Essay Plans Flashcards
(10 cards)
How useful is an ideological critical approach in explaining the impact of the films you have studied on the spectator?
How valuable is an ideological critical approach in analysing the use of mise-en-scène in the films you have studied? Refer in detail to at least one sequence from each film
‘Ideological analysis is useful in explaining why particular visual elements and sounds are chosen by filmmakers.’ How far is this true of the films you have studied?
Intro =
Paragraph One = Get Out
- Close up of scratching which highlights how he is trapped in this system
- Slow ramming shot between Missy, the teacup and Chris
- Observe Missy gradually becoming more intimidating
- Close up of a tear trailing down his cheek into a strained smile which mirros the other black characters reflecting their uncomfortable facial expressions
- Close up of chris’ face
- Positioning of chris floating = Shows his helplessness and lack of agency
- Distant square shot of the mum
- Pov from Chris’ body
- The Sunken Place can be read as a metaphor for the systemic silencing and disempowerment of black people in white-dominated society
- Chris’ agency is controlled and overridden by the white mother
- Chris is seen but not heard which encapsulates the idea of the Coagula, echoes how the dominant culture is able to silence black voices and struggles
- The system of the dominant culture is able to marginalise black voices and silenced amongst the dominant culture
- The Sunken Place can be seen as a metaphor for the helplessness and subjugation that black people expierence in society and how white people are able to assert their control
Paragraph Two = Joker
- Extreme close up of the notes in the documents which shows the extreme abuse faced by Penny and how it affected Arthur
- Arthur cornered in the side of the room whilst watching Penny. He appears to be cowarded over in the corner hearing about the monstorsity faced
- It also makes the audience question about Thomas Wayne and highlights the dominant class being able to manipulate things for their benefit
- Low close up of Arthur painfully laughing wiping away his nose which enhances our sadness for him allowing us to feel sympathy for him
- He has been neglected both by society and by his mum
- Setting of an asylum which is people who have been outcast by society but labelled as criminals
Paragraph Three = Get Out
- Non-diegetic rain noise
- Pleonastic exaggeration of the tea spoon, this indicates the feeling imprisonment and power associated with the spoon
- Micheal Abels: strumming and swellingscore
- Dialogue
- Distorted sound
- Echoing dialogue
- Vocally enhanced
- Muted sound when Chris is in the Sunken Place. This symbolises the suression of Black agency
- Strips individuals of their power which keeps them as present and useful tools to commodify
- The teacup is an auditory cue which becomes a weapon od control which is seen as somewhat therapeutic whilst being deeply controlling
- The tea cup is opression disguised as normalised and a part of everyday life
- This reinforces the power of the dominant culture and how black bodies are able to be controlled and silenced by white people
Paragraph Four =
- Joker was subjected to mistreatment by his mother who was fragile and helped him create a happier persona.
- The movie combines both real and delusional scenes which leaves the spectator confused and forced to think
about what actually happened
- A J cut is used to provide context of Penny disagreeing with the pyschiatrist
- Score by Hildur Guonadottir which becomes haunting, there is low mournful tones which reinforces the neglect and failure which contributes to the creation of Joker
- Shows how mental illness and abuse is ignored in society
- Laughter intertwined with sobbing which adds to the upsetting nature and how it has lasted throughout his life from his childhood trauma.
- Ideology analysis of how childhood trauma, neglect and then later abuse and neglect leads to the creation of a killer. Makes the spectator question who is to blame for Arthur’s spiral
- Dialogue of Penny saying how he was always such a happy boy which allows us to understand how has turned to comedy to hide his pain paired with laughter
How useful is an ideological critical approach for understanding the way spectators are positioned by the films you have studied? (Swap the paragraphs around. Marxism first and Post-colonialism second)
Paragraph One = Get Out
- Critiques how colonizers have historically positioned those who are colonised as inferior or objects to be commodified
- The fetishizing and commodification of Black Bodies echo colonial practices of slavery which were dehumanising
- Seen in the auction scene which mirrors slave auctions and the treatment of black people as if they are an exhibition to be admired
- Seen within the film as we are centred with Chris to feel marginalised and surveillance
- Black people are powerless symbolising the historical silencing of colonised and enslaved people
- The Armitage Family acts as a symbol of slavery reflecting how prominent oppression is in a post-colonial society which stems from the dominating western powers
- Seen in the Sunken Place which mirrors the historical and continuous silencing of black people for white supremacists benefit. The ability to use black bodies and remove any sense of control mirrors slavery history and how they were dehumanised and could not have control of their body
- ‘Were marginalised, no matter how hard we scream the system silences us’
- Chris is reduced to a passive observer and voiceless literally and a reflection of black people in society
- Spectators fall alongside into the abyss as we share the same feeling of powerless and fear
Paragraph Two = Joker
- Arthur is a marginalised figure who is surrounded by the dominant powers where he is socially excluded, unstable and deprived
- Reflects the class oppression formed from a colonial ruling.
- He is dehumanised and treated as lesser in society due to his madness therefore his descent into Joker reflects the denied identity echoing colonial powers
- We align ourselves with Arthur as a marginalised individual and may provide an explanation for the violent descent he undertakes
- Critiques societies isolation of marginalised groups and how he is treated as lesser.
