Film analysis

 FILM ANALYSIS

DANIEL SENIOR 

INTRODUCTION 

I have been asked to analyse a range of films, from different genres in preparation for a series of programmes on fictional film genres. My critical analysis of the purpose, format, narrative structure, visual storytelling, genre and audience of my chosen films, and genres, will be used by the production team for a new series to inform the content of one or more of their programmes. I have been asked to present the outcomes of my analysis to the production team. 

 

SOUCES FOR EACH VIDEO: 

-Venom ~ Sci-Fi [Venom (2018) - Getting Swatted Scene (5/10) | Movieclips - YouTube] 

-The Maze Runner ~ Thriller [THE MAZE RUNNER Clip - "A Griever" (2014) - YouTube] 

 

To begin with, a fictional film is a film that tells a narrative. This is the most common type of film ranging through every genre.  

FORMATS AND PURPOSES 

Fictional films are made with many types of purposes. While most are made to generate income and provide entertainment for everyone, there are some that use fictional films for other, unexpected meanings. There are 9 purposes for a fictional film to be produced: showcase talent, tell a story, entertainment, income, educational, raise awareness, share an ideology, experiment style, film festival/competition. An example of an unexpected purpose would be to display talented agents, it will allow actors and crew members to prove their skills and abilities to ‘scouts’. Having done that, they will be able to reach new heights in their career.  

In addition to purposes, fictional films are also formatted in a way that will highlight to the audience that it is fictional. There are only 5 formats that fictional films can follow: amateur, short film, hollywood/studio model, independent, feature length film. There is a theory based on the structure of fictional films, it is called the ‘three-act theory’, and states that in the first act, the characters should be presented alongside the challenges they will face. In the second act, the challenges are put into place with conflict, and finish by providing an outcome. Finally in the third act, everything is resolved allowing the audience to feel concluded. This is a commonly used format for hollywood-type models, making it easy for the audience to differentiate the type of film and be able to correctly acknowledge it as a fictional film. 

GENRES 

Genres are an element of all films, and they function to show to the audience what style of story the film follows, hence making it easier to know which types of films they like, and how to differentiate them from other types. Genres set expectations, which can be played with and combined with other genre norms to generate a creative film that meets the assumptions of both genres. An example of an expectation of certain genres would be an action norm, most action films have illuminations of high stakes and conflict, which has been deliberately put in by the director to ensure the audience understand that it is indeed an action movie. Viewers tend to enjoy films that include stereotypical features as it allows them to well predict outcomes. While on the other hand, some viewers prefer an aberrant perspective of the genre since it distorts their expectations, thus startling them with the outcomes. 

Moreover, a lot of directors like to combine two or more different genres with their themes and elements. This is known as hybridity genre. An example of genres being fused would be action and comedy, two genres that you wouldn’t usually associate with each other, but they are fused in a lot of popular movies such as Venom, Jumanji, and Spider-Man. Action is known to be a more serious, cold-headed genre while comedy is more energetic, happy and passive. By fusing genres, the producers will have a smaller target audience that they must utilise to the fullest. Also, with two different audiences as the secondary targets, trying to advertise for them must be done cautiously to ensure both audiences are attracted effectively. 

Another faction of genres are subgenres, they are parts of a larger genre but are more specific to an individual aspect. For example, a Drama film could be simplified even further to a subgenre like Tragedy. Although subgenres will attract a smaller audience than a large genre would, viewers like knowing exactly what elements of genres a film holds as they may only like certain aspects of it. 

CONVENTIONS 

Every genre has their conventions that make their appearance theirs. I have decided to study two types of genres, Sci-fi and Thriller. These are two completely different genres illustrating a much different aspect of film.  

Sci-fi is an abbreviation for Science Fiction, and its conventions consist of elements and ideas that are not possible in real life but has been implemented into a film. For example, advanced robots, time travel, and aliens are the most basic stereotypes. One of the films I will be analysing is Venom, 2018. Venom has advanced technology with the combination of alien lifeforms, the symbiotes. Having these features, many viewers would be able to identify that sci-fi is one of the genres.  

Thriller is typically identified from how they affect the audiences' feelings in a way of which heightens them. This genre also usually holds other subgenres that often overlap in movies. Some popular subgenres of Thriller include Horror, Crime, and Detective Fiction. They implement the same affect, but more focused on a certain aspect/feeling. The other film that I will analyse is The Maze Runner, 2014. The Maze Runner is constantly, and effectively making the audience feel tense in scenarios using fast-paced movement and things like loud noises. 

