Mulvey's essay 'Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema' uses ideas from Freud's psychoanalytic theory and it's revised version by Jacques Lacan to argue Classic Hollywood Cinema puts the spectator in a masculine subject position (audience positioning/spectatorship), with the figure of the woman on screen as the object of desire (objectification).
Expanding on the idea of objectification, Mulvey suggested there were two distinct modes of the male gaze, voyuerism (woman viewed as beautiful) and fetishistic (woman are viewed sexually). This relates to the concept of scopophilia, a term used to describe the pleasure of watching. Mulvey goes on to say by having women in passive roles, the media creates misogyny. Most films use male protagonists, reinforcing patriarchy.
Sunday 16 December 2007
Sunday 25 November 2007
10 Media Keywords
1) Auteurism - Alfonso Cuaron, whilst relatively new to the Hollywood business, is fast establishing his own distinct style. His influence can be seen throughout Children Of Men, most notably in the documentary-style lengthy shots not typical of a science fiction film.
2) Dystopia - Many science fiction films, including Children Of Men, employ a dystopia theme in their narrative. Unlike many other films however, Children Of Men centres its dystopian society around issues that are present in today's world affairs as opposed to 'alien invasions and robots malfunctioning'.
3) Guardian - Peter Bradshaw's review of the film covers many aspects I can use in arguing Children Of Men is not a typical science fiction film.
4) Cinema Verite - The lengthy shots used in the film undoubtedly incorporate a cinema verite style technique, at times making the film look almost like a documentary.
5) Hybrid - With so many different techniques being used throughout the film, it can be argued that Children Of Men is a hybrid genre rather than just science-fiction. This in turn would account for the documentary style elements felt in the lengthy shots.
6) Patriarchal Society - Despite being set in 2027, a patriarchal society still seems to exist. This is emphasised by the fact that the protagonist and hero of the film is a male on a misson to bring a female to safety.
7) Levi Strauss, Claude - Theory can be applied to the conflict between the Government and the terrorists, although what side (good or bad) they represent is open to debate.
8) Realism - No robots, no aliens, just a lot of humans at conflict with each other in the future - about as real as it gets.
9) Science fiction - The film doesn't rely on advanced technology or special effects to enthrice it's audience. In addition, there's no robots, aliens or superhumans and thus typical characteristcs of the genre are not used by Cuaron.
10) Academy Awards - The films cinematography and editing (key in arguing Children Of Men is not a typical science fiction film) were nominated for awards.
Blog Buddy Meeting Brief Summary
Apart from looking at theorists (which of course is vital), me and Deep are still trying to establish what else we can look at together that will be of any relevance to both our independent studies. Until then, we have decided to research Rick Altman (who is an O.G when it comes to analysing genre) in detail. His book 'Film/Genre' studies the various complexities associated with defining what genre really is and covers how both historical and present events (SHEP) can influence or even change common and stereoptypical characteristics of an individual genre.
Wednesday 14 November 2007
Blog Buddies
The first of my two 'blog buddies' is Deep. It's logical for me to have chosen him as whilst I'm studying science-fiction and he's studying film-noir, we are both examining whether our chosen text conforms or subverts to the stereotypes associated with our respective genres. Hence, our research will be similar, particularly when it comes to looking at books and theorists.
Book Research ..Finally.
1) Langford, Barry (2005) : Film Genre - Hollywood and beyond. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
- This book is useful to my study as it discusses a range of different genres and covers what is considered to be 'typical' features of the science-fiction genre. In doing so, Langford also analyses various sci-films which I can compare and contrast with my text.
- Quote: 'If anything the [sci-fi] genre's elusive semantic core - or the closest thing to it - consists in its enduring focus through serial visions of possible futures on the transformative, sometimes invasive impact of advanced technology.'
2) Altman, Rick (1999) : Film/Genre. London: British Film Institute.
- This book is useful to my study as rather than just focusing a majority of it's study on specific genres, the book coveres genre as a whole and in doing so offers complex suggestions about what genre really is and the various different conventions associated with it. Many relevant theorists are also covered in detail.
- Quote: 'Each film is imaged as an example of the overall genre, replicating the generic prototype in all basic characteristics.'
3) Neale, Steve (2002) : Genre and Contemporary Hollywood. London: British Film Institute.
- This book is useful to my study as it discusses the notion of hybrid genre (something that I am looking to argue Children Of Men is) in detail. Neale also analyses past sci-fi texts considered to be 'typical' of the genre. Relevant theorists are also mentioned.
- Quote: 'Genre can be approached from the point of view of the industry and its infastructure, from the point of view of their aesthetic traditions, from the point of view of the broader socio-cultural enviroment upon which they draw and into which they feed, and from the point of view audience understanding and response.'
4) Cook, Pam & Bernink, Mieke (1999) : The Cinema Book. London: British Film Institute.
- This book is useful to my study as it attempts to connect film institutions, camerawork (a major factor in my analysis of Children Of Men as a typical sci-fi film), features and content with genre. That said, it covers everything really.
- Quote: 'Some [sci-fi films] are normative and exclusive, designed to distinguish between 'good' and 'bad' science fiction or to promote a particular form or tend.'
5) Maltby, Richard (2003) : Hollywood Cinema. UK: Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
- This book is useful to my study as it has a very detailed and analytical chapter on genre. It addresses many critics whom I can mention in my study in addition to theorists.
- Quote: 'Genres are flexible, subject to a constant process of change and adaptation. Generic boundaries can never be rigidly defined, and all generic groupings are susceptible to extensive subdivision.'
