Mise-en-scene

Mine and Poppy's edit for the Mise-en-scene Hacker film.

FilmOpeningEG2: Love Actually

Love Actually 
Richard Curtis, 2003
Universal Pictures ;StudioCanal ; Working Title Film; DNA Films  (prod.)

Budget: $9m; US box office: $40.5m

Opening duration: 2:30/4:41*
RottenTomatoes.com 81%; IMDB 6.6 ; Roger Ebert 4*.

SYNOPSIS:
A british rom-com starring Colin Firth, Hugh Grant etc. This ensemble film features a series of vignettes centred around Hugh Grant as prime minister.

IDENTS/TITLES:

3 Idents are used in this film.The titles are shown on the opening scene of people embracing at Heathrow airport. The titles are shown as one letter highlighted in red, followed by white lettering on the actors' names fading in after.This repeats as each of the actor's names are individually shown on screen -which normally portrays that these are the well known actors. This repeats throughout this scene with 8 actor's names which are then followed by a group of four actors' names on screen together at once, possibly showing the less well-known actors. Hugh Grant narrates as this then breaks down the film title which comes onto screen at the same pace as Hugh Grant's voiceover.

1 of 3 Idents used

Breaking down of film title with Hugh Grant's VO

representation of christmas in montange during titles

revealing  of London eye behind christmas tree, setting, comical

Alan Rickman

..followed by four Actors at once

Bill Nighy
Colin Firth
Emma Thompson
Hugh Grant
Laura Linney
Liam Neeson
Martine McCutcheon

MISE-EN-SCENE:

A bright, white, stereo-typical british mise-en-scene is introduced, starting with the opening scene at Heathrow airport, with mainly British, white, middle-aged characters embracing in a happy atmosphere. This mise-en-scene is then carried on in the following montage of christmas. There is a "5 days to christmas" countdown and then scenes of snow, christmas trees, winter clothing,decorations etc. The theme of christmas and love is straight away representated through the titles, opening scene and montage. To start the montage there is a comic reveal of the london eye from behind a man carrying a christmas tree, revealing the setting of London before then going onto the christmas scenes.

REPRESENTATIONS:
Clothing; Male main characters wear shirts, suits and ties, christmas jumpers giving a stereo-typical white, middle-class, British actor. The majority of the main female characters wear jumpers, long skirts are generally covered- up giving a conservative look, also going with this stereo-typical London, British look. There are also a few binary opposite female characters later on for comic effect.
Gender; The opening scene and film consists of mainly white male and female  hetrosexual relationships, children, families etc.
SOUNDTRACK:
There is an audio bridge from the 3rd ident to the first scene at Heathrow airport of non-diegetic music.
Denotation; the piece has long, drawn out notes, from some sort of synthesiser.
Conotation; this music is emotional and sad  in contrast with the visual in this scene of people embracing and happy reunions with loved ones. Ontop of the music there is a non-diegetic voice over from Hugh Grant, speaking slowly, giving a moving and perhaps slightly emotional speech about love. This may get the audience thinking and feeling happy about love themselves. 
Hugh Grant finishes speaking and it then jumps to the next scene and into the  diegetic sound of Bill Nighy singing his christmas song. There is some slight dialogue inbetween the singing of Bill swearing (comical character) and his manager talking talking to him, also shouting and swearing at him. This is then followed by a montage in which the non-diegetic music starts again and is played throughought the montage until it has finished with the titles.

NARRATIVE, GENRE, EXPOSITION:
Opening introuduced to main character Bill Nighy- swearing, bad christmas song, producer "solid gold shit" -comedy introduced. Themes of love, christmas and comedy recurring throughout within opening titles, scene, music, film title, representations etc.

SoundEG3; The Lovely Bones

The Lovely Bones
Peter Jackson, 2009

• DreamWorks SKG;Film4;WingNut Films;New Zealand Large Budget Screen Production Grant;
• Goldcrest Pictures;Key Creatives (prod.)

