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The impact of the holocaust
Schindler's list analytical essay
Schindler's list analytical essay
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Schindler’s List Many events have shaped history for the good and for the bad. The Holocaust was an event that has remained in the memories of many throughout the world and is still a very sensitive subject to this day. There were many people affected by its gravity, and its backlash is still mourned today by its survivors and those who lost loved ones during that time period. It is easy to sympathize with the pain that people went through during that horrific time. Steven Spielberg’s film, Schindler’s List, does an excellent job at tugging at the heart strings of its audience and invoking emotion. Throughout the movie, the filmmaker’s ability to captivate the audience provides viewers an insight into the suffering that the Jews endured during World War II at the hands of the merciless Nazis. In Schindler’s List, when the smoke of the candle becomes the smoke from the train, the filmmaker uses the editing technique of GRAPHIC MATCH, which consists of two successive shots joined so as to create a strong similarity of compositional elements, in order to emphasize the sad journey that was forced upon the Jews. This contributed to the overall theme because the story is based on the hardships and the suffering that the Jews faced. Moreover, the filmmaker uses a change in COLOR from full color to black and white to depict the horrible and tragic occurrences happening to the Jews. This is important to the overall theme of the movie because it sets the dark somewhat unpleasant mood of the film. The filmmaker cleverly uses PAN, which is when the camera moves from the right to the left or vice versa, in order to emphasize a smooth transition into a completely different scene. This contributes to the overall theme since the ongoing turmo... ... middle of paper ... ...going on throughout the ghetto. This contributes to the never ending persecution and assassination that plays a major role as a theme in the film. The director uses both CONTINUITY , a system of cutting to maintain continuous and clear narrative action, and MATCHES, which is joining or separating shots together, to make the killing and shooting throughout the ghetto seem like it lasted the whole night. Once again this contributes to the overall theme of the movie that focuses on the suffering of the Jews. At last the cinematography used throughout the film truly makes it one of a kind. The fact that black and white was chosen to be the main colors of the movie add to the overall mournful, despairing mood of the movie. Even though Schindler used the war for his personal gain, thanks to him, hundreds of Jews were able to survive the atrocities of the Holocaust.
Schindler's List, by Steven Spielberg is an award-winning masterpiece - a movie which portrays the shocking and nightmarish holocaust in a three-hour long epic. The documentary touch re-creates a dark, frightening period during World War II, when Jews in Nazi-occupied Krakow were first deprived off , of their businesses and homes, then placed in ghettos and were then forced to labor for no consideration in camps in Plaszow, and finally they were resettled in concentration camps for execution. The violence and brutality of Nazi’s treatment towards Jews is a series of horrific incidents that are brilliantly showcased.
The Holocaust was the state sponsored, systematic persecution and annihilation of Jews by Nazi Germany and its collaborators between 1933 and 1945. Six million Jews were killed through the process of identification, exclusion, confiscation, ghettoization, deportation and extermination. Many who fought against the Nazi’s are seen as heroes which is clearly portrayed in the film “Schindler’s List” through the protagonist Oskar Schindler as he saves the lives of 1100 Jews. Schindler was prepared to make his fortune from World War II. Joining the Nazi party for political convenience, he staffs his factory with Jewish laborers. At the point when the SS starts eradicating Jews in the Krakow ghetto, Schindler organized to have his workers secured
In Schindler’s List, as the Jews in Kraków are forced into the ghetto, a little girl on the street cries out, “Good-bye, Jews,” over and over again. She represents the open hostility often shown the Jews by their countrymen. After all, the little girl did not contain this hatred naturally—she learned it. Through her, Spielberg sends the message that the evil of the “final solution” infected entire communities.
A hero is a man who, in the opinion of others, is greatly admired for his brave deeds and fine qualities. A hero is a man who, in the opinion of others, is greatly admired for his brave deeds and fine qualities. In Schindler’s List directed by Steven Spielberg, Oskar Schindler is regarded as a great hero amongst many Jews regardless of the fact that he is a German Nazi, because he saves the generations and lives of 1,200 Jews during the Holocaust. The Holocaust was the systematic mass murder of about 6 million Jews and millions of others during World War II that was taken place in Nazi Concentration Camps, under the German Nazi regime. In the midst of this brutal time period, Oskar Schindler finds the heart to undergo a change from being the mere pragmatic, rich man to becoming the virtuous, good man who helps save Jews. But rather than a benefactor, Oskar Schindler was more of a self-motivator who set goals upon his own visions and dreams, and one who undertook goals to have them achieved into reality. We see this characteristic in Schindler being brought forth when he works toward his goal in becoming rich, when he influences some of his self motivation on Goeth, and when Schindler approaches toward his newly changed goal in saving Jews.
