1. Introduction:
There are a numberof differentwaysinwhichfilmscanbe analysed;there are twowaysgenre
analysisandauteurtheory.Genre analysisisanalysedbyhavingspecificobjectsorsceneryinone
scene,e.g.a filmaboutspace wouldhave objectslikerockets,astronauts,NASA etc…Auteurtheory
isanalysedwhenthe “Author”of the filmoverseesall audioandvisual elementsof the movie thanis
the writerof the screenplay.Whenapplyinggenre analysistoCowboysvsAliensthe openingscene
includesadesert, cowboyhats,horses,saloonsandsoon,thisisknownas mise enscene everything
inone scene whichinstantlytellsyouthe genre of the film.Andwhenapplyingauteurtheorytopulp
fictionthe directorQuentinTarantinodirectsthe filmfromhisperspectivehavingeachscene
jumbledupthroughoutthe filmmakingitconfusingforthe audience,he alsodoesthistohisother
filmse.g.Kill Billwhichshowsthatit’shiswork andrelatesbackto hisperspective of filmmaking.
Task 1: Lacey’sRepotoire of Elements(JamesBond/Leon)
Filmanalystsanalyse genre inJamesBondbyhavingagood lookingactorplayJamesanddressedin
fancysuitsand sunglasses. The filmsJamesBondandLeonare verysimilarinwaysbutalsohave
defineddifferences,forexampletheyuse the maincharactersof bothfilmsasan anonymoustype
character but have differentstyles.Bondisdressedsmartusingsharpblacksuits,geldcombedhair
and sunglassescomingasaveryhandsome male whomostmenwantto be like.Leonisaverymuch
imitatedcharacterof bondbut appearance andstyle iscompletelyopposite he dressesinbigthick
jacketswhichkeepshimhiddenandlookingsuspicious,ablackbeanie hatwithbigcircularglasses.
The author of Leonseemstobe tryingto have the character Leon influencedbyBondbutbykeeping
Leon’srepresentationdifferent.AlsoBondisaverystereotypical Americanwhogetsverypretty
womenanddrinksa lotof alcohol, withLeonit’sthe same butmore downgradedhe getsa girl who
is14 yearsold,he’sa foreigncharacteranddoesn’tspeakmuchthroughoutthe filmandsticksto
milkotherthanBond whodrinksalcohol.There are a lotof iconicobjects/scenessplitbetweenboth
filmswhichshowsimilaritiesandrepresentationforLeonandJamesBond,e.g.the use of gunsboth
filmshave the use of bigguns andhand heldpistolswhichisiconicforanassassinactionthriller
films.Alsothe iconicsceneswhichinvolve massive explosionsandmassacre gunfightsthisismore
showninJamesBond but can alsobe relevanttoLeonwiththe endscene showingLeon killing
himself withanexplosionwhichkillsof Stansfieldandhiswhole mafiagang. There are manyother
filmswhichshowreference topreviouspopularfilms,theycontainiconicfeatureswhichhave been
currentlyusedingenre relatedmoviesmade bydifferentfilmmakers.Ianalysedanew releasedfilm
A walkamongthe tomb stoneswhich wasgenre relatedtoolderfilmsTaken/JamesBondbeingthe
bestexamples.The filmwasverymuchlike Takenstarringthe same actor (LiamNeeson) he plays
the same style role as inTakenbeinganex-copundercoverhuntingdownvillainousgangsusingbare
handcombat and little handguns.The genre of filmbeinganactionthrillermakesthe twofilmsvery
similarandcontainsthe same iconographyandmise onscene throughoutthe twofilms.
2. An auteurfilmmakeristhe authorof a certaintype genre of film, forexampleQuentinTarantinoa
filmmakerof PulpFiction,Kill Bill, andTrue Romance etc…has referencesineachfilmwhichlink
togethertoshowthat it’sa QuentinTarantinofilm. ForexampleinPulpFictionthe characterVince
playedbythe actor JohnTravolta wasmentionedinalaterfilmTrue romance whichisthe same
style andgenre of filmbuta completelydifferentanduniquestoryline,aprostitute whoisamain
star in True romance mentionsaboutherbrothercalledVince relatingbacktoPulpFictionThislink
showsrelevance toaTarantinofilm.
TalkingaboutanotherauteurfilmmakerTimBurtonwhoalsohasa unique style of filmmaking,Tim
Burtonis all aboutcrazy creativitywhichentertainthe viewer.Hisfilmsare darkandweirdwhichare
confusingforexample Alice inwonderlandbeingafairy tale type of filmbutcontainstwistswhich
referto drugsand hallucinations. ThisisiconicinTimBurton’sfilmsbecause showinggloomy
characters andscenesinstantlytell youthat’sit’saBurtonfilm, e.g.the corpse bride beinganolder
filmalsois verysimilartoa more recentfilmFrankenweenie.Alsothe actorswhostar ina large
majorityof burtonsfilmsalsohave the reputationof darkandweird charactersin Burtonfilms,
JohnnyDeppisworld-wide knownactorwhoperfectlyplaysrolesinwhich himbeingsuspicious,a
killer,orplainstupid.Forexample SweenyToddisaburtonFilmwhichhasJohnnyDeppas the main
star in the filmandalsoEdwardScissorhands are two completelydifferentcharactersbutthey’re
bothiconicrolesfor a TimBurton film.
