The Shawshank Redemption Vlog

Works Cited

Barsam, Richard, and Dave Monahan. Looking at Movies: An Introduction to Film. 4th ed. New York: W.W. Norton, 2010. Print.

The Shawshank Redemption. Dir. Frank Darabont. By Frank Darabont. Columbia Pictures, 1994. DVD.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is a Western film directed by George Roy Hill. It follows the two infamous outlaws Butch Cassidy (played by Paul Newman) and the Sundance Kid (played by Robert Redford) as they run from the consequences of their life of crime with Sundance's lover Etta Place (played by Katherine Ross). I believe that the film is a visual masterpiece due to Conrad L. Hall's, the cinematographer, excellent use of composition and lighting.

Composition is a tool that many cinematographers use to help the audience understand a character's disposition. Hall uses composition to this effect all throughout Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. 

Early in the film, Butch and Sundance are hiding from trackers hired to kill them in a brothel owned by a friend of theirs. As they watch the brothel owner talk to their pursuers through the window, he is forced at gunpoint to reveal their location. The camera angle of this shot is behind Butch and Sundance with them on either side of the screen while the brothel owner is centered in the window [1]. This use of composition heightens the suspense of the scene because the position of the camera gives a feeling that the audience is hiding with Butch and Sundance. When Butch and Sundance are ratted out, the camera zooms in on the brothel owner while he points at the camera [2]. This gives the illusion that the audience is who is being revealed. 

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Later on, Butch and Sundance are talking to Etta about moving with them to Bolivia in order to shake their pursuers. At the beginning of this scene, Etta is sitting outside on the porch by herself, while Butch and Sundance are inside the warmly illuminated house [1]. This use of composition emphasizes Etta's feeling of isolation. Suddenly, Butch and Sundance walk over to talk to her through the window and screen door [2]. This demonstrates Etta's isolation from Butch and Sundance specifically. Next, as Sundance offers her to come to Bolivia with them, he steps outside onto the porch with her [3]. This is a visual metaphor for Sundance's invitation for Etta to join him and Butch on their adventures. Then, as Sundance begins to talk down to Etta by saying that she can't "whine or make a nuisance," he walks past her off of the porch [4]. Sundance being off the porch and Etta on the porch visually communicates Sundance's emotional distance from Etta.

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Hall also uses lighting, or should I say lack of lighting, to his advantage. The film extensively uses shadows to conceal or hide what the film makers do not want us to see or understand.

Early in the film, Sundance sneaks into Etta's house and forces her to strip at gunpoint. Keep in mind, the audience doesn't know that they are in a relationship at this point. When Sundance points his gun at her night gown, indicating for her to take it off, Etta's eye's are concealed in shadows [1]. This is done purposefully in order to mask what Etta is feeling. When Sundance and gets up and stands face to face with Etta, the shadows disappear to reveal her eyes [2]. She then says "You know what I wish? That once you would get here on time" and suddenly kisses Sundance. The audience had assumed that she must be fearful of Sundance based off the context of the situation but the shadows actually hid the lust behind her eyes. Once the shadows are taken away, so are the audience's misconceptions.

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A little later, Butch and Sundance break into the sheriff's house during the night. As the sheriff tries to figure out what Butch and Sundance want, he walks around the dark room trying to locate and light a lantern [1]. The audience assumes that Butch and Sundance are robbing the sheriff, based on the context of the situation. However, right before the sheriff successfully illuminates the room, he says "What do you think would happen to me if we was to be seen together?" As the room illuminates, so does the audience's realization that Butch and Sundance aren't enemies of the sheriff but rather they are friends.

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Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is an excellent film that uses composition and lighting to enhance the viewer's understanding of the film. 

Works Cited:

Barsam, Richard, and Dave Monahan. Looking at Movies: An Introduction to Film. 4th ed. New York: W.W. Norton, 2010. Print.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Dir. George Roy Hill. Perf. Paul Newman and Robert Redford. 1969. DVD.

"Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid." MOVIECLIPS. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://movieclips.com/ujRX-butch-cassidy-and-the-sundance-kid-movie-videos/>.

"Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 19 Nov. 2014. Web. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butch_Cassidy_and_the_Sundance_Kid>.

American Beauty

American Beauty is a fantastic film that serves as a commentary on American society. The film is centered around the lives of two suburban families: the Burnhams and the Fitts. Lester Burnham [1] is a middle-aged white-collar worker who goes through a mid-life crisis when he decides that he want's to sleep with his daughter's best friend. Lester's wife, Carolyn [2], is a materialistic perfectionist who works as a  real estate agent. When Carolyn gets upset with Lester when he almost spills beer on their couch, his reply "It's just a couch! This isn't life. This is just stuff and it's become more important to you than living" summarizes her character perfectly. Lester and Carolyn's daughter, Jane [3], is an insecure high school student who wants to get breast enhancement surgery. Next door to the Burnhams is the Fitts family. Colonel Frank Fitts [4] is a retired Marine Corps Colonel who is extremely homophobic. His son, Ricky Fitts [5], is a high schooler and pot dealer who obsessively films his surroundings with his portable camcorder.

