A great example of sound within the film Pan’s Labyrinth is the sound within the scene where Ofelia is the lair of the Pale Man, and she gives into her human temptations and decides to disregard the words of the faun and eats a singular grape of the table. The diegetic sickly sticky sound of Ofelia removing the grape from the pile and the grotesque cracking sounds of the Pale Man as he comes to life, as well as his haunting shrill shriek, all add to this effect of the Pale Man’s overall creepy aura, as, personally, I don’t think the overall design of the Pale Man is that scary but the sound design within this scene definitely amplifies that character’s ‘fear factor’. The cracking sounds of the Pale Man waking up also adds to the scene’s tension, which contributes to the audience’s fear of him and their horror in watching cadaverous creature come to life.
Mise-en-scene
The overall mise-en-scene within Pan’s Labyrinth is extremely well crafted and helps build up the film’s overall magical realism aesthetic. At certain moments throughout the film, it also conveys and implies key character information, such as the use of the fairy-tale book showing Ofelia’s obsession with fairy tales, or the blue light that is associated with the character of the faun, perhaps implying his intentions with Ofelia are not as innocent as they seem.
A great example of mise-en-scene within the film is within in the film’s opening, where Ofelia finds this stone idol, which she then fixes by placing it’s missing stone eye back in place, which releases this odd bug like creature, which ends up turning into a fairy.
This mise-en-scene of this sequence is excellent, as, through the props of Ofelia’s storybook and the stone idol that Ofelia finds, it not only establishes the film’s magical realism aesthetic right from the beginning of the film but also establishes key character information, as it depicts Ofelia’s love of fairy tales and fantasy.
Also, through the costumes of the officers and the cars that they are driving, the film’s post Spanish Civil War period piece aesthetic is established, which is another great thing that this scene’s excellent mise-en-scene does.
Editing
The overall style of editing within Pan’s Labyrinth is very conventional, although, throughout the film, a number of diegetic wipes are used or cross-dissolves to and from black- thus forging a link between the real and the fantasy world, and therefore building and adding to the film’s overall magical realism aesthetic.
A great example of editing within the film that heavily uses the aforementioned techniques is the sequence in which Ofelia is lying on her mother’s belly and is telling her unborn brother a fairy tale.
The sequence starts off with the camera literally tracking back into her mother’s pregnant belly, as it cross-dissolves into her womb and shows her unborn brother. This technique establishes the already close sibling connection these two characters have, despite one of them not even being born into the world yet.
It then dissolves into a graphic of the fairy-tale that Ofelia is telling to her brother, building and further enhancing the film’s magical realism aesthetic.
This then dissolves into the branches of the forest surrounding the abandoned mill that Ofelia and her mother are staying in. This once again adds to the film’s magical realism aesthetic, by showing the connection between the fantasy world and the real world.
Cinematography
The cinematography within Pan’s Labyrinth, which won an Academy Award, and is done by cinematographer Guillermo Navarro, is very unique and interesting, as the crew shot a lot of day for night, especially in the forests where it was very difficult to artificially light. By underexposing these scenes three to four stops, Navarro not only created night but gave it an eerie presence that fit the film’s fantasy elements. He purposefully kept lighting effects that could only be attained with sunlight, which jarred the image when it passed itself as night, creating an aura of experimentation one might usually find in cinematography school.
An great example of this within the film is the sequence when Ofelia meets the faun, Pan, for the first time within the labyrinth.
Within this sequence, the shots are heavily saturated with these very cool blues. This is mainly due to the fact that this scene takes place at night-time, but also plays and builds the film’s overall magical realism aesthetic. Also, these blue tones are most commonly seen when the faun is on screen, which could perhaps imply that the faun’s intentions with Ofelia are not as innocent as they seem.
Gender/Representation
In terms of gender within the film Pan’s Labyrinth and how it is represented, there is a clear example of binary opposites: the maniacal Vidal, who’s only cares are killing the communists who hide in the hills and having a son. The well-being of his wife and step-daughter don’t even seem to matter to him. And then you have Mercedes, who is a real maternal figure to Ofelia and actually cares about people, as shown through risking her own life throughout the film to sneak supplies to the communists hiding in the mountains.
Men
A key visual representation of Vidal within Pan’s Labyrinth is the recurring visual motif of the watch that his father gave him after he died on the battlefield. This watch represents the self-loathing that Vidal holds within him, due to his anxiety about never being able to measure up to his father’s actions and legacy, and explains, not excuses, his actions and demeanour he carries out towards himself and others.
Another key visual element that builds the characterization of Vidal, is his physical deterioration and the deterioration of his watch throughout the film. This represents his own broken identity – he is an immaculate and precise mechanism, somebody who knows how to fight a war, but someone who is also heavily flawed morally.
Women
The main female characters within Pan’s Labyrinth are all affected by the mechanisms of the patriarchy. Ofelia is neglected by Vidal, which is what ultimately leads to her demise, and, whether you see the fantastical events as real life or something that is made up in the head of Ofelia, could either be a good or bad thing. Carmen, Ofelia’s stepmom, is also neglected by Vidal and, despite Ofelia’s attempts to try and save her life, sadly falls to the same fate as Ofelia. The only female character that achieves a ‘happy ending’ is Mercedes. This is partly due to the fact that she is ‘invisible’ to Vidal, and partly due to her love for her brother. However, despite her happy ending, the final scene of the film is one of profound for Mercedes, as she holds the corpse of Ofelia and weeps for the literal visual death of childish innocence at the hands of a brutalising patriarchy.
Aesthetics
Magical Realism
Magical Realism is an aesthetic that blends real-world events and actions with a fantasy element.
This aesthetic is extremely evident in Pan’s Labyrinth right from the beginning of the film, in which Ofelia finds this bizarre stone idol, which, once repaired, releases a strange bug-like creature, which later on in the film turns out to be a fairy, like the ones Ofelia was reading about.
A key visual way in which Del Toro opposes the real world and the world of fantasy is through the colour schemes of each world. For example, in the ending scene of the film, in which Ofelia is murdered by Vidal and then is transported to ‘her kingdom’, a metaphor, I think, for heaven, the two settings have very contrasting colour palettes, which not only reflects the two different moods within the worlds, but also plays into the film’s overall magical realism aesthetic. It’s also a clear visual differential for the viewer.
In the shots that take place within the real world, the colour palette is far more muted and dull and contains a lot of dark blues, which reflects the morose and depressing actions taking place within that world.
However in the shots that take place within ‘her kingdom’, the color palette is much brighter and contains a lot regal golds and ceremonious reds, reflecting the happiness of that scene and how Ofelia has achieved her ‘happy ending’.
Another key visual element that clearly depicts two separate worlds for the viewer is Del Toro’s use of high key and low key lighting, with high key usually representing the fantastical fairy-tale world and low key lighting typically representing the real world.
The still below clearly depicts this, as in it Ofelia is going from her bedroom into the real world, which is lit with low-key lighting, to the lair of the Pale Man, which is lit with high-key lighting. This clearly visually depicts the difference in world’s for the audience/viewer.
The effect of using different types of lighting to show the different worlds may also be implying that Ofelia feels more at home in the world of fantasy, rather than her cruel, biting reality. This reemphasizes the character’s childness to the audience/viewer.
Historical and Social Context
1944 – Spain
The historical background for the film Pan’s Labyrinth is post Spanish Civil War. The Spanish War took place from 1936 to 1939 between the Republicans and the Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the left-leaning Popular Front government of the Second Spanish Republic. The opposing Nationalists were an alliance of Falangists, monarchists, conservatives, and traditionalists led by a military junta among whom General Francisco Franco quickly achieved a preponderant role. Due to the international political climate at the time, the war was variously viewed as class struggle, a religious struggle, or a struggle between dictatorship and republican democracy, between revolution and counterrevolution, or between fascism and communism. The Nationalists won the war, which ended in early 1939, and ruled Spain until Franco’s death in November 1975.
Within the film, you have the Nationalists, Captain Vidal and his men, and the communists, Mercedes and the troops that are hiding in the mountains. Unlike the overall war, in the film, the communists actually, which I think plays into the film’s magical realism/fairytale aesthetic, as for the communists this is a ‘happy ending’.
Technological/Institutional Contexts
In terms of technological contexts and influences this film has had on the wider industry, this film is renowned for its animatronics and green screen work and its effective creation of a magical-realist production design.
In addition to this, it is well known for Del Toro’s highly unique and eclectic monster designs, such as the fawn and the Pale Man, both played by typical Del Toro actor, Doug Jones. Del Toro’s designs are so unique due to his also very unique hiring policy, being that he wouldn’t take anyone that had ‘typical’ influences in their art style.
And in terms of institutional contexts, this film was in the UK by Optimum and premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2006, in which it received great acclaim. Co-produced by a number of Spanish, Mexican and American production companies the $19 million budget is reflected in the complex production design, period dressing and relatively large cast. The eventual worldwide box office of $83.3 million was seen as a triumph.
I thought that this film was a very enjoyable watch and was extremely made. I like the performances throughout the film, and I thought that the character of Captain Vidal is one of the most evil villains I’ve seen in cinema. I also liked the sound design throughout the film, as I feel it contributed to both tone, tension and pacing within certain moments throughout the scene. Additionally, I thought that the film’ score was also very good and added to the emotional impact of certain scenes. And finally, I thought that it was very well written story and that it was paced very well, as I felt intrigued as to what would happen next throughout the entire film.
Memorable Scene
A very memorable scene for me is the scene in which Ofelia goes into the lair of the Pale Man and mistakenly eats the food on the table, which then leads to him coming alive and chasing her. I thought this was excellently done, as I thought it crafted tension very well through the constant pans back to this image of the still pale man. I also thought that the sound design within this scene, like the rest of the film, was very well done and I specifically enjoyed the bit in which Ofelia eats the grape and the Pale Man comes to life, as I felt all these cracking and gurgling sounds definitely added to this character of the horrific Pale Man.
La Jetée (Marker, Korea, 1962) – Analysis Sheet for Evaluative Commentary
Part 1: Brief Reference
What did you like about the film?
