The Lady From Shanghai (1947) Production: Mercury Productions Producer: Orson Welles Director: Orson Welles Screenplay: Orson Welles Cinematography: Charles Lawton Jr. Editing: Viola Lawrence Music: Heinz Roemheld Principal Characters: Rita Hayworth Elsa Bannister Orson Welles Michael O'Hara Everett Sloane Arthur Bannister Glenn Anders George Grisby The Lady From Shanghai is a timeless film that captures how a black and white film can be interesting for viewers. The overall film was effective with the help of the mise en scene, cinematography and editing. Each of the three parts put together brought out the complexity and intensity of this film and they made The Lady From Shanghai the classic film that it is today. The mise en scenes in this film are unique because it gave viewers the ability to have a sense of how the characters are feeling. For example, low lighting was used throughout the film to express a sense of the unknown and/or fear. Another great example of how mise en scene was used is how human shadows for night shooting were used to increase the feeling of mystery and a threating atmosphere (Awjingyi). And one of the most important examples of mise en scene used in this film is in the last scene where mirrors were used (aka the “funhouse”) to …show more content…
These three aspects combined made this film the classic that it is. Even though this film didn’t have any color in it whatsoever, this film was still effective because the viewer could focus on the plot and the depth of the characters with the excellent uses of cinematography, mise en scene and editing. The overall dysfunctional but also compelling storyline in The Lady From Shanghai was more apparent because of the black and white nature of this film and therefore this film will be a timeless film for years to
As I mentioned earlier, the clutter in the Gunderson’s home does speak volumes about who they are as people. Well very proud and honest people, they are very flawed and blue collar. This clutter is continued on in the kitchen. The shelf behind the kitchen table is filled with pictures and other nick-nacks. This clutter is eerily reminiscent of the middle class household portrayed by the MacGuff’s in the film Juno. These families both are not going to make sure everything in their home is pristine, but their way of life is really not too uncommon. It really does embody a lot of blue collar America. Another good use of mise en scene in this sequence was the very gray and desolate skyline during the murder investigation. Murder obviously is not a light topic, so the dark atmosphere in the sky very much fits into the theme of this scene. The last thing I’d like to mention about mise en scene and staging takes me back to the opening zoom of this sequence. Along with the visual theatrics zoom, the sudden appearance of nondiegetic music also insinuates this is quite an important scene in the film. Once we hear the dramatic strings, we know something dramatic is about to happen, especially because the music is clearly not coming from something on the screen. This nondiegetic sound can be a useful tool to setting a scene and properly utilizing mise en scene and at the end of day, setting the scene is key in a naturalistic
The fact that Richards’ two companions are clothed in red jumpsuits foreshadows their gruesome deaths. The use of lighting captivates the audience’s attention throughout the movie. For example the use of dim lighting during the subzero scene conveyed a feeling of confusion and mystery to the audience which is adequate to how the protagonist must have felt as he was enduring the situation of being thrown into an unknown environment. The mise-en-scene in this situation really connects the audience to the characters within the film to the point of having the audience feel as if they are experiencing the same emotions and feelings as the characters on screen. Another function of mise-en-scene in “The Running Man” is the utilization of lighting and crowding. During the scene where Damon Killian was entering the plaza to his work, it is well lit and sunny outside, as well as open and clutter-free. However, the lighting is the exact opposite during the night scene in which the screen was crowded with people and very dimly lit aside from a giant television screen. During the day, the crowd that had gathered to greet Killian consists of the upper-class and occurs in a clean and organized
The mise en scene of a film. ‘All material put before the camera to be
All of these examples prove that this film uses strong cinematic techniques that further immerse the audience into the film. The visual experience is one that is significant to film itself; therefore it is the most important element to this medium. Without a strong idea of cinematic technique, the film would not be succesful. This film successfully suspends reality, and for about two and a half hours, the audience feels as if they are in Jackson, Mississippi in the early 1960s during the civil rights movement.
Mise-en-scene was one method Minnelli used in displaying this sense of family unity and value. It is apparent in scenes of family interaction, whether it is conversation in the kitchen, celebrating holidays together, or sharing a family dinner together at the table. Behavior in this movie revolves around being loving considerate family members no matter what the action. Any smiles or excitement not motivated by direction were utilized and helped keep with the movies themes. When Mr. Smith brings about the conflict of the family having to move despite their wish to stay, almost immediately the family members disperse and leave him to himself.
