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comparative essay Section C: Assembly (info about assembly)

Comparative – Structure Planning

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To what extent have modern science fiction films changed since the birth of the genre, shown with The War of the Worlds (dir. Byron Haskin, 1953) and The World’s End (dir. Edgar Wright, 2013)?

Introduction: Establishing the concept of genre and some of the conventions of science-fiction. Defining terms like modernism and postmodernism. Introducing the two films and their context, with brief summaries of the plots.

Comparison Point 1: The World’s End as a homage/pastiche of The War of the Worlds. References to intertextuality.

Comparison Point 2: The reality of The War of the Worlds vs the hyper-reality of The World’s End. The War of the Worlds has a sense of verisimilitude (despite the alien invasion). The World’s End lacks a sense of verisimilitude, as the characters behave in very exaggerated ways and the film includes many stereotypes – for example the design of the pubs.

Comparison Point 3: The World’s End as a commodity, due to the stars in the film and the fact that it is part of a trilogy. The War of the Worlds is more traditional as it aims to tell the story.

Conclusion: Summarising the main points

comparative essay Section A: Task Components (research & analysis)

Science Fiction

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To what extent have modern science fiction films changed since the birth of the genre, shown with The War of the Worlds (dir. Byron Haskin, 1953) and The World’s End (dir. Edgar Wright, 2013)?

Elements of Science Fiction
– stories often tell about science and technology of the future
– stories are grounded in science
– characters can include robots, aliens, creatures, etc
– conflicts tend to center around technology or issues with society
– stories often explore potential consequences of scientific innovations
– stories can be set in outer space, other worlds and parallel universes
– there are often features of biology, including enhanced humans
– stories can feature paranormal elements, such as telekinesis
– stories can often be allegorical or have hidden meanings

War of the Worlds
This film is set in 1953 California, when the Earth is suddenly invaded by Martians. They start to destroy cities across the world, and the people are powerless to stop them. The narrative follows the character of Dr Clayton Forrester, who tries to survive the attacks while finding a way to kill the Martians. In the end, the Martians are killed off by bacteria in the Earth’s atmosphere, as they had no resistance to it.

This film follows traditional conventions of science-fiction, as the narrative surrounds an alien invasion of Earth.

The World’s End
The film follows five friends as they attempt a pub crawl in their hometown of Newton Haven. They soon discover that the whole town has been replaced by androids, and they carry on the pub crawl in an attempt to remain undetected. Eventually, the androids find them, and the five try to escape while continuing the pub crawl. The two main characters, Gary and Andy, find the androids’ hiding place and confront them. The androids then leave Earth, but create an electromagnetic pulse that sends the planet back to the Dark Ages.

comparative essay Section A: Task Components (research & analysis)

Comparative – Research Question

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Area of Film Focus Film 1Film 2 Topic for Comparative Study
Science-fiction genreThe War of the Worlds (dir. Byron Haskin, 1953)The World’s End (dir. Edgar Wright, 2013)The development of the science fiction genre over time

Research Question: To what extent have modern science fiction films changed since the birth of the genre, shown with The War of the Worlds (dir. Byron Haskin, 1953) and The World’s End (dir. Edgar Wright, 2013)?

Film Role 2 (pages / portfolio)

Film Soundtrack

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My favourite film soundtrack is from the Back to the Future trilogy (dir. Robert Zemeckis), as it features lots of songs that were appropriate for the different eras, including The Power of Love, which was written for the film. Also, the opening score for the film, written by Alan Silvestri, is very iconic, and gives the audience the sense of the incredible film to come. The main section of the theme is also repeated at key points during the film, adding to the tension of it.

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The Story of Film: An Odyssey 3

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1) According to Cousins, who was the leading exponent of French Impressionist Cinema?
Abel Gance

2) Name one of his films and explain what was remarkable about the production techniques used.
Napoleon (dir. Abel Gance, 1927) – the camera constantly moved in the film, which was practically unheard of at that time.

3) What is Surrealist Cinema, and who were its two leading directors in the silent era?
Surrealist Cinema draws upon irrational imagery, and presents the world and strange. Key directors during this period were Salvador Dali and Luis Bunuel.

4) Name two films with directors and dates.
Un Chien Andalou (dir. Luis Bunuel and Salvador Dali, 1929)
Age of Gold (dir. Luis Bunuel, 1930)

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The Story of Film: An Odyssey 2

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1) Who were Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin and Harold Lloyd, and why were they so important to the success of the Hollywood silent era?
They were comedic actors who rose to fame during the silent era of Hollywood. They became global stars, as the silent films were accessible by any culture.

2) Name a film starring each of the above.
Sherlock Jr (dir. Buster Keaton, 1924)
The Kid (dir. Charlie Chaplin, 1921)
Safety Last! (dir. Fred  C Newmeyer, 1923) – starring Harold Lloyd

3) Who were the Italian and French equivalents of Charlie Chaplin?
Toto was the Italian equivalent, and Jacques Tati was French.

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The Story of Film: An Odyssey 1

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1) What was the name of the first film made by the Lumiere Brothers and when was this?
Workers Leaving the Lumiere Factory – 1895

2) What is the ‘Phantom Ride’?
An early genre of film, which shows a vehicle moving forwards by attaching a camera to the front of it.

3) What was ground-breaking about the silent films ‘The Sick Kitten’ and ‘The Life of an American Fireman’?
‘The Sick Kitten’ featured the first close-up shot, and ‘The Life of an American Fireman’ was the first film to cut to a different location – first it showed the outside of a burning building and then it cut to inside.

4) What the name of the first ‘film star’ in Hollywood?
Florence Lawrence

5) Who directed ‘Birth of a Nation’ and why is this film now considered to be controversial?
DW Griffiths – the film represents black people as unintelligent and the KKK as heroic, and it caused the rebirth of the KKK in America.

6) Which nation’s film industry does Cousins describe as ‘the best in the world’ in the 1910s and why?
Denmark, because they had an innovative way of constructing narratives.

7) Give an example of two films and two directors from this place and time cited by Cousins as remarkable.
Haxan (dir. Benjamin Christensen, 1922) and The Abyss (dir. Urban Gad, 1910).