Casting Homework

Plot Four
The Train Driver (Spiritual predecessor of Taxi Driver?)

Sean Bean -The Train Driver

I casted Sean Bean to play the 'disturbed Train Driver because I think that his face lends itself to particularly sinister roles. Also he has a history of playing roles of 'bad' guys in films which makes his character easy to sell to the movie-goers, in a way that on a poster people will immediately assume his role of the evil train driver. Sean Bean also meets all parameters for the part.

Nicole Kidman - The Woman
I chose Nicole Kidman for the womans part because she has an image of a very perfect lady, this is vital for the role because she is described as a 'wonderful' woman. Although Nicole Kidman is a bit older than the character I think that the difference is not story changing. I thin she would fit straight in to thepart of this woman because she is so likeable, and I tink thats important for this film.

Plot Seven

The Warrior (The Heroes Film?)

Will Smith - The Warrior
Will Smith is athletic which is vital for the role of a superhuman person, however one of the main reasons for casting Will Smith to be the hero of this film is because he proved himself perfect for this kind of against all odds film with his terrific performance in I am Legend. (2007, Francis Lawrence)

Arnold Schwarzenegger - The Evil Leader

I think Arnold Schwarzenegger is perfect for this part. For starters his bodybuilder look i perfect for an evil leader, and his foreign accent lends itself to creating a cliched evil foreign leader. I also think that an important aspect of casting him is that when people see him on the poster they will immediately have the expectation of an all out over the top action film that he is so well known for. I think that this promise will attract all of his fans.

Standout Movie Scenes

Delicatessen (1991, Marc Caro and Jean-Pierre Jeunet)

This scene is a really original scene from the film Delicatessen. The film Delicattesen is an amazing and refreshing foreign film which is among my favourite films. The film follows the lives of some truly unusual characters living in an apartment block. With a very original style the film is a joy to watch (watch it!). This particular scene is a very original take on a sex scene, which uses rythm and timed editing to create a humurous and symbolic scene. I think that the way the directors have protrayed many things through this scene is interesting and avoids the samey feel of so many sex scenes.

City of God (2003, Fernando Meirelles and Katia Lund)

This probably has to be my favourite film ever, and that spinning arch shot around the main character and the chicken one of my favourits shots ever. The camerawork in this film is truly outstanding and the essence of the Brazilian street gangs is captured wonderfully. The handheld shooting style works well when used with quick editing techniques to create an edgy chase scene which then slows to a halt with a well captured standoff, where the lead is left literally caught up in the middle. Shots potray characters well (you can tellwho the sinister gang leader is?) and the music works well with the sequnce.

I think there is lots of inspiration to take from these two scenes.

Blade Runner

The third 'Film Night' film that we watched was Ridley Scotts epic Blade Runner, 1997. Based on the original novel 'Do androids dream of electric sheep?' by Phillip K. Dick the film tackles issues of 'clones', life and power. The film raises lots of questions for the viewer, and makes them think. For me the themes of the film are extremely interesting and evocative of lots of thought. Additonally the cinematography and mise en scene is exceptional. The artistic direction of Ridley Scotts vision of the future is iconic and has been imitated to this day. Standout settings are the Tyrell Corp building and the building used on the poster (hexangonal).

The main plot is that a 'Blade Runner' policeman, called Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford) has to retire four replicants who have escaped an offworld colony to come to earth. They aim to get to Tyrell Corp to talk to Dr. Eldon Tyrell (Joe Turkel) himself and get their life span increased, because replicants are built with four year limited lifespans. While on this job Deckard starts to question his job, equality of replicants and life. With the reveal of memory implants the question arrises of who is or isn't a replicant? Is Deckard one? Replicants themselves do not know. Finding love with the replicant Pris (Daryl Hannah), Deckard gets more emotionally involved with replicants. Which builds up for a great last sequence. This includes an outstanding monologue by the replicant Roy Batty (Rutger Hauer) which really wraps up the film.

The films ending is highly debated as lots of questions are left unanswered and the future of Deckard is not clear. I think that this adds to the enigmatic style of the film. Overall I was very impressed by all aspects of Blade Runner, I thought it was very complete film because it was very well executed. This ranges from the mise-en-scene to the acting to the cinematoraphy, all of which are standout. I thought it was very well directed. Most importantly however, I really enjoyed watching it again because I noticed some things I had not before and because I appreciated lots of subtlties this time round.

Psycho

I am only going to mention important parts and scenes from the first 'Film Night' film which was Alfred Hitchcocks critically acclaimed Psycho, 1960.
So while there was a lot I did not like, some wierd lines of speech, a drawn out car sequence (beginning) and an overused violin theme (how about another theme?), there was also a lot I thought was very good. I thought that (assuming they are the first time these methods were used) a lot of Genre conventions were started by this film, in relation to angles, editing and especially music (shower scene). I thought that at points camera work was outstanding for the era, think back to the detective getting killed. I think that the way that Hitchcock built up tension is very impressive still, beating many horror thriller films made even nowadays. Also I thought that plot was handled well, and I personally did not see the twist coming.
Anyhow I can't say I love the film or would recommend it to a non-media student but I am glad I saw it. As it is very convention heavy.

Continuity Techniques

No Country for Old Men (2007, Coen Brothers)

The scene above illustrates how continuity techniques can be used simplisticly to be made unnoticable. In this particular scene the use of shot reverse shot shows the viewer everything while being seamless and unintrusive on the scene. The shot reverse shot technique is partnered with a master shot, which is improtant to keep the viewer understandng. The camera does get closer up at points to show more emotion (as little as Javier Bardem shows) but essentially the same shots are used throughout. There is one match on action shot at 1.38 to show a wrapper get put down. I think the style of the continuity in this scene is clinically effiecient, like most high budget films. In order to attain these high standards no errors must be made, because the key to good continuity is for the viewer to not notice it at all. This allows them to get more immersed in the film.

Infernal Affairs (2002, Andrew Mau and Alan Mak)

(Spoiler Alert - Final scene)

Just watching this scene up to 2.33 I think that it shows enough continuity techniques. I think that the camera work in particular is amazing, and even though I am concentrating on continuity rather than camera work I thought it was worth a mention. The camera is slowly introduced towards the character ina way that allows the audience to see the setting, and the character. This is done though a VLS, to LS, to VLS, to MS, to CU. While jumps are actually quite big they are in series enough to keep audiences attention. The opening conversation has an obvious master shot and mixes this with lots of shot reverse shot, for particular speech sections. This is simple enough but is mixed in with lots of matches on action and some eyeline matching. The directors also put in a couple of insert shots and buffer shots to mix thing up. The 180 degree rule is never broken. I think that the way that they have not made big jumps in shots makes the scene easy to follow. While the camera often jumps out to show more of the setting, it always systematically jumps back in in about 3 shots, to make things easy to follow. The audience is made to see important things, with the use of focus shots, and the reaction shots add to the emotion which is shared with the audience. I think the scene is very well directed, because it is really impressively shot, while sticking to continuity rules.