Film Language

Within the lesson taught on film language we learnt many different to look out for in a film and to question why and what they are doing to make the film as good as it is. What we learnt was to look out for camera, sound, editing, mise en scene, colour and binary opposites. 

Boyz in the Hood.

With boyz in the hood we was told to analyse the film language of camera, sound, editing and mise en scene. Many of the points that I picked up from this film is extremely varied. 
Camera
The acronym used to describe the camera is FAM, which stands for frame, angle, movement. The first shot that the audience sees during this film is of a stop sign. The camera uses the zoom technique to emphasise the message of stop, which relates to what was played just before that however, there was no content to be seen. As for the second shot, the camera is panning across the group of children from a long distance point of view. This type of shot they intended to use to introduce the characters first of all to the audience. The first variation of a shot that they show is an up close shot towards the one boy and the other three; the rest of the group. These type of shots were filmed intentionally to send subliminal messages to the audience about which member of the group has most confidence and could show the segregation of future events in the film. In addition, the camera also uses two quick shots from one to the other to emphasise the fights, when they are fighting in the classroom, to the street fight involving the men. This could be two scenes intentionally put next to each other to show the continuous amount of fights that occur in LA. Within this film they use numerous amounts of different frame types depending of the situation, but many of them are level and are long distance which is used to show a lot of events going on which could symbolise that there are many different negative events that occur daily in America. As far as angles go, they don't use a variety of angles, the main angle use is level, neither high or low. However, one variation of angle used is when they focus on the blood, they go from a head shot of the boy, then they create a high angle which is as though it is being viewed from the children from above. This angle of the blood could create a sense of guilt from the audience because it is almost like we are looking down on the people that died or was wounded, which is the message they are trying to put across to stop. 
Mise en Scene
The acronym for this was CLAMPS. Costumes that are used within this are varied however they are based mainly on east London outfits. They use the costumes within this film to represent the class for example, the teacher, especially is wearing shirt dresses and her body language contributes to her superiority. Moreover the main costumes of this are focused on the black jumpers which is the representation of gangs, however the black colour could represent danger and darkness of their personalities. Although, the younger boys costumes do change to shirts which shows the sophistication that they wish upon in the classrooms, in correlation with this, they boy trey is the only child in the classroom that is wearing a shirt, this could be a small hint towards the audience in the beginning to show that  he is soon going to be picked on by the teacher. With costume, I believe the teacher  is wearing business attire and so is the little boy. This is a symbol to show superiority against the other children in the classroom. On the topic of lighting, the only change in the opening scene was from the very opening sequence of a black screen to the screen of the camera on the people. Actors that are involved within this are all the majority of black however the teacher is white. This could show the old segregation of how whites used to think that they had more power than the blacks, on the other hand with the boy being black and being asked to teach, this could show the future equality rules. Props used within this film play a significant part of this opening, especially the poster and the map. The poster is an important prop within this as it shows what had happened with president and what the whole voice over was about. There are a few posters which symbolises his importance, it is clear that because the posters are in the crime scene which correlates with the voice over in the beginning scene. There was a man speaking talking about presidency and there was sudden gun shots, this scene where the posters are shown recalls the recent talking of what happened with the gun shots. Another important prop was the map, I believe this to be a important prop because it symbolises what the young boy feels strongly about but also puts across a message about the film and an early hint of what the future conflict could be about within the film. As for the setting in this film it is based in a school in central LA. With it being based in a school this could represent the innocence of the children but also how the shooting didn't deserve to happen. Moreover, the stop sign also plays a huge part as a prop as it says an eternal message instantly towards the audience watching the film. It is straight after the voice over and the sound of the shouting and with a sign saying stop this relates with the events that just occurred, informing the audience that the producers and the majority of people that watch the film are looking for events like this to stop. 
Sound
The acronym we was given to analyse the film language is MCDOVED. Within this film opening there was the use of diegetic and non-diegetic sound. The first bit of non-diegetic was when the young boy was walking down the path and passed the fighting. Only he noticed the fighting but the boys who was being violent didn't notice him. A voice over was also used in the beginning of the opening scene which talked about the gun shooting and how black Americans are getting treated. This voice over is off screen but with there being a voice over, in this as well is little conversations and gun shots and the radio, but only a blank screen with no visual content. Emotions at the beginning of the scene seem as though they are extremely tense however, they run straight into being upset and hasty. The emotions of each character are different especially when the children find the crime scene. Some of their emotions are shown as brave however some are showed as shocked at what is before their eyes. With the accents in the film opening, they all each have significant accents which contributes to their character and the setting they are based in. Along with the sound and their accents, they also use crude language which includes swearing, and what is strange about the use of this language is that it is mainly used by the younger actors within the film opening.
Editing
One main sequence of editing that they used was transitions. They used a transition by focusing on the blood within the crime scene then it faded into the drawings produced by the children. Both scenes correlate with each other due to what is in the pictures, instead of the children drawings being innocent like the children are presented, they are of violent events including blood, which shows what the previous events were like during America, especially the president shooting. Another bit of editing that stands out in the beginning is the single quick shot from a black screen to the stop sign. This is a symbol representing what the voice over was just talking about and a way to try and send a message to the audience that events like this should not be taking place. Another type of editing that they have used within this film opening is the effect of vignette this gives the feeling of mystery and wonder towards the audience. 