I really liked the score throughout the film – the choral singing brought a sense of awe and intensity to the stills of Paris being destroyed – I like the very dissonant music used in the scenes of when the main protagonist is in the past to perhaps imply his deteriorating mental state.
I also enjoyed the use of the voiceover throughout the film, as I thought it brought a level of emotionality to each still.
What didn’t you like?
I didn’t not like it, but I found the way the film was made, using stills instead of continuous shots, very odd, and the fact that this somewhat hard to follow way of filmmaking was matched with a quite complex sci-fi plot though for me was quite interesting I feel would be hard to follow for most.
I didn’t like the lack of dialogue, as I felt it meant I wasn’t emotionally involved in the characters in the film.
What ideas could you use? Narrative or style?
I like the idea of a voice-over, and I feel I may incorporate some still shots into my film.
I like making the idea of a sci-fi film, and I think I may base my short film on the sci-fi novel ‘Behold the Man’ by Michael Moorcock.
What ideas won’t you use? Why?
I won’t be using the lack of dialogue, as I feel it leaves characters within the film less developed. I don’t think I’ll be making a film composed entirely of still shots.
Part 2: In-Depth Study – Narrative
Narrative Feature
Example
Your own example
Establishing protagonist – what information do we find out? How is it conveyed?
Introduced only in narration – first in third person as “a man marked by an image”; then in first person -memory of incident at the airport. We don’t see him until the first experiment is shown. This shows how core the act of remembering is to his identity – indeed we find out very little about him (he remains nameless) apart from his ‘remembering’ (even when he is travelling in time).
The narration within the opening scene foreshadows the ‘Time Loop’ plot that the main protagonist is involved in, saying ‘That face he had seen was to be the only peacetime image to survive the war. Had he really seen it? Or had he invented that tender moment to prop up the madness to come?’. Also reflects how the main protagonist is mentally affected by the war and the incident he sees on La Jete.
Establishing other characters – what information do we find out? How is it conveyed?
The Woman is the first person we see (“the only image to survive the war”) – and she is defined only by the fact the narrator remembers her. Feminist critics may comment on the fact she barely seems to exist outside the experiences of the narrator and her growing belief in him.
We are told that ‘The victors were left to an empire of rats’ and that ‘The prisoners were subjected to experiments, apparently of great concern to those who conducted them.’ – this along with a long shot of one of the scientists and his outfit, leaning against a pipe presents this scientist in an eerie manner, and perhaps as someone who finds pleasure in human pain. The other scientists are presented as more official looking characters – perhaps representative of government officials.
Establishing location (time and place) – what information do we find out? How is it conveyed?
We are told immediately that the location is Paris. The bombed out wreckage of the city (real WW2 images) don’t immediately establish that this is the future until the narrator mentions radiation. The underground location beneath the Palais de Chaillot is shown by intercut images of broken cherubs and other sculptures.
We are told that survivors are held captive by a group of scientists – ‘The prisoners were subjected to experiments, apparently of great concern to those who conducted them.’ And that of they fail the experiments conducted on them they will face a gruesome fate – ‘The outcome was a disappointment for some – death for others – and for others yet, madness.’
Creating Enigmas – what are they? How are they created?
The Image the narrator obsesses over is the central enigma: who is the man he witnesses dying? How does he die? Who is the woman? The still images and voiceover powerfully evoke the nature of memory.
What other questions are posed throughout the narrative? What is the main goal of those in power? Are they truly sending people back in time for humanity’s betterment? Or are they doing it for their own personal gain?
– the sound of the whispers (that are in German, not in French, giving suggestions of Nazi Germany) and the fact they kill all the test subjects that fail the experiments suggests that they are doing this for the latter.
Narrative binary oppositions
The ‘Living Present’ vs Past/Future. As the film progresses, what constitutes the ‘present’ (for the protagonist) seems to shift from his dystopian subterranean society to the ‘past’ of pre-apocalypse Paris. This is conveyed by the faster rhythm of the montage and the sequence (18:00-18:49) where the images almost become like traditional cinema.
The Main Protagonist, who wishes to live back in time with the woman he has fallen in love with, which suggested through the shots getting longer as the film goes on, and the Scientists, who say they wish to help humanity rebuild after this nuclear war, but I think they are doing these experiments for their own personal gain, as is suggested through the whispers, which are not only German, and not French, but also are quite sinister and eerie.
Crisis – how was this conveyed?
Is it the first experiment? The moment the man spots the woman from the airport? Or is it when the future society offers him the chance to escape to the future?
What do you think is the crisis point? How does this affect the rest of the narrative?
I think that the crisis point is probably the first experiment, as without them as an opposing force to the protagonist in the narrative, there would be no one to shoot him at the end of the film, and the vast majority of the plot doesn’t operate without them.
Resolution – is it closed or open narrative?
The narrative is closed – but it is also in a loop: the narrator is both the dying man and the child watching the scene. This ‘time paradox’ has inspired films as diverse as The Terminator and Looper (as well as 12 Monkeys which is almost a remake).
What do you think about the end? Is it closed – or endlessly circular?
I think it is in both ways closed and endlessly circular, because at the end of the film we watch the man get shot and presumably die, but that can only happen if he sees the woman and himself get shot when he was a child.
Part 3: Meaning and Effect
What did you think was the intention of the filmmaker(s)? Intellectual message? Emotional response?
Everyone is trapped in their time – they cannot escape it, even through memory. It is also about concept of photography and cinema itself, trying to ‘freeze’ time with images despite time always being in motion.
How was this achieved?
The use of photomontage separates each frame of the story into a frozen image – even though these are joined together using traditional narrative film techniques such as voiceover, dissolves, fades and music. As the man begins to ‘live’ more and more in the ‘past’ with his lover, the space between these frames speeds up to resemble ‘motion picture’ speed at one point. The stuffed animals in the museum are also ‘frozen’ in a single moment.
Aesthetic binary oppositions
The use of still photo images are combined with traditional narrative cinematic techniques that bring them ‘to life’… until the moment around 18:00 when they flow together.
Effect of these oppositions?
Shows the intensity of emotion the narrator feels with his lover: like he is finally ‘living’ in moving time rather than a series of frozen, separated moments.
Inspirations – what ideas did this film give you for your own short film?
Establishing characters, setting, plot, theme
I like the idea of a sci-fi time travel plot and will perhaps use that for my short film, and the way it uses establishing shots to quickly ground the film in its time period and setting is a technique I may also use.
Creating enigmas
The obvious enigmas within ‘La Jetee’ are the scientists, as through their costumes and the dialogue of the whispers, the audience are positioned to ask deeper questions about these characters. Who truly are they and what are their true objectives? In my short film I may use this technique of a mysterious character within the world of the film.
In terms of the narrative structure of this film, I like how it is told in this non-linear, cyclical way and it may be something I wish to apply to my own short film.
Striking use of technical features
The obvious striking technical feature in ‘La Jetee’ is that the entire film is composed of merely still shots, and though I will most likely not create my entire short film in this way, I may incorporate this technique at certain moments throughout the film.
Wild Tales (Szifron, 2014) – Analysis Sheet for Evaluative Commentary
Film 1: Pasternak
What did you like about the film?
In all of Wild Tales short films, I think the dialogue is very well written, as it conveys character information well within the short time of each film, as well as being very funny and somewhat witty.
I thought the film’s cinematography was very effective and visually interesting and appealing.
I also liked the moments at which music was used, as felt the times in which it was placed added something to scene rather than just be there and not add anything to the short films.
What didn’t you like about the film?
There isn’t much I don’t like about these short films, as I thought that they are very well constructed and use of the micro elements of film very well to convey meaning.
I guess one thing I don’t think is executed that well is the actions taken by the characters within the short films, as at certain moments they don’t seem to make sense. Though I know the films are supposed to be about discussing human’s more animalistic urges, I feel the actions taken by some of the characters are not realistic.
What ideas could you use? Narrative or style?
I could use the idea of these very stylistic and unique shots within my film, as I think it creates a very unique effect for the viewer and keeps the film interesting.
What ideas won’t you use? Why?
I could use this narrative style that the events that are happening within the short film are all linked and interconnected, but I probably won’t as it don’t think it fits the genre of my short film.
In-Depth Study – Film elements
Film element
Example
Cinematography
Example 1: A great example of cinematography within this short film is the shot in which a camera has been placed in the overhead locker of the plane at a high angle and is looking down on the passengers of the plane. I feel this is a very unique and effective technique, as it is not only interesting visually for the audience but could also foreshadow the lower moral position these people are in due to their acts towards Pasternak.
Example 2: Another example of cinematography within this short film that I also really like is the close-up of the magazine the main female protagonist is reading, as it shows a gazelle being hunted by a group of leopards. This foreshadows the message of this short film to the audience, which is that Pasternak feels as if he’s been ‘hunted’ by these people his entire life and has been their ‘prey’, and now, with this plane scheme, he gets to be the ‘hunter’ and the people that have hurt him the ‘prey’.
Editing
Example 1: A great example of editing within this short film is the sequence in which the distress in plane is being shown and it then suddenly cuts to the old couple sitting in the garden, which through dialogue you can infer are Pasternak’s parents. The sudden change in visual content going from intense panic to relaxation, and the also sudden drop out of sound within in the sequence creates a comic effect for the audience.
Example 2: A great example of editing within this short film is how the cuts between each shot get faster as the cabin descends into more and more chaos as they slowly begin to realise that they’re going to die. I feel it really reflects the sudden change in mood from the calm and casual conversation between characters on this peaceful flight, to this impending doom of death.
Sound
Example 1: A great example of sound within in this scene is the diagetic sounds that can be heard throughout the end of the short film, where the plane is hurtling towards the ground and the air masks are coming down and things are falling out of the overhead cabins. These sound effects add to the intense panic be shown in the scene for the audience and adds to the mise-en-scene of the plane about to crash.
Example 2: Another great example of sound within this short film is the ending of the short film where the old couple, who are assumingly Pasternak’s parents, are sitting in their serene back garden and the sound of the plane approaching them slowly gets louder and louder. This adds to the tension and drama of the scene, as we know that the plane is about to crash into them, but they don’t.
