E J S Blogg's

What is Film Noir? Film noir    is a  cinematic  term used primarily to describe stylish  Hollywood   crime dramas , particularly such that emphasize cynical attitudes and  sexual motivations . Hollywood's classical film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s. Film noir of this era is associated with a  low-key ,  black-and-white  visual style that has roots in  German Expressionist   cinematography . Many of the prototypical stories and much of the attitude of classic noir derive from the  hardboiled  school of  crime fiction  that emerged in the United States during the Great Depressi on . What is Classical Hollywood Style? Classical Hollywood cinema ,  classical Hollywood narrative , and  classical continuity  are terms used in  film criticism  which designate both a narrative and visual style of film-making which de...

Representations & stereotypes of men and women in the media In the 'Asda' Christmas ad for 2012, women are stereotyped as the dominate domestic adult. The video shows 'mum' choosing the Christmas tree; writing the cards; shopping; decorating the house and generally doing just motherly things, whereas the dad is only really seen doing the heavy lifting and lounging about the house. After all the preparation, the mother finally manages to get in a biscuit crunch and coffee before she has to get up and carry on. Its Christmas day and dad is sat at the head of the table with his cracker crown on, displaying his overall dominance towards the family, whilst mum perches next to dad on the only chair left, which is a bean bag. This displays how unappreciated she is within the house by her family, as dad doesn't even offer his seat up.  Whilst finishing with the last of the chores, the mothers friend who is also a woman says 'nearly there', which show...

Whiplash Film – Analysis The 2014 film Whiplash was directed by Damien Chazelle and follows the story of an ambitious, young jazz drummer Andrew Neiman (Miles Teller). From the start, it is clear that he is a very lonely and different individual as seen from his lack of friends, he constantly looks around the room and expects people to approach him. Andrew pursuits to be ‘one of the greats’ and often practices with intensity and passion, but in class is considered as a bad drummer. This all changes when he is taken into a studio band by conductor Terence Fletcher (J.K Simmons), because of his determination to impress Fletcher he practices more often but this time with anger and rage, and so his passion to achieve perfection quickly spirals into an obsession. Andrew even punches a hole into his kit and curses out of sheer anger when playing. To allow himself to practice for longer Andrew dips his hands into ice when they would bleed due to continually playing for long durations ...

12 Years a slave movie review I chose to review 12 years a slave, because I wanted to be able to give my opinion on a film that would be emotionally and intellectually stimulating. The story of 12 years a slave follows the tribulations of an educated carpenter, musician and family man from New York who was kidnapped in 1841 and sold into slavery. At the start of the film it contrasts between his previous free life with his now stripped identity and battle with slavery, during this moment we are shocked for the same reason he is, we see a free man with his movement wrongly restricted. The film’s intense portrait of slavery adequately illustrates the grim and degrading suppression into slavery.  Chiwetel Ejiofor who plays at the main character Solomon Northup serves a truly spectacular performance throughout the whole Film, his acting was raw and made you unable to look away from the screen. Although the movie was over 2 hours long and demoral...

Beyoncé – Run the world Representation Beyoncé’s song ‘run the world’ explores the representation of gender and is labelled as a feminist anthem to give women strength. This representation is suggested by Beyoncé standing in a smoky, post-apocalyptic war zone with a lion and leashed hyenas, wearing a gladiator outfit and a gold crown. The tamed Lion demonstrates the idea of strength, courage, leadership as well as power and control, which is distinctively drawn though Beyoncé with back lighting to construct her as the leader image. The Women often stand in power poses to validate their authority and display liberation for the ‘girls’. Although the video is mainly supported around the idea of women empowerment there is evidence to support the notion that there is distinct focus on women being sexually attractive to men, through the use of revealing clothing and provocative dancing. This connotes the women are seeking the male attention as though a woman attracted to a m...

Ralph - Analysis https://vimeo.com/8393631 The short film ‘Ralph’ was written and directed by Alex Winckler in 2008. The plot follows a 15 year old boy ‘Ralph’ who travel’s to France to declare his love to his best friend Clare, but Ralph encounters a number of problems following his quest to find Clare. The genre of this film is specifically aimed at romance, following the themes of conflict, relationships and unrequited love. The opening shot allows us to see Ralph getting off a train; he is very small in comparison to everything which suggests he is out of his element. Whenever Ralph moves there is the use of a handheld camera, this can be done to allow the audience to feel as though they too are experiencing the same thing as Ralph. The film depicts your typical trip to a foreign country, everyone in the film speaks French and there are no subtitles. This adds to the confusion and stress Ralph is facing therefore allowing the audience to once again feel like they are in...

Get off my Land – Analysis ‘Get off my land’ is written and directed by Douglas Ray, it was released on the 26 march 2008. The 4 minuet film tells the story of a young couple on and countryside walk where they encounter the farmer who owns the land they are walking across. The genre of this film is comedy, and stars actors like Robert Glenister, Rafe Spall and Ruth Wilson. The opening scene follows a woman's feet walking slowly along a muddy track but then slows to a stop and the focuses on the males movements. The female in the film is dressed more appropriately for the walk (boots and jacket) whereas the man is in jeans and trainers. The film depicts your typical countryside walk, and even humours the audience with the man’s struggle to get over a wobbly gate, but the rickety, dangerous fence that acts as a warning not to cross into this land foreshadows the ending of this short film. The camera is not kept still but is used in a waving motion to mirror the winds mov...