3. Talkingaboutinnovationinfilmmakingthe bestexample wouldhave tobe the directorJames
Cameronthe makerof the mostpopularTitanicand Avatar.JamesCamerondemonstrates
innovationusingthesetwomoviesbybasingthembeyondcomplex andneverbeen usedbefore in
the filmmakingindustry.Titanicwasmostlikelythe mostpopularandawardwinningfilmJames
Cameronhas evermade.Usingtechniqueswhichstartedanew eraof filmmaking,the use of CGI
animationwhichnootherfilmmakerhasuseditin the wayas Titanicmade the filmlookreal
footage.JamesCameronanAuteurdirectordemonstratesinnovationusingthese waysor
filmmaking;he alsousesinnovationwithfilmmakingwithinthe storylinesof hisfilms.Avatarisa
JamesCameronfilmwhich defineshimasan auteurdirectorbecause it’sagreat adventure which
exceedsintoadramatictwistmakingbothfilmsquite similarinaway.ThisdefinesJamesCameron
ina wayof makingthese typesof filmsthatcaneasilydescribe the filmasbeingone of James
Cameron’s.
Anotherwayyoucan define adirectoras an auteurtheoryfilmmakeristhe waythe directoruses
confusingartisticwaysmixedintotheirfilms.LucBessonbeingthe prime filmmakerwhodefines
artisticwaysinto films,Suchas Leonbeinganexample whichLucBesson hascreatedinan artistic
way.ComparingLeonto previousfilmmade whichsignifiesthe characterinbothfilms,he is
comparedto a JamesBondtype character in deepways,the appearance of Leoniscomplete
opposite toJamesBondhavingBondas a Americanassassinwhoisgoodlooking,dressesverysharp
and seemstogeta newbeautifulwomancharacterineverynew filmmade.Leonisdifferenthe’s
quiet,hasan accent whichisverymuchnot American, dressesinmassivecoatsmakinghimlook
rather suspiciousandgetsagirl whois twelve yearsold. Althoughthe site andappearance have
these 2 characters lookverydifferentlytheirpersonalitiesare linked,one example canbe that
they’re bothassassinswhokill peopleformoney.ThiswayshowsLucBessonhavinghisfilmsmore
shownas an artisticstyle film.
4. A filmmakerwhoshowssimilarthemeinmovieswouldbe Michael Baybeingagoodexample;
Michael Bay isan auteurdirectorfor creatingsci-fi/actionadventuretype filmslikethe transformers
franchise andthe adventurousfilmArmageddon. Michael Bayhasa reputationof explosionsand
massive scenesof citiesbeingdestroyed;thisisusedinbothtransformersandArmageddonwhich
signifiesthatitisa Michael Bayfilm.The filmsare differentinstoryline butsimilarintheme andthe
making.Michael Bayis an auteurdirectorina way whichhe usesthe type of animationinhisfilms
whichdefineshimasthattype of directorand can instantlytell youit’saMichael bayfilmwiththe
animationandplotusedthroughoutthe film.Comparingthe similaritiesinhisfilmsthe bestgiven
example foraMichael Bay filmwouldbe Transformersand Armageddon,these filmsbothcontain
sceneswhichhave buildingsgettingdestroyedun-natural creaturesandobjectse.g.massive
asteroidsplummetingtoearth,and alienrobotstryingtotake overthe world. Thisis all made using
the same technologyand isverysimilarwhencomparingitina technological sideof filmmaking.
Part 2: Mean Girls
Dir: Mark Waters Published: 2004
Genre: Teen Comedy
For part 2 I will be explaining how laceys repertoire of elements is used in the teen comedy
movie Mean Girls. The main characters used in Mean Girls are common looking and have
the personalities that are used in many other comedy teen movies. First the complete main
star (Lindsey Lohan) who plays the high role ‘Cady Heron’ a middle aged teen who has
moved from her previous home country Africa which she was home schooled and isolated
from any other normal teen life. To live in America and have a normal teen life that’s when
she discovers the mean ways of some school mates and changes her whole perspective on
her impression of a high school life. After Cady is introduced into the filmit then goes on to
showing the other characters such as her friends Janis Ian who knows everything about all
the school pupils and mainly the Plastics which are the much prettier girls who rule the
school in a way. The plastics contain 3 common dumb acting but good looking girls the same
5. age as Cady who think they can control everyone these typical girls are a common type
characters in life high schools and other teen films.
