The Maltese Falcon

The Maltese Falcon is a 1941 film noir that directed by John Huston. The hero staring by Humphrey Bogart. This film about a San Francisco private detective and his dealings with three unscrupulous adventurers, all of whom are competing to obtain a jewel-encrusted falcon statuette. First of all, I think that this film very hard to attract me and also grab my attention to watch. Because the colour of the film is black and white, so Im very hard to concentrate while watching this film. Film noir is not a genre but it is a style of a film. We define film noir in many aspect which is visual, character and narrative. We also call film noir as black film.

       Firm noir is a type of American films that ‘invaded’ French cinemas after World War II. Film noir refers to mystery and crime dramas produced from the early 1940s to the late 1950s. The features in this film noir is the whole film colour used black and white to present. The featured stories also involving femme fatales, doomed heroes or anti-heroes, and tough, cynical detectives. It is first applied to Hollywood film by French critics defined the category retrospectively. In this film noir, all characters is bad, pure evil. If they pure good, that must be something wrong. It because of features a world of criminals of darkness and violence. This features reflect how a character’s central motives are usually greed, lust and ambition, drench in fear. Another history context is when WWII occurs, all the men must go to the war. Women force to go out to work. When men come back from war, the women already can earn money better than men. Through this incident, social change with liberation for women. Women not only can stay at home, they also can go out work to earn money.

       The visually of the film noir can defined by many ways. In film noir, all this is dark with a lot of shadows. The lighting is low key which can show high contrast lighting in a film. The shadow of the lines is purpose to enhance the characters. Usually, mostly scene is lit for night. They always have location such as alleyways, cramped corridors, etc. The setting of the city is city-bound, comprising of rain-washed roads and dimly-lit interiors.The syntax or thematically in film noir is cynical, pessimism and dark. It include corrupted characters, fatalistic themes, hopeless tones, blurred morals and intellect. Next is hard boiled antihero versus femme fatale, tales of criminal motives and usually features a narration. The femme fatale also play important role in film noir. Film noir is about power of relations and sexual identity. Film noir gives a very central role to the femme fatale and privileges her as active, intelligent, powerful, dominant and in charge of her own sexuality. Women also become the central to the intrigue. Therefore, she who becomes the object of the male’s investigation. Women also usually makes the mystery in a film.

       In The Maltese Falcon, the black and white totally applied in this film. All the scene was used low key which is high contrast. So the lighting show a lot of shadow for the main character Sam Spade. When Sam walk in the room, we can notice that the shadow of him. This lighting can enhance the Sam is a hero and mystery man. The shadow of line also applied in the room to bring out the mystery situation. 

Next is the beginning of the film, Brigid O’Shaughnessy come to the office and meet Sam. Miles Archer, assistant of Sam tried to get relationship with her. So when Miles want to meet her at night but dead after a mystery guy shot him. Miss Shaughnessy become the central of the intrigue. Miss Shaughnessy use women characteristic to make Miles go into this trap. Miss Shaughnessy also pretend she is very weak and trap Sam go Cairo’s place. We can see that women able to do anything instead of stay at come take care family. Women also can do the work more good than men. Because men easy trap by women, so men not really every times win women. A lot of scene use low angle when Sam walking and communicate with another people. It show the symbolic of paranoid. During that time, men always paranoid to women. But after the men return from the war, they shocked because women give them money.

       In film noir, all character is bad. They will do anything to accomplish goal. Even a hero also not pure good at all in a film. In our real life also same, we not pure bad and pure good. We are middle, so this is balance of the life.

In the Mood for Love

Another experience with watched a film “ In the Mood for Love”. This is a 2000 Hong Kong film directed by Wong Kar Wai. Staring by Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung. I really can’t understand what this story tell about. I think I must watch twice or above only I get what really director of this film want to bring out. It apply the theory of French Impressionism in this film. French impressionism is the theory that very hard for me to understand. I think I need to watch another film that apply this theory. The relationship of love in this film also had a lot of confuses.

French Impressionism popular around 1919-1928. After war French filmmaking never fully recovered. In 1920s, French audiences saw eight times more Hollywood footages than domestic footages. The film industry tried in several ways to capture the market, mostly through imitation of Hollywood production methods and genres. For these directors said that this cinema was an art of emotion, so the imitate psychological narrative dominated their practice. They used love of triangle as the basis for the filmmaker’s exploration of fleeting moods and shifting sensations. The characteristics of this theory is effect of explore the depth of psychology. It also revealing character’s consciousness, concerns mental states, dreams or fantasies. The interest falls not on external physical behavior but in inner action. Next is plot time of the film is manipulates. Which means they arrangers the time and the scene. Sometimes will have flashback to depict memories. We can view from different point with cinematography and editing. The use irises, superimposition, to indicate the character’s thought and feelings. The visual also will distorted, filtered or vertiginous cam movement to show the dizzy or drunkenness. Point of view can see that the rhythmic editing show the experience of how a character in a situation. The movement of the cam very smooth to brought about by frame mobility.