6) Gill, Branston & Stafford, Roy (2003) : The Media Student's Book. UK: Routledge.
- This book is useful to my study as it offers more on the wider context aspect of my independent study whilst at the same time linking it to genre. The events of September, 11 (an event I will be mentioning in my study) and their effect on genre is looked at.
- Quote: 'As the genre becomes established, play can be made with it's conventions. Part of the pleasure of the riddles is their reference to well-known stereotypes, and thus to your feelings about real-world groups of which you may know very little.
7) Knight, Damon Francis (1996) : In Search Of Wonder: Essays on Modern Science Fiction. US: Advent Pub Inc.
- This book is a collection of commentary on science fiction by book author Knight. Despite the fact that he is a author, this book is still useful to my study as he provides a thorough insight into the sci-fi genre and in doing so highlights conventions becoming apparent in many modern sci-fi books (which directors then go on to adapt as a film, Children Of Men being a prime example).
- Quote: 'Science fiction is what we point to when we say it.'
8) Cousins, Mark (2004) : The story of film. UK: Pavilion Books
- This book is useful to my study as it analyses how film-makers (in this case Alfonso Cuaron) are influenced by historical events of their times (in this case, the war against terror). This information will be used to cover the wider context aspect of my independent study.
- Quote: 'Filmmakers with a moral conscience addressed or expressed what was happening on those streets.'
This book I have yet to get hold of personally but I'm sure will prove useful to my independent study as according to 'Google Book Search', it covers the essential films, themes and plots of the genre.
9) Scalzi, John (2005) : The Rough Guide to Science Fiction Films. US: Rough Guides
The following book is of little relevance to my independent study but regardless discusses genre. Until I can find better a book, I am going to use it to make up the 10.
9) Schatz, Thomas (1981) : Hollywood Genres: Formulas, Filmmaking and the Studio System. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Thursday 8 November 2007
Representation Of Gender In The Past Summary
Representations Of Gender In The Past
Summary Of Key Points
Women and Men on TV:
· In the 50s, 60s and 70s, only 20% of characters were female, although by the mid 80s there were more women in leading roles.
· In 1975, Miles found that there were nearly equal proportions of men and women in situation comedies, whereas in action-adventure shows, only 15% of leading characters were women.
· Also in 1975, McNeil concluded that the women’s movement had been largely ignored by television, with married housewives being the main female role shown.
· The 70’s summarised – In general, men were more likely to be assertive (or aggressive), whilst women were more likely to be passive.
· 1980s – TV remained stubborn, with game shows not bothering to change their ‘degrading and trivialising views of women’, sports programming remaining ‘the preserve of men’, and news programmes accused of tokenism or ‘window dressing’ by including some women in key positions whilst retaining a male-dominated culture.
· 1980s TV Drama – Gillian Dyer observed that the number of women in central roles in police ad crime series had increased – Rape story lines were often used and this was an opportunity for programme makers to build drama around the feminist critique of police attitudes, and for female characters to clash with the ‘old guard’ who might not treat rape sensitively.
Women and Men in Movies:
· 1950’s – Films almost always focused on male heroes who typically made the decisions which led the story, and were assertive, confident and dominant. (Examples being High Noon (1952) and Touch Of Evil (1959))
· 1960’s – The sixties may have been changing with character roles, but male characters were consistently more intelligent, more assertive – and much more prevalent.
· 1970’s – Females were given greater roles – Leia from Star Wars (1977) was a rebel who shot storm troopers but was still the prized princess the heroic boys had to rescue and Woody Allen found success with films like Manhattan (1979) where she played an intelligent woman who captured the eye of a male leading character.
· In 1973, Majorie Rosen asserted that ‘the Cinema Woman is a Popcorn Venus, a delectable but insubstantial hybrid of cultural distortions.
· 1980’s – Further progress the female roles was made. Ripley became stronger in Aliens (1986) and Sarah Connor was courageous in The Terminator (1984). Meanwhile, the reliable heroic male still featured prominently in most films, including the Indiana Jones series (1981, 1984, 1989).
· 1990’s – Kathi Maio noted ‘strong, victorious women [do] exist in film, just not often enough, and generally not in movies that get much play’. Susan Faludi went a step further by saying women were being ‘reduced to mute and incidental characters or banished altogether’, with particular reference to Predator (1987) and Lethal Weapon (1987).
Summary Of Key Points
Women and Men on TV:
· In the 50s, 60s and 70s, only 20% of characters were female, although by the mid 80s there were more women in leading roles.
· In 1975, Miles found that there were nearly equal proportions of men and women in situation comedies, whereas in action-adventure shows, only 15% of leading characters were women.
· Also in 1975, McNeil concluded that the women’s movement had been largely ignored by television, with married housewives being the main female role shown.
· The 70’s summarised – In general, men were more likely to be assertive (or aggressive), whilst women were more likely to be passive.
· 1980s – TV remained stubborn, with game shows not bothering to change their ‘degrading and trivialising views of women’, sports programming remaining ‘the preserve of men’, and news programmes accused of tokenism or ‘window dressing’ by including some women in key positions whilst retaining a male-dominated culture.
· 1980s TV Drama – Gillian Dyer observed that the number of women in central roles in police ad crime series had increased – Rape story lines were often used and this was an opportunity for programme makers to build drama around the feminist critique of police attitudes, and for female characters to clash with the ‘old guard’ who might not treat rape sensitively.
