Why is Christopher Nolan an auteur

2. What is an Auteur?
An auteur is a filmmaker whose style and practice
is distinctive which creates a signature auteur
status for themselves. It is also a filmmaker who
has a personal, signature style and keeps creative
control over his or her work.

4. Recurring Themes/Characters
Christopher Nolan uses mainly dark and
fantasy themes that he creates in his own
time. He writes and directs all of his films
that he has done which definitely makes
him an auteur because Christopher Nolan
has a huge creative impact on the finished
product.
Christopher Nolan enjoys using the same
cast in his films for example he has used
Ann Hathaway in The Dark Knight Rises
and Interstellar, also he has used Tom
Hardy in Inception and The Dark Knight
Rises and also Michael Cain and Christian
Bale in The Dark Knight trilogy and The
Prestige.

5. Visual Style: Non-Linear Storytelling
Christopher Nolan is best known for his non-linear storytelling and this is
best known in Memento. Christopher Nolan has multiple story threads
happening all at once and Memento is an example of this. Also The Prestige
is split into two stories and they focus on Hugh Jackman’s character and then
focus on Christian Bale’s character.
In Memento the opening sequence is also the last scene played backwards.
Batman Begins he uses flashbacks to Bruce Wayne's childhood
The Prestige is that the first scene is also the last scene of the film.
The Dark Knight he uses the flashback to the robbery mentioned at the end
of Batman Begins.

6. Visual Style: Hero or Antihero?
In many of Nolan’s films, a main character starts off with redeeming qualities
only to be shown as having evil qualities. These characters can be the
protagonist or someone who is at first assisting the protagonist.
In The Prestige Hugh Jackman’s character who plays the victims role when
Christian Bale’s character causes he death of his wide. In the end of the
movie Jackman’s obsession of revenge ends of making as much of a villain.
In The Dark Knight Harvey Dent was Gotham’s hero until he lost the love of
his life and the Batman saves him instead of Rachael and Dent turns evil and
his character changes into Two Face.
Finally in The Dark Knight Rises Miranda Tate is the good person as she helps
Bruce Wayne but in the end of the film finds out she is evil seeking revenge
for her fathers death in Batman Begins.

7. Visual Style: A character’s Perspective
In Christopher Nolan’s films he likes to use the characters perspective to
make the audience “see” what the character’s are seeing without being the
character. This takes careful thought of where to place the camera. He uses
this especially when the scene is focusing on a character or dialogue. This is a
clever way for his stories to drive forward as it gives a first person
storytelling view rather than a third person view.
In Inception, the vertigo-inducing fight sequence in the twisting hotel room is
shot from behind the character Arthur. In The Prestige, the camera follows
behind Angier as he performs onstage, showing his perspective as he looks
out at a crowd.

8. Christopher Nolan uses the contrast of light and dark to show character
growth/decay and exploration. In Batman Begins, Bruce Wayne uses the flashlight
to venture into the batcave for the very first time to face his fears.
In Inception, Nolan uses a ceiling of lights in the first and last scene of the movie
which helps the audience to make the connection between future and past
sequences.
Finally in The Prestige, it is a field of light bulbs free of wires that allows Angier to
experience amazement from something real, not an illusion.
Visual Style: Shining Light

9. Creative control
Christopher Nolan has a lot of creative control in all of his films. He
writes the all of his films and his co-writer is his own brother Jonathan
Nolan. This is very important to an auteur because to be an auteur they
need to have a strong impact on the creativity for the film and
Christopher Nolan does just that.

10. Crew
Christopher Nolan has used the same editor for all of his films apart from
Memento. The editor is called Lee Smith. Nolan also uses Wally Pfister as his
cinematographer in all of the feature films he has made. Nolan again has
used the same production designer for many of his films and his name is
Nathan Crowley.
This is very important for a director to have crew he can trust with his vision
and they clearly have the same vision for Nolan to want the same people in
multiple films.

11. Case Study: The Dark Knight Trilogy
Christopher Nolan is most famous for his portrayal of The Dark Knight
trilogy. But in his previous films he has left his mark heavily on the filmic
world, through his intense and deep storytelling and his direction for his
vision of the finished product.
People consider Christopher Nolan bringing back Batman as the iconic anti-
hero and explores the character deeper than he ever has been.

12. Case Study: The Dark Knight Trilogy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvDi-upowQs

13. Case Study: The Dark Knight Trilogy Analysis
of Clip
In this trailer it shows the anti hero Batman saving Gotham City from a nuclear bomb that is about to go off. The
first style Nolan uses is that so called hero Miranda is a villain to seek revenge for the death of her father. You
don’t find this out till the end of the movie when she betrays Bruce Wayne. Also Nolan uses a quick flashback to
Commissioner Gordon putting his jacket around the young Bruce Wayne that is also shown in Batman Begins.
This shows the audience that this could be the last heroic act Batman does. When Batman and Commissioner
Gordon are talking just before he flies off, Christopher Nolan places the camera in particular places to make the
audience feel like they are part of the characters perspective and this is important again for this moment
because it is an important scene within the trilogy because it is the ending of the franchise.

14. Thank You for listening.
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