a process known as operatic montage that provides a multitude of baptism-events as well as multiple murders-in a very concise manner that highlights their inter-relatedness. Coppola swiftly jumps back and forth in between religious baptism within the cathedral and baptism of the blood which symbolizes the confirmation of Michael as a new and the undisputed Godfather of the existed five families. Since the montage is a dialogue as well as sound originating from the religious baptism, for instance, religious imagery and the biblical-sounding allusions which emerges to be the recurring themes in the entire Godfather trilogy (Browne, 2000). Therefore, the application of montage creates the implication that both murderers and the baptism acts occur simultaneously and that the juxtaposition of the religious church rites, calm as well as peaceful, violent murderers provides to everyone an unexpected and new meaning. Coppola suggests that during the ceremony of baptism, godparents should respond to such questions as whether an individual rejects the glamour of evils and if he or she rejects Satan as well as his entire works by confirming that “I do.” In this case, the sincere “I do” of Michael, cements his emerging position as the godfather to the Connie’s baby. However, his order made on murder creates their own ceremony through which Michael become known as the Godfather of the entire separate sort. In the baptism scene where the Eisenstein’s technique of montage editing is used, Coppola uses the method of hard cutting so as to present the stark contrast within the main character as Michael Corleone. The scene takes off with a shot of the Michael’s godson. Later, in the dialectic of Hegel, Michael is identified as the synthesis of the twisted mix of both good and evil. A priest’s voice is hard offering the ceremony while murderers prepare to kill. This scene cuts backward to the return of Michael. As a result, the priest inquires from Michael whether he rejects Satan and his entire works. In addition, Coppola thinks that although there is existence of a true as well as good religion, with a view that such religion lacks its faithful followers, he considers it to be the exception relatively to the rule. Since the majority of the religion has opted to be welcoming to the corrupting agents who are involved in the commitment of violence, it has greatly lost the capability to effectively fight corruption and its associated violence. Additionally, it is not the religion that causes violence nor is it indifferent to it, but because religion has failed to end violence as it is ineffective intervenes due to its weakness in compromising acts of the evil men. This implies that religion is not informed of all that is happening all around its too much compromise in identifying how ineffective such neglected responsibility is to the society. For instance, in the Coppola's world, the acts of violence wins since the 'true faith' has turn out to be entirely too rare and they have been largely reinstated by the compromised cultural, various ritualistic or the civic religion that have as well lost their good power because of their increased unholy accommodations. The ceremony is used to heighten the tension of the scene where the occasion is cut by the assassins. They attack at the time when the priest is giving baptismal vows to Michael and he is confessing that he will reject Satan with all its work. The baptism is the occasion of purity, cleansing sin and it leaves one free from evil. The godfather, who is taking the vows, is the mastermind of the assassination and the assassins enters under his orders at the midst of the vows. Through the Leone and Coppola films, montage provides the viewers with a cinema which lies in between the realism and ant-realism, through montage which highlights the moments of tension, pain as well as suspense to the extent of their current hanging. The tension that resulted from such scenes exists so much within the imaginations of the spectators as well as on the media. This unification of the mise-en-scene that tells story, montage which results into the tension and mental images which reinforces the reality that both Coppola and Leone are engaged in the creation of new forms the operatic montage. Tension is heightened where the priest uses both Latin and English in the occasion (Browne, 2000). He takes Michael through the vows in English, an indication that he is aware of what he is saying in the church. This is put just next to murderous hits as he sets his words in motion. The baby being baptized also starts to cry at the intense of the action of murder. This is the section that shows climax of this scene. As the murders begin, the people runs away from the church and the murderers also leave the scene. The baptism occasion and the murder action are cross cut by the priest’s statement “will you reject Satan with all his works?” then Michael answers “yes”. Then the assassins enter immediately killing the heads of the five mafia families. Question 2 Film reflections and political, social mores of society It is true that films reflect the political and social mores in the society at the time they are created. Films are not only pieces of art, but they are also tools for socials since they express human’s feelings as well as their contemporary society ideas. In addition, they act as mirrors that are used to reflect the society. For instance, Films reflect the both political and the economical changing scenarios in India over decades. This involves rising of the middle-class, emergence of the small cities or towns in India, gradual division of old feudal order or anger, alienation, new resurgence and despair are all shown in the Bollywood screen as well as several other regional industries. The Bollywood films also mirrors the Indian psyche transformation of the 1950s to current century. Studies revealed that for several decades, Bollywood films symbolized both angst and the agony of the struggle in India. In addition, working in collaboration with Heroes, the villains have as well altered faces on their screens. This implies that movies are not only for the visual treat to their audiences, but also the account of economic, political and the societal set-ups in which people are living (Lewis,1995). Science fiction types of films are normally speculative in their nature, and often they include the main supporting elements of the science and technology. However, science within the Hollywood science fiction movies may be taken as pseudo-science, relying largely on the atmosphere and the quasi-scientific artistic conjure than the facts as well as the conventional scientific theory. Their definitions can as well vary depending on some viewpoints of from various observations. There are various