His Girl Friday, Citizen Kane and Rashomon are all very well recognized films in the cinema & media world as well as from avid movie viewers worldwide. Although all three are iconic films, they vary greatly in the film form in which they’re presented. His Girl Friday is a prime example of a classical form, whereas Rashomon can be classified as an example of art cinema. The third film, Citizen Kane cannot be grouped into either one of these distinct categories because it shares similarities that both classical and art cinema film involve. Citizen Kane belongs in a category of its own and can be seen as a “hybrid” combination of both classical and art cinema.
Mise-en-scène in movies refers to how objects, characters and materials are placed inside the film frame. This relates to the choreography or design of individual visual elements in individual shots, including people, objects and their location. Sets, props, camera movements, make-up and costume all contribute to the mise en scene of any particular movie. Tim Burton as a director unleashes his imagination and experiences when making a film, his unique skill at creating dreamscapes of unusual, freakish characters, outsiders conflicting with the so called "norm". The clashing of two worlds that co-exist as well as his gift at incorporating childlike imagery.
The mise en scene highlights the military background that the characters are in. All in all, this scene is a highly emotional scene, highlighting the mortal danger that confronts Dave and The Sapphires.
Charlie Chaplin created amazing films with his career as a director, screenwriter, actor, producer and musician. City Lights is a story of the tramp who falls in love. He is blown away by the unexpected love affair with the flower girl. He does everything in his power to help her and along the way befriends the millionaire. The story shows the contrasts between the two very different worlds of the rich and the poor. The tramp befriends the damsel in distress millionaire and sparks a friendship where the tramp then sees the lives of both worlds. The mise en scene is a way that shows how different each scene is by the way each character lives their life. Not only in the contrast between the rich and the poor, but also a contrast to happiness verses the unhappy. The mise en scene shows symbols of props that represent how the characters are feeling and what we are suppose to be feeling as we watch what is going on onscreen. Mise en scene is used to tell the story and there are many aspects that come together. The composition, props,
I thought Amelie was strangely entertaining film. For the first half hour or so of the movie I wasn’t quite sure what was going on. There seemed to be no distinct plot and seemed to be all introductions into the twisted life Amelie was brought up in. Even through my confusion at this point, I found Amelie’s childhood to be entertaining, for example her imaginary friend or the description of her parent’s life styles. The movie started to pick up after Amelie discovered the box and decided she wanted to bring happiness to people around her and make the bad people pay for their actions. The scheme she devised to get back at the mean merchant was quite clever. I also enjoyed the cat-and-mouse game she played with Nino in order to return the photo album and to eventually meet him. I also found the usage of breaking the fourth wall in order for Amelie to answer the narrator’s questions to be unique.
Four key film extracts will be discussed. The introduction of Mina, starting of with a medium long shot of her in the Westenra house, which allows the audience to pay more attention to what is happening in the background, the mise-en-scene being a large decorated room of the Victorian era, including plants, chairs. The setting of the whole room is surrounded by glass, which has the ability to allow natural light.
There are four crucial scenes of this film in which Hitchcock shows a change in perspective and identity through the mise-en-scène. Hitchcock’s signature motifs, style, and themes are conveyed through the mise-en-scène.
The film Psycho (Alfred Hitchcock, 1960) is an interesting film with many small details that help shape the film in to award winning masterpiece it is. The mise-en-scène is something that can go overlooked, but is very vital in understanding the meaning of the film. According to the book Film Art, mise-en-scène is all of the elements in front of the camera to be photographed, and because of that, this film technique is one that viewers notice most (p. 112). So this includes things like characters, props, nature and even behavior. Motifs and symbolism are prominent throughout the entire movie. They both help develop the plot either by continuously appearing throughout the film or by having a specific meaning that is a lot deeper than what it looks like on the surface. The mise-en-scène, especially motifs and symbolism, of Psycho plays a huge role in helping convey the meaning of the film.
Overall this film was exciting to watch and was good to help learn a little about the Elizabethan Era. Although the goriness is too much for someone who is sensitive to that kind of thing, you can still enjoy the movie. The costumes are eccentric, the set design is, although outdated, extremely detailed, and was a good movie if you were looking for something to watch and enjoyed a little bit of history in your life.
The movie is by far the most famous work of Sergio Leone's and probably his best movie. Not only because it has become a part of our culture, but it also created its own sub-genre the spaghetti western. Despite the film’s western roots, the movie is free of any western clichés as any western themes are given either a unique twist or are removed by Leone's unique way of storytelling. The movie is constantly taking the cowboy hero approach that most westerns take and twisting it in new ways. For example, making the main hero morally grey, almost a scumbag anti-hero of sorts. He forgoes making the main hero an Everyman heroic cowboy who saves everyone gets the girl and ride off into the sunset like most westerns. Instead Leone goes for a more