Young men from ethnic minorities are the main social group represented in both films. In City of God, we follow Rocket as a young boy but we also see a group of younger kids when Rocket is grown up called “The Runts”, who indulge themselves in crime due to the poverty surrounding them. In Tsotsi, the main characters are also teenagers which shows the audience that living in poverty and being surrounded by conflict ultimately influences young children to get involved in crime at a young age because the only people in that environment who have money and own a tiny percent of wealth are drug dealers and criminals. In a scene in City of God, Lil Ze, confronts “The Runts” and hands a gun to one of the children and orders him to kill one of the others after he had already shot them both in the foot. This shows the audience that the young characeters are getting involved in crime and getting hurt. The scene in City of God shocks the western audience as a man handing a gun to a child seems so abnormal and reinforces the conflict and disorientation of decency in the favelas and environment of Rio De Janerio.

Discuss messages and issues related to ‘poverty’ and ‘conflict’ in Tsotsi and City of God. Make particular reference to:

-Mis- en- scene (costumes, location, décor, props)

- Themes, binory opositions

- Characters

-Beginnings

- Endings

- Symobolism

Use the trailers in particular to springboard your ideas off.

You may occasionally refer to camera, editing and sound micro-elements if you feel it is relevant.

Photography essay

Is modern photography overruling classic?

In this essay i will be talking about how modern photography involving photoshop skills and slick camera viewpoints could be replacing traditional classic black and white images shot on 35mm film. 

As time goes on we are given the access to more and more new technology especially involving cameras and post production. Softwares such as photoshop can allow us to edit images in any way we want. We can transform an image into anything we want by adding, increasing, enhancing any feature or filter to attract the image to the viewers eyes. New digital cameras allow us to capture the image in an innovative way as we can control the shutter speed/ apature and white balance. Although all of these features are exciting and new, 35mm film is the birth and cornerstone of photography as probably the greatest and most historic photographs ever taken were on film.

The Auteur theory is simply the theory that the film director is the primary force of the whole motion picture. The Auteur, mainly the writer or director, uses their own original and personal styles to project their vision on to the big screen, so that when the audience view it, they can instantly refer to the movie to that filmmaker due to the originality.
The Auteur theory was originated in France in the 1950s by Francois Truffant and believed that the director overcame the writing, the audio, the visuals and was actually the author of the film.  Hitchcock is a critically acalaimed director and is why some people refer to him as an Auteur. Hitchcock uses unique styles in his films which make the viewer instantly recognise the director as they've unconsciously remembered a certain trademark or style in which they've seen in another Hitchcock movie. For example, the obvious theme of suspense that Hitchcock loves and re-uses in his films can be easily recognised and referred back to him as he started the suspense frenzy in films, and is what he most notorious for.

Vertigo (1958), directed by Alfred Hitchcock is a twisted, unpleasant, revealing, exciting, bumpy ride through themes such as confession, guilt, suspense and murder up and down the streets of San Francisco. The film revolves around Scottie (Jimmy Stewart), a retired San Francisco detective suffering from acrophobia investigating the strange activities of an old friend's wife, all the while becoming dangerously obsessed with her. Scottie's vertigo is acknowledged from the begining of the movie as the opening scene of the police chase is ended in a tragic death of the policeman himself. Scottie is then tormented by the view of the policeman falling from the height shown by the 'Hitchcock shot' of zooming in and out. Ironically, Hitchcock decided to set the movie in San Francisco which is famous for its steep and downhill roads. Having a character suffering from acrophobia in a setting such as this, is Hitchcock's infamous strategy to really bring out the characters in people. For example Kim Novak didn't want to wear grey dresses and Hitchcock insisted she did.