They are some scene that we can see the how French impressionism apply in his film. One of the scene is after communication between Mr, Chow and Mrs. Chan, Mr. Chan go back his office and smoked. When he smoke, the smoke show on the scene like a cloud. It show that the mind inside Mr. Chan. He is confusing in love, cause we can see that the shape of the smoke very cloudy. So Mr. Chan is no focus and mind very cloudy.

And about the time in this film, editor use a lot of jump cut to show that the time go through very fast. I can see that storyline is actually go through very smooth, so I won’t confuse I will miss any scene. In this movie they repeating the same location. Which mean they repeating their life. The slow motion always show women butt come in the frame, it show that they not having a good time and also the sexuality life and society of them. The beginning of the scene until the end, they not showing Mr. Chan and Mrs. Chow, which mean if they not showing face so why still waiting. Next is Mr. Chow and Mrs. Chan love each other but they don’t want to say out. We can see that this kind of love is different than what we thought about love. Not all the love is same way. The story is show the process instead of result.

In conclusion, this film is a French impressionism film. It fully apply the characteristic and style in this film. I happy that I can learn how to justice a film in another style and style. 

Ghostbusters-2016

I wanna talk about the film that I watched recently. “Ghostbuster”. Seriously, I love this film a lot. This film directed by Paul Feig. Staring by Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones as four women who start a ghost-catching business in New York City. This film is a mix genre film. It included horror and comedy genres. So this mix genres created a whole new feeling toward audience. We can find out several actor that staring in ghostbuster II 1989 which is Bill Murray as Martin Heiss, Dan Aykroyd as Cabbie, Sigourney Weaver as Rebecca Gorin, Ernie Hudson as Uncle Bill Jenkins, Annie Potts as Hotel Desk Clerk. This film has postmodernism elements. We able to find out a lot of postmodernistic elements in this film if we learn the theory of postmodernism. I admire that the filmmaker successful made a postmodernism film to audience nowadays.

Genre is has two approach, which is semantics and syntax. This two approaches need to work together hand in hand. Through this two approaches, we able to categories the genre of each film that we watched. Semantic element in the film is mise-en-scene. It is a cinematic language on screen by using characters, props, lighting, and composition etc. The approach of syntax is the qualities and the themes in the film. The syntax usually send the message to the audience.

Postmodernism is a theory of the film. Postmodernism is the way to challenge the system of the way of modernism. Previous film only one genre, but now had both genre or above.

The horror genre I can found in this film is the jump scare of the ghost. When some ghost came out, the audio will slowly fade out. This scene will make audience pay attention to watch. After that the ghost will suddenly shout out. The mise-en-scene that we can find out is the graphic of the ghosts. The eyes of the ghosts will glowing.

The comedy genre that we can find out is the conversation between four women that become ghostbuster. One of the dialog that Patty Tolan said when she want jump from the concert stage, nobody hold her so Patty fell down. She said “so I don’t know if this is race thing or lady thing. This dialog show that confuse of stereotype women or racist. The Kevin is the dumb guy. When Abby said don’t listen, but Kevin close his eyes instead of close his ear. But Kevin grab audience attention to watch because this is character for Chris Hemsworth. He is the Thor in avenge. But In ghostbuster, his act totally different way, this is new challenge for him. Another one scene is when the ghost slowly come out from door, the situation supposed to be scary and fear. But suddenly a cracker sound pop up from Jillian Holtzmann.

Postmodernistic elements I can found here is the movie use a lot of pastiche. The number of the car is ECTO-1. They pastiche the number car of previous car that in ghostbuster 1989. Next is the theme song of previous ghostbuster also used in this film. They recreate and remix now tempo to show the new feeling. One of the scene is when this four characters used the machine catch the ghost, their pose same like how previous ghostbuster pose to catch the ghosts.

I really surprise that this movie give respect to the previous ghostbuster. The previous character also will appear in this film although they not related to catch ghosts. (Oppsss, spoiler alert). Another thing that I realize is the feminism. This film main character is women. I show that why always men can catch ghosts. Women also can catch the ghost. In this film totally showed that women also can save the world. Nice !!

In conclusion, this movie brought new feeling to audience nowadays. Audience expect for watching new story line and entertainment in this film. This film successes to show to audience what they expect for. I recommend this movie to who still not watch yet. 