Inspirations – what ideas did this film give you for your own short film?
Cinematography:
This short film has inspired me to use unique and interesting ‘impossible’ shots within my film, to keep my short film interesting and exciting for the viewer
Editing:
This short film has inspired me to use the comedic idea of suddenly cutting from a busy and panicking scene, to a scene which has a much more peaceful and calming tone.
Sound:
This short film has inspired me to pick sounds within in my film which actually have substance and add to the emotion of the scene, rather than just be there for filler.
Other:
This short film has also inspired me to perhaps have a unique twist within my film, such as the amazing twist within ‘Pasternak’.
It has also inspired me to try and write funny and clever dialogue that conveys character information efficiently and positions the audience to root for certain characters and turn on others.
Film 2: The Rats/Las Ratas
What did you like about the film?
I’d liked the film’s kinda neo-noir, dark, gloomy aesthetic, which I thought was established very well throughout the short film, specifically within the film’s opening shot.
I also liked the dialogue as, like the rest of the ‘Wild Tales’ series of short films, it was really funny and really effectively positioned the audience to cheer for one group of characters and despise the others. Specifically, I really liked how the character of who I’m assuming is the main female characters grandma was written, as I felt it was not only really funny, but also highlighted the short film’s message of challenging the government and their values.
And finally, I really liked how the cinematography in this film was really effective as it not only played into it’s film noir visual style, as seen in the film’s opening shot and the ending spiral camera shot of the dead man, but it also conveyed character information effectively to the audience, as we see the two characters of the woman and the grandma in to two different windows of the cafe.
What didn’t you like?
There wasn’t much I didn’t like in this film, as I thought it was a very enjoyable overall experience.
However, I thought that the actions that the characters carried at certain points were somewhat unrealistic and didn’t make sense, such as when the grandma stabs the loan shark out of nowhere.
I also didn’t like the performance of the loan shark’s son, as I thought it was very flat and emotionless, and didn’t add much to the film.
What ideas could you use? Narrative or style?
I definitely could use the film’s ‘Film Noir’ aesthetic within my film, as I think it would fit the premise of my film very well.
I could definitely use the ‘Film Noir’ inspired shots within my film to push home the aesthetic.
I could definitely use the idea of Binary Opposites within my film.
I will definitely use effective and witty dialogue within my film, and perhaps the key underlying message of my film will be criticizing the government and what they do.
What ideas won’t you use? Why?
I won’t set my film within a diner as a I don’t think it will fit my premise well
I won’t have the characters within my short film perform unrealistic actions that don’t make sense, as I feel it takes away from the versimilitude of the film.
In-Depth study – Mise-en-scène
Feature
Example – how does it convey meaning or create an effect
Set Design
An example within ‘Las Ratas’ of good set design is the shot within the film when the two characters of the server and the cook are framed in two separated windows. This imagery conveys to the audience the different moral viewpoints the two characters in the film have on the situation.
Costume
The costumes in ‘Las Ratas’, the suit of the loan shark snarky character, and more tattered and everyday clothes of the grandma and her granddaughter, show the different classes the two sets of characters have to the audience.
Lighting
The lighting within ‘Las Ratas’ definitely goes along with the short film’s neo-noir aesthetic and conveys to the audience the short film’s overall darker tone.
Composition
The composition within ‘Las Ratas’ plays into the grimy aesthetic of the film. For example, the shots throughout the short film that take place within the kitchen though high-key lit, have these grimier feel to them, perhaps showing to them the lower class of the two characters that work within the kitchen.
Hair and makeup
The main example of makeup within ‘Las Ratas’ is the difference in makeup between the young female character and the older grandma character. The young female character is seen to be wearing thicker layers of makeup, whereas the older grandma character isn’t wearing any makeup at all. This perhaps signifies to the audience once again the difference in the moral standpoints of these two characters.
Inspirations – what ideas did this film give you for your own short film?
Cinematography/Sound/Editing:
I like the use of dolley shots throughout the film and that may be something that I choose to use in my short film.
Narrative structure:
I don’t think this film has given me any ideas for my short film’s narrative structure.
Establishing characters, setting, plot, theme:
I like the way in which this short film quickly established the setting through the establishing shot and I may use that.
I also the way it established character background information through the female character’s dialogue.
Creating enigmas:
I don’t think this film has given me any ideas for my short film’s narrative structure.
Film 3: Bombita
What did you like about the film?
I liked the kind of ‘Falling Down’ and ‘Joker’ type narrative, and the idea that society’s flaws turn an ordinary man into someone who leads a rebellion against them.
I also liked the cinematography of the short film, specifically the shots of him sitting in the café near the end of the short film, and the opening shot of the film, which shows him planting explosives.
Additionally, I like how the main character was quickly established within the first 30 seconds of the film. And finally, I once again though the dialogue was really well written and funny and in this short specifically, I like how it clearly laid out these animalistic emotions the main character
What didn’t you like?
I didn’t like how, like the rest of the short films in the collection, the actions the main character took felt unrealistic.
I felt a few of the performances within the short film weren’t the best, such as the main character’s wife and the man he works with.
What ideas could you use? Narrative or style?
I could perhaps write a film around this ‘Falling Down’ type of narrative, where society’s flaws cause him to slowly descend into madness. I could perhaps use a bookend ending, where the beginning of the short film mirrors the end.
What ideas won’t you use? Why?
I probably won’t show unrealistic actions within my film, because I just don’t think it will fit what I want to make.
In-Depth study: All elements
Feature
Example
Narrative structure
The film’s ‘Falling Down’-esque narrative structure where a man just one day snaps after society as tested him for so long I find really interesting.
I also like the film’s visual cyclical narrative structure, as the film begins with blowing up this structure that then fall apart one part after the other, which visually foreshadows how the events within the film are like a chain reaction and they all happen due to the effect of something else.
Establishing characters, setting, plot, theme
The way that characters are established within ‘La Bombita’ is really clever, as by immediately showing the main character within the short film working with explosives it immediately establishes his profession and also foreshadows the ending of the film and how he will send a car filled with explosives to the DMV to get his revenge.
Mise-en-scene
An example of great mise-en-scene within ‘La Bombita’ are the scenes that take place within in the various DMVs. Like in the real world, the interiors of the different DMVs are all very bland and boring, perhaps signifying how, once he starts breaking them, the main character is fed up with the mundaneness of his life.
Cinematography
The cinematography throughout this film is great. I especially like the shots within the film where the framing is really tight and not a lot of the main character’s face is visual within the frame. The use of this visual effect really creates this tense and panicked feeling for the audience and conveys how the man is getting more annoyed by the DMVs as the film progresses.
Editing
The constant use of jump cuts throughout the film definitely adds to the main character’s sense of frustration that builds up constantly throughout the film.
Sound
The use of constant jumps in volume within the film add to it’s overall energetic nature and perhaps conveys to the audience how main character feels he may snap at any moment.
Inspirations – what ideas did this film give you for your own short film?
Cinematography/Sound/Editing:
I liked how the film-maker created tension within in the film through their use of tight frames, conveying that the character is getting more and more frustrated and pent up with rage.
Narrative structure:
I like the film’s ‘Falling Down’-esque narrative structure, and how the narrative structure is also somewhat cyclical and order based, as the events within the film feel like they’re a result of one another.
Establishing characters, setting, plot, theme:
I like how the opening of the short film quickly establishes key character information about the main character within the film, as that information definitely plays a role later in the film.
Creating enigmas:
This film did not give me any inspiration when it came to creating enigmas.
Film 4: Til Death do us Part/Hasta que la muerte nos separe
What did you like about the film?
I liked the cinematography in this film, as like the other ones, the setting and aesthetic was quickly established very well, and it also used some very unique and creative shots, such as the ‘Impossible Shot’ where the camera is placed on the door handle.
I also liked the dialogue as like the rest of the collection, it was very well written and in this case of this short film, adds to its intense moments and climaxes.
I found in this one the actions taken by the main characters did make sense do some extent, as I feel like the woman having that reaction to her husband cheating on her does feel logical and justifiable.
What didn’t you like?
I found the narrative and plot of this short film less enjoyable than the others, as, personally, I don’t particularly like films who’s main theme/setting is love, though the way this short film approached the genre was rather interesting.
What ideas could you use? Narrative or style?
I may use this idea of a revenge plot within my film, as I think it will suit the idea I have in my mind very well.
What ideas won’t you use? Why?
I don’t think I’ll base my film within the setting of a marriage, as it won’t fit the type of plot I’m going for.
In-Depth study: All elements
Feature
Example
Narrative structure
The narrative structure of the wedding
Establishing characters, setting, plot, theme
As with the rest of the short films key character information is established quickly by an opening establishing shot. This is a typical technique used in short films, as there is obviously less length within the film to establish characters and their backgrounds.
Faye Dunaway – Bonnie Parker. Faye Dunaway’s career began in the 1960s, in which she was a famous Broadway star. She made her on screen debut in 1967 in ‘The Happening’, the same year she made ‘Hurry Sundown’, alongside Michael Caine and Jane Fonda. Her role as Bonnie Parker made her an instant star and she received her first Academy Award nomination for it too. Her casting for the role proved to be difficult, as not only were many actresses that were being considered for the role, such as Jane Fonda, Tuesday Weld and Natalie Wood, but also producer Warren Beatty was not sold on her casting in the role, and had to be convinced by director Arthur Penn to allow the casting. He quickly came round to her after seeing some photographs of Dunaway taken on a beach by Curtis Hanson, claiming, “She could hit the ball across the net, and she had an intelligence and a strength that made her both powerful and romantic.”