filmmakers who are working on both the features and documentary across the globe, striving to engage either directly or imaginatively with the particular political issues as well as consistently access audiences. One of such persistent and the successful person has been considered to be the British director known as Ken Loach. In his films such as the Riff-Raff (1991), the Raining Stones (1993) and the most recent one as the Sweet Sixteen (2002), he reveals that the continuous existence of those who are exploited yet throughout ignored by political classes, for instance, the working-class world within individual's hopes in equality as well as justice are persistently being undercut, at places of work, in homes, and with in the societies. Although most of his narratives are normally built around the personal protagonist, his concern has been the foreground of social and the political context in people's lives. Cinema in Ideology and Commerce Cinemas have generally been involved in acts of politics in a very wide sense about the stories they opt to tell and on how such stories were told. Most of the narratives carry utopian traces of folk tales such as hope, justice and emancipation as the core issues of the political debates. Through revealing to people about the previous happening in the world, cinema films have offered more ideas on how the world could be improved through the ideological manipulations of the responses from the audiences which have always been close. In addition to politics, redemptive narratives are the seductive as well as rhetorical forms of art, particularly in the Hollywood films since 1920’s in shaping contemporary fairy tales with both the happy endings with emphasis on the entertainments (Hardy & Nowell-Smith, 1997). The American political and the financial elites observed the propaganda significance of movies from the earliest dates and the global success of the Hollywood films, supporting that such films have played a very major role in establishing markets to the American commerce. In addition, the American films have dominated the market places, shaping the needs, emerging desires and people’s sense of the self and making very significant contributions to their mediated, the consumer-driven world of both fantasy and their fashion. Hollywood films are mostly related to what is referred to as the “collective social consciousness,” however, the existing relationship between the society and film is neither simple nor direct. Similar research on “Movies and Mass Culture” additionally examines such relationship and supports that film, society, as well as culture they mutually determine or influence one another (Chapman, 2000). Although films and the filmmakers influence the culture and society, they can also be produced by it. These emerging debates reveal that a multifaceted relationship exists between the society and film. Movies are not only for the visual treat to their audiences, but also the account of economic, political and the societal set-ups in which people are living. Hollywood films, for example, are used to glorify sex and the violence that are attacking the various moral values of all the societies and leading most of their youths astray. In addition to the production, based on the movie, films have been either influential or the progressive forces within the society, acting as a larger reflection of such society. World cinema largely contributes to the debates that emerges from individual's life experience as well as values within the new age, a discussion that includes the challenges of the numerous fronts to the one-sided international capitalism (Hardy & Nowell-Smith, 1997). However, there has not been a clear dichotomy between the art and politics. It is only what an individual would want to present and on how the subject matter is delivered to be the human. Science fiction types of films are normally speculative in their nature, and they regularly include the key supporting elements of both science and technology. However, the science within the Hollywood science and fiction movie may emerge to be pseudo-science, depending primarily on the prevailing atmosphere as well as quasi-scientific artistic conjure than in facts and the conventional scientific theory. The genres of science fiction films have long been served as very useful vehicles that safely discuss the controversial and topical issues as well as often offering thoughtful social explanation on the prospective unforeseen and future issues. Various types of both commentary and the controversy presented in the science fiction films, generally illustrate the specific concerns of certain periods within which they were established. Previously, science fiction films were use to express fears associated with the automation replacing the workers and society dehumanization through the science and technology (Hardy & Nowell-Smith, 1997). Conclusion The climatic twin of the baptism scenes towards the end of the movie are the leading progression of the events in The Godfather. The baptism is the occasion of purity, cleansing sin and it leaves one free from evil. Films reflect the political and social mores in the society at the time they are created. Films are not only pieces of art, but they are also tools for socials since they express human’s feelings as well as their contemporary society ideas. In addition, they act as mirrors that are used to reflect the society. Cinemas in general have been involved in the acts of politics in a very wide sense on the stories they opt to tell and on how such stories were told. Additionally, world cinema largely contributes to the debates that emerge from individual's life experience as well as values within the new age, a discussion that includes the challenges of the numerous fronts to the one-sided international capitalism. For instance, cinema films have offered more ideas on how the world could be improved through the ideological manipulations of the responses from the audiences which have always been close. Movies are not only for the visual treat to their audiences, but also the account of economic, political and the societal set-ups in which people are living. Hollywood films, for example, are used to glorify sex and the violence that are attacking the various moral values of all the societies and leading most of their youths astray. References Browne, N., (2000). Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather Trilogy .CUP, Cambridge. Chapman, J. ed., (2000). Popular American Film 1945-1995 (Open University). Hardy, P. & Nowell-Smith, G., ed., (1997). The Oxford History of World Cinema: ‘Crime Movies’, (OUP, Oxford), p. 306. Lewis, J. (1995). Whom God Wishes to Destroy: Francis Coppola and the New Hollywood. Durham: Duke University Press. Read More