Actor Designations

The actors from a specific movie I chose to write about this week were from the film “Unforgiven”. This movie seemed to just call out to me for actor category descriptions and how the various actors themselves somehow fit into certain categories. The three actors I am writing about are Clint Eastwood, Morgan Freeman, and Gene Hackman.

Clint Eastwood has come to represent a certain character category in American films. The personality that he brings to any film commiserates with the expectations of the viewers. He almost always plays the quiet masculine lead character that can almost always be counted on to commit overwhelming violence on those who are deserving of his character’s retribution in films such as the Dirty Harry series, High Plains Drifter, and Hang em High. His characters are often gritty and down to earth with a somewhat questionable past…not quite the squeaky clean good guy in a white hat riding in to save the day, but the deliverer of vengeance and justice just the same. While he has strayed outside of this cliché of personality character that he brings to most of his movies in films such as The Bridges of Madison County and Million Dollar Baby, these are the exception and definitely not the rule when it comes to audience expectations of Clint Eastwood’s characters.

Gene Hackman in my opinion is a great character actor whom it seems is capable of filling virtually any role in a believable manner. He has played the role of both good guys and bad guys with equal success over the years. In the movie Enemy of the State, Hackman played a disillusioned, yet well-intentioned former National Security Agency analyst who was grumpy and mean spirited, while also being smart and resourceful. In the movie “Unforgiven”, Hackman plays a corrupt sheriff, who is likeable enough to poke fun at himself about building his own house, while brutal in his dealings with anyone who threatens the peace of his town or his authority. Though he may not be one of the highest paid or most widely well-known actors, he is a great actor capable of adapting to any role and making it completely believable.

Morgan Freeman is definitely the wildcard actor of the three since he is probably the most difficult to categorize into one area. Morgan Freeman is one of those actors who is able to adapt to any role and definitely portrays each character based upon the circumstances of the storyline equally across the board (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2011). In the movie Shawshank Redemption, Freeman plays the happy-go-lucky character Red who on the surface seems to be a complete contradiction to the character’s backstory. His character who is in prison for a murder he committed as a young man seems to be wise and capable beyond his years of imprisonment, yet accepts full accountability for his actions in the past. In the movie Unforgiven, Morgan Freeman plays the role of the reformed former outlaw who has moved on beyond his character’s past and now just simply wants to live out his days. While there are similarities in these two, the character feels completely different to the audience. Freeman further shows the depth of his character portrayal in Driving Miss Daisy, Seven, and Million Dollar baby where he portrays characters that are nothing like any of his other characters. While there are glimpses of Freeman’s personality in each one, they are not the predominate feature of any of these characters which would place him into any other category of actor.

 

References

Enemy of the State. (1998). Discovering the Tracking Devices, Retrieved from
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2u6KdHmoMbw&list=PLWwnJaUd14CBIyUs9bCzRZj_vdv1T6Jp5

 

Goodykoontz, B. & Jacobs, C. (2011). Film: From Watching to Seeing. San Diego, CA:
Bridgepoint Education, Inc.

The Shawshank Redemption. (1994). Monologues: Morgan Freeman in The Shawshank
Redemption, Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TeBU3tiYY0U

Unforgiven. (1992). Unforgiven – Original Trailer, Warner Brothers, Retrieved from
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TeBU3tiYY0U

Week 3 Blog – Apocalypse Now, Ride of the Valkyries

 

The use of sound in movies is critical to communicating the feeling and overall mood of a film. As discussed in this week’s reading material, the primary use of dialog is important to help move the plot along and to develop the characters in the film (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2011). Music helps to set the mood or feeling of the particular scene or scenes, and sound effects add depth to the scene enabling the viewers to not only see, but to hear the scene as it unfolds.

Music is typically matched to a certain scene in order to help build suspense, add excitement, or in some cases to simply set the mood for what is happening or foretell what is about to happen. In the case of the movie clip of chose for this week, sound made the scene into a classic memorable event for most viewers. The scene I chose to write about was from the movie Apocalypse Now. The scene is the helicopter assault on the Vietnamese village in which Lt Colonel Kilgore, played by Robert Duvall orders the assaulting helecopters to play Wagner’s Ride of the Valkyries as they approach the village.