Just about everyone can voice their opinions on a film that viewed as we all do after leaving the theatre. It may be found to be useful when a friend or individual is interested in seeing the film themselves. However, I believe the only way that you could understand a film is by analyzing the film beyond the average person. When one begins to analyze they begin to develop an understanding of the film and may grow to love the film. The director Hitchcock is a fairly well known director. He has directed many different films from Vertigo to Psycho that are found to be popular with the viewers. In this paper I am going to analyze certain elements that spoke out to me during the film. Those elements that spoke to me the most during the film was the lighting techniques, camera movement, and symbols.
In the opening scene of the movie we see Frank’s character played by Denzel Washington. Right away we are shocked by his violence and see his power. This is the first motif we are introduced to. We see Frank stand tall over his victim, and the dark shadowing we see on his face and body show his dominance. Another motif we are introduced to is how real this film is setup to be. The car headlights that setup the background and introduce where we the setting is as well as motivate lights. They have a purpose in the film in promoting its authenticity. We also hear the all the sounds in the forefront. When hear the sounds up close it dramatic for us as viewers. We hear every 7drop of gasoline that is poured on the man’s body and we even hear the flick of the lighter as Frank sets the man on fire. This is the director Scott Ridley’s way of saying to the audience I want to fool you, and I want you to feel like you were there and what you are watching in front of you is real.
Klimov uses deep focus camera angle to show the Nazis sending flares in the air and shooting at them. Moreover, Klimov combines a low angle shot of the bullets flying over Flora’s head and a close-up shot of the dead cow with its eyes rolled back to emphasize the scope of violence by conveying the message -not even animals are spared. In the final scenes of the movie, Flora discovers a painting of Hitler on the ground and fires at it with his rifle. As Flora is shooting at it, we see rewinding videos of Hitler rising to power leading back to when he was a boy. Klimov uses an video editing technique within the film to tell the audience a story of how Hitler rose to power and the atrocities that he committed in the concentration camps. Klimov used these techniques to give viewers an understanding of the Russian perception of the Nazi invasion through his film.
The reviewer utilizes several formal features of the film to support her argument and drive her key point home. First and foremost, she extensively utilizes narrative to explain to the reader the different scenes in the film. It is through narratives that the reader gets to know the characters in the film and the roles they play. They entice the reader by providing a sneak preview of what to expect in the film. Secondly, Zacharek uses cinematography to show Hou’s professionalism in films. She explains how Hou balances the use of color to depict different times and moods in the film. Black and white represents gloomy ancient times while vibrant colors signify intense action-filled scenes in the film (Zacharek,
Schindlers List "Memory is all we have, and when the memories are dreadful- when they hold images of the pain we have suffered or, perhaps inflicted- they are what we are try to escape" (Corliss 110). Steven Spielberg captures the audience in this critically acclaimed movie about the Holocaust. Schindlers List is a movie made to induce the mind into the unknown, the horrors of World War II. David Ansen states "Schindlers List plunges us into the nightmare of the Holocaust with newsreel-like urgency- and amazing restraint" (Newsweek 113). Spielberg brings out all emotions in recapturing this monstrous time period. Schindlers List is about Oskar Schindler, a German Nazi who uses the Jews to make money off the war. At the beginning of the movie Schindler is portrayed as a womanizer, gambler, and heavy drinker. He becomes friends with some top Nazi officials to better himself. As the movie progresses Schindler begins to produce war materials using the Jews as a labor force. As he sits back and watches the various actions of the Nazis he begins to question his morals. His accountant, Itzhak Stern, begins making a list of around 1200 Jews. These Jews were to come and work in Schindlers' factory. When Germany surrendered all of the Nazis were to be hunted. Many Jews thanked him and all of the workers wrote a letter explaining Schindlers' actions. Also, a gold ring was given to him inscribed, "Whoever saves one life saves the world entire" (Talmud). Schindler said good-bye to his workers and fled. Only now the Jews are liberated to have nowhere to go and nowhere to leave. Many great directors concentrate on dialogue, scenery, and plat; however, Spielberg stresses the importance of camera angles and the effect of black and white film, scenes and characters, on viewers in Schindlers List. With his outstanding work on camera angles, Steven Spielberg holds the audience at breath while waiting for the next scene. Spielberg uses a hand held camera to grasp the effects. David Denby explains how the use of a handheld camera is much more accurate. "The camera keeps moving […] moving fast, chasing corners and up stairways […]." Spielberg makes the movie look "like and advertent look of newsreel footage" (1282). Life magazine quoted Spielberg discussing the image of Amon Goeth sunbathing. A man named Raymon...