Warren Beatty – Clyde Barrow. Warren Beatty started his career in television shows such as ‘Studio One’ (1957), ‘Kraft Television Theatre’ (1957), and ‘Playhouse 90’ (1959) and he was also a semi-regular on the show ‘The Many Loves of Dobie Gills’ during its first season (1959-1960). His performance in William Inge’s ‘A Loss Of Roses’ on Broadway, his only Broadway performance, garnered him a 1960 Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Play and a 1960 Theatre World Award. After this, he then enlisted in the California Air National Guard in February 1960 but was discharged the following year due to a physical inability. Beatty made his film debut in Eliza Kazan’s ‘Splendor in the Grass’ (1961). The film was a major critical and box office success and Beatty was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor and received the award for New Star of the Year. The film was also nominated for two Oscars, winning one. He didn’t really have another major success until ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ in 1967, in which he starred in and produced. The film was nominated for ten Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor, and seven Golden Globe Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor. Beatty was originally entitled to 40% of the film’s profits but gave 10% to Penn, and his 30% share earned him more than US$6 million.
Michael J. Pollard – C.W. Moss. Pollard’s on screen career began in television in 1959, in which he had appearances in programs such as, ‘The Human Comedy’ and ‘DuPont Show of the Month’. He then made his Broadway debut in a non-singing role he created in ‘Bye Bye Birdie’, as Hugo Peabody. It was in Broadway that he starred alongside Warren Beatty, who he already knew from his days in television. The two developed a close friendship, with Warren Beatty saying the reason he was cast in Bonnie and Clyde was because “Michael J. Pollard was one of my oldest friends”, Beatty said. “I’d known him forever; I met him the day I got my first television show. We did a play together on Broadway.” Pollard received Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for Best Supporting Actor for his role in ‘Bonnie and Clyde’, as well as winning a BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles.
Gene Hackman – Buck Barrow. In 1956, Hackman began pursuing an acting career and joined the Pasadena Playhouse in California, where he befriended another aspiring actor, Dustin Hoffman. Hackman got various bit roles, such as a role in the film ‘Mad Dog Coll’ and on the TV series ‘Brenner’ and in 1963 he made his transition into Broadway in ‘Children From Their Games’, which only had a short run. However, his next Broadway performance, ‘Any Wednesday’ with actress Sandy Dennis in 1964, was a huge success and is what opened the door for his acting career to begin. He made film debut in ‘Lilith’, with Jean Seberg and Warren Beatty in the leading roles. His performance in ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ as Clyde’s brother Buck Barrow was described by Warren Beatty as ‘the most human performance he’d ever seen’ and it earned his first Academy Award nomination but it wouldn’t be until his role as Detective Jimmy ‘Popeye’ Doyle in ‘The French Connection’ that he would win his first Academy Award for Best Actor, and thus, shoot into stardom. He then appeared in critically acclaimed films such as ‘Poseidon Adventure’, ‘Scarecrow’, alongside Al Pacino, Francis Ford Coppola’s ‘The Conversation’ and , a personal favourite of mine, ‘Mississippi Burning’.
Estelle Parsons – Blanche. Parsons career began when she moved to New York and worked as a writer, producer and commentator for ‘The Today Show’. She made her Broadway debut in 1956 in the ensemble of the Ethel Merman musical ‘Happy Hunting’. Her Off-Broadway debut was in 1961, and she received a Theatre World Award in 1963 for her performance in ‘Whisper into My Good Ear/Mrs. Dally Has a Lover’. In 1964, Parsons won an Obie Award for Best Actress for her performance in two Off-Broadway plays, ‘Next Time I’ll Sing to You and In the Summer House’. In 1967, she starred with Stacy Keach in the premiere of Joseph Heller’s play ‘We Bombed in New Haven’ at the Yale Repertory Theatre. Obviously, she also starred in ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ in 1967 as Buck Barrow’s lenient wife Blanche. For this role, she won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. She also went on to be nominated in the same category for her role in ‘Rachel, Rachel’ and win a BAFTA Award Nomination for her role in ‘Watermelon Man’ in 1970.
Denver Pyle – Frank Hamer. Denver Pyle’s on-screen career began in 1951, in which he guest-starred in the syndicated television series ‘The Range Rider’ with Jock Mahoney and Dick Jones. Up until his most well-known role of Uncle Jesse Duke in the CBS series ‘The Dukes of Hazzard’ (1979 – 1985), in which he did 146 episodes, he mainly had limited roles in his television and film career, most of which came in Western Tv series, such as his guest appearances in ‘My Friend Flicka’, ‘ The Restless Gun’ with John Payne, the syndicated Western series ’26 Men’, in which he appeared alongside Grant Withers in a episode titled ‘Tumbleweed Ranger’ and his several appearances in Richard Boone’s CBS show ‘Have Gun – Will Travel’, in which he was a variety of characters, including the character ‘The Puppeteer’ in the his final appearance on the show. Also, a lot of his apperances in film and tv were uncredited, such as his appearance in ‘Cheyenne Autumn’ in 1964 as Senator Henry and his appearance in ‘Home from the Hill’ as Mr Bradley in 1960, so clearly he wasn’t viewed as a major star. His most memorable role in film is probably his portrayal of Frank Hamer, the sheriff who tails Bonnie and Clyde for so long and is the final one to kill them in an ambush.
Dub Taylor – Ivan Moss. A vaudeville performer, Taylor made his film debut in 1938 as the cheerful ex-football captain Ed Carmichael in Frank Capra’s ‘You Can’t Take It with You’. He secured the part because the role required an actor who could play tuned percussion. In 1939 he appeared in the western film ‘Taming of the West’ in which he played a character named Cannonball, who was a comedic sidekick to other famous western character Wild Bill Elliot. He would play this character in 13 different films, such as the ‘Red Ryder’ series of films. He then had bit parts in the classic films ‘Mr Smith Goes to Washington’ (1939), ‘A Star Is Born’ (1954) and ‘Them!’ (1954). He later joined Sam Peckinpah’s stock company in 1965’s ‘Major Dundee’, playing a professional horse thief. After this he would then go on to play Ivan Moss in ‘Bonnie and Clyde’, a character who is deceivingly nice to the two main title characters, but behind their backs is signing their lives away to Frank Hamer, the sheriff who’s been tailing them for so long.
Gene Wilder – Eugene Grizzard. Gene Wilder’s professional acting career began in 1951 when he was cast as the Second Officer in Herbert Berghof’s production of ‘Twelfth Night’. He also served as the production’s fencing choreographer. After he joined the Actors Studio in 1958, he started to be noticed in the off-Broadway scene, thanks to performances in Sir Arnold Wesker’s ‘Roots’ and Graham Greene’s ‘The Complaisant Lover’, for which Wilder received the Clarence Derwent Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Nonfeatured Role. One of Wilder’s early stage credits was playing the socially awkward mental patient Billy Bibbit in the original 1963–64 Broadway adaptation of Ken Kesey’s novel ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ opposite star Kirk Douglas. His first role in film was in 1967 in ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ as the minor role of Eugene Grizzard, a somewhat sleezy banker who, along with his wife, is kidnapped by Bonnie and Clyde.
Mise-en-scene in Bonnie and Clyde
Locations
In terms of mise-en-scene in Bonnie and Clyde, the locations that the film was done in definitely add to this aesthetic of realism and verisimilitude for the audience, as all the locations featured in the film are actually real and are in North Texas near DFW. An example of a real world location in the film is the cafe/convenience store scene in which Bonnie and Clyde have some lunch in this cafe/convenience store and then steal a car that is sitting outside. This cafe/convenience store is a real world cafe and is still standing on 100 Main Street, Lavon, Texas.
Another good example in terms of mise-en-scene in locations is the farm that Bonnie and Clyde are practicing their shooting, which they find out, once the former owner returns, has been repossessed by the bank. This location and that scene embody this feeling that Bonnie and Clyde aren’t actually that selfish and are robbing these banks to give back to the people. This aligns with the zeitgeist feel of the film that it embodies this New Hollywood glamorization of criminals and their heinous activities.
Costumes
The costumes used in this film definitely add to the film’s 1930s period piece aesthetic and certainly look like clothes that worn during that time, adding to the film’s realism and the versimilitude for the audience. The cast wears a vast array of clothing pieces that embrace the 30s, such as Clyde and Buck Barrow’s fedoras and brown tweed suits and Eugene Grizzard’s sleezy banker suit.
The one exception to this is Faye Dunaway’s outfit as Bonnie, as she wears very 60s clothes throughout the film and, once the film came out, her fashion choices in the film actually inspired a fashion movement, in which women started to wear berets and more smart suit jackets. And for me, the fact that Bonnie always has new and fashionable clothes aligns with this idea that she is quite a materialistic person and that she is quite selfish, unlike Clyde who is portrayed at moments throughout the film to be selfless.
Props
The props used in ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ once again add to the film’s realism and the versimilitude for the audience. Some particularly striking and realistic props in the film are the guns as they match the type of guns used in that time period and the cars used in the film as they are actual cars from that time period that were lent to the studio by this old car collector, with his only condition being ‘that they didn’t get damaged’.
Editing in Bonnie and Clyde
In terms of editing, a good sequence that sums the films French New Wave style of erratic editing is the opening sequence of Bonnie waking up, seeing Clyde trying to steal her mum’s car and then going down to confront him.
The unconventional formula of shots and erratic French New Wave-esque editing used within the sequence convey to the audience this idea that Bonnie feels trapped within her mundane, as shown by the shot that shows her lying on her bed with the bedstead bars casting shadows over her face, which imitate the image of prison bars.
The use of quickly zooming or panning to different shots, more specifically quickly zooming or panning to extreme closeups of her red lipstick covered lips or her eyes I imagine would make this opening feel very personal and imitate for the viewer and, along with the shots of her naked body, add to this powerful, sexual image that Bonnie has throughout the film.
And then, near the end of the sequence, this more conventional style of Hollywood editing starts to creep in, as it cuts between a low angle tilted up wards shots to show Clyde’s perspective, and high angle tilted down shots to show Bonnie’s perspective, which shows to the audience that these two are having a conversation. The switch to a more formulaic and conventional styling of editing may be done at this moment to show to the audience the switch in Bonnie’s mindset once she sees Clyde, going from ‘I’m stuck in this boring life’ to ‘Oh, perhaps this man is my way out of this life’.