The loud sound of the helicopter in the background while the actors discuss surfing gives the viewer the feeling of actually riding along inside the helicopter listening to the actors try to talk over the sounds of the helicopter. The mundane dialogue between Lt Colonel Kilgore, and Lance Johnson about surfing as the assault begins gives the movie the surreal feeling that Francis Ford Coppola was going for in this movie. This dialogue was indicative of the mood and feeling of the overall movie in general. Having these two characters discuss something as mundane as surfing as they are about to assault and kill many of the villagers and North Vietnamese soldiers below gives the viewer the same surreal feeling.

The scene transitions from the loud noise of the inside of the helicopter, to the quiet Vietnamese village about to be assaulted. The transition from the loud noise to the sound of silence is significant and sets the mood of impending doom for the village. The sound of the Ride of the Valkyries playing over the loudspeakers emanating from the helicopters as they begin their assault also brings a dramatic and almost tragic feeling when coupled with the gunfire, explosions and noise of the helicopters sweeping past. It is pretty obvious that the sounds of gunfire and explosions place this film in the war drama genre.

If any one of these key categories of sound were removed from the movie, the effect would have been completely different. Removing the mundane dialogue about surfing would not have conveyed the surreal scene Charlie Sheen’s character found himself in. Removing the music would have had the same effect as removing the dialogue. Removing the sounds of the explosions and gunfire would have left the viewer watching a silent scene of chaos as the assault commenced. While this would have also had a surreal effect, it is the combination of all of these key categories of sound that made this clip the first thing that popped into my head after reading about this week’s assignment. This clip from this movie is a great example of how all of the various elements of cinematography all come together to tell the story while capturing the mood and feeling of a scene.

Reference

Apocalypse Now – Ride of the Valkyries Scene. (1979) Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLY4JaRsrA0

Ebert, Roger (2001) Apocalypse Now – Roger Ebert’s Film Festival 2010. Retrieved from http://www.ebertfest.com/twelve/apocalysenow.html

Goodykoontz, Bill & Jacobs, Christopher P. (2011). Film: From Watching to Seeing . San Diego, California : Bridgepoint Education, Inc.

Week 2 Blog – The Godfather: Part II – Lighting

Title: The Godfather: Part II

Writer: Francis Ford Coppola, Mario Puzo,

Director: Francis Ford Coppola

Year: 1974

Actors: Al Pachino, Robert De Niro, and Robert Duvall

Identify the type of lighting used in the film (traditional three-point, high-key, or low-key).

In the movie The Godfather: Part II, the lighting used most often was low-key natural light. The overall theme of low-key lighting begins in the opening scenes which are mostly filmed outside in a natural environment. The use of low-key lighting is carried over into the scenes shot inside Don Corleone’s den where he is meeting with visitors and conducting “family” business. Another great example of the low-key lighting is in the scene where young Vito Corleone, played by actor Robert De Niro, is about to kill Don Fanucci and is standing in the dark shadows only showing the gun wrapped in a towel, while his face is hidden in the dark shadows.

Assess the impact of the lighting used to establish the theme.

The primary benefit of using low-key lighting in the filming of The Godfather: Part II was to set a dramatic tone for the audience. In the scenes filmed inside Don Corleone’s house where he was giving orders to his henchmen, the only lighting for the scenes came from the large picture windows behind the actors. This left the actors in deep shadows where their faces were obscured, while discussing matters that were considered family business. This left the viewer with an ominous dramatic feeling. Almost a feeling as if the audience was allowed the privilege of knowing the family’s secrets. The use of the low-key lighting throughout most of the movie helped to build the more suspenseful scenes and added to the overall dramatic effect (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2011). The low-key lighting was the perfect choice for this film since it had the added effect of drawing the audience in to feel as though they are actually in the room as the scene unfolds and were a part of the various conspiracies.

Compare how the scene would play if different choices had been made.

I think the scenes shot in Don Corlone’s den and of young Vito Corleone assassinating Don Fanucci would not have had the same dramatic effect on the view had a different lighting technique been used. High-key light, for example, would have produced very little in the way of shadows and would have given the ominous scenes too much of a light and airy impression. It is much in the same way that there is a different feel of a dark and cloudy day and of a bright sunshine day. The overall feel of the scenes would simply not have been the same without the use of the dark shadows to underscore the dramatic setting of the story.