The theme of the male gaze is fluid throughout the film but starts with the opening sequence as Bernard Hermann's condescending soundtrack leads us from the mouth of Kim Novak in a close up to into her eye. The shot fades to a furious red which can symbolise danger, passion and obsession which are all valid themes in the film. As we enter her eye we get a spiral as the credits roll. The spiral reinforces the idea of the male gaze as we are entering the woman's eyes without maybe permission as her performance in the close up seems uneasy and scared. The spiral can also refer to Scottie's suffer from acrophobia as it gives a sense of vertigo and illusion of losing balance and spiralling out of control. The male gaze is also seen when we the audience are watching Scottie watching Judy try on different dresses trying to re-enact the perfect 'madeline' or maybe the 'perfect woman', as the film shows us Scotties real obsession is self conflicted as he isn't trying to make Judy into Madeline but actually his own impression of what the perfect woman looks like.

Colours appear frequently throughout the film, but one colour which really stands out is the colour green. Green can mean a numerous amount of things and if it was Hitchcock's intention to consistently use the colour green is simply an argument and will be never known. For example, at ernies restaurant, when Scottie first sees Madeline she is wearing a green stole that stands out vividly from the warm red of the room. Her appearance is quite unpleasant and gives this impression of a ghost. The colour green may have been used to symbolise ghosts and spirits. This is also seen in the scene at scotties apartment as the hotel sign is shining a green neon light on Judy as she walks out the bathroom looking like Madeline. The green light illuminates on Judy as if she's resurrected from death as Madeline which reinforces the idea that the colour green connotes ghosts and resurrection.

Corrupted authority or doubled faced people was very important to Hitchcock and is shown in many of his films such as Rope, Psycho and Vertigo. The reason for this may be because he was locked up in a jail cell at a very young age just to be taught a lesson. This may have been a conflict that had raised but also a motive for making movies. In Vertigo the theme of doubled faced is obviously seen as Kim Novak plays two different characters but the same person. This is also another fact that adds to the conflict to Scottie as the confusion pushes him even more into his spiral. This is what could make Hitchcock an auteur as he uses personal experience in his work to give it the unique style that every film wants.

Tsotsi Essay 

For this essay, I will be discuss the representations of poverty and conflict in the film Tsotsi.  Tsotsi (2005) directed by Gavin Hood and starring Presley Chweneyagae as the protagonist talks about the desperate situation in contompary post apartheid Johaannesburg, South Africa. We follow the  life of Tsotsi, a small time hoodlum fighting to survive but as he finds himself responsible for a baby he 'stole', he tries to change his ways and leads a road to redemption. As the film is seen as a 'rites of passage' type of film, a lot of themes and motifs are seen that link in with both poverty and conflict.

Straightaway, the theme of chance and fate is seen as we get close ups of the boys shaking their fists and throwing the dices. The dices symbolise chance and fate as you never know what they're going to land on, the element of 50/50 on landing on something  high or low connotes the risks the boys are taking as they've reached the point in their lives that if you don't risk, you can't win or survive. Having this scene at the start straightaway throws us in the situation that the boys and everyone else in the location is living. Chance and fate links with conflict as there is that fight of needing to survive and doing and pursuing things you don't want to, or don't want to risk as the possibilities aren't exactly the best but have to because of the economical situation which links with poverty. We then understand that the conflict comes from the poverty that surrounds Johaannesberg as it makes the people and the environment's atmosphere feel very hot and tense to us, the western audience.

Twice in the film, when the characters go throughout the train station we get a high wide shot of the interior of the station and there is an un missable billboard of an advert raising awareness of HIV & AIDS. This reminds us the western audience about the diseases and conflict Africa has towards these sort of illnesses and diseases. It helps us understand the sanitary situation which has been evolved because of the poverty South Africa is in, and also links in with conflict as the characters have to also fight to survive from these horrible and deadly diseases.
Already 3 mins in the film, we see the first murder assisted by Tsotsi and his gang. The victim is a middle aged man obviously much more wealthy and in a more stable economical situation that Tsotsi and his friends as his apreance containg a suit and top hat shows us doesn't need to 'survive'. This obviously reinforces the theme of conflict as Tsotsi and his gang pursue a close, tense murder just for an envelope of money. This again dramatises the situation the charters are in as killling another human is everyday life for surviving and for personal gain. The way close ups, and mid close ups are used during the stabbing scene gives us an example and understanding of how violent, hot, and nauseating the streets of Johaannesberg really are as we are almost disgusted but understand the situation of 'take or get taken' that the boys are living in. Also having the murder scene in a train makes the audience understand that conflict is everywhere and the fact that there isn't any social security or anything as such, murders, robberies and other crimes can be out in the open and in public places as if it isn't anything, this scares the western audience about the possibilities and could maybe foreshadow the rest of the film.