Sound in Bonnie and Clyde
Dialogue
The dialogue in ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ I feel is very accurate to the time period in which the film is set, which adds to the film’s versimilitude and immersion for the audience. The use of words such as ‘momma’ and the character’s improper grammar in their speech certainly places the film in 1930s southern Texas. Also, the characters Texan accents certainly help the idea of the film being in Texas and that these people are from Texas.
Sound Motif/Score
The score within ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ can be at certain times very jovial and cartoonish, with the film’s recurring use of the song ‘Foggy Mountain Breakdown’ by Flatt and Scruggs certainly adding a quite comic tone to these rather morbid car chase scenes, especially the one in which a bank employee gets shot in the eye by Clyde Barrow, which creates a very clear contrast in tone. At other points in the film, the soundtrack adds to the mood of what is being shown, whether that be the somewhat romantic soundtrack that underscores the scene in which Bonnie and Clyde first have sex, or the scenes, which have a darker soundtrack to match the morbid content being shown.
Aesthetics in Bonnie and Clyde
Realism
‘Bonnie and Clyde’s realism is crafted impeccably in the film, whether it be through the real world locations being used in the film, or real 1930s cars being used in the film, to the actors Texan accents, the film certainly crafts it’s versimilitude and realism really well for the audience. However, it’s French New Wave style cinematography and editing, which is very jagged and erratic, unlike the conventional ‘invisible’ Hollywood editing, could certainly lessen the effect of the film’s brilliant realism for the audience
Tone
In terms of tone in Bonnie and Clyde, it certainly shifts a lot and the tone created by certain elements within a scene is certainly juxtaposing with one another.
A good example of this would be the scene in which Bonnie and Clyde’s gang rob a bank and one of the bank workers leaps onto the sideboards of the car and then gets shot in the eye, which then leads to a thrilling car chase/shootout with the police. The visuals being shown of this man being shot in the eye and this jovial bluegrass that underscores the scene certainly creates this clash in tone. The film makers have done this perhaps due to their French New Wave influences or maybe even perhaps to show the unpredictability of a criminal lifestyle.
Visual Style (French New Wave)
Bonnie and Clyde’s French New Wave influence is clear from the very beginning of the film, which uses this French New Wave style of erratic editing, to show to the audience that Bonnie feels trapped within her boring and mundane life.
The film uses many French New Wave tropes throughout, such as on location filming and not using built sets like Classical Hollywood does, and having very explicit and violent content throughout the film, such as Bonnie being nude in the film’s opening and the many shoot-outs and people being killed throughout the film. This French New Wave approach to Hollywood film-making certainly changed the landscape of Hollywood film and the world of film in general, as it allowed to film-makers to show more explicit content within their films, and it paved the way for more Hollywood films to be shot in real world locations, if it fit the film-makers direction and view of what they want their film to be.
Representations in Bonnie and Clyde
Women
In ‘Bonnie and Clyde’, there are two clear representations of women that being the two main female characters of Bonnie and Blanche.
The character of Bonnie I think can be looked at in two different ways. In one way, Bonnie represents the ‘Femme Fatale’, if you’re looking at this film as a piece of neo-noir, as throughout the film she attempts to manipulate Clyde with her attractive looks, such as the scene when they get back from the cinema and Bonnie pretends to be one of the dancers in the film and she tries to coerce Clyde. She also threatens to run away if she can’t see her mother. Another way you could look at her character is with a feminist viewpoint and you could view her as a character of female empowerment, as she robs the banks with the men and her sticking up to Bonnie could be seen as her standing for herself and want she wants, and could be viewed as not being manipulative. She is also the one to approach Clyde and seek a relationship with him and a change from her mundane life. A key scene which presents her as a visually powerful woman is when they are taking photos outside of Buck Barrow’s house, as in that scene, her clothing and the way she presents herself makes her look very domineering and powerful.
Bonnie also has this very clear cut powerful sexual energy from the beginning of the film, in which she is shown fully nude, though the audience don’t see it, which is a very forward thinking thing to include in a gangster film, as typically women within that genre of films only had background roles.
And the other female character in ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ is Blanche, who is represented as this very sceptical character, as she doesn’t want to get involved with Bonnie and Clyde and just wants to live a normal life with her husband, Buck Barrow. She could also be seen as representation of working class people as throughout the film she is seems to be quite scared of Bonnie and Clyde, which most likely was representative of the views real life everyday people had about Bonnie and Clyde at that time. She is definitely someone who is not suited to the criminal life, shown by her constant screaming at any bit of action throughout the film.
Throughout the film the two women express their distaste for one another, which isn’t very surprising as they are two very different types of women. This is expressed visually in the scene above where Bonnie is a smoking a cigarette and Blanche is not, and she is looking away from Bonnie, which shows the audience a clear visual divide.
Men
Within ‘Bonnie and Clyde’, a lot of the prominent characters are male, showing the society’s patriarchal status. There is quite of broad range of male characters shown in the film, with the more macho and brazen Buck Barrow and, at times, Clyde Barrow, as well as the sheriff who hunts them down who is quite macho and masculine, and you then have the much more timid, C.W Moss and his, in my opinion, rather timid and realistic minded father, Ivan Moss, who understandably doesn’t want Bonnie and Clyde in his house.
The portrayal of the title character Clyde Barrow by Warren Beatty is certainly an interesting one, as at certain points throughout the film, he is shown, in a counter typical way, to be caring towards Bonnie and at points is quite a timid and sensual man, refusing Bonnie’s sexual advances, saying ‘I ain’t no lover boy’. He is also portrayed in the film as someone who cares for the lower classes, as shown through the scene of him and Bonnie practicing their shooting on a repossessed farm, which is then interrupted by the previous owner, who, through Clyde giving him a gun, is able to kind of ‘stick it to the man’ and shoot in some windows on a property which was once his. This care for the lower classes is also shown when they’re robbing a bank and Clyde tells one of the old men to ‘keep your money pops…’, instead of give it into the bank. This portrayal of criminals in a good light is a zeitgeist for this turning point in cinema in which criminals were glamourized instead of shunned in the films that were being made.
Authority Figures
Authority figures are portrayed to be people who wish to thwart Bonnie and Clyde and their heinous acts, such as Frank Hamer, the vindictive sheriff who wishes to get revenge on Bonnie and Clyde after they humiliated him, and Ivan Moss, who doesn’t wish for Bonnie and Clyde to live in his home, and so crafts a plan with Frank Hamer. There is also this representation of the higher powers, such as the government, being against the working class people, which is shown through the scene of the farmer’s ranch being repossessed by the bank.
People of Colour
In terms of people of colour being represented in ‘Bonnie and Clyde’, there is barely any representation of that ethnicity, with the only major representation being the black man who is said to of ‘built this farm from the ground up’, with his white male friend, the first of which has been repossessed by the bank. Clyde allows him to shoot a couple of windows out in this kind of ‘stick it to the man’ moment.
This lack of representation of black people throughout the film is most likely a deliberate exclusion by Arthur Penn, as it helps place the audience’s mind into this era of segregated 1930s America, and adds to the film’s realism and versimilitude.
Working Class Americans
Working Class Americans in ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ are represented in two different ways. You have the migrant workers and families, who have been evicted from their homes, and the farmer, whose farm has been repossessed by the bank and you have the higher class banker Eugene Grizzard and his wife, who gets kidnapped by Bonnie and Clyde and their gang, and, after strangely getting to enjoy their company, get abandoned by on the side of a random road. The inclusion of these scenes and characters show to the audience what the wider public think of Bonnie and Clyde and, in Eugene’s case, what Bonnie and Clyde think of them.
The scene which features the migrant workers shows C.W. Moss bringing an injured Bonnie and Clyde to this group of migrant workers and asking them for water. They then, very selflessly, give C.W. Moss as much water as he wants, even though they themselves have very little. They then are astounded by the fact that they are helping Bonnie and Clyde. This plays into to this idea that Bonnie and Clyde do what they do to help out the working classes, which is also shown through the farm repossession scene. It also plays into the context of the time in which films were glamourizing criminal activity more often.
The scene which features Eugene Grizzard and his wife being captured by the Bonnie and Clyde gang, strangely getting along with them, and then suddenly being released also plays into this idea that Bonnie and Clyde are doing what they’re doing because they hate the ‘upper’ classes and they wish to help out those below them, which is why I think Bonnie suddenly turns on them, as I think she realises that they are quite well of people and that those aren’t the type of people they should be helping.
Political and Social Contexts in Bonnie and Clyde
In terms of contexts which the film ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ embody, it definitely has the spirit or the zeitgeist of this idea that younger people wish to see more exciting and relatable things in film, which is due to their exposure to the graphic content , specifically the Vietnam War ,through the news. This is seen in Bonnie and Clyde through the film’s overtly graphic and sexual content, for the time the film was made.
It also embodies this ‘New Hollywood’ film movement in which the ‘Old Hollywood’ factory system was pretty much gone and in its place came this idea that the directors should be allowed more freedom and should be given as much of the success of the film as the actors, which is why name such as George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola are so well known to people who aren’t massively versed in the world of film.
And finally, in terms of the films aesthetics, the film marks a change in which film editing and camera framing is done, as it goes from this very conventional ‘invisible’ style of editing and framing to this more erratic and much more obvious to the eye editing that is influenced by French New Wave directors, such as Goddard and Truffaut.
The term New Hollywood is a movement in American film history from the mid-1960s to the 1980s.
Some of the films, directors and stars from this period are: – Jack Nicholson (Actor), Dennis Hopper (Actor, Director), Woody Allen (Actor, Director), Robert De Niro (Actor), George Lucas (Director), David Lynch (Director), ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ (1967), ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’ (1968), ‘Planet of The Apes’ (1968), ‘Midnight Cowboy’ (1969).
Some important cultural events that took place in America during the period of time in which the emergence of New Hollywood happened were: – The Flower Power Movement – The Vietnam War – The assassination of MLK Jr. – The assassination of JFK
The Influence of French New Wave on New Hollywood
French New Wave was a film movement in the late 1950s, which rejected the traditional conventions of Classical Hollywood film-making. The movement is seen as an embodiment of rejection and youthful rebellion and the people that are part of it are seen as innovators in the art of film. The directors who were making the films wanted the director to be seen as the main power behind the film, not the studio. This then leads to the idea of ‘auteur’ theory. The film makers within the period were working with low film budgets, due to the aftermath of WWII.