Women and Men in Movies:
· 1950’s – Films almost always focused on male heroes who typically made the decisions which led the story, and were assertive, confident and dominant. (Examples being High Noon (1952) and Touch Of Evil (1959))
· 1960’s – The sixties may have been changing with character roles, but male characters were consistently more intelligent, more assertive – and much more prevalent.
· 1970’s – Females were given greater roles – Leia from Star Wars (1977) was a rebel who shot storm troopers but was still the prized princess the heroic boys had to rescue and Woody Allen found success with films like Manhattan (1979) where she played an intelligent woman who captured the eye of a male leading character.
· In 1973, Majorie Rosen asserted that ‘the Cinema Woman is a Popcorn Venus, a delectable but insubstantial hybrid of cultural distortions.
· 1980’s – Further progress the female roles was made. Ripley became stronger in Aliens (1986) and Sarah Connor was courageous in The Terminator (1984). Meanwhile, the reliable heroic male still featured prominently in most films, including the Indiana Jones series (1981, 1984, 1989).
· 1990’s – Kathi Maio noted ‘strong, victorious women [do] exist in film, just not often enough, and generally not in movies that get much play’. Susan Faludi went a step further by saying women were being ‘reduced to mute and incidental characters or banished altogether’, with particular reference to Predator (1987) and Lethal Weapon (1987).
Thursday 18 October 2007
Self Evaluation
1) Attainment
I forgot what this means =S
2) Effort
3 - Efforts been good in class but slacking when it comes to homework.
3) Punctuality
2 - Rarely late and absent.
4) Submission and quality of homework
4 - Haven't handed homework in on time a few times.
5) Ability to work independently
1 - Always produce my best work when I do it on my own.
6) Quality of writing
1 - What can I say?
7) Organisation of Media folder
5 - I don't have one right now.
8) Oral contributions in class
1 - I'm a very opinionated person who always has something to say.
9) Standard of Module 5 blog
3 - Layouts nice, lacks posts.
10) Standard of Module 6 blog
3 - Same thing as above.
WWW
1) Very passionate about my text and the independent study.
2) Good understanding of all the topics discussed in class so far.
EBI
1) More research needed, especially book research.
2) Complete and submit homework on time.
3) Obtain a folder to put all my work in.
I forgot what this means =S
2) Effort
3 - Efforts been good in class but slacking when it comes to homework.
3) Punctuality
2 - Rarely late and absent.
4) Submission and quality of homework
4 - Haven't handed homework in on time a few times.
5) Ability to work independently
1 - Always produce my best work when I do it on my own.
6) Quality of writing
1 - What can I say?
7) Organisation of Media folder
5 - I don't have one right now.
8) Oral contributions in class
1 - I'm a very opinionated person who always has something to say.
9) Standard of Module 5 blog
3 - Layouts nice, lacks posts.
10) Standard of Module 6 blog
3 - Same thing as above.
WWW
1) Very passionate about my text and the independent study.
2) Good understanding of all the topics discussed in class so far.
EBI
1) More research needed, especially book research.
2) Complete and submit homework on time.
3) Obtain a folder to put all my work in.
Sunday 14 October 2007
Task 6 - Detailed Analysis Of Clip
This clip is the final scene from Children Of Men.
The clip begins with a long shot of Theo and Kee getting into a boat in a tunnel. The long shot, combined with low key lighting highlights the grim setting and atmosphere, a theme present throughout the film as it attempts to create a realistic dystopian society without alienating its audience. This is most evident through the film's lack of advanced technology. In this clip, a very old and ruggid looking row-boat is used as opposed to a flashy and expensive boat which sci-fi audiences will have come accustomed to when watching films set in the future.
As Theo begins to row the boat out of the tunnel, non-diegtic sound is introduced in the form of music. It parallels everything in the scene, from the atmosphere to the setting and from the characters feelings to the audience's sense of climax. Diegetic sound continues to play to keep the audience engrossed in what is happening in the scene.
Almost immediately however, the non-diegetic sound cuts as Theo and Kee exit the tunnel. Instead, the audience (at this point left in a position where they expect a new equilibrium to form as the film is approaching it's end) are forced to listen to the harsh sounds of gun fire and bomb explosions in the background. This is because the director wants the audience to realise that whilst Theo and Kee's adventure may be nearing it's climax, the conflicts that exist throughout the film are far from being concluded, something which the audience can then relate to current affairs.
Long shots are first used when Theo and Kee exit the tunnel. Again, this to highlight the setting. Visibility is very vague as there seems to be either a thick fog or a large cloud of smoke possibly caused from the gun battle nearby. The boat is seen as a shadow amongst this fog and this in turn highlights the theme of a dystopian society and isolation. Gradually, medium shots and close-up shots are used as Theo and Kee reach their destination and begin to converse. These shots are used to concentrate more on the mise-en-scene aspect of the scene. The clothes worn by both characters are old and ruggid and more importantly, identical to present day clothing. Reverse shots are used between Theo and Kee to show their facial expressions which present them as very tired but with a wave of relief.
At this point, non-diegetic sound is again faded in as Theo begins to deliver his final speech. This is simply to contribute to the dramatic effect of a final scene. At the same time, a medium shot of Theo holding Kee's hand is used, and this arguably presents Theo in a heroic way. The fact that the male is seen as the hero conforms to both traditional and stereotypical ideologies of the male hero and Propp's theory of character roles in films.