- Use Murray Sequence where he talks about how the system is dehumanising and ignoring his vulnerability in society
- How it benefits certain people at the disadvantage of others
- How Arthur is seen from a position of power as entertainment to ridicule those without voices
- Impacts spectatorship as directly challenges the societies ignorance of people like him
Paragraph Three = Get Out
- Explores racial capitalism which has relied on racial oppression to acquire wealth. The labour has been commodified and exploited
- Society serves the needs of the ruling class who are able to maintain power and ensure
- Highlights how Chris is alienated and the loss of agency which is done solely for the dominant’ class benefit
- Seen in the Garden Party and Auction Scene which aligns the spectators with Chris’ discomfort as he faces micro-aggressions where he has been turned into a commodity due to his race
- Reflects a capitalist society where the white ruling class are able to use marginalised groups for their own benefit and when it works for them
- Focusses on class exploitation and how they are able to exploit black bodies for their own gain
- Shown from Chris’ point of view and how he is in the centre of the framing almost paraded around as if he is something to be admired
Paragraph Four = Joker
- Portrays the alienation and dehumanisation faced by the working class
- Reflects a system set up by a class division which would always inevitably benefit the ruling class, his rebellion is a direct result of the exploitative society of capitalism
- Seen in the opening sequence where firstly explores false consciousness, the attack of a working class man by other working class teenagers which shows how they are wrongly directing their anger. Also shows how the city is decaying and even affecting the upper class. How society neglects him without proper medical care due to budget cuts from the capitalist society
- Aligns the spectator with Arthur as feel sorry for him in a broken society, he lays helplessly on the floor which reflects the turmoil of a capitalist society
‘Film spectatorship is a passive experience’. How far do you agree with this statement in relation to each of the films you have studied?
Intro =
- Films are constructed to provide the spectator with a particular viewing position
- An active audience is engaging and
interpret media messages
- Passive audiences are when an audience accepts a message without question
- Film spectatorship is the notion that each individual builds their own individual relationship with it rather than interacting amongst a mass audience
- Encourages both passive and active spectatorship
Paragraph One = Get Out
- Peele wants to encourage passive spectatorship when making a clear point of the role of racism and modern society but prompting different readings that can be taken from Get Out
- The underlying message of how racism is prominent in a post-racial society is clear but focussing the spectator from the point of view of Chris who has to navigate a white-dominated space facing subtle micro-aggressions, alienation and his feeling of discomfort
- The ‘Black Gaze’ allows the spectators to see how Chris is objectified and commodified by the dominant white power. This allows the spectator to see from the perspective of an African American and how he feels in these situations rather than aligning us with other characters who create a facade of kindness and may not overtly realise they are fetishizing black bodies
- It is partially passive as a mass audience would understand that the film is about racism in society and therefore accept the directors intended meaning but the spectator must align themselves with Chris’ uncomfort to understand how it is still present in white dominated spaces
Paragraph Two = Joker
- Joker may have a passive viewing spectatorship which employs anti-capitalist messages yet encourages an active spectatorship which forces the audience to question where Arthur is a character who deserves sympathy and is justified in his violent behaviour
- Arthur is someone the audience can originally empathise and align with due to his systemic neglect, poverty, mental illness and social isolation.
- However, active spectatorship is required as Arthur descends into Joker and whether his violent behaviour is justified. Some people may feel it is less justified as he descends into violence but then Phillips subverts our expectations possibly making us feel more sympathetic for him further understanding the neglect he has faced by society and his personal life
- It questions whether we still align ourselves with him yet some audience may confirm allegiance to Joker as they may understand the rejection within society
Paragraph Three = Get Out
- Film spectatorship can be a passive experience, however to fully understand and decode the messages within Get Out, you must be an active spectator
- This is seen in the Sunken Place, a passive spectator would understand that the sunken place is a harrowing form of hypnotism to control Chris however active spectators may interpret the Sunken Place as an immersive metaphor where Peele places the spectator in a black person’s point of view as they are completely powerless yet conscious which reflects how black people experience a society controlled by systemic racial structures
- This allows an understanding from multiple perspectives of how historically black people have been silenced, oppressed and reduced to objects therefore forcing mass audiences to witness multiple perspectives within society
- This creates an allegiance with Chris as we understand his feeling of fear and powerlessness therefore rooting for him in a space which is constantly working against him. - Different audience readings can be taken as some people may understand the reading of oppression and silencing but feel it has progressed from this and therefore is too extreme villainising white people yet some people may believe that this highlights the oppression historically which continues within society which is covered by a facade of being woke and liberal.
Paragraph Four = Joker
- Further encourages an active spectatorship when deciding if Arthur’s descent into Joker has then become too extreme through the act of murder or whether it is justified due to the society around him which focusses on those who have the money to keep others quiet
- A passive spectatorship would align with the dominant reading of the ideology that this is due to alienation and systemic neglect however active spectatorships may understand the ideological message portrayed but reject and form their own reading.
- Every spectator is encouraged to interpret the message differently which will be based on a range of factors such as their own class, gender or beliefs which will affect how much they align and agree with Arthur’s transformation
- Those who feel in the same position as Arthur may read it through an oppositional reading where they agree that the amount of neglect and hardship he faced would ultimately lead to the rioting and they are now aware that people are exploited within society or they may believe that society is harsh and exploitative but this is not the direct way to achieve movement
- Therefore this encourages an active spectatorship to partially align and understand the ideologies portrayed but understand their own perspective of how they believe change should occur
How important is sound in shaping spectator responses to the two films you have studied? Refer in detail to one or more sequences from each film.
Explore how far the two films you have studied demonstrate the filmmakers’ attempt to control the spectator’s response.
How important is mise-en-scène in generating spectator responses? Refer in detail to one sequence from each film you have studied.
Explore some of the reasons why spectators may respond in very different ways to the same character. Refer in detail to at least one character from each of your chosen films.
Discuss how important cinematography is in creating a powerful response in the spectator. Refer in detail to at least one sequence from each of your chosen films.