Some specific stylistic and structural elements present in French New Wave are:
– Handheld cameras: Handheld cameras were used by French filmmakers as they were cheaper to get a hold of than a bigger mounted camera, like the ones that would be used in Hollywood. This would give the films a documentary aesthetic.
–On location filming: French New Wave films typically filmed on natural locations, not big, constructed sets, due to their low budgets and financial constraints that the directors of these films had.
–Natural Lighting: French New Wave films most of the time used natural lighting, as they were filming on location and using handheld cameras. It also meant that the films had smaller crews and that the camera could swing around 360, as there is no film crew behind that would be filmed
–Deemphasized Plot: In French New Wave films, there are no clear plots and typically just follow around the events of the people within the film. If there is a plot within the film, the structure is usually messed around with, an idea presented by the director Goddard, ‘Every plot has a beginning, middle and end, its just the order in which it is told can be changed’.
–The Use of Non-Actors: French New Wave directors favoured not using trained actors but rather, mainly for smaller roles, used amateur actors and people that they just found out on the street, which certainly adds to this realism aesthetic that these films have. The directors also gave the actors a lot more freedom, allowing them to improvise their own lines and just allowing to them to carry out their own actions.
–Breaking the Fourth Wall: French New Wave directors used the technique of looking into the camera and breaking into the fourth wall to highlight to the audience that this a film they are watching. This may of made the audience feel quite disenfranchised towards the films.
Some directors and French New Wave techniques that influenced Arthur Penn as he was making Bonnie and Clyde were:
–Fast paced music: Bonnie and Clyde uses fast paced music in the car chase scenes, which evokes this sense of humour in running away from the police, which presents this real clash of tones within the film, as one moment you’ve got this humorous car chase scene and the next you are being shown people getting shot and dying in quite a graphic way.
–Costume Elements: In the famous final scene of ‘Bonnie and Clyde’, Clyde wears a pair of glasses with one lense missing. This is a direct homage to Godard debut 1960 film, ‘Breathless’, in which the main character suffers an awful fate wearing a similar pair of sunglasses with a lense missing.
– Graphic Content: Bonnie and Clyde’s graphic content and scenes were too taboo for the American audience of the time, but they do have substance, and the, in some people’s opinions too grotesque, graphic content does take its influence from French New Wave films.
– Intense Close-ups and Jump Cuts: In the final sequence of Bonnie and Clyde, an abrupt ending which sees our two main protagonists getting brutally murdered, director Arthur Penn has the two main protagonists look at each other in a series of match cuts, which closer towards the characters face, which, in my opinion, shows to the audience the deep love and personal connection these two characters have. This technique is once again used in Goddard’s debut ‘Breathless’, in which he uses jump cuts to also show the intimacy between the two main characters.
New Hollywood Style
Penn and other New Hollywood directors approached narratives by placing an uncommon emphasis on irresolution, particularly at the moment of climax or in epilogues, when more conventional Hollywood movies busy themselves tying up loose ends. They also hindered on narrative linearity and momentum and scuttled their potential to generate suspense and excitement.
Discontinuity editing is when the audience visually notices a cut, because something about the cut calls attention to itself and it does not feel natural and seamless.
This period of time in film production is known as ‘The Rise of Auteurs’ because directors were influenced by this French New Wave ideology that directors should be the ‘stars’ of film production and that they should have their own distinct styles and far much more control over the creation and the elements of their films for them to stand out.
The lasting impact of the New Hollywood style on modern day films is that it has allowed directors to have a much greater role in creating their films rather than the studio having all the power and telling the directors what to make. It’s also allowed for more graphic content to be shown in films, as the ‘Hayes’ code, which forbid things such as nudity, sex and drugs to be shown in films, was replaced with the MPAA film rating system in 1968.
Overall, I quite enjoyed ‘Bonnie and Clyde’, but I feel as if the fil is more style over substance, as I thought it looked really beautiful but to me the story wasn’t that engaging . I thought the chase scenes were really enjoyable to watch and I really liked the soundtrack throughout the film, especially the fast bluegrass, banjo tracks in the chase scenes. I thought the performances in the film were quite good, though I felt some performances were quite underperformed and a bit boring, which may of been intentional to add to the versimilitude of the film. I didn’t enjoy the pacing of the film, as I felt it was incredibly mismatched with sudden shifts in tone that didn’t, to me, seem to be that logical or make much sense.
Memorable Scene
As I said, the most memorable scenes for me in the film were the chase scenes when Bonnie and Clyde were escaping from the bank, as I thought the use of the fast-paced bluegrass soundtrack and the impressive long shots of the cars being chased were quite impressive and very enjoyable to watch. The use of the techniques mentioned add to the anticipation and energy of the scene, as upon first view, you as a viewer are wondering if these two criminals are going to be caught.
Humphrey Bogart – Rick Blaine. Was typically cast in gangster movies, mainly as the villain, was described as someone who was ‘tough without a gun’. Before Casablanca, he hadn’t been cast as a romantic lead. Producer Hal B. Wallis put his foot down and said the film and the role of Rick Blaine was made for Bogart. Was the first film in which he played a character who’s shows their emotions as well as their toughness.
Ingrid Bergman – Ilsa Lund. Hadn’t been in any American films before Casablanca, and wasn’t first choice for the role. Was a fresh face on the Hollywood scene. Was seen as a more exotic person to play the role, due to her beauty and her accent, which was mostly a key decision for casting her, as Americans stereotypically do like foreign accents.
Paul Henreid – Victor Laszlo. Originally born in Treiste, part of the Austro-Hungarian empire at the time, Henreid relocated to America (more specifically New York City) in 1940. His first film for RKO was ‘Joan of Paris’ in 1942 in which he played a Royal Air Force pilot trying to escape occupied France. The film was a big success, and may be the reason why Paul Henreid enjoyed being in war pieces whilst in America. He moved to Warner Bros. in 1942 and his first role with them was as Jeremiah Durrance in the romance ‘Now, Voyager’ and then after that he was cast in probably his most well-known role of Victor Laszlo in ‘Casablanca’. The film was a huge hit and is considered one of the best American films in history.
Peter Lorre – Ugarte. Originally born in Hungary, moved to Hollywood in 1935. Originally, was under contract at Columbia Pictures where they struggled to find roles that would fit him. After months of research, Lorre thought Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky would be a good film in which he could take the main part. Columbia agreed to do it as long as after he went to MGM, as they had lost a lot of money through him not appearing in any of their films. His next film for MGM was ‘Mad Love’, in which he played the role of a demented surgeon, Dr Gogol. He received critical acclaim for his role in this film. After this he went on to do films for 20th Century Fox, the Mr Moto films, a series of Japanese spy films. He then broke his contract with Fox after they promised him the roles of the Hunchback of Notre Dame and Napoleon in films they never shot. He then signed for Warner Bros. and was cast in ‘Maltese Falcon’ and, obviously, ‘Casablanca’.
Claude Rains – Captain Louis. Orignally born in London, he came from a lower class background and was said to have a speech impediment. In 1932, his screen test for ‘A Bill of Divorcement’ for RKO was a failure, but it is what led to him landing the title role of James Whale’s ‘The Invisible Man’ in 1933, which was a very well received film. In 1935, he signed a long-term contract with Warner Bros. worth 750,000 dollars over seven years. He played a villainous role of Prince John in ‘The Adventures of Robin Hood’ (1938). His other famous roles feature Dr. Alexander Tower, who commits murder-suicide in order to spare his daughter from a life of insanity in ‘Kings Row’ (1942), and whilst on loan at Universal he featured as the title character in their remake of ‘Phantom of the Opera’ (1943). He featured in a lot of Curtiz’s films, crediting the director with teaching the more understated requirements of film acting, or ‘what not to do in front of a camera’. For Curtiz, he appeared in such films as the previously mentioned ‘The Adventures of Robin Hood’ (1938), ‘Gold is Where You Find It’ (1938) and, obviously ‘Casablanca’ (1942).
Sydney Greenstreet – Signor Ferrari. Born in Eastry,Kent in 1879 ,he begun his stage career in 1902 in a production of Sherlock Holmes. Over the years he had many acting gigs, such as touring Britain with Ben Greet’s Shakespearean company, and in 1905 made his New York City debut in ‘Everyman’, but refused appear in films until he was 61, when he then began working for Warner Bros., with his debut role being Kasper Gutman co-starring alongside Humphrey Bogart in ‘The Maltese Falcon’. He then played the crooked club owner Signor Ferrari in ‘Casablanca’, where he earned a salary of 3,750$ a week for seven weeks’ work. He is also known for appearing in ‘Backgroud to Danger’ (1943) with George Raft and reuniting with fellow ‘Casablanca’ co-stars, Humphrey Bogart, Peter Lorre and Claude Rains in ‘The Mask of Dimitros’ (1944).
Madeleine Lebeau – Yvonne. Lebeau married actor Marcel Dalio in 1939; it was his second marriage. They had met while performing a play together. She had already appeared in her first film, an uncredited role as a student in the melodrama Young Girls in Trouble (1939). In June 1940, Lebeau and Dalio, who was Jewish, fled Paris ahead of the invading German Army and reached Lisbon. They are presumed to have received transit visas from Aristides de Sousa Mendes, allowing them to enter Spain and journey on to Portugal. It took them two months to obtain visas to Chile. However, the Chilean passports they had acquired turned out to be fakes, leaving them and 200 others stranded upon the S. S. Quanza. Eventually, they acquired Canadian passports and entered the United States, where Lebeau made he Hollywood debut in ‘Hold Back the Dawn’ (1941). Later that year, she was cast in the role of Yvonne in ‘Casablanca’, where Warner Bros. signed to a $100-a-week contract for twenty-six weeks to be in a number of films. On 22 June, while she was filming her scenes in ‘Casablanca’, her husband, Marcel Dalio, who played Emil the croupier in the same film, filed for divorce in Los Angeles on the ground of desertion. They divorced in 1942. Shortly before the release of the film, Warner Bros. terminated her contract.
