RATTER!!

Ratter!!

Ratter is a Thriller directed and written by Branden Kramer. The film was released in February 2016 starring Ashley Benson and Matt McGory. Ashley Benson is most well known for her role in the TV show Pretty Little Liars in which she plays one of the main protagonists, Hannah Marin. Matt McGory is also well known for his TV show appearances, in shows such as Orange is the New Black and How to Get Away With Murder.

The film is about a college student who gets stalked after her electronic devices get hacked. An important aspect of the film is that all the events that take place are shown through Emma's (Ashley Benson) Iphone, Computer and Tv camera. We never see her or her life from typical camera angles used in other films and only through the camera's that the audience can see on screen. This means cinematography is important because it physically puts the viewer into the film. Unlike in most films, the audience aren't positioned to see the point of view of the main character (but the antagonist). However by the audience being forced to watch everything through the eyes of the stalker. Although the audience sympathises and relates to Emma, the audience almost become the hacker as they have only been able to see the life of Emma because of the hacker. The cinematography is very signifiant through out the film because it creates more suspense. The audience only get to see certain things. The audience feel as if they have invaded Emma's life as we are not supposed to see the things we do because we know that the only reason why we can see is because of the hacker, who is the antagonist.

The ending is far from a traditional film ending that the audience may be used to seeing. It goes against Todorov's theory in the sense that the film doesn't have a restored equilibrium in the end. It ends on a dark cliff hanger. This is important because the audience is left with little information as to what happened to Emma or why it happened. This could be because the film wanted to highlight the issues as to what could really happen. Rather than Emma finding a way to solve the problem, she finds out to late and nothing could be done to save her. This makes it all to real for the audience as they have been put into a position where they can see what a stalker can really do and see. 

Exam Question.

'It is vital to understand the social and political context of films'. How far do you agree with this in relation to the films you have studied for this topic?

I agree with the statement to a certain extent as I believe that films that look at social and political issues/events are used to inform and educate the audience. I would say that in order to understand a film, the audience should know a bit of background information, but the film should allow them to understand the social and political context in more depth. From the films I have studied I have seen that they show a side to the audience that they never normally see, which means they are getting a better understanding of the issue/event. Even if the audience doesn't have much understanding of the social and political context to begin with, by the end of the film they are more informed and understanding. However, if the viewer is completely oblivious of the social and political issues raised in the film, then the message of the film would be a lot harder for the viewer to comprehend.

In the film La Haine, directed and written by Mathieu Kassovitz in 1995, follows the story of three young men after riots in France. The film is based on true events in France and focuses on police brutality against lower class people. The film touches on major political and social issues through out the film, such as the difference between the upper and lower class and police corruption and brutality, which was the main cause of the riots. At the beginning of La Haine, the film opens up with footage from the riots in France. The audience see's the violence that took place and the damage that was caused by it. From the start the audience understands that the riots were a major part in Frances history due to the pure scale of the events shown on screen. However, because the film starts with scenes from the riots, the viewer may be unclear as to what is going on and why it is happening. This means that it is quite crucial for the audience to understand the social and political context of the film as they need to know why they are seeing the things that they're seeing. This is important for this film in particular because the audience is being seen the events following the riots and not before or during.
However in the film City of God, directed by Fernando Meirelles in 2002, the audience is shown the lead up to how things got so bad in Rio. The film is based on the conflict around drugs within Rio but the focus is on the characters and what ultimately ends up happening to them. This film is too based on a real event which is important, but unlike La Haine we are shown the background story leading up to the events. Although there are social and political issues that the audience need to understand and acknowledge, they can still follow the story without it. City of God doesn't rely so heavily on the social and political context to tell the story where as la haine does.

In conclusion, from the films that I have studied, I would say that it is not vital nor non-essential to understand the social and political context but it depends on what message the film wants to get across and what it wants to achieve.

Beastly.

Beastly!!

Beastly is a fantasy drama directed and written by Daniel Barnz and was released in March 2011. The film stars Alex Pettyfer, who has been in films such as I am Number Four and Magic Mike, who plays the main protagonist Kyle. Vanessa Hudgens also stars along side him and has been in films such as Spring Breakers and is mostly known for her role in the High School Musical films. There are many well known actors within the cast for Beastly and is the main selling point in the film as they have stars such as Neil Patrick Harris, Dakota Johnson and Mary-Kate Olsen. However the film hasn't seen much success in terms of awards and nominations.

The film explores themes of love and beauty as Kyle (Alex Pettyfer) is turned into a 'monster' so that he can find true love. The film goes into depth about how the way someone looks is not the most important thing when it comes to relationships. A scene in which this is shown is when Kyle gets brave enough to talk to Lindy (Vanessa Hudgens) but only with a mask over his face. This is significant because it shows how insecure Kyle has become and that without his looks he believes he is not good enough. However, further into the film Kyle decides to show Lindy his true face in which she is not shocked by. This shows it is not just about someones appearance but also their personality. Mise-en-scene along with performance is significant in this film especially when it comes to Kyle's character. Firstly Mise-en-scene is important (specifically props and location). When we are first introduced to Kyle he seems to have everything. He has the looks, the designer clothes and the latest accessories and gadgets. This is important because at the beginning of the film the audience gets the impression that if you have the looks then you are successful. The events that take place at the beginning of the film backs this up as Kyle openly says that attractive people are better off. However, the later performance of Kyle where he is more shy and insecure contradict and contrast with the mise-en-scene. He still has a big house, lots of money and technology but he is no longer happy with his life. The thing that he desperately wants is friendship and a relationship. The mise-en-scene and performance contrasts with each other to show an important message which is that having loads of money and items doesn't make you happy, which is the opposite to what we saw at the beginning of the film.

