Film Analysis: The Departed

“Steel Magnolias” is a story about the close-knit relationships between six eccentric Southern women living in a small town in Louisiana. The film has a home spun, unpretentious feel to it. The plot alternates between humorous, everyday events with good-natured quips and the seriousness and heartaches to life’s unexpected crises. Through the laughs and tears, the six women learn to endure hard times and emerge from the struggles with grace and dignity. The film is set in the 1980’s with a tight knit homespun atmosphere. The Southern belles who are goofy on the outside but strong enough inside to survive any challenge that life deals them. Friendships help with a

The vision Christopher Nolan had for The Prestige (2006) was to add to the outbreak of street magician film, whilst playing a large dramatic subplot equal in grandeur to the magical performances within the film. In the final sequence of the film, I will analyse how the cinematography and sound resolves the plot so that it summarises the themes present in the film, whilst also invoking a response from the audience. Nolan predominantly uses close up shots, non-diegetic sound (music) and dialogue collaboratively to convey the dramatic, personal subplot of the characters and their relationships, whilst appealing to the audience bringing forth an emotional response from the audience. The heavy, slow, dramatic atmosphere of the ending sequence uses various techniques to summarise and uncover the underlying mysteries of the events throughout the film and consolidate themes introduced during the exposition.

Quentin Tarantino is one of the most recognizable directors alive today and one of the most influential during the 1990’s to 2010s’s. The passion he poured into his films garnered worldwide acclaim and recognition. He has won two Oscars for best writing and original screenplay and been nominated for best director twice. His films are generally characterized by two aspects: excellent dialogue and masterfully edited scenes. Two of his masterpieces are Pulp Fiction (1994) and Inglorious Basterds (2009). In Pulp Fiction, I have chosen the excerpt from when the pawn shop owner enters the back room to just before Julius calls Jimmy (1:42:09-1:56:37,) and from Inglorious Basterds, I have chosen from the title ‘Chapter Five: Revenge of the Giant Face’ to when Colonel Landa bids the Basterds impersonating Italian cameramen farewell (1:45:43-1:55:10) to analyse. Tarantino is an undeniable auteur, creating worlds that could exist in our own, enabling his audiences to be emersed in stories far more intresting than our own mundane lives. Through his excellent direction, the films draw attention to the cheapness of life and society’s desensitised attitude towards violence.

Analytical Thesis: Get Out is a psychological thriller that analyzes the racial issues in modern America through the use of visual rhetoric: such as film noir, symbolism and metaphors.

There are three elements of film that are individually important, however when they are viewed as a dependent unit (one element depending on another) they become absolutely critical to a great film and the impending success or failure. These three parts are narrative, direction and cast. Films have been viewed as a success or failure based on their narrative being portrayed alone. Yet, direction, cast as well as narrative have a directly proportional relationship. Great director and a great cast with a mediocre script or storyline will produce a mediocre film. Any one of these elements can be less than great and it will negatively affect the others as well as the film. All of these and more displayed perfect balance in Night of the Living Dead. George Romero did a remarkable job of ensuring emotions were conveyed to their audience through the camera, as well as his brilliant use of mise en scene (which will be discussed later). Specific examples

Die Hard, a film directed by John McTiernan, successfully utilized several aesthetics, which offered viewers various meanings throughout the duration of the film. Although the diverse meanings grasped by viewers may differ, it was clear to me that McTiernan effectively applied elements of cinematography and mise-en-scene that resulted in viewers being allowed to interpret a range of different meanings or functions of the elements.

These differences between original movies and remakes are apparent throughout the history of movies. During the 1960s, when the original movie The Parent Trap was published, divorce was a touchy topic. Many children did not even know what it was, because it was so rare. Divorce had become more common in 1998 when The Parent Trap was remade. More and more children were seeing their parents split up. How do changes, such as these, tell us about the time periods in which the movies were made? Both movies tell the same story, but the audiences, standards of men and women, social norms, and settings vary.