In perhaps an unexpected twist, Theo appears to die. The scene ends with Kee saying "the boat has come", which shows their journey has now finally come to an end and with this, the scene slowly fades out to black as the non-digetic sound becomes louder. The fact that the director chooses not to show what will happen with Kee and her baby creates an enigma (Barth) as the audience are left to make their own assumptions.
The fact that the audience are left to think at the end of the film is important as this is what the director aims to do throughout the film. He raises issues in the film which the audience can draw comparisons with events happening in the world at present, and this is a key point in arguing that 'Children Of Men' is indeed not a typical sci-fi film.
Sunday 30 September 2007
Blog Comments
Some people really need to make it clear on their blog what the title of their study is - All I see is a lot of research without a title.
Here's the ones that I commented on (all looking at Genre):
Chintan -
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=2574997224413995264&postID=2434589220544145318
Deep-
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1623337707557092261&postID=7946984744830605473
Bazza-
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=4828718162097622927&postID=6959728765516944493
Athar-
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8925104818910187029&postID=8605307040161078627
Here's the ones that I commented on (all looking at Genre):
Chintan -
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=2574997224413995264&postID=2434589220544145318
Deep-
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1623337707557092261&postID=7946984744830605473
Bazza-
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=4828718162097622927&postID=6959728765516944493
Athar-
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8925104818910187029&postID=8605307040161078627
Thursday 27 September 2007
The Six Minute Long Gun Battle Clip
Children Of Men is renowned for it's several lengthy single shot sequences. The best example of this is the one above. Such shots are important to mention as these style of shots are rarely used in main-stream sci films. Rather, these shots would be expected to be found in art-house flims. However, not only are these shots lengthy, they are filmed in an almost cinema verite documentary style. Cuaron incorporates techniques from other forms of media into a mainstream sci-fi flim. Whereas other sci-fi films rely on special effects as the wow-factor for audiences, Children Of Men relies on it's storyline and these shots which truely are a magnificent accomplishment of cinematography.
Peter Bradshaw's (The Guardian) Review
An extremely detailed review of Children Of Men written by Peter Bradshaw of the Media Guardian. The following passage covers the main themes brought up in the film and how it goes about addressing these to the audience:
What will the end of the world look like? As shabby and nasty as the way it looks here is my guess. This explosively violent future-nightmare thriller, directed by Alfonso Cuarón and adapted from the novel by PD James, has simply the most extraordinary look of any movie around: a stunningly convincing realisation of a Beirut-ised London in the year 2027, in which terrorist bombs have become as dreary and commonplace as cancer.
No one does dystopian satire like the English and this story is in a recognisably vernacular tradition, though owing as much to John Wyndham as George Orwell. It actually reminded me of bygone television chillers such as Barry Hines's Threads and the 1970s classic Survivors, with their distinctive and now unfashionably high-minded determination to confront the worst outcomes imaginable. It is, perhaps, odd that Cuarón sticks with the 1992 novel's reluctance to predict the internet, and media-watchers will be intrigued to see that in 2027 the London Evening Standard has evidently seen off web and freesheet competition to stay in its monopoly pole position on the capital's sandbagged streets. But despite the stylisations and grandiloquent drama, there is something just so grimly and grittily plausible about the awful world conjured up here, and the full-on urban warfare scenes really are electrifying. Clive Owen stars as Theo, a former radical protester, who in defeated middle age has become an alcoholic and low-ranking employee of a government department: a miserable guy in a miserable world. Pollution has rendered humanity infertile. The world's youngest person is all of 18 years old and there is a global malaise of disorder and despair, which our right little, tight little island is toughing out, offering its citizens free suicide pills with the Shakespearean brand-name of Quietus. Britain's relative calm and prosperity have attracted waves of illegal immigrants; it is the responsibility of the UK's Homeland Security department to pen them into vast mesh-fenced internment camps, the biggest of which is a gigantic caged shanty-town in Bexhill - a very English Guantanamo-on-Sea.
Theo's world is further shattered when he is abducted by a terrorist group called the Fishes, led by his former lover Julian (Julianne Moore), an unrepentant activist who inveigles him into helping her smuggle one of their number out of the country. This is Kee (Claire-Hope Ashitey), a terrified young woman with a sensational secret, whom the terrorists want to use for their own ends. Kee looks to Theo for help - a very unpromising hero, who is hardly less scared than she is. But Theo recovers some of his idealism and even romanticism in protecting her.
Cuarón's movie has softened the blow of James's book just a little, but the cinema screen here is like an opened window on to a world of Arctic fear and despair. His script is a little cumbersome occasionally: some characters are required to deliver awkward set-piece speeches with bullets whistling past their nose. So much else is outstanding, though. The hard, flat, cold images recorded by cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki - reporting back from the futureworld of decay dreamt up by production designers Jim Clay and Geoffrey Kirkland - are stunning. Cuarón's gun battle between the terrorists and the army is a bravura piece of work, deploying a very scary sort of first-person shooter graphics; incredibly, it turns Bexhill into a Middle East warzone, like the strange Vietnam of Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket - famously filmed in the surreal moonscape of London's undeveloped Docklands. And the first terrorist detonation hit like a punch in the solar plexus. There are witty and shrewd small parts for Michael Caine, as the ageing hippy ganja dealer who hooks Theo and Kee up with a counter-cultural support network, Peter Mullan as the psychotic border guard and Danny Huston as Nigel, the elegantly despairing apparatchik who salvages great works of art from the philistine mob.