Joy Page – Annina Brandel. Page was the daughter of Mexican-American silent film star Don Alvarado and Ann Boyar, the daughter of Russian Jewish immigrants. Her parents divorced when she was eight and in 1936 her mother married Jack L. Warner, then head of Warner Bros. studios. Warner did not encourage his stepdaughter’s interest in acting. Page, who initially thought the script to ‘Casablanca’ was “old fashioned” and “clichéd”, landed the role of Annina Brandel on her own and Warner reluctantly approved. She was only seventeen and fresh out of high school. Page, along with Dooley Wilson and Humphrey Bogart, were the only American-born feature actors in the film. Warner, however, refused to sign Page to a contract, and she never appeared in another Warner Bros. film. She went on to act in a number of films for other studios, including a featured role in her next film, Kismet in 1944.
Dooley Wilson – Sam. Arthur ‘Dooley’ Wilson was born in Tyler, Texas and at the age of seven, the same year his father died, he began to earn a living by performing in churches. By 1908, he was in Chicago in the repertory company of the Perkin Theatre, the first legitimate black theatre in the United States. He had earned the nickname ‘Dooley’ due to his performance of a song called, ‘Mr. Dooley’, in which he used whiteface. His breakthrough role came in 1940, with his portrayal of Little Joe in the Broadway musical Cabin in the Sky. This won him a contract with Paramount Pictures in Hollywood. He found himself playing Pullman porters while his stage role in the MGM film adaptation of Cabin in the Sky was played by Eddie “Rochester” Anderson. In May 1942, Warner Bros. were casting for their upcoming film ‘Casablanca’, and borrowed Sam from Paramount for seven weeks at $500 a week.
Conrad Veidt – Major Heinrich. Veidt was an actor who was most known for his roles in horror films, more specifically German Expressionist horror films, such as ‘The Cabinet of Dr. Calgari’ (1920). His starring role in ‘The Man Who Laughs’ (1928), as a disfigured young outcast servant whose face is cut into a permanent grin, provided the visual inspiration for the iconic Batman villain the Joker. Veidt starred in other silent horror films such as The Hands of Orlac (1924), also directed by Robert Wiene, The Student of Prague (1926) and Waxworks (1924), in which he played Ivan the Terrible. Veidt also appeared in Magnus Hirschfeld’s film Anders als die Andern (Different from the Others, 1919), one of the earliest films to sympathetically portray homosexuality, although the characters in it do not end up happily.He had a leading role in Germany’s first talking picture, Das Land ohne Frauen (Land Without Women, 1929). Veidt opposed the Nazi regime and when asked what his race was he declared ‘Jew’, even though he wasn’t a Jew but rather his wife was and he was saying it in solidarity with her.n By 1941, Veidt and his wife, Ilona, had settled in Hollywood to assist the British effort in making American films that might persuade the then-neutral and still isolationist United States to join the war against the Nazis. He starred in a few films, such as ‘A Woman’s Face’ (1941), and his most known is in this film of ‘Casablanca’, in which he plays General Strasser. Veidt noted it was an ironical twist of fate as he was praised for, in his words, ‘portraying the character who forced him to leave his homeland’.
John Qualen – Berger. Was an American character actor of Norwegian heritage who specialised in Scandinavian roles. Starting out as cookware salesman, Qualen made enough money to begin his acting career, in which he had his big break in Elmer Rice’s play ‘Street Scene’.His movie career began when he re-created the role two years later in the film adaptation of the stage production. That screen performance was followed by his appearance in John Ford’s Arrowsmith (1931), which began a more than 35-year membership in the director’s “stock company”, with supporting roles in The Searchers (1956), Two Rode Together (1961), The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) and Cheyenne Autumn (1964).Appearing in well over one hundred films, and acting on television into the 1970s, Qualen performed many of his roles with various accents, usually Scandinavian, often intended for comic effect. Qualen assumed a Midwestern dialect as Muley, who recounts the destruction of his farm by the bank in Ford’s The Grapes of Wrath (1940), in a performance so powerful it reportedly reduced director Ford to tears; and as the confused killer Earl Williams in Howard Hawks’ classic comedy His Girl Friday (1940). As Berger, the jewelry-selling Norwegian resistance member in Michael Curtiz’ Casablanca (1942), he used a light Scandinavian accent, but put on a thicker Mediterranean accent as the homeward-bound fisherman Locota in William Wellman’s The High and the Mighty (1954).
S.Z Sakall – Carl. Born as Gero Jeno in Budapest to a Jewsh family, he turned to acting at the age of 18 due to not having the nicest life in Hungary and in 1946 he became an American citizen under the name of Jacob Gero. Sakall began a Hollywood career that included “an endless succession of excitable theatrical impresarios, lovable European uncles and befuddled shopkeepers”. His first American film role was in the comedy It’s a Date (1940) with Deanna Durbin. The first big hit of his American career was Ball of Fire (1941) with Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck. Later, he signed a contract with Warner Bros., where he had a number of other small roles, including one in Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) with James Cagney. Later the same year, at the age of 59, he portrayed his best remembered character, Carl the head waiter in Casablanca (1942). Producer Hal B. Wallis signed Sakall for the role three weeks after filming had begun. When he was first offered the part, Sakall hated it and turned it down. Sakall finally agreed to take the role provided they gave him four weeks of work. The two sides eventually agreed on three weeks. He received $1,750 per week for a total of $5,250. He actually had more screen time than either Peter Lorre or Sydney Greenstreet.
Director – Michael Curtiz. Makes a 173 films for Warner Bros. and makes a huge range of films. Has knowledge of leaving Europe, as he was a refugee from Hungary. Chose immigrants to act as the extras in the film, adding to the authenticity of the film. Over 34 nationaliys are represented in ‘Casablanca’. In teh scene where the people in the bar are singing the national anthem is made more authentic, due to the extra’s empathy. Broke away from the norm of Hollywood camera movement. Renowned for his use of dolly and making it moving around the characters, as they move around. Good example being the scene in which Rick flashes back to hid time with Ilsa in Paris.
Producer – Hal B. Wallis
Mise-en-scene in Casablanca
Locations/Settings
One good example of mise-en-scene in terms of location in ‘Casablanca’ is the setting of the actual city itself. The use of the light shining through the overhead grating, a typical technique of Film Noir, creates the imagery of prison bars for the audience, and conveys to them that most of these characters, unlike the main protagonists, will not get off of Casablanca and they will most likely be trapped here for years. Also, elements of the city itself, the bustling market stalls, the groups of foreign people, the dirt paths, help create this image of a so-called tropical paradise for the viewers, even though they will eventually learn that it is far from that and it is a place that people would rather leave than stay.
Another good example of mise-en-scene in terms of location is Rick’s bar, as a lot of the features of it, the lamps on the tables with the frilly bits on them, the exotic plants, the luxurious décor, all add to this idea that Casablanca is this tropical paradise that these people are willingly staying on, even though the audience knows that for most of the characters that is not true. It also conveys the Germans grip and jurisdiction on Casablanca become more present, as the exotic plants cast shadows onto the walls, which appear to look like fingers. The setting also is basis for ,in my opinion, the best scene in the film, where the Germans and the French refugees have a sing off with their respective national anthems, showing to the audience that the inhabitants of Casablanca will allow this place to also come under German rule.
Costumes
A good example of mise-en-scene in terms of costumes in Casablanca is Rick’s white suit, as it, once again, adds to this image of a exotic country. However, it also tells the audience information about the character of Rick, as the suit is quite expensive, so it tells the audience that Rick is a prosperous businessman and that his bar is thriving in Casablanca, even before it is even explicitly stated in the film. Also, the colour of white is associated with good so it visually places him on the side of good for the viewer, and also somewhat foreshadows that, as the film progresses, he will become a more morally ‘good’ character and will ‘join the fight’, as Laszlo says in the famous final scene.
Another good example of mise-en-scene in terms of costume is Ingrid Bergman’s character Ilsa Lund’s wardrobe throughout the film, which was done by costume designer, Orry-Kelly, an innovative and prolific costume designer in the world of Hollywood and although he didn’t win an academy award for his costumes in Casablanca, he did for three other films. The clothing worn by Ilsa Lund, simple day dresses and fitted suits, accessorized with hats, gloves, and brooches, gives the viewer and insight into the clothing of the 1940s, which was practical and utility-inspired, and adds to the realism of the film.
Props
A good example of a prop in terms of mise-en-scene in Casablanca is the ‘Letters of Transit’, who are provided to Rick by Peter Lorre’s character Ugarte. Throughout the film, they represent this theme of escapism from this ‘prison’ of Casablanca, which the vast majority of these characters seek throughout the film. It is also key for the plot, as it moves forward the event of Victor Laszlo and Ilsa Lund trying to escape from Casablanca.
Another good example of props in terms of mise-en-scene in Casablanca are the props within Rick’s cafe, such as the wicker chairs, the lamps with the frilly skirts round the outside, the exotic plants, as they, once again, add to this image that’s being painted in the mind of the viewer which is that Casablanca is a tropical paradise that the characters do not want to leave, even though they will learn soon that is not true. It also reinforces the idea that Rick’s bar is a form of escapism for these characters, especially those that have come America, as it has that kind of Las Vegas aesthetic.
Editing in Casablanca
Casablanca uses ‘invisible editing’, which is where the film’s editing does not bring any attention to itself, a key stylistic choice of most Hollywood films, as it adds to the immersiveness and versimilitude of it, whilst allowing the audience to feel more attached to the characters and, especially in this film, you feel like at some points you are witnessing the events through the eyes of the characters.
A sequence in the film that uses great editing is the sequence in which Rick helps out a couple trying to leave Casablanca by rigging the roulette wheel for them. The sequence cleverly builds tension by cutting between shots of Rick telling the young man where to bet his money, to the close-ups of the young man’s hands pushing towards the spot that Rick has told him, and to the close-ups of the roulette wheel landing on the number Rick has predicted. It also does close-ups of the spectator’s faces, showing the emotion’s they are experiencing, such as the wife’s mirth and the captain’s befuddlement. This builds tension and great excitement for the audience, as they most likely feel that something is going to happen to Rick due to his rigging of the roulette wheel. This is also the first time in the film that the audience sees Rick as this person that can care for others, rather than someone that just cares for himself.
