Media Studies Summer Task

           In the two clips I looked at – the first from ‘Casino Royale’ and the second from ‘LA Noire’ – there are many different features used to help create effect. 

         The clip of ‘Casino Royale’ opens with an establishing shot which introduces the setting of the clip to help orientate the audience. In doing so, this helps to create an ‘elitist’ feel as the building is quite grand which portrays the idea of wealth and status. As it looks like a high class industrial building, it could suggest that the person of interest inside the building is of a high status within a company or social group – thus reinforcing the idea of wealth and status. Whereas the fact that the building is very large could make it – or the people inside- seem quite intimidating and overpowering. This would once again present the idea of the status and power of the people or activities that are associated with and within the building.    

       The flashback to the fight scene appears to be less steady than the other scenes in this clip, which could suggest it was filmed on a hand-held camera. The use of a hand-held camera in the flashback helps to add effect as it creates a ‘shaky’ movement to the scene, which enforces the sense of pace and urgency which is reflected within the actual action between the characters in the scene. This is reflective of the action between the characters in the scene as it shows the conflict between the two parties, which could result in a fatal demise for one of the characters. Therefore the urgency and pace within the actual scene is effectively enhanced by the unsteady movement of the hand-held camera, which could also be seen as symbolic of the mind-set of the two characters in that very moment as their ‘fight-or-flight’ instinct kicks in, which could cause them to involuntarily or subconsciously act violently and suddenly.

         The clip being shot (or edited) in black and white helps to enhance the shadows within the shot, creating a sense of enigma and ambiguity.  The shadow in the background creates a sinister feel to the room that the shot is set in, which is projected onto the audience – giving them a negative view towards the antagonist. This occurs before we meet the protagonist, and the character roles are established. The fact that the heavy shadowing obscures the characters features and setting creates a sense of mystery and secrecy, which could be symbolic of possible concealment or hidden agendas of the antagonist and the activities occurring within the building or room. This could possibly enhance the negativity of the setting and character – helping the audience to identify the character role of the antagonist.

 

          In Contrast to ‘Casino Royale’, the clip from ‘LA Noire’ opens with a long shot which appears to jump from location to location, which may seem to disorientate the audience. This creates a busy feel to the setting, making the characters/inhabitants seem quite important and possibly fairly high class as the movement shows ‘they have things to do and places to be’. This is also enforced by the shots of cars and suburban houses- which help to reinforce the idea of wealth and high class, as it shows that the inhabitants of the area aren’t particularly short on money and seem to focus on materialistic things.  This could then be seen as a basis of which the status of the inhabitants is set on – as it gives the idea that the characters are focused on materialistic things as the more you have or the nicer your car is, the better you are than everyone else and the more respect or power you should get.

       In the clip from ‘LA Noire’ it shows a mid-shot of a man on a horse, which then zooms out to show the audience  it is a simulation, and therefore fake. This could symbolise that not everything is as it seems as it doesn’t lead us to believe it is fake until it zooms out – which could create a sense of deceit. This could suggest that the characters in the clip are putting up a façade by only portraying positive images to the audience and only showing them what they want them to see as it doesn’t show any negative images within the setting, making it seem too good to be true- which could possibly arouse the audiences suspicion. Therefore, the man on the horse could be symbolic of the images that we do see in the clip – such as the higher class inhabitants and materialistic objects; whereas the zooming out of the shot and revealing it is fake could be symbolic of the images we don’t see. This could be seen as concealing degradation within the area – for example, we are not shown images of lower class inhabitants, drug dealers, criminals, prostitutes, etc. Therefore, similarly to ‘Casino Royale’, the clip from ‘LA Noire’ has an enigmatic and ambiguous feel as it seems as though the characters have hidden agendas and information is being concealed from the audience – creating a sense of mystery and secrecy.