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Moonlight

Moonlight First Response

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MOONLIGHT (2016, Dir. Barry Jenkins) FIRST RESPONSE

Rating: 6/10

The film does a good job at conveying a heartfelt story, using a three act structure to separate the stages of life the main character Chiron is in. It gets some good use out of the camera, making beautiful shots (any scene at a beach comes to mind) and the occasional shake of the camera really grounds the film, making it look like it was recorded by an onlooker using a handheld camera. However, sometimes the unique camera movements became annoying and sometimes I couldn’t make out what the characters were saying. It also just isn’t the kind of movie I love, but it executes what it set out to do extremely well.

Memorable Scene: Kev’s Betrayal 

The scene begins with one of the coolest shots of the film: it starts on the bully character, Terrel, walking into the schoolyard pushing people out of the way as he comes towards the camera. Then, without changing shots, the camera follows Terrel as he circles the camera, which is the point of view of Chiron. This shot stood out to me immediately because it really puts you in Chiron’s situation. You watch as Terrel walks, acting aggressive to other students, pushing them out of the way to create a circle. What really works with this shot is that Terrel remains in focus in the centre of the camera while the background is blurry and clearly moves. This creates a sense of tension and unease. This spinning shot continues for around ten seconds before Terrel, and thus the camera, stops at Kev. Terrel orders him to knock Chiron down, and Chiron stays silent and stares at Kev. Before this scene was the scene where Kev and Chiron shared an intimate moment on the beach. Both characters were vulnerable then, but here it’s different. Chiron is meant to be vulnerable: he is face to face with Terel and his gang, as well as Kev about to punch him. He is outmatched. And yet, Kev looks nervous and frightened while Chiron retains composure as he stares down the group. Chiron is knocked down by Kev, but then stands back up. Kev is ordered to knock him down again, and he does. But Chiron gets back up. This is important as it shows that Chiron, despite being bullied and seen as “weak” by his peers due to his physique and the fact that he is gay, is strong. As he said in the Knock Down scene from the “Little” segment, he isn’t soft. He has a strong will. Kev shouts at Chiron to stay down because he doesn’t want to hurt him, but Chiron gets back up. Chiron’s face is up close to the camera, and out of focus. This further creates a sense of unease, as the shots of Chiron are filled with his blurry, stoic face. Kev knocks him down again, and the bully group savagely attack him while Kev backs away. There is no natural sound at this scene’s end, no talking or chatter or anything. The only thing you can hear is a haunting score as Kev looks on while his best friend and love interest is beaten down and is alone. 

Y12 Starter tasks

Monaco Article Response

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What does Monaco mean by the “Spectrum Of Arts”?

In How To Read A Film, Monaco presents a spectrum of arts, each point on the spectrum related to how distant from reality the art feels to the observer.

The first point Monaco presents on the spectrum is performance arts, art which happens in real time. This ranges from being told a story to theatre, and in all instances the observer is aware of the artists, the performers.

The next point on the spectrum is the representational arts. The representational arts is defined by Monaco as art which uses language or images to convey meaning to the observer. This is further up the spectrum from the performing arts, as while the presence of an artist is still present due to the knowledge that the art was written or drawn or sculpted by an artist, the artist themselves is not present.

The final point on the spectrum, so far, is the recording arts. The recording arts are, plainly, recordings of our world, either through picture or video and film. The recording arts are at the top of the spectrum as the presence of the artist can be hard to see. Viewing the recording arts is viewing our world as it is, just on a screen or in a frame.

Joker

JOKER (2019) FIRST RESPONSE

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JOKER (2019, Dir. Todd Phillips) FIRST RESPONSE

Rating: 7/10

Cool cinematography, interesting story and really nice action sequences (also some really really cool kills), and I enjoyed how the plot developed. It also had some really good acting, especially from Joaquin Phoenix, who plays the lead Arthur Fleck. It obviously took a lot of inspiration from the movie Taxi Driver (1976) when it came to pacing and plot. however some parts of the script felt like it was trying too hard to be badass and edgy and I also feel like it demonised mental illness while also criticizing society demonising mental illness, so it wasn’t perfect.

Memorable Scene: The Murder Of Murray Franklin

The lead up to the murder was really tense. Arthur, who had up to this point been socially reserved, was acting super enigmatic upon entering the studio. As he revealed his crimes live on air the tension builds, with Phoenix playing Arthur’s new energetic persona making it even more tense, ending with a loud argument with Franklin, who had been idolised by Arthur throughout the movie. Arthur exposes Franklin for being a cruel, corrupt rich guy, and suddenly shoots him live on air. There is a bit of catharsis when Murray dies as the audiences view of Franklin deteriorates along with Arthur’s, starting from when he mocked the clip of him on air for reasons relating to Arthur’s mental illness. The contrast in this scene is good too, as the recording studio is brightly coloured unlike the grimy streets and apartments that the rest of the movie took place in. Arthur is also dressed colourfully in this scene, in a bright suit and clown makeup, which creates comedy as he tells a dark “joke” and admits to the murders of the upper-class men on the subway. The music too elevates the scene, the slow, beating score building up to the sudden gunshot.

Y12 Starter tasks

Categorising Films

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Film NameDirectorRelease YearGenreCategoryReasoning
Battleship PotempkinSergei Eisenstein1925Thriller, HistoricalHistorically significantCovers the Russian revolution
A Bugs LifeJohn Lasseter1998comedyMainstreamKind of forgettable
The Shape Of WaterGuillermo Del Toro2015Romance/FantasyMainstreamRemake of Creature From The Black Lagoon but with a romantic plot.
The Seven SamuraiAkira Kurosawa1954Epic, actionHistorically significantInfluenced a lot of westerns
The Breakfast ClubJohn Huges1985Coming Of Age, DramaHistorically SignificantDefined the coming-of-age genre and popularised it
The Wizard Of OzVictor Flemming1939FantasyHistorically significantOne of the first movies preserved by the national film registry
The Magnificent SevenJohn Sturges1960Action, westernHistorically SignificantPreserved in the national film registry
Love, SimonGreg Berlanti2018DramaMainstreamToo recent to be historically significant
FitzcarraldoWerner Herzog1982DramaMainstreamNot influential enough to be historically significant
AlphavilleJean-Luc Godard1965Sci-Fi, noirMainstreamFilm noir was a popular genre at the time. Close to Historically Significant because the band Alphaville was named after it

The value of a movie can be determined by how it makes an audience feel. A film is more valuable if it makes the audience feel happy or cry, but it is less valuable if it annoys, or worse, bores the audience.