Asking a person ‘what makes a film “good”?’ will give you an array of answers depending on the person you ask. These could range from good cinematography, editing, acting, sound or even the message and values within the film.
Other people will base their opinions, not by any of these elements, but the feelings they experience when or after watching the film. For example, did the film make them feel tense? Bored? Excited? However, the underlying reason for these feelings occurring is when all the elements, both micro and macro, come together to tell an entertaining and impactful story that resonates with the viewer in one way or another.
For me, if a film is too confusing and not easy to keep track of then I quickly determine I don’t like it. This is down to the editing, if the sequence isn’t smooth and the pace is too quick, it can become too hard to follow. I love a film that makes me feel immersed into its world. This effect heavily relies on the sounds used in the film as it captures all the viewers senses.
One of my favourite films is The Silence of the Lambs. This film has a perfect mix of micro elements along with macro elements like the genre, theme, and style. The Silence of the Lambs is a horror film fixating on dark topics such as murder. So, for some, these themes wouldn’t interest them, whereas for me, I love the tension that can be created. The Silence of the Lambs was the first “scary movie” to win an Academy Award and swept the 5 major categories: Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, and Best Screenplay. Every scene in the film means something, every piece of dialogue is building to something, and every character has its purpose. The director, Jonathan Demme, perfectly orchestrated the film to constantly be building the tension till the very end with no dips.
Another film I really enjoy is Fantastic Mr Fox, which goes in a completely different direction to The Silence of the Lambs. Wes Anderson cleverly constructed a beautiful film regarding cinematography and the message of the film. Taking a simple children’s story and portraying it in a way that can reach all types of audiences. The film uses unique sound effects and music and the use of comedy throughout works very well as its kept simple. The warm colour tones and symmetry used within every scene, along with the editing keeping a perfect pace throughout, allows an extremely heart-warming feeling to be portrayed.
In conclusion, there is no simple answer to “What makes a film ‘good’?” and its predominantly based on the viewers opinions and how deeply they think about the individual elements used. However, the micro and macro elements contribute massively to how people feel whether they realise it or not.