The motif of dogs is very significant in the film as it is mentioned throughout and mostly in key important scenes. The interrogation scene where Boston confronts Tsotsi about the murder in the beginning of the film is key as Tsotsi completely beats Boston as soon as he says the word dog. This shows us that Tsotsi has a troubled past when it comes to dogs or a special dog as it seems as he takes it personally. His actions also show us that he is self conflicted about his past and has still not overcome it. Another scene surround the symbolisism of dogs is Tsotsi talks to Morris the homeless cripple in a vacant location. Which again reminds us of the economical situation as Morris explains us he broke his back at a mining accident whilst working and has now become homeless, reinforcing the fact that there is no social security. Tsotsi refers Morris to a dog as his back is broken and has to move around in a wheelchair. The reason Tsotsi refers to Morris as a dog is because Morris' actions come across as hopeless such as a dog who crawls on the floor. But as soon as Morris asks Tsotsi what kind of man kills a dog? Tsotsi kicks his box of loose change and exits. This shows us he is defeinatly angry as whenever someone has confronted or questioned him about a/his dog, he switches and tries to end the conversation by some sort of violent action which shows us he is conflicted. Finally in a significant flashback scene we see Tstoti's father having an argument with his Tsotsi's mother and kicks his dog causing him to break his back. We see a young Tsotsi's facial expressions break as the noises of the dog crying haunt him. We finally understand the meaning behind his delicate and fragile secrecy about his dog and feel somewhat sympathetic towards him as maybe he has turnt out how he is because of his edgy past involving his father. Also that scene is key as the young Tsotsi runs away, his father calls him by his real name, David. This is significant as we have also known him just as Tsotsi and has never explained his name. This shows us how personal and important the flashback scene is in the development of the character and from that point on, he was no longer David but became Tsotsi.

Decency is also another important theme as it is a word introduced by Boston were he calls it something derived from education. After the murder in the train station, Boston feels sick and later on describes his accident the remaining bit of decency left in him. What Boston means by this is that the killing of the man made him feel sick as he knew it was wrong and that maybe him and Tsotsi and the others had gone too far, and that being sick is him being decent as he understands it wrong. He then confront Tsotsi asking him if he knows what decency is, this shows us that there is conflict within the gang swell on surrounding what is right and wrong and when is enough going to be enough. "Fuck decency" is a quote from another small time hoodlum as he is surrounded by the boys. When Boston has the same conversation with him, the man replays to him that quote. This shows us that the people from that environment and the situation of poverty has reached a negative mentality of there isn't a point or meaning in life, and decency in yourself if you can't do or get what you need or desire, so conflict seems like the easiest and only way really to do anything. It shows us that if you are always fed from the same crap spoon your whole life, you can't get anything better unless you fight for it.

Screenplay idea 1

The plot

3 men take on a heist, they think it goes well, slowly stuff about starts to unravel and peoples suspicions start to arise.

Opening scene

Set in a classy restaurant, we cut to 3 different conversations around the restaurant.
First conversation
Man in love with woman talking about life and love.
Second conversation
Man talking with a FBI officer, talking about entering the FBI.
Third conversation
Man talking to the restaurant owner about taxes and threaten him about his expenses.