Spielberg’s film Schindler’s List is based on Oskar Schindler’s life during the Holocaust of World War II and how he saved over 12,000 Jewish people from the labour and concentration camps. During The Liquidation of the Ghetto, The Girl in the Red Coat and Auschwitz diegetic and non-diegetic sound, camera angles and shots, limited colour and motifs are used to create tension.
Martin Scorsese truly captures the film with his evocative directing where he often use slow-mo camera shots and dark, eye-wielding camera angles to capture the decay of New York City. Scorsese is in top form with his directing where he makes the camera use as a viewpoint of Bickle¡¯s character or as a third party watching Bickle¡¯s descent into paranoia and madness. Even with the film¡¯s final act whe...
The tolerance in the graphic splendor of the street scenes of Vienna, interiors, and architectural aspects provide a good distraction form some dull minutes of the film, where in fact they could have used better scripts. The use of lights and shadows (Sepia and Black and White) helped in the flashback instants the film exposed, it resembled early years suitably. Some of the common shots used were: Arc shots – where the camera man focused and circled on Maria’s wedding day, laughter and love felt within her family and friends were caught on camera. Bridging shot – where the film focused on the view of Austria when the plane rode by Maria and Randi begun landing, thus depicting Maria’s anxiousness in coming back home. The cinematographer also used deep focus camera shot to emphasize the invasion of the Nazis and how homes in Austria were destroyed and humans were insulted. Lock down shot was also used, it focused on the emotional seconds of the movie, where the camera focused on Maria’s family while their home and belongings were being
“The horrors of the Holocaust are often…, filtered through memory or insulated by grief and recrimination” (Maslin 1). The Schindler’s List movie was an adaptation of Thomas Keneally’s book with the same name that narrates a verdict story. It was brought to life by Steven Spielberg who “made sure that neither he nor the Holocaust will ever be thought of in the same way again” (Maslin 1). Spielberg made an incredible job by recreating reality in a way that could shock and capture the audience. In the same way, director Roman Polanski brought to the big screen the memoirs of a Polish Jew who survived “the Nazi occupation and the Warsaw ghetto” (Scott 1). Polanski “presents Szpilman’s story with bleak, acid humor and with a ruthless objectivity that encompasses both cynicism and compassion” (Scott 1). He narrates the journey of one man that has to experience a finite set of events; this simplicity made the movie perfect for representing the Holocaust even better than Spielberg’s. Both films are about a selfless hero and a lucky man surviving against the odds at a time when hope was an
From the first note of the theme song during the opening credits, the viewer encounters the sounds of a zither, similar to a guitar. Anton Karas, the composer of the entirely zither soundtrack, was at the time an unknown artist. Reed heard him playing at a wine bar and got him to agree to compose the score. The music was often eerie or haunting, fitting with the anticipation of a noir and post-war Vienna, but it honestly gave life to the film, which sometimes felt flat. With the inundation of crime and thriller films being produced today, the viewer doesn’t feel the type of “edge of your seat” suspense that many modern day films are able to produce. As for the cinematography, many of the scenes of the film were shot at awkward angles. It was as if the camera wasn’t set up straight, but too much of an angle that it had to have been intentional. The black and white expressionist cinematography by Robert Krasker has been hailed as a critical aspect of the films’ style. At times it added to the drama of a scene, however, at other points it became overly distracting. The famous chase through the underground tunnels with the echoes disguising the location of the officers was an instance where the titled camera added to the drama of the
I really like the way how Polanski filmed the movie. The storyline of “The Pianist” is arranged in a chronological order. Polanski made the overall pace of the movie is really slow. In the movie, Szpilman gradually changes from a gentleman into a savage. There are many scenes where Szpilman is alone, struggling to stay alive and trying to keep his humanity within him. Szpilman’s mental state grows stronger as he tries to survive in the crumble Warsaw city. I believe that a slow pace of the movie is necessary to show how Szpilman has developed a stronger inner character throughout the whole incident. The way how Polanski chose to direct this movie is very interesting. Polanski chose to film the movie in a subjective way, where the audience can only see the incidents through Szpilman’s perspective. While watching the movie, we are not just looking at Szpilman in a third person perspective, instead, we existed in Szpilman’s mind. The audience can get an idea of how the situation must have been during the Holocaust. There is a particular scene in the movie where an ear-piercing sound appeared after the explosion. In the scene, Polanski put the audiences straight into Szpilman’s mind, so they can experience how Szpilman feels after the bombing. Polanski’s unique directing style allows him to win an Oscar for best