One of the cleverest touches is the ancient, manky sweatshirt Theo wears -advertising the London Olympics of 2012. To us, it is a symbol of London's last-ever demonstration of untroubled national rejoicing, when this country was awarded the Games, before that mood was cruelly shattered by the 7/7 bombings. Now London 2012 is Theo's veteran-badge of despair, and a memento of his lost career in political dissent.
So what would happen to us all, psychologically, if the end of the world was at hand? Danny Huston's mandarin tells Theo that he personally gets by from day to day by simply not thinking about what is happening, and his stunned, bleak acquiescence in the creeping horror of global death is symptomatic of the vast spiritual sterility which ushered in the catastrophe in the first place.
Freaky chiliastic cults start springing up: the Renouncers and Repenters - whose frenzied self-laceration reminded me a little of Roy Andersson's millennial fantasy Songs from the Second Floor, in which a little girl is sacrificed to stave off the last judgment. But what Cuarón's film suggests is that despair and disgust would manifest themselves overwhelmingly in tyranny. A mass, irrational longing for punishment would gather; checks and restraints on the political classes' natural tendency towards repression would be removed, and our energy to resist the agencies of the state would be eroded. All of these ideas make a very grim backdrop to an excellent thriller. Cuarón has created the thinking person's action movie.
Source:
http://film.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/Critic_Review/Guardian_review/0,,1877712,00.html#article_continue
What will the end of the world look like? As shabby and nasty as the way it looks here is my guess. This explosively violent future-nightmare thriller, directed by Alfonso Cuarón and adapted from the novel by PD James, has simply the most extraordinary look of any movie around: a stunningly convincing realisation of a Beirut-ised London in the year 2027, in which terrorist bombs have become as dreary and commonplace as cancer.
No one does dystopian satire like the English and this story is in a recognisably vernacular tradition, though owing as much to John Wyndham as George Orwell. It actually reminded me of bygone television chillers such as Barry Hines's Threads and the 1970s classic Survivors, with their distinctive and now unfashionably high-minded determination to confront the worst outcomes imaginable. It is, perhaps, odd that Cuarón sticks with the 1992 novel's reluctance to predict the internet, and media-watchers will be intrigued to see that in 2027 the London Evening Standard has evidently seen off web and freesheet competition to stay in its monopoly pole position on the capital's sandbagged streets. But despite the stylisations and grandiloquent drama, there is something just so grimly and grittily plausible about the awful world conjured up here, and the full-on urban warfare scenes really are electrifying. Clive Owen stars as Theo, a former radical protester, who in defeated middle age has become an alcoholic and low-ranking employee of a government department: a miserable guy in a miserable world. Pollution has rendered humanity infertile. The world's youngest person is all of 18 years old and there is a global malaise of disorder and despair, which our right little, tight little island is toughing out, offering its citizens free suicide pills with the Shakespearean brand-name of Quietus. Britain's relative calm and prosperity have attracted waves of illegal immigrants; it is the responsibility of the UK's Homeland Security department to pen them into vast mesh-fenced internment camps, the biggest of which is a gigantic caged shanty-town in Bexhill - a very English Guantanamo-on-Sea.
Theo's world is further shattered when he is abducted by a terrorist group called the Fishes, led by his former lover Julian (Julianne Moore), an unrepentant activist who inveigles him into helping her smuggle one of their number out of the country. This is Kee (Claire-Hope Ashitey), a terrified young woman with a sensational secret, whom the terrorists want to use for their own ends. Kee looks to Theo for help - a very unpromising hero, who is hardly less scared than she is. But Theo recovers some of his idealism and even romanticism in protecting her.
Cuarón's movie has softened the blow of James's book just a little, but the cinema screen here is like an opened window on to a world of Arctic fear and despair. His script is a little cumbersome occasionally: some characters are required to deliver awkward set-piece speeches with bullets whistling past their nose. So much else is outstanding, though. The hard, flat, cold images recorded by cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki - reporting back from the futureworld of decay dreamt up by production designers Jim Clay and Geoffrey Kirkland - are stunning. Cuarón's gun battle between the terrorists and the army is a bravura piece of work, deploying a very scary sort of first-person shooter graphics; incredibly, it turns Bexhill into a Middle East warzone, like the strange Vietnam of Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket - famously filmed in the surreal moonscape of London's undeveloped Docklands. And the first terrorist detonation hit like a punch in the solar plexus. There are witty and shrewd small parts for Michael Caine, as the ageing hippy ganja dealer who hooks Theo and Kee up with a counter-cultural support network, Peter Mullan as the psychotic border guard and Danny Huston as Nigel, the elegantly despairing apparatchik who salvages great works of art from the philistine mob.
One of the cleverest touches is the ancient, manky sweatshirt Theo wears -advertising the London Olympics of 2012. To us, it is a symbol of London's last-ever demonstration of untroubled national rejoicing, when this country was awarded the Games, before that mood was cruelly shattered by the 7/7 bombings. Now London 2012 is Theo's veteran-badge of despair, and a memento of his lost career in political dissent.
So what would happen to us all, psychologically, if the end of the world was at hand? Danny Huston's mandarin tells Theo that he personally gets by from day to day by simply not thinking about what is happening, and his stunned, bleak acquiescence in the creeping horror of global death is symptomatic of the vast spiritual sterility which ushered in the catastrophe in the first place.
