Film Pre-AS Work

What Makes A Good Film?

Kacper Bojarski

The film I have chosen to talk about is Saving Private Ryan, a World War 2 movie from 1998. The movie’s plot revolves around Captain Miller’s 2nd Ranger Battalion after the D-Day landings, They’re assigned to find James Ryan, a paratrooper who gets sent home because his brothers died. The movie is infamous for it’s graphic D-Day landing scene with people getting mowed down and entire limbs being torn off, I think this is actually something good in the movie as the movie doesn’t try to whitewash the Normandy landings which were very gruesome. One Narrative aspect of the movie that I liked was after the landings two American soldiers see surrendering Wehrmacht soldiers who are saying “Please don’t shoot me! I am not German, I am Czech, I didn’t kill anyone! I am Czech!” in Czech to the Americans and they get shot while surrendering to the Americans, I think this was a powerful scene because it breaks away from the cliche that the Americans were good guys. During the opening scene where they get off the landing craft the camera moves in and out of the water and makes it look like it’s a first person perspective, this is a good feature as it helps immerse the viewer into the movie. A use of Mise-En-Scene that I liked was how the town of Rammel is portrayed as a war zone very clearly with the damaged buildings and debris on the floor, unlike a more recent film Dunkirk where it just looked like a abandoned seaside town. One prominent feature in the film is that the soldiers that are sent to get Ryan question if it is worth it to risk 8 people’s lives for one and whether their orders are legitimate and worthwhile. The style of the film often contrasts from the slow scenes when they are marching through the meadows and talking amongst themselves to the high action scenes like when they are defending the town of Rammel, this contrast allows people who enjoy various genres of movies to at least enjoy certain segments of the movie. Captain Miller’s death is a very moving scene because as he is dying he tells Ryan to make his life ‘worth it’ as the camera cuts to his hand, which in the movie starts shaking when he is stressed, which stops shaking and then he dies. Towards the end of the film there a is moving scene where the elderly Ryan visits the Normandy Memorial and goes to the grave of Captain Miller and breaks down in tears while asking if his life was worth it, referencing the scene with Captain Miller’s death. Overall throughout the movie the brutality of war and how whatever might seem right at the time might bite back, an example is when the squad attacks a destroyed radar station and capture one surrendering German soldier which the majority of the squad want to immediately execute. This causes conflict within the squad but they ultimately let him go, but in the attack on Rammel the very soldier that convinced them to release him sees him as a part of the unit that’s attacking. In conclusion i think that Saving Private Ryan is a good film because it challenges typical WW2 movie cliches and also that the scenery was very good even by today’s standards.

Spike Lee is a well-known American director – some of his best known works include Malcolm X (1992) and BlacKkKlansman (2018). He has very strong opinions about representation on film. He says that for someone to create a film about black culture, it should be directed by a black person. Films like Detroit (dir. Kathryn Bigelow, 2017) and Django Unchained (dir. Quentin Tarantino, 2012) have been criticised by him, as the directors were white and he thought that they were misrepresenting black narratives.

I agree with Lee about this, as films about subjects like race can be very sensitive and hard to get right. A person who has lived the culture and lifestyle of black people would ultimately make a more accurate film that someone who has just researched this. Also, if a director doesn’t know a lot about the culture, they may resort to using stereotypical characters to show black experiences.

However, if a director does have a detailed knowledge of black lifestyle and on the topic that the film is about, then they could make an accurate film. Black people are one of the most under-represented groups on the big screen, so making a film about their lives should be respectful, and they should be correctly represented.

Art Film

The Shape of Water (2017, directed by Guillermo del Toro) – this drama/thriller was very successful, and received many different awards and nominations.

Submarine (2010, directed by Richard Ayoade) – this coming of age comedy/drama received a positive reception by critics after its release.

Alphaville (1965, directed by Jean-Luc Godard) – this French film combines a number of different genres and used no special props or sets, despite it being a drama and mystery film.

Fitzcarraldo (1982, directed by Werner Herzog) – this German adventure film is famous for not using any models during filming, even when moving a huge steamship.

