One Week

Question 1

Realism =

Answer 1

• Long, static and wide shots are used to stay true to reality
• Realistic costume design of a working man and housewife
• Lack of camera movement when showing the marriage to solely focus the audience’s attention on the natural act of marriage
• The editing is seamless to make the act look realistic and flow smoothly
• The close ups of the calendar show a normal constructed week
• The wife’s reactions are realistic expressions when they fear for Keaton
• The car’s are realistic for the time period
• Long takes add a sense of realism watching him build his house
• Mise en scene of realistic, western wedding
• Continuity editing to realistically show the passage of time
• Realism of a typical, small American town
• The wife making Keaton breakfast which is symbolic of the patriarchal nature of America
• The piano crushing Keaton is symbolic of American’s buying things that they cannot afford and suffering as a result of this
• Keaton takes his guests on a tour which highlights how Americans were proud of their obsessions
• The use of the train shows how the industry was improving as Americans could use this to move West to start a new life
• Realistic costumes

Question 2

Expressionism =

Answer 2

• Editing techniques such as dissolve and iris shot
• Iris shot that focus on the calendar emphasising the time
• Keaton does not solely use a wide shot but a variety of shot types such as close ups and extreme close ups.
• Portable, flat-pack house which is unrealistic. Ideas of the house being unstable and weak (Ceiling sinking in)
• Use of superstition (Friday the 13th, opening an umbrella indoor which lead to unlucky things)
• Breaking the fourth wall when the wife acknowledges the camera
• Reference to impossible architecture in reference to the house. The unrealistic movement and impossible solution of moving the effect is expressionistic and comedic effect
• Exaggerated movement to portray the character’s emotions
• Utilising editing and cinematography to give the impression that firstly their is only one train and it will hit their house
• Pathetic fallacy of the rain showing how unsuccessful he has been

Question 3

Context =

Answer 3

• Relates to the idea of the American Dream
• Flat pack housing which represents the rapid construction and wanting to populate the west of America
• Societal roles depicted through stereotypical gender roles, the women preparing the meal, and there for the male gaze whilst in the bath and the man does manual labour but Keaton subverts it through the man not being able to build the house and the women breaking the fourth wall
• Train highlights the rapid industrialisation and how technology is becoming an integral thing in society
• Parody of Henry Ford’s ‘Home Made’
• Challenges an idealised domestic lifestyle which they are unable to achieve

Question 4

Closing Sequence =

Answer 4

Realism =
- Stereotypes of the women being emotional about her house
- Continuity editing whilst driving the car

Expressionism =
- Impossible architecture of the house, abstract
- Vignette shot
- Comedic gag of the car to criticise the rapid and consumerism lifestyle
- Subjective camera angle to not know there is two tracks

Question 5

Representation =

Answer 5

• The wife is seen as romantic and caring painting the heart and cooking for Keaton shown through her apron costuming which reflects the idea of the ideal traditional wife
• Keaton seems incompetent at doing masculine roles such as construction
• The wife covers the camera when getting her soap which highlights and acknowledges the audience’s sexual desire for her