Chiaroscuro Lighting in Film Noir
Chiaroscuro is used in film, particularly film noir and other styles of black and white film, to create distinct areas of light and dark. Chiaroscuro is a technique most commonly found in films from the early film noir period. However there are several modern films that use chiaroscuro lighting. For example the film 'Sin City' uses this type of lighting through out. Chiaroscuro lighting can be used to establish the mood and feel of a scene. If the scene is very light with only small patches of dark this could be a technique to representation good, if the scene was primarily dark this would be a representation of evil. Instead of having a whole shot completely light, small areas of dark are used to emphasise the light and visa verse with dark and light; this is another technique using chiaroscuro common in film.
Wednesday, 23 December 2009
Friday, 18 December 2009
femme Fatales
Femme Fatales translates as deadly woman or killer woman and originates from female vampires in early film. Femme fatales are commonly used in film and were especially common in film noir.
Females are most commonly represented in two ways in film noir. They are either represented as a stereotypical housewife. They are loyal, honest, trustworthy and loving. The second type of female represented is the femme fatale. They are very seductive and use their looks to get their own way. They are shown as very manipulative, dishonest, cold and unloving but are very desirable for the male character(s).
A few films that have a femme fatale as a leading character are ‘The Third Man’, ‘The Naked City’ and ‘They Live by The Night’.
Females are most commonly represented in two ways in film noir. They are either represented as a stereotypical housewife. They are loyal, honest, trustworthy and loving. The second type of female represented is the femme fatale. They are very seductive and use their looks to get their own way. They are shown as very manipulative, dishonest, cold and unloving but are very desirable for the male character(s).
A few films that have a femme fatale as a leading character are ‘The Third Man’, ‘The Naked City’ and ‘They Live by The Night’.
A Discussion of the use of voiceovers in the opening scenes of 'Lock stock and two smoking barrels' and 'Sin City'.
A Discussion of the use of voiceovers in the opening scenes of 'Lock stock and two smoking barrels' and 'Sin City'.
Both ‘Lock Stock…’ and ‘Sin City’ use voiceovers in their opening scene. They are used to set the scene of the film and establish the mood for the audience.
Lock Stock’s use of voiceover has plays more than one role in the first scene of the film. Firstly it is used to introduce the characters. Instead of just having one constant voiceover however, it is broken up with dialogue between characters. This makes the film seem more interesting, helps the audience make more of a connection with the characters and keeps them wanting to watch the film. In the first five to six minutes of the film all of the main characters have been introduced to the audience. Firstly each character is introduced just to the screen, doing their everyday life things, then the picture either pauses or the sound is stopped so that the voiceover can introduce the character and tell the viewer a bit about them. This is a clever technique that makes the viewer feel as if they know the character and helps them establish an opinion about them
Sin City also uses a voiceover in the opening scene, and, just like Lock Stock it is used in between parts of dialogue between the characters. However it differs from Lock Stock because it’s actually one of the characters shown in the scene talking to the viewer. Just like Lock Stock, Sin City uses voiceover to captivate the audience and make them want to keep watching. Sin City uses a different technique to do this though. Instead of using it to introduce characters or what is going on, it does the opposite. Very little is said to the viewer about the situation or the characters, it goes straight into the film without any explanation. This means the audience aren’t fully aware of what is happening and why. Using this method makes the viewer want to keep watching so they can find out what has happened and what is going to happen in the rest of the film.
Both films’ use of voiceover is a very clever way of captivating the audience to keep them watching despite the fact that it is used in entirely different ways.
Both ‘Lock Stock…’ and ‘Sin City’ use voiceovers in their opening scene. They are used to set the scene of the film and establish the mood for the audience.