As we cut from conversations, we notice they all add different outlooks and opinions about a recent jewerlly heist opposite the restaurant. As conversations end we see that the first man puts an tiny empty bottle of poison in his pocket and we see the woman slowly drinking her drink. We then see that under the table the second man has a pistol pointed at the the FBI's genitals. And the third man  slowly opens his briefcase and puts on rubber gloves and gets out a glove.

As they all exchange last words, the woman's head falls on the table, the second man blasts the FBI under the table, and the third man chokes the owner to death in the vacant room.
With everyone in the restaurant in terror they slowly stand up, regroup and walk out the restaurant together. As they walk out we turn to the right and notice the jewerlly store everyone was talking about.

Characters

Mickey (FIRST MAN)
The first man, bit of a ladies man the more good looking Bugsy Siegiel type. Wears blue with his suit,  cocky young but fearless. - Likes to kill with poetry, such as a kiss of death, poison, overdose, so his hands remain clean.

Butch (SECOND MAN)
Older ex-cop lost everything to his divorce nothing to lose kinda guy. Wears red with his suit, Bruce willis kind of guy quite rigid facial expressions, knows how to talk to authority in situations. - Like to kill the old fashioned pistol to the heart way, being an ex-cop knows a lot about weapons.

Sully (THIRD MAN)
The more violent, loves to kill type. Like Joe Pesci in Goodfellas, loves to embarrass, curse, intimidate and cause pain. Takes what he wants and doesn't look back. - Likes to get his hands dirty and do his work himself, likes to murder un close so he can feel the other person leaving, so he gains more strength.


Screenplay 2

The plot

On his 50th birthday, Norman Oats gets fired, has the biggest argument with his wife about economical problems and considers suicide. After a outrageous situation at an all night diner, Norman is able to get his hands on some money and live his life with more happiness and flexibility. However the way he got the money haunts him and as investigations are on going on which causes him to turn into a  different person.

Opening scene

Opens up on his birthday as he leaves his house to go to his dead end card making job. As his hot water  doesn't work at home, his son losing interest in him, and his wife drifting away, alongside being ignored at work, we understand this man has no future and is hopeless and the mid life crisis has been going on for quite a while. A customer buying a get well soon card strikes his eye as Norman remembers his scar under his eye. He straight away gets fired and leaves. He spends his night drinking and driving as he contemplates life. He passes a bridge, as he does he has flashbacks to him arguing with his wife about money. He gets out and stands on the edge of the bridge and looks down. He drops his glasses by mistake. He decides its a bad decision and drives to an all night diner. Straight after he enters a thief does the same, he orders the cashier to empty the safe. Norman realises it was the customer from earlier in the day. Meanwhile a customer eating in the corner takes out his gun and points it at the thief, the thief turns around and gets shot but he also shoots the customer, and the customers aim drops and shoots the cashier. Norman is left with the bag of money on the table.

Characters

Norman Oats

A very bland man. His intelligence is hidden by the expectations of others. As he doesn't shine us with a terribly appealing individual our expectations of him are low. Very misjudged, and underestimated, Norman lives his life mentally alone as he enjoys watching James bond movies, Bogart and Cagney films, cycling, and his job at a card making store. His appearance usually contains cargo pants, grey bland sweaters and shirts with glasses. Doesn't speak too much only when 'told' to. Very much like Walter White. But throughout the movie his appearance changes from Dr Jekyll to Mr Hyde.