The Matrix

To analyse The Matrix we was told to focus on the analysis of colour, binary opposites, male/female, good vs evil.

Colour

To start focusing on the colour of this opening scene, the dominating colour of the scene has an over cast of grey/black. However, the only colour that we see at first is a bright white light which gives the audience a subliminal idea that the film is to do with mystery and danger. The light that we see at first is the light of a torch but it is the harsh difference of a bright white light coming from the torch, cutting through the pitch black atmosphere. This could show connotations that there are sharp movements within this film that cut up the film making it difficult to understand. Another point to do with the colour within the film opening is the fact that all of the colours used corresponds with their outfits. They used the black to be associated with the woman because she is in an all black outfit yet doesn't want to be seen at all, where as the police and the detectives have a little bit of colour on them, even though they are trying to de discrete they still want the woman to know they are there so that she gets worried. However this does not go to plan and with the colour, the bright lights represent how by adding colour to the scene causes more disruption. Another colour also used is a minimal bit of red, produced from the car. Red as a colour has connotations of danger and blood, of which this colour could be a little message to the audience as a warning for what is to come later in the opening. The red appears agin when the woman is being chased on top of the building and the camera also adds to the feeling that the red gives towards the audience. With the camera angle being below and underneath the action, this could be symbolism that there is danger which lies beneath all of the different stages that occur in the film. 

Binary Opposites
As for binary opposites meaning that there is something or someone that opposes one another. Binary opposites was the theory in media developed by Levi Strauss and there are many different opposites that revolve around Strauss' theory that is involved with the media. The binary opposite focused on in this film opening is mainly good vs evil. The good presented in this film opening are the police and the evil- the woman. A normal stereotype in films is that then women are more weak than the men, although in this film opening it presents the woman over ruling the men, but is still presented as evil as she has more of the power. Although the under cover police and the actual police look as though they are related with one another in terms of this film opening, there is a significant difference between them due to their costumes. The undercover police are dressed in suits and the police are in their usual attire. Another type of binary opposite presented in this film opening is the difference of male and female. The men in this are the ones that dominate most of this cast however, with there being one woman at first it makes her look vulnerable; suddenly this is seen as not the case. She is the least vulnerable which turns the whole plot line and doesn't make it an normal estimated event in a film. Along with the binary opposite, the camera angle is also associated with the opposite genders in the opening sequence. With the below shot of the police being involved, this could show to the audience that they are extremely behind the woman and the whole version of events that have happened so far in the film. This could show the opposition of both the males and female that throughout the film they may switch between being behind one another as both of them have shots that portray them as being either superior or innocent compared to each other. Also there is a slight use of non-diegetic sound when the woman is fighting the police upstairs, the police downstairs don't realise yet it is still obvious towards the audience.

 UP

With Up we was informed to focus on passage of time, sound, mise on scene and camera. 

Passage of Time.