This film is a modern day 'Beauty and the Beast' as it follows the same story line of a man being turned into a monster because of the way he behaved in the past and he has to find true love in order to make him human again. The film has very strong links with 'Beauty and The Beats' as it is based on the same fairy tale storyline of finding love which is based on more than looks.

Rust and Bone

Rust and Bone.

Rust and Bone is a French film written and directed by Jacques Audiard, released November 2012. The Romance Drama has been nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the BAFTA's and Golden Globes. The film stars Matthias Schoenaerts and Marion Cotillard (who was nominated for Best Performance by an Actress at the Golden Globes and Best Leading Actress at the BAFTA's). The film follows a start of a relationship between Stephanie and Ali after Stephanie is recovering from a horrible accident and Ali trying to find ways to support his family.

Rust and Bone include themes of femininity and masculinity and focuses on it through out the majority of the film. 

Stephanie is a double leg amputee and tries to 'find' her femininity again by starting a relationship with Ali and by building her confidence. A scene in which this is shown is when she goes back to the club with Ali and she sees all the other women wearing short skirts and high heels. The camera focuses on the lower parts of the women's body because it is an insecurity that Stephanie has. This shows that Stephanie wants her femininity 'back' because she is looking at what she used to have and how she used her body to get attention from other men. Because she has lost her legs, she feels she she is not the same person. However by the end of the film she comes round to owning the fact that she has no legs. She even gets large tattoos on her legs to show the fact that she has accepted what has happened to her. This is significant because it addresses a topic that is not largely spoken about. The film looks at the almost psychological impacts of disabilities and how it does not only affect the physical aspects to living a normal life but the emotional impacts it has. The film looks at disability along side sexuality.

Ali has a son called Sam and does everything he can to look after him even though he is struggling himself. Ali moves in with his sister to help him take care of Sam whilst he finds work. Ali ends up fighting as a way of earning money. Through out the majority of the film, Ali comes across as quite masculine. He doesn't really show emotion and is very blunt when it comes to talking about certain issues that arise in the film. His masculinity is very important to him. However at the end of the film when he is talking to Stephanie, he begins to break down crying. He doesn't lose his masculinity but it shows another side to Ali that the audience hasn't seen. This is important because in a lot of films men are seen as dominant and in charge so it throws off the audience when he begins to cry because Ali has been strong and tough through out the film.

Sound plays an important part in this film as well, as there are a lot of scenes in which the sound cuts out (softly) in order to focus the audience on to what the characters are actually doing. The film doesn't rely so heavily on dialogue so most of what is going on is interpreted through the actors performance. The dips in sound also contrasts with what is happening on screen. For example, in the scene in which Sam falls through the ice, the sound is barely there creating more suspense. The absence of sound contrasts with the dramatic nature of the scene which slows the audience down. Ali doesn't have much time to save his son, so by taking out the sound drags out the scene making it more tense. The sound allows the audience to break from all the action and look at the performance and the emotion Ali is showing. There are other scenes in which the sound dips out and the micro-features sound and performance work together in order to show the emotion of the two protagonists.

Fight Club

The Lesson

The Lesson

The Lesson is an English film directed and written by Ruth Platt and released in February in 2016. The Lesson is a horror film with themes of Revenge, Death, Friendship and Relationships. The film is about two boys who are known trouble makers are kidnapped by their teacher and are brutally tortured if they don't comply with the rules.

Within the film, the majority of scenes take place in the teachers hidden room which means Mise-en-scene is very important. Because the film has a low budget, they cant really rely on special effects or major stunts to scare or frighten the audience. The reason why mise-en-scene is important is because it is what the audience can draw the most horror from. What also works along side mise-en-scene to create the sense of horror and suspense is Lighting. The low lighting with the dirty look of the shed is important because it gives the idea to the audience that something bad is going to happen. The low lighting masks and hides parts of the room and the characters in it, which suggests that the audience don't know all of what is going on. The dark lighting puts the audience in the same position as the character as they to are 'in the dark' as to what could happen to the characters.

An important scene in the film is at the end of the film when two of the characters are sitting on a sofa covered in blood and they blankly stare into the camera. This is important because it is the last thing the audience expects them to do. Rather than going to the police or find some help, they return home and almost carry on with what they would normally do. The fact that they are sitting in their house covered in blood (some in which is not theirs) could suggest that theoretically they have blood on their hands even though they are not necessarily responsible for the previous events that took place in the film. Also the scene adds a further disturbed and gruesome end to the film as the films genre sort of changes as it has the same feel as a psychological thriller. The audience expects one ending but they are given something unexpected making the audience question what genre the film fits into.