The remake focused on keeping the audience and Major Marco in a constant state of paranoia and uncertainty. In the original movie, the audience is shown, as well as told by the narrator, that the platoon was captured and brainwashed by communists. Whereas, in the remake, Major Marco and the

The common formula for these second act, rehashed tales often disappoint. The thrill is gone and producer’s resort to trickery such as, far fetched story lines and metaphors to capture our attention. They have to dig deeper into the psyche and personal lives of the leading cast, which often leaves a lackluster taste on our cinematic palates. It is very difficult to spin the same old tale time after time, this

The Departed was made in criminal genre and it is my favorite genre of movies and books, especially when everything looks so logical and harmoniously. There are a lot of death and unexpected turns, what makes you worry every minute of movie. The Departed has everything for success, criminal authority, cops, unexpected turns and naturalness of

The genre I picked to match up with Primitive, Classic, Revisionist, and Parodic is horror. I love horror so the movies that I have picked would match up with all 4 of them and I also like to note that 3 out of the 4 movies I have picked are made by George Romero. For Primitive I choose the movie is Nosferafu because at that time and from what I learn it I concluded that because of that movie it gave the start of that dark eerie feeling in horror films which are used today.

Arguably the most controversial film of the decade Basic Instinct shocked press and audience alike. Based around Michael Douglas falling in love with murder suspect Sharon Stone resulting in on screen chemistry and ultimately hooking the audience throughout. The film made more than $350 million across the world and has now been a success on the casino world with its slot game. Crime and murder are the theme throughout and is thought of as an excellent reincarnation of this popular movie and has certainly battled through the rest of time.

This is where the film, Saving Private Ryan enters the highlight of movie watchers with Tom Hanks as Captain Miller also lead character in the cast. Captain Miller leads a squad of vivacious soldiers through blood, sweat, cruelty, and tears. The film brings battles of D-Day on the beach and afterwards fight from towns to search for Private James Ryan in effect of military post office sending out service letters to beloved family members to being notified of their loved one’s bravery in action upon their death. The film does over dramatize on the emotional reaction on the General’s order stating to rescue Privat Ryan from the war due to recent news of loss of Private Ryan’s brothers’ deaths as it stands Private Ryan being the last son of

A significant connection between the four films The Dark Knight directed by Christopher Nolan, The Departed directed by Martin Scorsese, The Prestige directed by Christopher Nolan and Gone Girl directed by David Fincher is the way in which the directors have manipulated the narrative structure to engage the audience in contrasting ways. Christopher Nolan and Martin Scorsese used equally weighted protagonists and antagonists in the films The Dark Knight and The Departed to create the narrative structure in a sense so that the audience feels equally engaged by both characters. Christopher Nolan and David Fincher have manipulated the narrative structure in the films The Prestige and Gone Girl to expose a hidden

For this weeks film study, I decided to watch Exit Wounds(2001). This is an action, thriller film about police corruption, drugs, money and a lot of violence. Overall, the movie is about the main character of the film, Orin Boyd a Detroit police detective who gets demoted to the 15th precinct in Detroit, Michigan for his attitude and rough means of enforcing the law when he saved the Vice President’s life from a domestic terrorism attack. While at the 15th precinct, for his punishment, he discovers officers involved in corruption and other illegal activity. At the beginning he doesn’t realize anything and some of the corrupt officers are friendly with detective Boyd and seem like good cops on the outside. Soon as he comes into contact with a drug dealer while working a case, the drug dealer Latrell Walker(DMX) shows Boyd his operation and with video evidence of the officers involved in corruption and illegal activity in an effort to free his brother Shaun who was framed for his incarceration. With the effort of the police Captain and with the help from officers from his old precinct and the drug dealer all work together to take down the corrupt officers. The movie ends with a set up drug deal, which ends in violence and shooting, where all the corrupt officers are killed in the gun battle. In the end detective Orin Boyd is seen as the hero and is welcomed back to his old precinct by his captain, but he refuses and remains at the 15 precinct.