Anglia square, car park - Possible thriller location

The other day, me and another member of my group went out to take pictures of a location we had in mind for our thriller opening, the location we chose to look around was the car park in Anglia Square. This is as it is a very generic location that shows great establishment of thriller location, claustrophobic spaces, noir lighting (during periods of darkness), views over the dystopian town and also the decaying, scummy staircases/lifts/windows.

This location portrays great noir lighting, the fluorescent beams present non-ambient lighting which isn't too bright and therefore maintains dark spaces between each beam. This leaves dark areas for the antagonist to potentially loom in.

This shot further conveys how the spacing between lights is effective in leaving dark and  eerie spaces. Our group will have to ensure that we utilize this carefully, making certain not to mask the action by filming in a spot that's too dark. 

From the upper levels of the car park, the location gives a great view of the dystopian city and it's surroundings. The boarded up, degraded buildings, graffiti and dull weather add  to the idea of a dangerous and unfriendly environment. If used in our thriller opening, it would hopefully evoke suspense where by the intimidating city connotes that something terrible has/ or will happen. We were inspired to use this particular dystopian city by other films and television programmes, such as "Misfits".

Thamesmead, Location of "Misfits".

These shots show one of the car park stairwells, whilst also showing the damaged glass and  bars surrounding it. This location is particularly interesting and portrays a lot of ideas, for example, the bars could symbolize entrapment and claustrophobia. Whilst the cracked glass suggests attempts to escape the stairwell, but it not being possible. Overall, we may use this area of the car park as it connotes claustrophobia and looks tattered, further adding to the dystopian feel. 

 

I have included a shot of the lift and a clip of how we may use this to build tension and leave a shocking cliffhanger. We thought the idea of the foot stopping the lift door from closing would be a good way to end our thriller, this idea was inspired by the surroundings we visited. However, after exploring other aspects and ideas we may adapt this thought.

Noir lighting and wet glistening surfaces are portrayed in this image,  this is a great establishment of genre and therefore we may hope to use the same setting in out opening. Additionally, films such as "Once Upon A Time In America" also use this setting in order to establish genre and add to the bleakness.  

Body's laid out on the street, still from "Once Upon A Time In America" 

These shots and the clip I have added highlight another idea we had for a scene in our thriller, which was also thought of when exploring the car park. We had the idea that the shattered window could be in focus and then just before either the white van or person walk past, the focus shifts towards them instead. This could give the feeling that someone is watching either one of them when they are entering the desolate car park. 

Influences on the idea of a car park:


One of the major influences on our choice of this location is the music video to "Angel" by Massive Attack, the empty, desolate car park, noir lighting, glistening streets and enclosed environment posed as a great setting. Therefore, we investigated into which particular car park in Norwich best replicated the one used in the video and we concluded at Anglia Square.

Identifying how Peter Jackson develops and challenges generic conventions in "Heavenly Creatures"

Film title: Heavenly Creatures
Director: Peter Jackson

Plot: Two girls have an intense fantasy life; their parents, concerned the fantasy is too intense, separate them, and the girls take revenge. The film is based on the Parker-Hulme murder case, which shocked New Zealand.

Reviews:
" Heavenly Creatures is beautiful, haunting, thoughtful and incisive". - Theo Robertson, Scotland (2004) 

Peter Jackson uses shot-reverse-shot in a quick succession in order to build suspense. Cuts between the mother and the girls are fast, and along with the different character expressions we can observe the tension rise. This is as the mother looks happy and is acting rather social able, showing her naivety

about the following the events. In comparison, Pauline has an emotionless and angry expression, portraying her impatience. The fast transitions between shots further communicate the difference in character emotion as we are shown the constant contrast between them. This builds suspense as we are watching back and forth between the rather awkward scene waiting for something bad to happen, which we know is imminent from Pauline and Juliet's expressions. Further, we can see that Jackson is careful in not breaking the 180 degree rule within the conversation, the fact that there is a wall on one side of the table may have aided him whilst filming as it could have acted as a block. Abiding by this principle shows that he has not disorientated or confused the audience.

 This zoom shot on the clock is very significant and also effective. The zooming notion may be informing us to draw all our attention to the time, this is so that we know where all the characters were at that specific time. In addition to this, the shot directly after features the camera zooming in to Pauline's face, therefore further suggesting how impatient she is and maybe hinting that we should associate her in particularly with the time. Furthermore, Jackson portrays conventions of the thriller genre via the use of the clock. This relates to the genre as it connotes the time of death in relation to where all characters were, therefore adding tension as we know that something is definitely going to happen. Jackson may have been referencing films such as "High Noon", whereby shots of a clock are used to symbolize a notorious character out for revenge returning on the noon train. Although this use may not be used to specifically connote time of death, the cuts between character, clock and train build tension and make us wait in anticipation.