AUDIENCE EXPECTATIONS 

When most people watch Sci-fi films, they expect otherworldly aspects, like futuristic spaceship with advanced gear. Also, the conventional colour scheme for Sci-fi films is white and blue, in a neon-like material, as it usually represents bright lights, which is common for futuristic things. Moreover, the audience also expect CGI of superior quality since Sci-fi films are hard to carry out well without professional CGI editing.  

On the other hand, the audience of Thriller movies expect to be on the edge of their seat, almost constantly. They expect this as the plot builds towards the final climax, building up tension and suspense. Thus, affecting feelings by overwhelming them.  

MISE-EN-SCENE 

Mise-en-Scene is a French word that translates to Putting on Stage. It refers to the arrangement of the scenery, props, etc on the set of a film. The entire stage is mise-en-scene, so the costumes, background, actors and more are all considered into the film and made according to the script to make everything match the desired design. 

In Venom, the colours are bright and neon-like, which is conventional of Sci-fi films. The lighting has increased exposure to make them look brighter, while keeping a dark setting when Venom is fighting the police. It is not extremely noticeable in comparison to other generic conventions, but still suggests that it is Sci-fi.  

 

In The Maze Runner, during the chase with Thomas and the Griever, mise-en-scene is used to represent small, confined spaces with endless corners of a labyrinth to maximise the feeling of suspense set on the audience as they watch Thomas turn every corner in expectation of something appearing. By closing in Thomas with the setting, it allows the audience to feel for Thomas in a much more tense way as anything could happen with such corners. 

 

While Venom is easily noticed and identified as a Sci-fi film, it does not have the same effect on the audience as The Maze Runner does with its Thriller. The Maze Runner affects the audience’s feelings in the moment, while Venom makes the audience aware of the genre, which allows them to expect future events in the film from that information and expect Sci-fi conventional aspects. 

CAMERAWORK 

Camerawork comes from the entire process of filmmaking, it is extremely important to the film as it can have significant impact on the way the story is portrayed, the feelings in situations, the atmosphere, and more. 

In Venom, during his fight with the police, the camera shot was constantly switching to other people, and there was a point where it was the point of view of a policeman's scope. I believe this slightly represents futuristic forces in a way that makes the audience think of an alien vs human conflict. It is a common trope to make the humans lose sight of the alien, making them look inferior and weak.  

 

In The Maze Runner, during Thomas’ escape from the Griever at the beginning of the clip, the camera shot transitions are quick-paced and shaky, as if it is mimicking Thomas’ thought-process. It creates suspense and makes the audience fall to the edge of the seat awaiting something to happen.  

 

To compare the two techniques, Venom is quite slow-paced with the scope point of view, while The Maze Runner is fast paced with suspenseful chase music. 

USE OF EDITING 

Editing is a crucial part of the production of a film, it means to make alterations to the shots and put them all in their correct place. Adding effects and making the time codes of each shot right allows for a film to become much greater. 

In Venom, the way Eddie transforms into Venom the symbiote is a very noticeable aspect of Sci-fi conventions due to it being alien-like. The Symbiote grew out of him like a mutation/parasite, not matching modern science. Moreover, Venom itself does not appear human whatsoever, with his full black features, liquid skin and huge facial features; a representation of something otherworldly. 

 

In addition, when the helicopter flew above Venom on top of the building, Venom lets out a gruesome screech of pain, not sounding human-like at all with his skin vibrating. Anything but a human, an alien that does not match human standards. 

In The Maze Runner, the Griever is displayed as a mechanical and otherworldly creature with six long legs with sharp claws on the ends. The Griever is portrayed with a spider-like body, a common fear of the audience. Thus, making this creature look like a spider, it will maximise the fear and tension while watching the scene, as not only are they scared for Thomas, but for themselves.  

 

In comparison, they share slight similarities in the way they portray the creatures. They display them in a way that makes them look otherworldly, and the use of enhanced noises makes them appear scarier, and not human-like. 

USE OF SOUND 

Sound is an aspect of the film that elevates the shots beyond what the eye can see and allow for the audience to feel connected on a more sensory level and be believed more entertaining.  