Dark City

When we watching a film, our expectation of a film is we want to enjoy the entertainment and satisfaction for our needs. Nowadays, audience expect for the movie that have colourful vision and fun to satisfy them. We never thought that we use another mentality to watch a different such as Dark City. After watched this film that Mr.Joe Yan gave us, I sudden have another experience in this film and this theory. They use another way to perform the art of a film. I didn’t said that I not really like the film, but I just learn many thing from this theory.

The German expressionism fully apply in the film- Dark City. German expressionism is filmic style that emerged in German from 1919-1926. Influenced by the Expressionist movement in modern art of early 1900s. Most of the filmmakers from Germany migrated to USA. They brought their filmmaking practice to Hollywood, influenced the film noir and horror film. Its themes are revolt, self-analysis, madness, and primitive, sexual savagery. The setting of lighting is low key lighting which create high contrast in a film. It tried to distorted set and bodies. It provides sense of mystery to audience. The scene of the film will saw like they oblique camera angle. The content is usually surreal and gothic, about unnatural act or realities. German expressionism’s famed predilection for chiaroscuro. Chiaroscuro means the use of highly contrastive lighting, literally light and dark. Later will explain more detail how this theory apply in this film.

This first of what we can defined German expressionism from Dark City is self-analysis. It mean that we keep questioning our self who we are. Just like John Murdoch in the beginning, he just woke up from a stranger place. He lost his memories, so he keep advance to find the answer and get back his memories from himself. Because the strangers took Murdoch’s memories away in order that John Murdoch cannot remember his power to destroy the strangers. Next is primitive sexual savagery that can see in film is the strangers. The beginning of this film, the strangers trying to kill John Murdoch. The used violence ways to kill the people. The kid stranger bites Murdoch’s hand show that is dark primal instincts. Next is the film are used low key lighting high contrast to shows the heavy emotion. The lighting can make audience feel the fear of the strangers chasing John Murdoch. The lighting played important role in this film to show the horror to audience. Another mise-en-scene we can see is the distorted of all the props. We can see that the finger of the strangers, white face and the movement of their body where is abnormal form of human that we perceive in reality.

The conclusion, this film success to show the German expressionism. This theory play important role to apply in Dark City to show what director want to give audience. I hope this theory can apply to another new film to show a whole new expectation to audience. 

ParaNorman

While watching ParaNorman, I really enjoy this film a lot. It is a 3D stop motion animated horror comedy film. Seriously, I love 3D stop-motion animated film. This production used Canon EOS 5D Mark II DSLR camera to film the movie. It spend 2 more years to go through this. I admire that the patient of every crew in this production. That why this film so attracted for me. The genre of this film is comedy, horror, action and drama. This film has postmodernistic elements. We able to find out a lot of postmodernistic elements in this film if we watch it clearly.

Genre is has two approach, which is semantics and syntax. This two approaches need to work together hand in hand. Through this two approaches, we able to categories the genre of each film that we watched. Semantic element in the film is mise-en-scene. It is a cinematic language on screen by using characters, props, lighting, and composition etc. The approach of syntax is the qualities and the themes in the film. The syntax usually send the message to the audience.

Postmodernism is a theory of the film. Postmodernism is the way to challenge the system of the way of modernism. Previous film only one genre, but now had both genre or above. Paranorman is a combination of the horror and comedy genres. So this film is postmodernism.

Norman Babcock is 11 years boy that can see and speak with ghosts. Nobody in the tow believe him and there laughing at him. Except his best friend Neil Downe. His uncle Mr. Prenderghast try to convince Norman to take his place to protect the town from the curse of witch. Because Mr. Prenderghast also can talk with ghosts same like Norman. Norman don’t want listen it, until Mr. Prenderghast die. Norman try to read the story book to save the town at grave. But he fail, so 7 zombies that cursed by witch woke up from the grave. Norman and his friends tried to prevent the zombies go to town. After that, Zombie talk to Norman and Norman realize that the zombie want begging him to stop the curse from the little girl witch name Agatha. Finally, Norman save the town by recalls the happiness moment of Agatha.  

The comedy genre I can found in this film is they make fun of the zombie. In one scene, a man want to buy a snack in the machine. But he saw a lot of zombies walking toward the man. But the man still waiting the snack drop down from the machine. The man very scare of zombie, but the zombie walk very slow, even the time of snack also slow. I another films, zombies run very fast. The horror part is the lighting of this film very dark, so it can brought out the horror emotion.

Postmodernistic element I can found here is they use Jason, Friday the thirteen inside the film. One of the scene is when Norman receive a call from Neil, he open the window and saw Neil wearing a hockey mask.

In conclusion, this is a very much postmodern and various genres film. The message brought from this film is we must not blame people easily. We must think consequence if we blame someone. In order that we would not hurt another people. I like this film !