Lock Stock’s use of voiceover has plays more than one role in the first scene of the film. Firstly it is used to introduce the characters. Instead of just having one constant voiceover however, it is broken up with dialogue between characters. This makes the film seem more interesting, helps the audience make more of a connection with the characters and keeps them wanting to watch the film. In the first five to six minutes of the film all of the main characters have been introduced to the audience. Firstly each character is introduced just to the screen, doing their everyday life things, then the picture either pauses or the sound is stopped so that the voiceover can introduce the character and tell the viewer a bit about them. This is a clever technique that makes the viewer feel as if they know the character and helps them establish an opinion about them
Sin City also uses a voiceover in the opening scene, and, just like Lock Stock it is used in between parts of dialogue between the characters. However it differs from Lock Stock because it’s actually one of the characters shown in the scene talking to the viewer. Just like Lock Stock, Sin City uses voiceover to captivate the audience and make them want to keep watching. Sin City uses a different technique to do this though. Instead of using it to introduce characters or what is going on, it does the opposite. Very little is said to the viewer about the situation or the characters, it goes straight into the film without any explanation. This means the audience aren’t fully aware of what is happening and why. Using this method makes the viewer want to keep watching so they can find out what has happened and what is going to happen in the rest of the film.
Both films’ use of voiceover is a very clever way of captivating the audience to keep them watching despite the fact that it is used in entirely different ways.
Thursday, 17 December 2009
LA noir
A discussion of the conventions of ‘LA noir’
La noir does not actually exist as a genre or even a subgenre. It is a style of film noir set in Los Angeles. LA Noir shares many of the same conventions and styles and regular film noir. However it does have certain differences that set the two apart from each other.
Just like film noir La noir is themed around the idea of the corruption of humanity, suffering and evil. LA noir addresses these issues in Hollywood style America instead of Europe which is often a preferred setting for regular noir films. The films draw attention to the underlying themes of evil behind the glamour and glitz.
Noir films are known for their use of dark lighting and shadows, this is where LA noir differs. As apposed to dark lighting it uses bright light, this makes every detail apparent and creates an almost ironic feel to the film due to its dark themes. ‘LA confidential’ is an example of a film that uses this. Despite this, both styles of film frequently use chiaroscuro lighting.
The use of binary opposites occur often in LA noir films. The film ‘The Black Dahlia’ is a great example of this. The opening scene of the film is a riot which includes several binary opposites. For example, there are two groups of people who are rioting against each other; one group is dressed totally in white and the other in black. This could be an interpretation of racial dispute which was very common at this time in America, and in some places, is still an issue.
LA noir is used almost, to expose certain aspects of American society which is sometimes overlooked. This is because it is themed around corruption, perhaps in the police, and crime, something which many people would not readily admit too. Just like film noir, LA noir looks past things in everyday life and draws attention to the darker side of human nature.
La noir does not actually exist as a genre or even a subgenre. It is a style of film noir set in Los Angeles. LA Noir shares many of the same conventions and styles and regular film noir. However it does have certain differences that set the two apart from each other.
Just like film noir La noir is themed around the idea of the corruption of humanity, suffering and evil. LA noir addresses these issues in Hollywood style America instead of Europe which is often a preferred setting for regular noir films. The films draw attention to the underlying themes of evil behind the glamour and glitz.
Noir films are known for their use of dark lighting and shadows, this is where LA noir differs. As apposed to dark lighting it uses bright light, this makes every detail apparent and creates an almost ironic feel to the film due to its dark themes. ‘LA confidential’ is an example of a film that uses this. Despite this, both styles of film frequently use chiaroscuro lighting.
The use of binary opposites occur often in LA noir films. The film ‘The Black Dahlia’ is a great example of this. The opening scene of the film is a riot which includes several binary opposites. For example, there are two groups of people who are rioting against each other; one group is dressed totally in white and the other in black. This could be an interpretation of racial dispute which was very common at this time in America, and in some places, is still an issue.
LA noir is used almost, to expose certain aspects of American society which is sometimes overlooked. This is because it is themed around corruption, perhaps in the police, and crime, something which many people would not readily admit too. Just like film noir, LA noir looks past things in everyday life and draws attention to the darker side of human nature.
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