Battleship Potemkin (1925, directed by Sergei Eisenstein) – this drama film was banned in many places because it showed a successful rebellion, and it has been called the greatest film of all time.

Mainstream Film

The Breakfast Club (1985, directed by John Hughes) – this comedy-drama film is one of the most popular high school films ever made, and is considered the best film of the decade.

Deadpool 2 (2018, directed by David Leitch) – this fantasy-action film was the eleventh film from the X-Men series, and was highly praised by critics because of its humour and performance.

Love, Simon (2018, Greg Berlanti) – this comedy-drama film was praised by critics for its diverse cast, and was the first film by Hollywood to focus on a gay teen romance.

Historically Significant Film

A Bug’s Life (1998, directed by John Lasseter) – this cartoon adventure was the first film to be digitally transferred frame by frame and released on DVD.

The Seventh Samurai (1954, directed by Akira Kurosawa) – this Japanese action film has been highly ranked in critics’ lists, and is one of the most reworked films in cinema.

The Wizard of Oz (1939, directed by Victor Fleming) – this fantasy film is one of the most well-known and is widely thought to be the best film in cinema history, and was very well-known for its use of colour.

Once Upon A Time In The West (1968, directed by Sergio Leone) – this spaghetti western was selected by the United States National Film Registry to be preserved as it was culturally, historically or aesthetically significant.

Manhattan (1979, directed by Woody Allen) – this comedy-drama film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry. It has also featured on many top 100 films lists, as being very funny.

Toy Story (1995, directed by John Lasseter) – this fantasy/adventure film was the first feature-length computer animated film, and many critics think of it as one of the best animated films ever made

Currently, the top 10 films of 2018 are…

1. Avengers: Infinity War (dir. Anthony Russo)
2. Black Panther (dir. Ryan Coogler)
3. Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (dir. J.A Bayona)
4. Incredibles 2 (dir. Brad Bird)
5. Deadpool 2 (dir. David Leitch)
6. Mission: Impossible – Fallout (dir. Christopher McQuarrie)
7. Ant-Man and the Wasp (dir. Peyton Reed)
8. Ready Player One (dir. Steven Spielberg)
9. Hong Hai Xing Dong (dir. Dante Lam)
10. Tang Ren Jie Tan An 2 (dir. Siecheng Chen)

These films have made a lot of money at the box office so far – Avengers: Infinity War is currently number 1 and has made over $2 billion. This is an incredible amount of money, and shows how the film industry is quickly becoming one of the most expensive in the world.

Eight out of these ten films are part of a series or franchise, the only two exceptions being Ready Player One and Hong Hai Xing Dong. This shows that most successful films are already known to audiences, or are just another instalment in a famous franchise. Some directors may find it easier to add to a franchise than to come up with a whole new idea. This is because not too much time has to be spent advertising it, as there will already be fans from previous films, who want to see the next instalment. Film companies will happily support films like these, as they can be a guaranteed way of making lots of money – if the film is good. For example, Mission: Impossible has made many films in the past, and dedicated fans will always go to see the next one, which in this case is Mission: Impossible – Fallout.

Many of the top 10 films also have famous actors in, who are easy ways of making money. Audiences would be more likely to go and see a film if they know their favourite actor will be in it, rather than a film that doesn’t feature anyone they know. These top actors will be paid huge amounts of money, for example Chris Pratt was paid around $10 million for his lead role in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. The Mission: Impossible franchise’s main selling point is Tom Cruise, and many fans agree that the films just wouldn’t work without him.

The last two films on the list are the only two Chinese films – the rest were made in Hollywood. This shows how the Chinese film industry is expanding, and how popular it is over there.

The top ten films mainly include action/adventure, which suggests that this is rapidly becoming a popular genre. This can be due to popular actors being cast, CGI and special effects. But a popular idea is the reducing cost to produce these films, most notably; due to special effects. For example, nowadays you can use special effects to show a building explosion rather than explode an actual building which costed films an exceptional amount of their budget in the early 1900’s. This leads to more budget available for more popular and well-known actors to draw the audience in. Actions films are also popular because of their interesting plots and wide range of stunts.

