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Thursday 5 November 2009

Thriller Directors

Steven Spielberg:
Steven Spielberg is one of the greatest directors of all time. Born on December the 18th 1946, he has directed some of the most memorable movies such as Jaws and Saving Private Ryan. In his early years, many of his movies were of the sci-fi and adventure genres. This meant that they were filmed in a child-like and naive way. In order for him to portray these themes, he used low height camera tracking shots which went on to become on of his directing trademarks. He uses the low angle shot to give the view of someone swimming.




The clip above starts off by filming under the water. This is to give the point of view of a shark. It then films upwards and we see the silhouette of a woman in the water. This shows that she is in danger and the music playing in the background builds up tension and suspense. At 1:16 you see Spielberg's distinguished low angle shots mixed in with underwater shots. This is to show the children playing in the water and to give the impression that there is a something coming to harm them. This is successful as it positions the audience to understand what is happening and allows them to also figure it out for themselves.

Facts about Spielberg:

  • By the time he was 13, Spielberg knew about different camera angles and shots. He also made his first movie at the age of 13. This movie was called "Escape from Nowhere" and was only forty mintues long but went on to winning a prize in a small contest.
  • One of Spielberg's trademarks is his use of music by John Williams. This is to add visual impact to the scenes of his movies and to create a lasting picture and sound.
  • Many of his films often show children in some sort of danger.
  • Some things he likes to use in his movies are paino elements in key scenes, references to World War Two and references to Disney movies or theme parks.
  • Actors that he usually casts are Tom Hanks, Harrison Ford, Tom Cruise and Richard Dreyfruss.
  • The protagonists in his films often come from families with divorced parents, where the fathers are portayed as absent or responsible. This is due to Spielberg's own personal experience.
  • A common theme in many of his films is an ordinary person discovering something extraordinary.
  • Has had small uncredited cameo roles in movies such as Vanilla Sky and The Blues Brothers.

Analysing DVD Cover Three

The expression on the face on the front of the cover has a high impact on the audience as the eyes are quite hypnotising and make you want to know why the woman is screaming and what relevance she has to the story.
The ascending light from the mouth to the eyes draws the attention specifically towards the woman. The title being in red indicates blood and fear. The reflection of the "R" in the title is cleverly done to echo the title itself. The poster had very little writing and lets the images speak for themselves.

Analysing DVD Cover Two

This movie poster clearly reflects the genre of thriller. The only colours used on the whole poster are black, white and red. These colours together signify danger and fear. Also the effects on the word "house" depict it as blood splattered which can make the audience question what happened and whose blood it is. Significance of the house is also shown as the only object highlighted is the house and it is the only word in a different colour in the title. This leads the audience to question why the house is so important. The tag-line of the movie is:

"If bad people hurt someone you love, how far would you go to hurt them back?"

This allows the audience to guess what the "bad people" did and make links into the movie with what might happen. This question is also questioning the audience directly and challenges them to say what they would do if they were in the characters positions.


Wednesday 4 November 2009

Dream Video

Analysing DVD Cover One

The colours used in this cover are very dark and sinister. The blurring around the edge of the man in the window may suggest mystery and leads the audience to question why he is standing there. He looks like he is troubled by something outside as his hand is placed firmly against the glass making him look like he wants to go out. This leads the audience to want to watch and see what it is.
The name itself is quite disturbing and may be a link into the main characters life. The only light seen on the cover is from the inside of the room the man is in. I think that this is purposely done to highlight the fact that this man may be the main character. It may also be done to show us the facial expressions of the man (determined to accomplish something, troubled).