Geog/Film

Preview for THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS (2001)

Similar to The Dark Knight, the questions here are primarily about authenticity and character.

• What kinds of words would you use to describe the look of the film? What aspects of m-e-s stand out to you in terms of your choice of adjectives?
• How does the film use objects to establish character? What role does acting style play here in making the characters feel real?
• Does this world of this film feel self-contained or as if it is the same world as that of the audience? In other words, does this film appear more open or more closed and how does that appearance relate to the authenticity of the characters?

Preview for THE DARK KNIGHT (2008)

In screening The Dark Knight I want to ask questions about authenticity and character.

• What role does m-e-s play in creating a world where bizarre and fantastic characters like The Joker and Batman feel "real"? What elements would you point to specifically in answering this question?
• Corrigan includes "acting style" as part of m-e-s. In what way do the perfomances of, particularly, Heath Ledger and Christian Bale contribute to the authenticity of their characters?

Preview for THE AGE OF INNOCENCE (1993)

With The Age of Innocence our focus is on historical authenticity.

• What makes m-e-s an effective tool for making the audience feel as if they are watching people in 19th century New York? What specific elements contribute to the perceived authenticity of the film's representation of time and place?
• How is m-e-s used specifically to evoke the social world of the characters? Are there specific shots or visual elements that feel particularly effective at conveying a sense of what it might have been like to be the people on screen?

A note on "authenticity"

One of the assumptions I made in selecting the films for the second part of the course is that each is striving for some kind of authenticity, in relation to truth, to historical representation, to character, and the preview questions reflect this assumption. Primarily, I am asking how the filmmakers succeed in realizing their visions. However, it maybe that some of the films fail for you in achieving the desired authenticity. In Rashomon, for example, maybe you think that one person is clearly lying. Maybe The Age of Innocence doesn't feel like a window onto 19th century New York. Maybe the characters in The Dark Knight and The Royal Tenenbaums never feel like anything but silly fictions.

In thinking about these films, feel free to flip the preview questions around and discuss what doesn't work for you in terms of m-e-s and authenticity.

Preview for RASHOMON (1950)

With Rashomon we begin the second set of films for this course and our broad theme here is "authenticity". In Rashomon a central question is the nature of "truth".

• How is m-e-s used to both lend credibility to and raise doubts about each character's version of the attack and rape?
• How is m-e-s also employed to signify or represent the moral universe of the characters?
• For both of the above questions, try to make special note of specific shots or visual elements that you can point to in your answers.
• Does it feel as if the characters inhabit a world of their own or one that they share with the audience? In other words, how open or closed does the film appear to you? How does that openness or closedness relate to the authenticity of their stories? 

Preview for 2046 (2004)

While watching 2046, focus broadly on the mise-en-scene (m-e-s) and how the filmmakers use elements of the m-e-s to construct their vision of the future.

• What elements of the m-e-s would you point to as being "futuristic"? If so, what are they? Where in the film do you notice these elements?
• Can you find recurring elements? Particular uses of light, or arrangements of people or objects, for example?
• Are there individual shots or scenes that seem to distill or concentrate how the future looks in the film? What are the primary elements of the m-e-s that signify the filmmakers' ideas?
• Are there aspects of the m-e-s that seem more like design details than ones that are material within the narrative? On the other side, are there aspects that seem crucial to the narrative?
• What does 2046 borrow from Metropolis? What does the film have in common, visually, with the other films we have screened in this section of the course?
• How do the filmmakers use m-e-s to distinguish the present (1960s Hong Kong) from the future?

Preview for THE FIFTH ELEMENT (1997)

While watching The Fifth Element, focus broadly on the mise-en-scene (m-e-s) and how the filmmakers use elements of the m-e-s to construct their vision of the future.

• What elements of the m-e-s would you point to as being "futuristic"? If so, what are they? Where in the film do you notice these elements?
• Can you find recurring elements? Particular uses of light, or arrangements of people or objects, for example?
• Are there individual shots or scenes that seem to distill or concentrate how the future looks in the film? What are the primary elements of the m-e-s that signify the filmmakers' ideas?
• Are there aspects of the m-e-s that seem more like design details than ones that are material within the narrative? On the other side, are there aspects that seem crucial to the narrative?
• What does The Fifth Element  borrow from Metropolis? What does the film have in common, visually, with the other films we have watched in this section of the term?

Preview for BLADE RUNNER (1982)

While watching Blade Runner, focus broadly on the mise-en-scene (m-e-s) and how the filmmakers use elements of the m-e-s to construct their vision of the future.

• What elements of the m-e-s would you point to as being "futuristic"? If so, what are they? Where in the film do you notice these elements?
• Can you find recurring elements? Particular uses of light, or arrangements of people or objects, for example?
• Are there individual shots or scenes that seem to distill or concentrate how the future looks in the film? What are the primary elements of the m-e-s that signify the filmmakers' ideas?
• Are there aspects of the m-e-s that seem more like design details than ones that are material within the narrative? On the other side, are there aspects that seem crucial to the narrative?
• What does Blade Runner borrow from Metropolis? What does the film have in common, visually, with Brazil?

Preview for BRAZIL (1985)

While watching Brazil, focus broadly on the mise-en-scene (m-e-s) and how the filmmakers use elements of the m-e-s to construct their vision of the future.

• What elements of the m-e-s would you point to as being "futuristic"? If so, what are they? Where in the film do you notice these elements?
• Can you find recurring elements? Particular uses of light, or arrangements of people or objects, for example?
• Are there individual shots or scenes that seem to distill or concentrate how the future looks in the film? What are the primary elements of the m-e-s that signify the filmmakers' ideas?
• Are there aspects of the m-e-s that seem more like design details than ones that are material within the narrative? On the other side, are there aspects that seem crucial to the narrative?
• What does Brazil borrow from Metropolis? (Note, the Newman reading for week 2 includes a commentary from Terry Gilliam on this question).

Preview for METROPOLIS (1927)

While watching Metropolis, focus broadly on the mise-en-scene (m-e-s) and how the filmmakers use elements of the m-e-s to construct their vision of the future.

• What elements of the m-e-s would you point to as being "futuristic"? If so, what are they? Where in the film do you notice these elements?
• Can you find recurring elements? Particular uses of light, or arrangements of people or objects, for example?
• Are there individual shots or scenes that seem to distill or concentrate how the future looks in the film? What are the primary elements of the m-e-s that signify the filmmakers' ideas?
• Are there aspects of the m-e-s that seem more like design details than ones that are material within the narrative? On the other side, are there aspects that seem crucial to the narrative?