There are also two Chinese films in the top ten, which suggests that foreign films are becoming more popular inside the USA. This can be because more people are speaking Chinese, or even as people are beginning to experiment with new film types and try something new. Although these films are unknown to some Americans, they are famous within the Chinese community which is so large within America; that it contributes to their immense success.

 

Another observation I noticed, is that many of the films were in a franchise.  These include ‘The Avengers: Infinity War’, ‘Deadpool’, ‘The Incredibles’ and some others. These concepts are so popular because they entice audience into watching them with the promise of finding out what will happen from a previously well-known and loved film. This idea is appealing because it answers any questions that the audience had about the film and offers another opportunity to engage in the series. Viewers will also engage more in the plot because they have chosen to watch it continued so must hold some form of interest in the key ideas.

Another point worth mentioning is the hiring of famous, Hollywood stars which appeal to the audiences. Examples include Chris Pratt who stars in ‘Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom’, Dwayne Johnson who stars in ‘Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle’ and Chris Hemsworth who stars in ‘Avengers: Infinity War’. These stars are well-known and extremely popular in Hollywood which attracts some audience members to their films.

Some films are adaptations of popular novels; an example of this is ‘Ready Player One’. The novel was published in 2011, and was quite popular with the YA and Sci-fi community. The film adaptation did not disappoint, and steered far from ‘copying’ its inspiration and rather opted for making several significant changes from the novel.

Film adaptations of popular fiction are received so greatly because they can serve as an interesting visual for popular novels. They gain large audiences, mainly of those who read the book because they want to see how it will be presented and also adapted/changed. If a particular novel was popular, it can draw in large audiences from those who might not always go to the cinema but want to see how their beloved book will be presented. This is an interested concept because it varies the audience form those who have come from the novel and want to see how it will be and those who are interested in the plot or actors, and have not necessarily read the book.

In conclusion, the top ten 2018 films show that the ‘formula’ for a successful film can vary due to multiple factors. Some are successful because they draw in a large audience in the promise of following up a popular series or film adaptation. Whereas others rely on popular talent to secure their audience.  Finally, some bank on a certain genre because of the many benefits of using it

Activity 1 film Activity 2

Spike Lee has said that white people can’t make films with black people taking the main role. This is my opinion:

I feel like Spike Lee does make a valid point, however, personally I think that a person of any color can produce a film about anything, if they make sure that everything is historically accurate and non-offensive towards anyone. Everyone alive today has as much experience of the times that “Django Unchained” (A film Spike Lee refused to see because it was directed by a white person) as each other. Because no one was alive back then, that still is today. Spike Lee can’t say that black people are the only people who can make films about black people struggling, because he has as much experience as anyone else. This suggests that Spike Lee is trying to bring back segregation, as he is saying black and white people can’t mix. He’s also suggesting that he himself can’t make films with white people in, limiting his ability to cast actors who may be perfect for a role. 

However, there is another example of who can play what role in the BBC show ‘the elephant man’ in which, the main character is disabled. But that character is played by an abled body person, which has caused uproar among disabled actors who could have played that role. I think that this is wrong that an abled body actor played him, because someone who’s disabled in real life has felt the struggle that this character has. However, when it comes to Spike Lee, he hasn‘t been around when his ancestors were enslaved. If he wasn’t there during these events, he has as much experience as the rest of us. Someone like the Elephant man that’s around today, has the experience, and so they can really show it in their acting. That would also open the acting world to disabled people, meaning that many more jobs and dreams can be created for that demographic of people, which struggle to fund jobs, as even simple jobs like working in a shop are blocked off to some people because they don’t have disabled access. 

Box office data analysis    Ayisha Audrain

 

Many of the top films at the Box Office are from franchises like Marvel and Jurassic park and this shows that people like to watch franchise films because they form a complete story and there are a few Chinese films on the list and this suggests that Chinese films are becoming more widespread because there are large Chinese communities all around the world and this will fuel demand for Chinese – language films and this means that the Chinese film industry is becoming more and more prominent on the world stage.