Film studies paper

Source A)
Why is Film Franchises important for producers and audiences?
Film franchises are important for producers because it’s were they get all their profit, and it’s important to keep interest within the franchise to the audience as they are the ones who can increase ticket sales and merchandise sales. Film franchises have a long history as the first film of the franchise sends of a cultural trend as it may involve a new style, interesting storyline or even something just plain innovative. So the audience would be excited about this new idea and as word of mouth increases, more people will watch it, then the production company will produce merchandise such as t-shirts, video games, and sort of like a fashion trend if the character has a certain trademark like a coloured top, audiences will want to buy that same styled top to be like the character which makes the film more realistic in a way. After the big success of the first film, the production company will come out with a sequel and given the response by the audience and the ticket sales, they will decided whether to make a trilogy or even more into a saga. Most sequels to film franchises talk about the story in another way or from a different point of view. For example in ‘The Godfather Part 1’ the protagonist, ‘Vito Corleone’ dies near the ending. This would hint to the audience that the film is not going to have a sequel because how can they if the character is dead. But then ‘Part 2’ shows the characters origins as we see the growing up of the character ‘Vito Corleone’ so in some way the story lives on and a new character rises (Michael Corleone). The same is in ‘Batman Begin), as the famous ‘Batman’ franchise shows the character’s origins in the film and explains to the audience how it happened. The way franchises work is that the first film was a great critically acclaimed success and the production company have to keep interest but also same story style to maintain the audience’s relationship with the characters. In most cases they would keep the same characters but different motives. For example the ‘Die Hard’ films have the same plot in every film, Bruce Willis stays where he is but the villains always change. Just like in ‘James Bond’. But also most franchises come from books. For example, ‘James Bond’ written by Ian Fleming has been made into 23 films all based on the books as it was greatly written and was something innovative.  Also ‘The Godfather’, ‘Twilight’, ‘Harry Potter’ and ‘Lord of the rings’ are all books turned into films which makes it easier for producers as they don’t have to think of new ideas as they are all already written.  On item 1, the table shows the overall gross total of income for 4 franchise films, ‘Harry Potter’, ‘James Bond’, ‘Star wars’ and ‘Batman’. The films reach a gross amount up to $6.3 million. The reason why they reach such large numbers is because of the merchandise, DVD sales and alongside the reputation of the film. People don’t like risking things and especially not money, so when going to the cinema they want to see something they know they’ll enjoy and then is not a waste of their money. They also want to buy merchandise such as clothes wear, objects, games and DVDs as they follow and like their franchise. People seem to find the franchises more safe and easy as they know what they’re expecting because of their reputation and the film doesn’t have to fight to get the audience’s attention. The ‘The Dark Night Rises’ viral marketing campaign is an example of how being a franchise helps marketing a lot. The website for the 2012 film was initially just a black screen with some unusual chanting. As fans had to find a hidden hyperlink, it revealed a second website which was then used to share on social network sites such as Facebook and twitter. This technique allows fans to be more than fans and actually get involved as the company’s websites allowed them to try and find links and share them to the world. When they shared it over the net, the website revealed a picture of the film’s villain, Bane. Again this technique gives the fans a sneak peak about the film whilst not revealing too much. Film Franchises are all about the money, that’s why it’s so important to producers. Producers aren’t too fussed if their franchise of films go to the Oscars or gain any awards, what they are fussed about is starting a trend, a financial trend where kids, adults and everyone pays to see the movie, buys the merchandise, get the DVDs and repeat this after every 2 years as franchise is the easiest less risky movie investment that is guaranteed increase in overall sales.

How far do the endings of the films you have studied for this topic confirm their messages and values?

For the two films I have studied, key messages and values are crucial. Both films are set in a certain chosen location, social dome and state of mind that gives messages and values to the audience to understand. The endings of the films and in any film are important as it wraps up everything we’ve learnt or missed out and is revealed to us.

