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COMPARATIVE ESSAY – Layout and Criteria

Q. How does the ‘Serial Killer’ subgenre change when applied to different cultural contexts, shown with ‘Zodiac‘ (David Fincher, 2007) and ‘Memories of Murder‘ (Bong Joon-ho, 2003)?

Introduction

Frame of Reference – The context within which you have placed the two things you plan to compare and contrast, which may consist of an idea, theme, question, problem, or theory.

Grounds for Comparison – The reasoning behind your choice that lets your reader know why your choice is deliberate and meaningful, not random.

Thesis – Depends on how the two things you’ve chosen to compare relate to one another; do they extend, corroborate, complicate, contradict, correct, or debate one another?

Comparative Points

There are two basic ways to organise the body of your essay:

Text-By-Text – Discuss all of ‘Film A’, then all of ‘Film B’.

Point-By-Point – Alternate points about ‘Film A’ with comparable points about ‘Film B’.

All argumentative essays require you to link each point in the argument back to the thesis. Without such links, your reader will be unable to see how new sections logically and systematically advance your argument.

Conclusion

– A summary of the main points in your argument.

– Should be kept short and sweet.

– More of a round-up than an evaluation.

CRITERIA:
– Provide a credible justification for the choice of task components.
– Support your comparative study with accurate film vocabulary.
– Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the task components and the cultural context of the two selected films.
– Support your work with a suitable range of relevant sources.
– Compare and contrast the selected films, making links to the chosen topic.
– Provide an equal treatment of the two films selected for study.

COMPARATIVE ESSAY – Research on Film Movements

Film Movements:
– German Expressionism
– Soviet Constructivism
– French New Wave
– Classic Hollywood Cinema
– Parallel Cinema (India)
– South Korean New Wave
– New Hollywood Cinema
– British New Wave Cinema
– New Mexican Cinema
– Dogme 95
– Cinema Du Look (France)
– No Wave Cinema

Ideas

German Expressionism

1. The Man Who Laughs (Paul Leni, 1928) 2. The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise, 1996)

Soviet Constructivism

1. Battleship Potemkin (Sergei Eisenstein, 1925) 2. The Untouchables (Brian De Palma, 1987)

French New Wave

1. Reservoir Dogs (Quentin Tarantino, 1992) 2. Band of Outsiders (Jean-Luc Godard, 1964)

Parallel Cinema

1. Aalavandhan (Suresh Krissna, 2001) 2. Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (Quentin Tarantino, 2003)

Dogme 95

1. The Idiots (Lars von Trier, 1998) 2. District 9 (Neill Blomkamp, 2009)

COMPARATIVE ESSAY – Research on Film Theories

Film and Cultural Theories:
– Feminist Theory
– Post-Colonial / Critical Race Theory
– Queer Theory (fluidity of sexuality / gender identity)
– Marxist Theory (class)
– Narrative Theory (including screenwriting theory)
– Genre Theory
– Editing Theory (Eisenstein’s methods of montage)
– Film Noir Theory
– Post Modernist Theory
– Auteur Theory

IDEAS

Queer Theory

1. Brokeback Mountain (Ang Lee, 2005) 2. The Power of the Dog (Jane Campion, 2021)

Marxist Theory

1. Metropolis (Fritz Lang, 1927) 2. Snowpiercer (Bong Joon-ho, 2013)

Genre Theory

1. Batman (Leslie H. Martinson, 1966) 2. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (Zack Snyder, 2016)

Film Noir Theory

1. Nightcrawler (Dan Gilroy, 2014) 2. Sweet Smell of Success (Alexander Mackendrick, 1957)

Auteur Theory

1. The Duellists (Ridley Scott, 1977) 2. The Last Duel (Ridley Scott, 2021)

The Technical Differences

FRENCH NEW WAVECLASSIC HOLLYWOOD
Discontinuity editingContinuity editing
Focus on emotionFocus on plot
Absurd dialoguePurposeful dialogue
No establishing shotEstablishing shot
No master shotMaster shot
‘Crossing the line’‘Shot/Reverse shot’
Aesthetic close-upsPurposeful close-ups
Outtakes usedBest takes used
Jump cutsInsert shots
Handheld cameraDollys/Tracks/Tripods
Real locationsStudio locations
Long TakesShort shots
Black and whiteTechnicolour
Actors break the 4th wallActors never break the 4th wall

French New Wave

CLASSIC FRENCH NEW WAVE FILMS

1. Hiroshima Mon Amour (Alain Resnais, 1959) 2. Pierrot le Fou (Jean-Luc Godard, 1965) 3. The Cousins (Claude Chabrol, 1959)

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INFLUENCE ON CONTEMPORARY CINEMA

1. Lost in Translation (Sofia Coppola, 2003) 2. When Harry Met Sally… (Rob Reiner, 1989) 3. True Romance (Tony Scott, 1993)

Cahiers Du Cinema

Alexandre Astruc obituary | Movies | The Guardian
Alexandre Astruc

Alexandre Astruc was a French film critic and film director. His contribution to the auteur theory centers on his idea that directors should wield their cameras like writers use their pens.

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Agnès Varda
1. La Pointe-Courte (Agnès Varda, 1955) 2. Le Bonheur (Agnès Varda, 1965) 3. One Hundred and One Nights (Agnès Varda, 1995)

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Jean-Luc Godard
1. Breathless (Jean-Luc Godard, 1960) 2. Contempt (Jean-Luc Godard, 1963) 3. Goodbye to Language (Jean-Luc Godard, 2014)

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François Truffaut
1. The 400 Blows (François Truffaut, 1959) 2. Day for Night (François Truffaut, 1973) 3. Finally, Sunday! (François Truffaut, 1983)

The Five Methods Of Montage

Metric Editing – based on the length of the shot. It creates the tempo of the film.

The Karate Kid (John G. Avildsen, 1985)

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Rhythmic Montage – based on both the length of a shot and the dynamics of the scenes. This technique considers the need to provide continuity of action within a scene.

The French Connection (William Friedkin, 1971)

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Tonal Editing Method – focuses on the lighting, shadows and colours of the edited scenes to provide an overall ‘mood’.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (David Yates, 2009)

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Over-Tonal Method – brings together the first three methods (time/rhythm/colour) in a combined (holistic) approach.

Raging Bull (Martin Scorsese, 1980)

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The Intellectual Method – the most complex method (and Eisenstein’s favourite) that creates new meaning by combining shots on the basis of a conceptual connection between them.

Apocalypse Now (Francis Ford Coppola, 1979)