• Budget:

   $65m; Box office:£6.2m (UK)

Rottentomatoes.com 32%; IMDB 6.6; Roger Ebert 1.5*

The Lovely Bones' opening consists of three idents, with an audio bridge between all three of them which is then carried on throughout the interval of the film. The denotation of the non-diegetic music is slow, quiet drawn out synthesised notes, with then slow piano keys brought in as it slowly starts into a melody. It is audio-bridged onto the first scene of the film. This musical piece in particular is repeated throughout the film in significant scenes. The conotation of this is that the music gives a very touchy, with a slightly eery effect to the audience. It may make the audience physically feel on edge, and perhaps sad as it is also quite a depressing piece of music. After the idents there is non-diegetic narrative dialogue from the main character, so the audience straight away gets an idea of who the main character is and deeper knowledge into her personality and life.

FilmOpeningEG1: Friends With Benefits

Friends With Benefits
Will Gluck, 2011
Screen Gems (presents) (A Will Gluck Film);Castle Rock Entertainment;Zucker Productions (as Zucker);Olive Bridge Entertainment (prod.)
Sony Pictures Releasing (UK Distributor)

Budget:

 $35m

Box Office (US) $55.9m

rottentomatoes.com 70%; IMDB 6.5; Roger Ebert 3*


SYNOPSIS:
Friends With Benefits is a rom-com starring Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis. It is a classic boy meets girl synopsis set in the busy city of New York. Leading seperate lives, these two business associates meet and decide to become "friends with benefits", before eventually falling in love.


IDENTS/TITLES:
In the intro the film starts straight away with an audio bridge between the one ident and the action of the first character Justin timberlake at work. A non-diegetic song is playing throughout the whole of the interval.  It is an upbeat, modern song which straight away gives us the impression that this is going to be some sort of comedy, with a happy bubbly romantic theme running throughout.



MISE-EN-SCENE:
 The music goes slightly quieter as background music (still non-diegetic) as the characters are introduced and start to use dialogue so we can concentrate on the humour used there, with slapstick comedy as one character starts getting dressed in the office. Diegetic sounds then come into play as both Mila and Justin are on the phone (making it look like they're on the phone to eachother) as they are rushing through loud, busy New York. They are both meeting their partners however it is not actually eachother. When they both finally meet and reveals to the audience that it is infact someone else they have met, the non-diegetic music stops abruptly and the dialogue continues.

SoundEG2; Bride Of Chucky

Bride Of Chucky
Ronny Yu,2000


Denotation;

string instruments, slow drawn out notes, drum in background slow timpany beats.
Then into fast paced percussion.
Visual effects; weather change, flashing light, rain and thunder.
Diegetic sounds; rain, gate opening footsteps.
Non diegetic; Music.
Exaggerated diegetic sound; could hear the dial tone on the phone loud, and conversation but the phone wasn't on speaker.
Taking the music away for certain parts, more effective for loud sound- shocking effect (conoltation)
Music quiet, loud sound again- violence. Music starts playing up again fast pace and loud.
No dialogue until got in the car.

Conoltation;
Timpany; could be signifying a heartbeat or footsteps.
Polysemic
Creates tension, could be a horror/thriller/mysterious genre.
Mental interpretation on audience.
Commutation test- if you switched strings to a cazzoo- comedy not horror.
Physical; tense music makes you subconciously hold your breath.
Past pace music- unconciously your heart speeds up. Body is being manipulated.

PRELIM: Shot List

MLS- Character A approaching the door
MCU- hand going on handle and pushing down to start to open it
MS- From inside the door, the door opening and the foot coming through the door
MCU- Character A crossing the room, medium close up on feet
MCU- Character B over the shoulder shot seeing Character B  [B speaks]
MCU- Over the shoulder of B, seeing A speak
MCU- B speaks back to A- somewhere around B
2 -Shot

PRELIM: The Task + the Techniques Included

Preliminary exercise: Continuity task involving filming and editing a character opening a door, crossing a room and sitting down in a chair opposite another character, with whom she/he then exchanges a couple of lines of dialogue. This task should demonstrate match on action, shot/reverse shot and the 180-degree rule.


Continuity - Everything seems logical on screen and it flows. If this is broken then you become aware that it is artificial.
match on action -Cutting the shot as an action is about to happen, and then continuing the action in another shot as it finishes. For example, opening a door and going through it.
shot/reverse shot - camera positions and editing to cut conversation between two characters. Switching back and forth between two shots.
180-degree rule - In a shot with two people facing each other having a conversation, the camera must shoot on one side of the "line" between them, rather than just shooting two scenes facing each character so it looks like they're talking to themselves rather than each other.