With the passage of time, this is what the majority of this sequence is focused on and how their lives have been together, however the signature act that represents this is the continuous run of different ties being fastened by the woman around her husbands neck. This sequence emphasises how much time they spend with each other and how they have developed traditions with each other such as the ties. Another type of passage of time presented is the cloud watching, which is a normal type of time passing act, however they use this within the film to represent events that they wish to occur such as having children. This is a good transition to help the film sequence go quicker because they make it understandable of how much time they have spent with each other and how their lives tales link one by one event with each other. 
Sound
As for the sound, the music used throughout the opening sequence runs smoothly until something happens to interrupt the scene such as the tree falling on the house during the storm. The pitch goes a bit more sinister to emphasise how the event caused them grief as they had to spend their savings again, also with them finding out that she is ill, the music goes extremely dull and slower, there is not much tune to it, this shows the audience that there is bad news, along with the actions they show, as they do not use and words within this sequence. The emotion is only portrayed in the film opening throughout the sound they show. For example when they are dreaming about their future together, the tune is sweet and symbolises happiness where as when they find out bad news, the tune turns into something negative. 
Mise en Scene
As for the costume used within this film opening, the actors customer used are quite similar throughout the whole sequence. Such as the woman wearing dresses and the man wearing suits. Moreover, the lighting shown within this film opening is changed quite a few times without, the difference of the lighting is quite obvious, when they are having fun in the park, all the colours used during this are bright and portray joy and calmness, such as yellow. Where as the lighting when they are told the woman is ill, the lighting goes dark to relate with the mood. Pathetic fallacy is shown within this such as when there is a storm this reflects the mood that they show the audience. Actors used within this are only two main characters, which it makes it easy for a story to be told as it only needs to be told through two people. The main prop that this film revolves around is the house however, this particular film sequence is mainly based on the money jar and the tyre. Both of these props introduce disruption of equilibrium and create mini events that effect the state of normality. 
Camera
With the camera, the main shots used within the film sequence are eye level shots too show that there is no tension between one another. Both the actors have the same type of shots and there isn't any high level shots which show intimidation. A high level/birds eye shot is used for them both when they are dreaming about their future together, the high level shot could show that their dreams go so far that they love each other too much that they dream about life together too much.

Cape Fear

With Cape Fear we was told to analyse the mise en scene and the camera within the scene of Cady's Release. 

Camera

There is only two main camera shots that are shown during this film scene. One of them being of him inside the prison, there is no immediate change into another location, then the second being him outside the prison and him walking past all the prisoners. The first shot on this film sequence is first of all seeing cady's back. The back shot of cady can represent how people are always feeling intimidated of him so they don't seem to confront him and always stay in the background near him. The shot before seeing his back it is a panning shot down of a close frame of the photos that obviously have a close relation to him, this gives the audience a clue to what and who is associated with his character. The other main shot is of Cady walking outside of the prison and it is a variation of a shot opposed to the first shot, with his back being the main focus. The second shot of his face corresponds with the dialogue. Using a back shot of Cady could show that he is powerful and people feel patronised by him where as with the shot being of his front and him walking towards the camera this also shows bravery and power from a different aspect. However, there is less power there as the guard intimidates him as he walks out asking if there was anyone there to meet him. This could suggest he doesn't have much family and can't rely on many people, hence why he is in prison. 
Mise En Scene
The highlighted costumes used in this are the police outfits and the prisoners attire. It shows a clear tension held between the two and who has more authority. With Cady being topless then putting a top on as he walks out, this shows how he is initially different to the rest of the prisoners, only as he is just being let out of prison. Lighting used within this film opening does not play a huge part and doesn't affect how the audience views the film however there is the one point when he is walking outside the prison and the weather and the sky corresponds with the mood and goes a little dull which could be to describe his personality as a character. Moreover, with the actors within this sequence, Cady is only the highlighted character within this film opening and we can tell that he will be the focus of the film because the other actors within the scene are all grouped together depending on what type of group they fall under. As for props, this film scene doesn't signify many props within the short amount of time that they film this sequence for, the main one that does have some relevance to the film are the posters which are seen in the beginning shot. They have some kind of association with power and the army, which could relate to his past and give the audience some kind of idea that he believes he is omnipotent. His shirt could also be highlighted as a prop because it could show how he is different from the rest of the prisoners or it could show innocence of his character that he has to show respect by putting on a shirt when coming into contact with police or security.