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The director, Sam Mendes uses Mise-en-Scène in a very unique and stylized way. He uses composition, visual motifs, and duration to enhance the movie. 

Mendes uses composition to emphasize the characters emotions. At the beginning of the film, Lester looks out his window to watch Carolyn talk to their neighbor. The composition of the shot is arranged so that Lester is centered in the frame in the background while Carolyn and the neighbor are in the foreground on either side of Lester [1]. This shot arrangement emphasizes Lester's feeling of being in the middle of his family's life while at the same time not being wanted. A little later in the story, Lester's face is reflected in his computer screen. The text on the screen is arranged to look like the bars on a jail cell [2]. This reflects Lester's feeling of being trapped in a job that he does not enjoy. Not soon after, Lester is called into his boss's office to discuss his future with the company. Lester is seated unnaturally far away from the desk [3]. This highlights Lester's feeling of being small and unimportant where he works.

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A visual motif used constantly throughout the film is roses. Roses symbolize desire. They are used mostly in the presence of Lester and Carolyn. When used with Lester, they symbolize his lust for Angela. There are tons of these shots. When Lester fantasizes in bed about Angela, he gazes up to the ceiling in wonder at his vision of Angela, who is sprawled naked on the ceiling covered in flower pedals [1]. Later on, Lester has a day dream about making out with Angela, but when they stop, he pulls a rose petal out of his mouth [2]. Further along, Lester has yet another vision of Angela, who is seductively waiting for him in a bathtub full of pedals [3]. In all of these scenes, the presence of the rose petals is what alerts the audience that what we are seeing is not reality but is actually Lester's fantasy.

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Roses do not solely symbolize Lester's lust for Angela, however. They also symbolize his newfound lust for life. When Lester buys the car of his dreams, a red 1970 Pontiac Firebird, he smugly sits nearby a vase of roses as he waits for Carolyn [1]. Near the end of the movie, Lester finally learns to love his daughter. When he asks Angela how his daughter life is going, there is a vase of roses on the table behind her [2]. A little later, Lester sits at a table with a vase of roses on it while gazing longingly at a picture of his family [3]. Flowers that symbolize Lester's lust for are always inside a vase, where someone would realistically encounter roses. This contrasts nicely with the roses that symbolize Lester's lust for Angela, which are always in unrealistic places, like defying gravity on his ceiling and in his mouth. This implies that Lester's lust for life is realistic, while his lust for Angela was not.

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Mendes uses duration in an interesting way. He uses a stretch relationship for certain shots in order to make us see through Lester's eyes. A stretch relationship is when the screen duration is longer than the plot duration. The screen duration is the running time of the movie and the plot duration is the elapsed time of the plot. So, when a scene, sequence, or shot is longer than it actually took place in the story, this relationship is called a stretch relationship. This type of shot is used constantly throughout the movie. Mendes uses it whenever Lester is aroused by Angela, by rapidly repeating the action that causes the arousal three times before continuing on with the shot. When Lester see's Angela for the first time, he imagines her flashing him [1]. The movement of Angela opening her jacket is repeated three times before she finally pulls it open. Later on, Angela grabs Lester's arm while reaching past him. The film shows Angela reaching three times before her hand reaches his arm. Much further along, Lester is finally seducing Angela on his couch. As he pulls her pants off of her, we see this action three times before he finally succeeds. The repetition of the stretch relationship cements the idea that what we are seeing is important to Lester.

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American Beauty is film that uses Mise-en-Scène to its advantage. By utilizing composition, visual motifs, and duration, Mendes intensifies the viewer’s connection to the movie. Personally, I think this movie's technical creativity, such as it's is fantastic use of Mise-en-Scène is one of the major factors that makes it universally loved. If you're looking for a good movie to watch, I highly recommend this one.

Works Cited

American Beauty. Dir. Sam Mendes. Dreamworks, 1999. DVD.Barsam, Richard, and Dave
Barsam, Richard and Dave Monahan. Looking at Movies: An Introduction to Film. 4th ed. New York: W.W. Norton, 2010. Print.
"American Beauty (1999 Film)." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Beauty_%281999_film%29>.

"American Beauty." Ew.com. Entertainment Weekly, n.d. Web.
<http://www.ew.com/ew/allabout/0%2C%2C20000552%2C00.html>.

Fetters, Ashley, and Esther Zuckerman. "Examining 'American Beauty' at 15: A Masterpiece, or a Farce? | EW.com." EW.com. Entertainment Weekly, 15 Sept. 2014. Web.
<http://insidemovies.ew.com/2014/09/15/amerian-beauty-15th-anniversary/>.