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The Language of Film
Prof. Myrna Monllor JiménezEnglish 124
© copyright Myrna Monllor Jiménez 2007
The great thing about literature is that you can imagine, the great thing about film is that you
can’t.
James Monaco, How to Read a Film
The better a viewer reads an image the more he/she understands:
• Its physical reality
• What it means based on cultural references
• Its various sets of meanings
When you look at a frame, one of the first things to consider is distance.
How much do you see of the character(s)?
•Is it a close up?•Is it a full shot?•Is it a medium shot?
Can you see the whole body or a part of the body?
A Place in the Sun 1951
American Beauty (1999)
In general the closer the camera gets to the characters, the closer the viewer feels towards the characters.
This is why close ups are often used for:
love scenes
scenes where the character is suffering or fearful
any other scene where the viewer is supposed to understand what the character is feeling.
As the camera moves further away from the character(s), the viewer is provided more information about them or about their situation.
From Rosemary’s Baby 1968 From Babel 2006
The further the camera is from the subject, the moredistant you will feel from what is happening in the sceneor to the character(s). lets theaudience have a look at the subject in relation to itssurrounding.
The Establishing Shot
It lets the audience have a look at the subject in relation to itssurroundings. It usually appears at the beginning of a film orscene to establish the setting or to introduce a film.
The Illusionist 2006
The Two-Shot
Makes two characters the subject of the frame. It allows you tounderstand how the characters interact and react to each other.
Avatar 2009
Another thing you should consider when observingA frame is the angle or camera position.
Was the frame shot from high above? (a high angle)
Was it shot at eye level?
Was it shot from a low angle?
A frame shot from a high angle is often referred to as God’s eye view because it suggests that ‘someone’ is observing the characters. It can suggest danger and helplessness.
300 2006
Apocalypto 2007
The Fountain 2007
A frame shot from a low angle makes the subject seem larger.
The Postman Always Rings Twice 1946
Citizen Kane 1941
The Dark Knight 2008
Inglorious Basterds 2009
A character that seems larger than another in a frame is usually the dominant character.
From Double Indemnity 1944
From Rebecca
1940
From Gone with the Wind1939
From Letter from an Unknown Woman 1948
The Departed 2006
A canted angle suggests that something is wrong either in the character or the story’s situation.
Artificial Intelligence 2001
Besides shots and angles, you should also watch for symbols.
Some common symbols are:
Images of entrapment are usually shown through characters framed by doors, gates, or confined spaces (like closets).
From The Kid 1921
From Carrie 1976
Pan’s Labyrinth 2006
Atonement 2007
The Hours 2002
The Ring 2002
The Painted Veil 2006
A Beautiful Mind 2001
The Departed 2006
Images of duality are usually represented by characters reflected in mirrors , water, glass.
Psycho 1960
The Lady from Shanghai,1947
Taxi Driver 1976
The Matrix 2003
Mulholland Drive 2001
Black Swan 2010
Stairs, dark alleys, canted angles, darkness enveloping a character, seeing only part of a character are some images of imminent danger.
From Silence of the Lambs
From Kiss Me DeadlyFrom Halloween
From The French Connection
From The Sixth Sense
From The Others
Light cutting through a character(s), lines which divide the frame, usually mark images of characters that are in turmoil.
From The Usual Suspects
From Blade Runner
From The Awful Truth
Sweeney Todd 2007
Other Symbols
Christ figures/Biblical References
From Dead Man Walking
Crosses
From The Omen
Pan’s Labyrinth
From Hell 2001
Inception 2010
Shadows The top
From Schindler’s List
Color
Rebirth
Eyes
From Un Perro Andaluz
From Spellbound
From The Blair Witch Project
From Psycho
Phallic symbols From King Kong
From Blade
From Rear Window
Blood
Destruction or desecration of symbols
From Planet of the Apes
Slumdog Millionaire 2008
Trains
The Moon Water
Roads
From E.T.
From Jaws
From North by Northwest
…and many others
Trees
From Alexander
From Superman
From Collateral
From The Ring
The Black Dahlia
Other definitions• Cliché- overuse of situations, symbols
• Voice over-a narrator whose voice is heard throughout a film
• Restricted narration-limited to one character
• Omniscient narration-changes from one character to another, the viewer receives information from many sources.
Auteurs/genre
• An auteur is a director who manifests a consistency of style and theme across his/her films. Auteur films are inventive and creative. Auteur films emphasize their uniqueness.
• Genre refers to a mass produced product of the Hollywood film industry.It studies the conventions of certain kinds of films. Genre categorizes films according to their thematic and visual similarities.Genres are not static, they evolve. They also create certain expectations in the viewer.
Bibliography
Buckland, Warren. Teach Yourself Film studies.Hodder & Stoughton, 1998.
Monaco James, How to Read a Film. Oxford University Press, 3rd edition, 2000.
Copyright 2011©Myrna Monllor Jiménez
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