Freaky chiliastic cults start springing up: the Renouncers and Repenters - whose frenzied self-laceration reminded me a little of Roy Andersson's millennial fantasy Songs from the Second Floor, in which a little girl is sacrificed to stave off the last judgment. But what Cuarón's film suggests is that despair and disgust would manifest themselves overwhelmingly in tyranny. A mass, irrational longing for punishment would gather; checks and restraints on the political classes' natural tendency towards repression would be removed, and our energy to resist the agencies of the state would be eroded. All of these ideas make a very grim backdrop to an excellent thriller. Cuarón has created the thinking person's action movie.
Source:
http://film.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/Critic_Review/Guardian_review/0,,1877712,00.html#article_continue
Information Attained Through del.icio.us Tags
Here is an extract with relevant information regarding the science fiction genre which is helpful in definining the typical and common features found in sci-fi films:
Science Fiction Films are usually scientific, visionary, comic-strip-like, and imaginative, and usually visualized through fanciful, imaginative settings, expert film production design, advanced technology gadgets (i.e., robots and spaceships), scientific developments, or by fantastic special effects. Sci-fi films are complete with heroes, distant planets, impossible quests, improbable settings, fantastic places, great dark and shadowy villains, futuristic technology and gizmos, and unknown and inexplicable forces. Many other SF films feature time travels or fantastic journeys, and are set either on Earth, into outer space, or (most often) into the future time. Quite a few examples of science-fiction cinema owe their origins to writers Jules Verne and H.G. Wells.
They often portray the dangerous and sinister nature of knowledge ('there are some things Man is not meant to know') (i.e., the classic Frankenstein (1931), The Island of Lost Souls (1933), and David Cronenberg's The Fly (1986) - an updating of the 1958 version directed by Kurt Neumann and starring Vincent Price), and vital issues about the nature of mankind and our place in the whole scheme of things, including the threatening, existential loss of personal individuality (i.e., Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956), and The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957)). Plots of space-related conspiracies (Capricorn One (1978)), supercomputers threatening impregnation (Demon Seed (1977)), the results of germ-warfare (The Omega Man (1971)) and laboratory-bred viruses or plagues (28 Days Later (2002)), black-hole exploration (Event Horizon (1997)), and futuristic genetic engineering and cloning (Gattaca (1997) and Michael Bay's The Island (2005)) show the tremendous range that science-fiction can delve into.
Strange and extraordinary microscopic organisms or giant, mutant monsters ('things or creatures from space') may be unleashed, either created by misguided mad scientists or by nuclear havoc (i.e., The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms (1953)). Sci-fi tales have a prophetic nature (they often attempt to figure out or depict the future) and are often set in a speculative future time. They may provide a grim outlook, portraying a dystopic view of the world that appears grim, decayed and un-nerving (i.e., Metropolis (1927) with its underground slave population and view of the effects of industrialization, the portrayal of 'Big Brother' society in 1984 (1956 and 1984), nuclear annihilation in a post-apocalyptic world in On the Beach (1959), Douglas Trumbull's vision of eco-disaster in Silent Running (1972), Michael Crichton's Westworld (1973) with androids malfunctioning, Soylent Green (1973) with its famous quote: "Soylent Green IS PEOPLE!", 'perfect' suburbanite wives in The Stepford Wives (1975), and the popular gladiatorial sport of the year 2018 in Rollerball (1975)). Commonly, sci-fi films express society's anxiety about technology and how to forecast and control the impact of technological and environmental change on contemporary society.
Science fiction often expresses the potential of technology to destroy humankind through Armaggedon-like events, wars between worlds, Earth-imperiling encounters or disasters (i.e., The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951), When Worlds Collide (1951), The War of the Worlds (1953), the two Hollywood blockbusters Deep Impact (1998) and Armageddon (1998), and The Day After Tomorrow (2004), etc.). In many science-fiction tales, aliens, creatures, or beings (sometimes from our deep subconscious, sometimes in space or in other dimensions) are unearthed and take the mythical fight to new metaphoric dimensions or planes, depicting an eternal struggle or battle (good vs. evil) that is played out by recognizable archetypes and warriors (i.e., Forbidden Planet (1956) with references to the 'id monster' from Shakespeare's The Tempest, the space opera Star Wars (1977) with knights and a princess with her galaxy's kingdom to save, The Fifth Element (1997), and the metaphysical Solaris (1972 and 2002)). Beginning in the 80s, science fiction began to be feverishly populated by noirish, cyberpunk films, with characters including cyber-warriors, hackers, virtual reality dreamers and druggies, and underworld low-lifers in nightmarish, un-real worlds (i.e., Blade Runner (1982), Strange Days (1995), Johnny Mnemonic (1995), and The Matrix (1999)).
Source:
http://www.filmsite.org/sci-fifilms.html
Science Fiction Films are usually scientific, visionary, comic-strip-like, and imaginative, and usually visualized through fanciful, imaginative settings, expert film production design, advanced technology gadgets (i.e., robots and spaceships), scientific developments, or by fantastic special effects. Sci-fi films are complete with heroes, distant planets, impossible quests, improbable settings, fantastic places, great dark and shadowy villains, futuristic technology and gizmos, and unknown and inexplicable forces. Many other SF films feature time travels or fantastic journeys, and are set either on Earth, into outer space, or (most often) into the future time. Quite a few examples of science-fiction cinema owe their origins to writers Jules Verne and H.G. Wells.