Sound in Casablanca
Dialogue
The dialogue in Casablanca is extremely iconic, with a plethora of iconic lines, such as, ‘here’s to looking at you kid’, which Rick says to Ilsa throughout, specifically in the final scene, showing he still loves her and ‘you know, I think this gonna be the start of a beautiful freindship’, which is said by Rick to Captain Louis at the end of the film, about the topic of what they are to do now they’ve killed the German general. As well as it being iconic, it is also extremely funny and full of wit, an example being when Captain Louis says, ‘I am shocked to find out there is gambling going on in here’, after which he is then told, ‘Here are your winnings sir’, to which he replies with a ‘Thank you’, which I just find incredibly funny. And finally the dialogue, at times, is extremely heart-wrenching, especially Rick’s monologue to Ilsa in the final scene, in which he says ‘We’ll always have Paris’, which is extremely emotional, as they will probably never see each other again.
Soundtrack/Score
The soundtrack of Casablanca, which was composed by renowned film composer Max Steiner, who is known for his work on such films as ‘Citizen Kane’, ‘Maltese Falcon’ and ‘Gone With The Wind’, plays a huge role in the emotional impact that the film is trying to have upon the audience. A key example of this is the film’s iconic track, that Max Steiner didn’t actually compose and didn’t even want in the film, that being ‘As Time Goes By’, which was originally written by Herman Hupfed. It is heard numerous times throughout the film, thus making it a musical motif, representative of Rick and Ilsa’s time in Paris, and the love that they once shared. Max Steiner cleverly wrote into the score of other scenes to portray the feelings that Ilsa and Rick are showing towards one another. For example in the scene where Rick and Ilsa see each other again for the first time the theme is much darker, as it represents the drunken hate that I think Rick feels towards Ilsa at this time. When we get to the final scene the motif returns, but this time much more heart wrenching and emotional played on some very legato strings, to show that the two of them have realized that even though they have to leave one another, they do still love each other.
Aesthetics in Casablanca
Realism
The main way in which Realism is made for the viewer and audience is through the Classical Hollywood technique of ‘invisible editing’, which means that the editing is done so cleverly that the audience will not notice that it is there. The adds to the realism of the film, as it makes the audience feel like they are witnessing something that it is happening in real time before them and not something that is artificial and planned. Another element of the film that adds to its realism is the set design in the film, as the sets are so well designed that they feel like they are these real places in this portrayed tropical paradise.
Visual Style (Film Noir)
The obvious element of the film that adds to it’s film noir aesthetic is that is shot in black and white, as most films of that genre are shot in, but another element that adds to the films Film Noir aesthetic is its use of shadows and light, and having lights pass through blinds and shutters, which can be seen multiple times throughout the film. The use of this technique of using lighting and shadows usually is connoted with evil, such as the fake plants in Rick’s cafe, which look like protruding fingers or bars, portraying the imagery of the German/French powers keeping these people on Casablanca. The example of this that springs to mind for me is when the characters of Victor Laszlo and Carl are hiding from the German/French police of Casablanca, after they were found at this ‘secret meeting’, which is implied to be a meeting of the French Resistance, a French freedom fighters group that fought for the Allies during WWII.
Themes and Issues
Isolationism – what was America’s view on WWII and how can that been seen through the character of Rick ?
Isolationism – a policy of remaining apart from the affairs or interests of other groups, especially the political affairs of other countries
Rick turns from a cynic only caring about himself and his bar to being a more sentimental person, who actually cares about his actions affect others.
If Rick does represent America in ‘Casablanca’, then him only helping out the characters once his bar is closed down could perhaps be the director drawing parallels to America getting involved in the war only when one of their harbours is attacked.
At the start of WWII, 96% of Americans wished to stay neutral in what they thought was a ‘phony war in Europe’.
Representations in Casablanca
Women
In Casablanca, women are portrayed, as people who are manipulated by men, emotionally and physically, usually by the main protagonist of Rick, which adds to his character of someone who only cares for himself. The main examples of this within the film are Ilsa Lund, the main female protagonist who needs Rick for the ‘In Casablanca, women are portrayed, quite stereotypically, as always relying on a man within the film, usually the main protagonist of Rick. The main examples of this within the film are Ilsa Lund, the main female protagonist who needs Rick for the ‘Letters of Transit’, so that herself and her husband, Victor Laszlo can escape Casablanca. There is Yvonne, a drunk who clearly wishes to pursue a relationship with Rick, which he quickly rejects and there is the character of Anina Brandel, whos been manipulated by Captain Renault, but is then actually helped by Rick, which is the first time within the film that we see Rick as someone that cares about other people, not just himself.
Men
A lot of the men within Casablanca are presented as the stereotypical strong man, such as Rick and General Strausser. The staff of Rick’s bar are presented as very nice and caring people, shown through Carl talking to these German patrons of Casablanca, who are leaving for America. An interesting portrayal of man is Captain Renault, who even though, through the background information that he blackmails women sexually to give them transit papers, you expect to be a morally bad and sleazy portrayal of man, is actually throughout the film is a source of comic relief, and come the end of the film, he walks off with Rick into the fog, almost as a hero of the film, even though his actions are clearly not heroic.
People of Colour
There is only one person of colour within Casablanca, that being Sam, who is portrayed as this stereotypical black blues/jazz musician who would’ve been popular in America during this time period. His relationship with Rick is portrayed as being good, as he says he doesn’t even have time to spend all the money that Rick gives him, but at the same time is rather odd as I think Rick views their relationship as like they’re old buddies, where as I think Sam views they’re relationship as more business like.
Americans and Europeans
Americans and Europeans are represented in two distinct ways. On one hand you have the highly patriotic representation of characters such as the French citizens of Casablanca and the character of Victor Laszlo, whose intentionally patriotic representation was most likely done to sway the American public out of this Isolationist mindset. And then on the other hand, you have the portrayal of the Nazis, who throughout the film are seen as these borderline maniacal villains, who inhibit the progress of our protagonists actions and goals. This portrayal is to obviously install the belief that the Nazis were extremely evil into the audience watching.
Historical and Political context in Casablanca
Allied Powers – Great Britain, USA, USSR
Axis Powers – Germany, Japan, Italy
France
At the start of WWII, France was on the side of Great Britain. However, France was invaded early in to the war and were then occupied by Germany. A small part of the French population still fought on the Allied side under the title ‘The Free French’. Vichy France is a territory, about half of France, has its own government, who are basically puppets to the Germans. Vichy France is under control of Morocco, and more importantly, Casablanca.
Americans would learn about the war through radio, newspapers and films, which arguably are the most informative because they show whats happening through images and not words.
Pearl Harbour(Dec 7, 1941)
America joined WWII on the 7th of December 1941, as a result of Pearl Harbour, an unprovoked bombing on an American harbour in Hawaii by the Japanese.
Operation Torch (Nov 8, 1942 – Nov 16, 1942)
The film captured the zeitgeist (the defining spirit or mood of a particular period of history as shown by the ideas and beliefs of the time) of American Patriotism at the time of the war, which was a result of Operation Torch, which was when the Americans and the British planted their foothold in Occupied territory in, coincidentally, Morocco, Casablanca (North Africa).
‘Casablanca’ First Screening (Nov 26, 1942)
The first screening of Casablanca took place in New York City, November 26, 1942.
Casablanca Conference (Jan 14, 1943 – Jan 24, 1943)
The Casablanca Conference was a meeting between U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in the city of Casablanca, Morocco that took place from January 14–24, 1943. While Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin received an invitation, he was unable to attend because the Red Army was engaged in a major offensive against the German Army at the time. The most notable developments at the Conference were the finalization of Allied strategic plans against the Axis powers in 1943, and the promulgation of the policy of “unconditional surrender.”
‘Casablanca’ General Release (January 23, 1943)
Casablanca was generally released to the public on January 23rd, 1943 and was extremely well received. It is now considered one of the greatest pieces of American film-making of all time.
Film Noir is a term relating to black and white gangster/crime films that are mostly filmed in the 1940s-1950s, the ‘Golden Age of Hollywood’. They are associated with a low-key, black and white style that has roots in the German Expressionist style.
This film is most certainly a masterpiece of film-making and one of the best films of the era of classical Hollywood. It certainly uses the idea of ‘invisible editing’ to full effect, as watching it you do truly feel like you’re in Casablanca and not on a studio lot in Hollywood. Also, the camerawork is simply sublime, truly adding to the immersiveness of watching this film. Furthermore, the film’s story and script is extremely well written, as not only is there a plethora of famous and rememberable and lines but watching it you do definitely care about what’s going to happen the characters in the film, as they are all so well written. Though the acting in the film may be seen as overdone and exaggerated at times, I believe it is some of the best of the era, especially Humphrey Bogart as the brooding bar owner Rick Blaine, who’s performance is truly a treat to watch for the viewer. And finally, I think another element of the film that is truly masterful is it’s soundtrack, composed by Max Steiner, who also composed the soundtrack for King Kong (1933) and Gone With The Wind (1939).
Memorable Scene
The most memorable scene/sequence for me is when Rick flashbacks to his and Ilsa’s time that they shared in Casablanca. It is so memorable for me because when I was watching for the first time I found it simply amazing to finally find out what happened between Rick and Ilsa in Paris. Another reason why I find it so good is because there are so many brilliant, well planned moments that tell the viewers Rick’s desire to still be Ilsa in Paris, and how he desires to go back to those times and still be with her. This is evidenced by the parallel drawn by the director/producer when in the flashback Ilsa knocks over the bottle of champagne, which is then mirrored by Rick knocking over his bottle of whiskey. This shows to the audience that Rick most definitely longs for those times back in Paris, as well as drawing attention to the depression and sadness Ilsa’s rejection caused him, as in this sequence he is pictured drinking whiskey alone.