The narrative side of the filmwhich talks about the 5 act structure in movies such as the
Exposition, rising action, climax, falling action and finally the denouement tells you how the
dramatic use in this filmare structured. First the exposition is simply the background story
which is important information to keep you understanding throughout the film. The
exposition in Mean Girls starts by showing you Cady’s previous life which is her family living
in Africa, her parents being scientist and how they have to move to America to start a
normal life type scenario. This then leads onto the introduction of all the main characters in
the film that are important in the film. The Rising action starts by Cady becoming friends
with the plastics and them turning her into something she’s not, they have important
schedules which include colour coordinated clothing for specific days and what to eat and
what not to eat. This part of the film is extremely essential towards the rest of the movie
because it shows you all about the Plastics and how the girls are eventually turned into
mean girls. The Climax in the filmstarts by Cady and her friend Janis elaborating schemes to
reveal the plastics evil secrets and stop them from controlling the school. This then goes
into Cady being brain washed and turns into a plastic, because she thinks the plastics are
right so she uses their terms and words and starts to dress like them.
The Falling action is about the Burn Book which contains the secrets of the plastics and has
cruel lies and written inside which disrupts and has the pupils resent each other for. The
Burn book gets discovered and has Cady to blame when it was the leader of the Plastics
‘Regina George’ years’ work of roomers. This eventually falls and each person in the school
dislikes Cady when she was in the wrong to contribute towards the burn book. The
denouement Is the iconic ending for a teen movie, it involves Cady going back to her original
self-becoming prom queen and getting her high school crush to be her prom king. The
plastics are no more and everything resolves to peace in school.
The iconic features in Mean Girls which is obvious compared to other films and real life. First
the common used yellow school bus which is shown and used in the same way as every
other teen American movie. The characters such as Regina George the leader of the plastics
being nice at first but two faced to so called friends behind their back. This is iconic because
a character like this is always the same being pretty and thinking they can have control over
anyone. The other 2 plastics are uneducated and have no clue a majority of the time; this is
stereotypical but again used as an iconic figure in other teen films. The school and subjects
are iconic in a way that it’s always a massive school always used, and sports such as
‘Lacrosse, Football and a cheerleading team. These are commonly known as jocks which are
always the big popular guys who all the girls fancy and other students want to be like.
Scenes can also be iconic e.g. the scene in mean girls where she’s at a high school party,
these parties are always used in films which can also be an example of real life out of school
6. activities. And the use of prom being the end highlight of the film and how all the bad
people become nice and everyone gets what they wanted, commonly called a happy ending.
The setting is blatant, the use of mise en scene at the start of the filmshowing the weather
and building surrounding which tells you that it’s an American school with students walking
into the building. It has all subjects in that single scene which instantly tells you it’s a teen
movie. All the main subjects I’ve explained easily defines the genre of filmby showing the
iconography and the use of laceys repertoire of elements can simply tell you that’s its an
Teen Comedy before watching it and seeing the film for yourself.
Part 3: Shaun of the dead
Dir: Edgar Wright Published: 2004
Genre: Horror/ Comedy
For this part I will be talking about the director Edgar Wright and his most popular film
Shaun of the Dead. Edgar wright is and auteur director for which he makes his films in the
same particular style, for each filme.g. Shaun of the dead, Hot fuzz, Paul etc… are different
genres but express similarity’s showing that these films define the auteur director being
Edgar Wright. Firstly I significant detail for an Edgar Wright film would be the actors he uses,
the two main actors who star in a lot of different films together are Simon Pegg and Nick
Frost, these British actors are used in many of Edgar Wrights films and in my opinion make
the film commonly known as an Edgar film. Another instant aspect which describes the films
being and Edgar Wright filmwould be the genre, he creates films which include Zombies,
Aliens, Robots and unexperienced police men these are very scientific and create very
unique storylines in filmmaking. These films also include various violent scenes containing
people being shot and gore action not good for the squeamish, for example Shaun of the
dead had a scene where a live person is ripped apart by flesh eating zombies, this shows
bled guts torn apart but still passing as a comedy with its crazy stupid humour scene which
make you cry with laughter. This filmand many others which Edgar Wright has directed all
are similar in different ways and show that it is his films using his filmmaking methods.
Edgar makes these films in a particular style to show and tell the viewer that it is his film
when applying the same techniques.
7. Conclusion:
The two methods in filmmaking (Laceys repertoire of elements and Auteur theory) can
show a lot there is to know about filmmaking. Filmmaking that isn’t considered by the
audience and can be more appreciated when the viewer’s know what specific details have
been put into making that film. For example talking about Quinten Tarantino how he creates
some of films in different order which is confusing and uncommon in filmmaking but he sees
it more as art and can also be a more unique way of understanding the storyline and plot
within that film. Also in some of his films he links the characters being related which is hard
to notice but also a way of signifying that the film is one of his own, I think this is a good way
of expressing his thought around movies and to show that he is an Auteur director in that
type of filmmaking.
Inception:
Dir.: Christopher Nolan
Published: 2010
Genre: Sci-fi/ thriller
Inception a film by Chris Nolan is a filmwhich takes full concentration to understand, this
also applies artistic value in auteur filmmaking having various scenes which make you
struggle to understand the concept of the film. Chris Nolan does this type of style of filmto
signify and to show innovation which leads back to his style of making movies.