‘Get Carter’ directed in 1971 by Mike Hodges starring Michael Caine follows the character of Jack carter as a wealthy London gangster finding himself in the poverty of Newcastle to seek answers and vengeance for his brother’s death. The message of cynical darkness and ugliness of the North is dramatically shown by the poverty and social realism of Newcastle in the late 60s at the end of the film, as the protagonist is located in a muddy, dull wasteland of a beach chasing the man whom he thinks murdered his brother. As we get several wide shots of the rainy grey sky and dirty sand we are sickened by the surroundings we are witnessing and where Jack is lost in. As beaches and sea sides are conventionally known to be somewhat happy and bright, the beach the scene is set in is the complete reverse and contradicts the happiness of the beach. The wide shots also give this over giving sense of enormity in the situation as the dark sea seem never ending alongside with the troubled, muddy and over lapping hills of evil sand. The audience understand how poor and gritty Newcastle is as we’ve witnessed nearly most of it with Jack and to end in the hell beach hints to the audience that something significant and not good is going to happen. The darkness in which Jack finds himself internally is now external as everywhere he looks is wasteland and horror. This could suggest his mental darkness and cynical ways have met him at his last moment as the beach could suggest the way he has lived his life, in crime, darkness and in the shadows. The audience see the horror of the beach as sort of a purgatory for Jack as he has met the end of his life and is where he deserves.

‘Ill Manors’ Directed in 2012 by Ben Drew is an intertwining tale of different kids and adults living in crime in South East London. Redemption is a key moment and message in the film, especially in the ending as the character of Aaron rides in a cab to his parents after his best mate died, along with many other characters as well. As he rides in the cab his facial expressions seems as if he is in peace and not running anymore. After his mate Ed died he closes every tail leading to crime as he returns a gun back to the owner, symbolising he is ending his crime life, he also helps out a young teen girl in a fight, suggesting he is in the good side now and no longer the bad side, and choses to see his parents after many years of foster care. His facial expressions in the cab could suggest that he has also changed his state of mind and has had an epiphany where as everyone in that location has the same negative state of mind but he has learnt now.  Also redemption is seen when Chris stands by the river Thames over viewing the o2 and throws his gun in the river symbolising that he is maybe finished with the criminal thug life, as the gun falling in the river could symbolising he is throwing in the towel in crime. The message the audience get in the end is positive as redemption can come at any time and to not feel like you’ve lost it. Also the reflections of the Olympic stadiums in the cab suggest the values of life, as under all that dirt, filth and crime, is a happy, safe and healthy environment suggesting you shouldn’t ever give up.

Another message that Get Carter gives to the audience at the end of the movie is the continuous and conventional moral of the gangster/crime genre that authority always wins. In most gangster movies the ending is justified by the police, FBI and any source of authority winning and taking over the criminals/bad figures. This is shown by the Newcastle police breaking in Kinnear's, the main criminals house and finding drugs,prostitutes and arresting the character. This message is important because it shows to the audience the consequences of the criminal life. The audience throughout the film are being made to witness Kinnear's wealthy, exciting criminal life as he indulges himself in drug business, pornography and excess, and to show the audience that life isn't this easy, they have to add the realism of authority breaking in and making arrests. The audience also enjoy seeing authority win in the end of movies as it has been for the past decades because it makes them feel safe that the criminals are put behind bars at the end of the film. 

The message of change is shown in Ill Manors in end as most situations and characters change right at the end leaving the audience a lot to think about and question. For example the young teen girl that helped Aaron take care of the baby gets herself in a fight, as she did earlier in the film, but this time she stands up for herself and fights back at her enemies. The audience could think that she's brave now as she fights back and stood up for herself as before she would just take the beating. But the audience could also argue that she fights back because of all thats happened leading up to that point, that the death of her best friend, Ed, and the madness of the baby and the prostitute has made her not afraid of life anymore. The young kid that Jake walks with to score the bag of weed in the beginning of the film was beaten and humiliated by infact Jake as he betrayed him to enter a gang, but at the end we see him holding up another kid asking for his money. This shows us that the bullied turns into the bully as he is repeating what had happened to him to others. The audience feel sympathy towards him as he is insecure and the only reason he is acting this way is because he was treated so badly by his best friend. As he lifts his head up we see that he still has a black eye from the beating that he had taken, this shows us how quick things can change given any situation. It also shows us the delicate matter of how something tragic and scarring can change someone for every which is the whole theme and meaning of the film as Ben Drew shows the audience the tragic early lives of the main characters.