They often portray the dangerous and sinister nature of knowledge ('there are some things Man is not meant to know') (i.e., the classic Frankenstein (1931), The Island of Lost Souls (1933), and David Cronenberg's The Fly (1986) - an updating of the 1958 version directed by Kurt Neumann and starring Vincent Price), and vital issues about the nature of mankind and our place in the whole scheme of things, including the threatening, existential loss of personal individuality (i.e., Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956), and The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957)). Plots of space-related conspiracies (Capricorn One (1978)), supercomputers threatening impregnation (Demon Seed (1977)), the results of germ-warfare (The Omega Man (1971)) and laboratory-bred viruses or plagues (28 Days Later (2002)), black-hole exploration (Event Horizon (1997)), and futuristic genetic engineering and cloning (Gattaca (1997) and Michael Bay's The Island (2005)) show the tremendous range that science-fiction can delve into.
Strange and extraordinary microscopic organisms or giant, mutant monsters ('things or creatures from space') may be unleashed, either created by misguided mad scientists or by nuclear havoc (i.e., The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms (1953)). Sci-fi tales have a prophetic nature (they often attempt to figure out or depict the future) and are often set in a speculative future time. They may provide a grim outlook, portraying a dystopic view of the world that appears grim, decayed and un-nerving (i.e., Metropolis (1927) with its underground slave population and view of the effects of industrialization, the portrayal of 'Big Brother' society in 1984 (1956 and 1984), nuclear annihilation in a post-apocalyptic world in On the Beach (1959), Douglas Trumbull's vision of eco-disaster in Silent Running (1972), Michael Crichton's Westworld (1973) with androids malfunctioning, Soylent Green (1973) with its famous quote: "Soylent Green IS PEOPLE!", 'perfect' suburbanite wives in The Stepford Wives (1975), and the popular gladiatorial sport of the year 2018 in Rollerball (1975)). Commonly, sci-fi films express society's anxiety about technology and how to forecast and control the impact of technological and environmental change on contemporary society.
Science fiction often expresses the potential of technology to destroy humankind through Armaggedon-like events, wars between worlds, Earth-imperiling encounters or disasters (i.e., The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951), When Worlds Collide (1951), The War of the Worlds (1953), the two Hollywood blockbusters Deep Impact (1998) and Armageddon (1998), and The Day After Tomorrow (2004), etc.). In many science-fiction tales, aliens, creatures, or beings (sometimes from our deep subconscious, sometimes in space or in other dimensions) are unearthed and take the mythical fight to new metaphoric dimensions or planes, depicting an eternal struggle or battle (good vs. evil) that is played out by recognizable archetypes and warriors (i.e., Forbidden Planet (1956) with references to the 'id monster' from Shakespeare's The Tempest, the space opera Star Wars (1977) with knights and a princess with her galaxy's kingdom to save, The Fifth Element (1997), and the metaphysical Solaris (1972 and 2002)). Beginning in the 80s, science fiction began to be feverishly populated by noirish, cyberpunk films, with characters including cyber-warriors, hackers, virtual reality dreamers and druggies, and underworld low-lifers in nightmarish, un-real worlds (i.e., Blade Runner (1982), Strange Days (1995), Johnny Mnemonic (1995), and The Matrix (1999)).
Source:
http://www.filmsite.org/sci-fifilms.html
My Research Proposal
Title: Is 'Children Of Men' a typical science fiction film?
Hypothesis: Children Of Men is not a typical science fiction film. It uses documentary and cinema verite style filming (amongst other things) to differentiate itself from other sci-films. 'Blade Runner', 'Minority Report' and 'I, Robot' are all films that can be classified as typical science fiction films and will be used in the study consistently in proving that Children Of Men is indeed not a typical sci-fi film.
MIGRAIN Analysis:
Media Language:
Costumes - The clothes worn by the protagonist of the play are very simple and lack glamour. They give a working class look to Theo. In general, despite the setting of 2027, fashion does not seem to have changed from the present day. In camps, the clothes worn by the people are very raggid and poor which add to the effect of a dystopian society.
Lighting - Throughout the film low key lighting is regularly used, particurarly in places such as the camps. Again, this is to add to the effect of a dystopian society.
Setting/Mise-en-scene - Filmed in gritty and harsh settings and conditions. Enviromental destruction is always visible in nearly all the settings used throughout the movie. One of the only places which experience peace for a certain amount of time is Theo's friend's hideout, set in an isolated region of woods.
Ideologies:
There are many ideologies put across in 'Children Of Men'. A reoccuring theme of the film is that 'the future is a thing of the past'. The ideology put across in this statement is that if the governments of today fail to deal with the problems and issues we are facing at present, they will have both disastrous and fatal consequences in the future. In turn, this shows the film is putting across a political ideology. Other ideologies put across are that people are still struggling to deal with the threat of terrorism amongst other things.
Genre:
Children Of Men is a science-fiction film. Rather than concentrate on the more typical features of a sci-fi film (special effects, advancement in technology etc.), the film instead concentrates more on the storyline and the themes and issues present in the 2027 setting. The special effects, though rarely used, are only there to enhance the storyline rather than replace it. Though a sci-film, it seems Children Of Men chooses to reject many common features found in typical sci-fi flims.
Representation:
Males are represented, without surprise, as the more dominant sex in the film. Jobs considered traditionally to be 'man's jobs' are still carried out by the men, such as being soldiers and fighting for the army. In addition, the safety of the pregnant woman lies in the hand of a male, so he is in turn seen as the protector, or even the hero who is on a adventure. The leading female character in the film (Theo's Wife) is represented as a strong individual with a high position in society (she is experiencing more success than her husband Theo).