In Venom, during the fight with the police, Venom is sprinting around throwing police about. While running around, the audience can hear the loud thuds of his steps, in comparison to the police, which are much softer and less aggressive. Having these loud thuds in his steps makes the audience view him as much bigger and stronger than the humans. With that, the audience can hear him slightly roaring and growling, making him sound nothing like a human, and more of an alien with human-level intelligence. Thus, appropriately enforcing Sci-fi conventions effectively to make Venom be viewed in a fearsome light. 

In The Maze Runner, before the begin of the chase. The sound is described slowly through the tense music building up suspense on when the chase will begin, keeping the audience on the edge of their seats. Even while Thomas is sprinting away, the Griever screeches loudly even when it is not near Thomas, but it enforces the audience to feel tension and expect the Griever to appear at any moment.  

To compare the two, they both have similarities and differences. For similarities, they both build tension for the audience through effective sound use. On the other end, Venom has these effects on the audience through relatively fast-paced sound, whereas The Maze Runner does not follow the same route, but instead is quite slow-paced, but has the same effect. 

THE CONCLUSION 

In conclusion, Venom uses a variety of techniques to ensure Sci-fi is effectively portrayed to the audience while supporting the desired atmosphere. Using innovative costume design on the Venom symbiote, they show the futuristic setting which is a convention of Sci-fi along with Venoms character resembling an alien-like design, which is also a common convention of Sci-fi. Secondly, using high angled shots allow for an enhancement in the audience’s immersive experience while illustrating the futuristic technology within the extract, primarily when Venom was on top of the building. This works to also enhance the visual storytelling by showing the futuristic world through a distinctive perspective. Thirdly, using visual effects to display the transformation of Eddie to Venom would mean for professional, high-quality CGI to be in place, which is what they did. Thus, demonstrating the alien-like creature enveloping Eddie’s body, as if he was possessing him. Lastly, the sound design implemented has a significant impact on how the audience view Venom and the surrounding humans. By enhancing the movements of Venom to create a heavier impact, it portrays his alien nature in a greater way, along with the vibrating after which further immerse the audience and highlight the conventions of the Sci-fi genre. Having done all of this, all the techniques work together to generate a ferocious massacre from Venom demonstrating his characteristics of an alien-like creature (a symbiote); ensuring the audience is aware of the atmosphere of the battle with conventions of Sci-fi being used to generate the futuristic design of the set. 

On the other hand, The Maze Runner also uses a variety of techniques to ensure Thriller is effectively portrayed to the audience while supporting the desired atmosphere. The set is a labyrinth structure, a maze; which works with the lighting of the corridors being dim. Having this set allows for a more horror-like atmosphere which maximises the audiences' feelings of suspense. In addition to that, with the corridors being slim and tall, it adds that feeling of isolation and helplessness, further heightening the audiences’ thrill and keeping them on the edge of their seats through the entire scenario. Secondly, in combination with the set, the camerawork plays a crucial role in maximising the audiences’ feelings; with low angle shots of the Griever, it enhances how the audience perceives the creature, making it appear larger and deadlier. Thus, adding to the suspense and tension in the scenario, making the audience feel the sense of danger that vulnerable little Thomas is facing. Thirdly, editing plays a crucial role in developing the Grievers’ character. Throughout the chase of the Griever and Thomas, the fast-paced shots are integrated to enhance the deadliness of the Griever, in combination with jump-scares which keep the audience in a tight grasp on the edge of their seats, unbeknownst to what will happen to Thomas. This choice of editing amplifies the urgency of the situation and enforces an adrenaline rush within the audience, so they maintain thrilled through the entire chase. Lastly, sound has been used to amplify the atmosphere, making the audience anticipate how this chase will end, with eerie noises when the Griever is not on screen, and with the terrifying growls when it is chasing Thomas. Having done all of this, all the techniques work together to generate an immense atmosphere for the audience, keeping them on the edge of their seat and thrilled watching Thomas’ helplessness and desire to escape.  

 

To end this analysis, genres can be used in a diverse way to immerse the audience; with combinations of genres and subgenres and subverting the stereotypes of said genres. An example of genres being combined would be during the ending of the Thomas and Griever chase in The Maze Runner, it embodies Thriller and Action, illustrating the anticipation of dread along with the ‘battle’ of Thomas and the Griever, which resulted in Thomas causing the Griever to be crushed to death; highlighting the action within the scenario.