Resources:

Goodykoontz, Bill & Jacobs, Christopher. (2011). Film: From Watching to Seeing. San Diego, California. Bridgepoint Education, Inc.

Movie Clips, (2011). The Godfather: Part 2 (2/8) Movie CLIP – The Murder of Don Fanucci [Video file] Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=em7EcaXPJF8

Paramount Movies Trailer, (2012). The Godfather: Part II official movie trailer [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9O1Iy9od7-A

JP’s Blog on the Movie Lone Survivor

Select a full-length film and identify the title, writer, director, major actors, and the year it was released.

Title: Lone Survivor

Writer: Peter Berg

Director: Peter Berg

Year: 2013

Actors: Mark Wahlberg, Taylor Kitsch, Emile Hirsch, and Ben Foster

Summarize the story and plot of your chosen movie.

Story: Lone Survivor is the story of a U.S. Navy SEAL team deployed in support of Operation RED WINGS during the war in Afghanistan in 2005 (“Operation RED WINGS”, 2005). A four man team is selected to conduct a reconnaissance mission to locate a known terrorist. During the reconnaissance mission, two Afghani tribesmen and a young boy herd their goats into the four man team’s observation post. The SEAL team is face with the decision of what to do with these individuals. After deciding that the right thing to do is set them free, the SEAL team is followed and fired upon by Taliban insurgents over the next two days.

 

Plot: The movie begins with scenes from U.S. Navy Basic Underwater Demolition (BUDS) training showing some of the more rigorous aspects of the training required to become a U.S. Navy SEAL. It introduces and builds the main characters of the movie by showing them as fathers, husbands, brothers, and friends. The first day begins with the main characters in their beds asleep and walks the viewer through a small slice of their lives.

Later, a mission comes into the Joint Tactical Operations Center known as the JTOC that a SEAL team is needed to perform a reconnaissance mission to the verify the presence of a known terrorist in a small village along the Pakistani border. The team selected for the mission plans and prepares for the mission before being inserted. Once in position, they quickly identify the terrorist target in the village and settle in to make contact at their assigned communications window. The team ultimately has problems with their communications link and they are forced to find a location to spend the night. Two Afghani tribesman and a young boy wander into their hiding place with their goat herd and accidentally discover the SEAL team. The SEALs are forced into a moral conundrum and have to decide what to do with the Afghanis. They ultimately decide to let them go.

One of the Afghani tribesmen is obviously a Taliban soldier or at least a Taliban sympathizer and he runs down into the village below to announce that there are Americans in the mountains. This begins a two day ordeal of the SEALs attempting to escape and evade death or capture by the Taliban. Ultimately all but one of the seals is killed and the main character Marcus is taken in by friendly Afghani tribesman. The friendly Afghanis are bound by ancient Pashtun tribal laws to protect a guest at all cost and fight off the Taliban in an attempt to protect Marcus. Ultimately, U.S. forces fly into the village and save Marcus from the attacking Taliban and return him to the safety of the U.S. base.

Discuss whether your film is presented chronologically or non-linearly

The movie begins non-linearly by foreshadowing what is to come by showing the main character Marcus, in a Blackhawk helicopter being worked on medics and then in the hospital emergency room back at the main operating base located at Bagram. The film then goes back to three days earlier to begin to show how Marcus came to be in that condition.   This does not detract from the movie since the name of it is Lone Survivor. It is obvious that this person who has not been introduced yet is indeed the lone survivor. The rest of the film is presented chronologically by showing the main characters waking up and beginning their day.

If the film had followed a different presentation style, how would the general effect on the audience have been different?

If the film had followed a different presentations style, I think the overall effect of the movie would have been different. Beginning the movie in the non-linear fashion and showing the main character clinging to life set the mood to remind the audience this movie is about a tragedy.

 

Resources:

Universal Studios Movies Trailer, (2013). Lone Survivor official movie trailer #1[Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnh9DHLDRVM

Operation RED WINGS. (2005). Retrieved June 6, 2014, from http://www.navy.mil/moh/mpmurphy/soa.html