Audience:
Due to its many political ideologies that the film is putting across, it can be assumed an older target audience of perhaps 20 - 30 year olds, both male and female are being targeted. This is because they are expected have good knowledge of the present news and issues that the film uses as a cause for the state the future setting is in. Furthermore, as the film is set in 2027, this age group will feel obliged to watch the film as the future concerns them, and the film is showing the possible consequences of what can happen if today's issues are not solved.
Institution:
The film was distributed by Universal Studios, a major American film studio. The fact that this institution chose to distribute a film that was directed by a relative newcomer and stars many foreign actors is interesting.
Narrative:
The film does not follow Todorov's theory, as used by many other sci-films as there is no equlibrium at the start. However, the film does make use of Propps' theory as the protagonist, Theo, can be seen as a hero due to his mission of transporting the african refugee to safety. A binary opposition of good vs. evil (Levi Strauss) is also used, but rather in a less direct manner as the evil (The Fishes') can be seen as a politically extreme group fighting for a good cause (rights for immigrants).
Wider Contexts:
Social: Addressing current soical issues and how different groups and individuals react to and deal with them.
Historical: The historical part of the film can be seen as the issues we are facing today and how if not resolved, they will impact our society in the future.
Economical: The theme of poor is an issue shownrepeatedly throughout the film as many of the scenes are filmed in slum locations and camps.
Political: The film addresses the issue that if today's governments fail to deal with the present issues they are facing, there could be disastrous consequences in the future.
Other Texts to compare and contrast with:
Minority Report
Blade Runner
I, Robot
AI: Artifical Intelligence
Hypothesis: Children Of Men is not a typical science fiction film. It uses documentary and cinema verite style filming (amongst other things) to differentiate itself from other sci-films. 'Blade Runner', 'Minority Report' and 'I, Robot' are all films that can be classified as typical science fiction films and will be used in the study consistently in proving that Children Of Men is indeed not a typical sci-fi film.
MIGRAIN Analysis:
Media Language:
Costumes - The clothes worn by the protagonist of the play are very simple and lack glamour. They give a working class look to Theo. In general, despite the setting of 2027, fashion does not seem to have changed from the present day. In camps, the clothes worn by the people are very raggid and poor which add to the effect of a dystopian society.
Lighting - Throughout the film low key lighting is regularly used, particurarly in places such as the camps. Again, this is to add to the effect of a dystopian society.
Setting/Mise-en-scene - Filmed in gritty and harsh settings and conditions. Enviromental destruction is always visible in nearly all the settings used throughout the movie. One of the only places which experience peace for a certain amount of time is Theo's friend's hideout, set in an isolated region of woods.
Ideologies:
There are many ideologies put across in 'Children Of Men'. A reoccuring theme of the film is that 'the future is a thing of the past'. The ideology put across in this statement is that if the governments of today fail to deal with the problems and issues we are facing at present, they will have both disastrous and fatal consequences in the future. In turn, this shows the film is putting across a political ideology. Other ideologies put across are that people are still struggling to deal with the threat of terrorism amongst other things.
Genre:
Children Of Men is a science-fiction film. Rather than concentrate on the more typical features of a sci-fi film (special effects, advancement in technology etc.), the film instead concentrates more on the storyline and the themes and issues present in the 2027 setting. The special effects, though rarely used, are only there to enhance the storyline rather than replace it. Though a sci-film, it seems Children Of Men chooses to reject many common features found in typical sci-fi flims.
Representation:
Males are represented, without surprise, as the more dominant sex in the film. Jobs considered traditionally to be 'man's jobs' are still carried out by the men, such as being soldiers and fighting for the army. In addition, the safety of the pregnant woman lies in the hand of a male, so he is in turn seen as the protector, or even the hero who is on a adventure. The leading female character in the film (Theo's Wife) is represented as a strong individual with a high position in society (she is experiencing more success than her husband Theo).
Audience:
Due to its many political ideologies that the film is putting across, it can be assumed an older target audience of perhaps 20 - 30 year olds, both male and female are being targeted. This is because they are expected have good knowledge of the present news and issues that the film uses as a cause for the state the future setting is in. Furthermore, as the film is set in 2027, this age group will feel obliged to watch the film as the future concerns them, and the film is showing the possible consequences of what can happen if today's issues are not solved.
Institution:
The film was distributed by Universal Studios, a major American film studio. The fact that this institution chose to distribute a film that was directed by a relative newcomer and stars many foreign actors is interesting.
Narrative:
The film does not follow Todorov's theory, as used by many other sci-films as there is no equlibrium at the start. However, the film does make use of Propps' theory as the protagonist, Theo, can be seen as a hero due to his mission of transporting the african refugee to safety. A binary opposition of good vs. evil (Levi Strauss) is also used, but rather in a less direct manner as the evil (The Fishes') can be seen as a politically extreme group fighting for a good cause (rights for immigrants).
Wider Contexts:
Social: Addressing current soical issues and how different groups and individuals react to and deal with them.
Historical: The historical part of the film can be seen as the issues we are facing today and how if not resolved, they will impact our society in the future.
Economical: The theme of poor is an issue shownrepeatedly throughout the film as many of the scenes are filmed in slum locations and camps.
Political: The film addresses the issue that if today's governments fail to deal with the present issues they are facing, there could be disastrous consequences in the future.
Other Texts to compare and contrast with:
Minority Report
Blade Runner
I, Robot
AI: Artifical Intelligence
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