                

From this shot we can observe how Jackson develops generic conventions of location within the thriller genre. This is as the environment is not particularly claustrophobic or dark, as it's very open and at a sunny point in the day. However, the location still maintains isolation and therefore a sense of entrapment as there's no one else around to help the victim therefore leaving them stranded with their fate. Jackson uses this feeling of isolation to evoke anticipation within the audience as the girls have now entered their killing territory and we are waiting for them to strike. Additionally , the use of a high angle shot is effective in further representing the isolated environment. This is as it seems to go on and on, where by the shot is filled with vast forest, whereby the characters are minuscule in relation.

Jackson uses a series of close-ups which cut from one another as the 3 characters walk down the pathway. These different close-ups allow us to identify with characters' expressions and observe their movements, this is effective as the varied shots build up tension. For example, there are several close-up shots which go from shots of the face to the

hands' of the characters. The facial expressions communicate the determined and rather worried feelings of the girls, whilst their hand movements suggest their uncomfortable and uneasy emotions about what their about to do. Furthermore, the fluid cinematography holds the walk together beautifully and creates suspense due to the

continuous camera movements and shot variations, which in turn, keep us gripped as we see the girls plan finally coming together. In addition to this, the effect of slow motion and glaring light in some of the shots could indicate how unreal the moment is. This idea could be related back to the actual murder the film was based on, whereby New Zealand couldn't believe that two well brought up girls would commit such an act, as it doesn't pose as something that would happen in reality.

From this shot we can establish that Jackson challenges generic conventions of weapons and gender. This is as instead of using a conventional weapon e.g. a knife or gun, the two girls murder the mother with a brick encased in a stoking. The use of this weapon is incredibly disturbing and would most probably evoke fear in the audience due to the fact that it doesn't kill straight away and the notion of beating the mother to death becomes therefore a lot more distressing. In addition to this, the weapon contains a resemblance and could be a reference to the soap wrapped in towels in the film "Full Metal Jacket", this is as the use of the weapon in "Full Metal Jacket" is to torture one of the characters. Although, this is not the girls aim, the weapon conveys the same meaning as it does not kill the mother instantly and therefore puts her through immense pain, which is why this reference may have been conveyed.

Furthermore, teenage girls being depicted as the murderers completely challenges generic conventions of gender. This is as in the most part of film, adult males and to some extent adult females are usually conveyed as the killers. Therefore, the effect of having two teenage girls commit such an act as murder is completely shocking and the idea of this shock may further relate back to the true murder case.

Soundtrack:


During the ending scene the non-diegetic sound of Puccini's 'Humming Bird' is introduced whilst the two girls and Pauline's mother are sitting in the cafe, this song carries on right out until the tragic murder. The use of 'Humming sound' is extraordinarily significant as it references the opera Madama Butterfly, whereby a young Japanese girl falls in love with an American sailor. However, the sailor takes the relationship as a passing fling and ditches the girl leaving her very upset, to add to the pain he then returns back to her with the intention of taking possession of their child. Overall, the girl ends up killing herself due to the amount of trauma she's experienced. This strong reference therefore completely contradicts the action, where by Juliet and Pauline are so inseparable (resembling the mother and child) that they kill Pauline's mother for their own sake, in other words, they believe they will not be able to live without each other and therefore remove the only obstacle preventing this i.e. the mother. With this reference Jackson could also be suggesting that the story is worthy of a grand opera due to the incredibly tragic ending. Additionally, "Heavenly Creatures" further represents Madame Butterfly through the similarity of story and dialogue. For example, in the clip below a part of the subtitles read "You were sent down to me from the throne of Paradise!". This piece of dialogue could represent how much Pauline and Juliet mean to each other, believing that they were both meant for one an other as if their relationship is a gift.
                          
                  

Another piece of intertextuality that "Heavenly Creatures" portrays through the soundtrack, although not a strong reference, is to "A Clockwork Orange". This is as in "A Clockwork Orange" non-diegetic classical music (Ludwig Van Beethoven) is played in order to reflect scenes of violence, rape or torture. Furthermore, the same concept of classical music over a violent scene is conveyed in "Heavenly Creatures" with Puccini's 'Humming Chorus'.

                  

A Clockwork Orange

Film title: A Clockwork Orange 
Director: Stanley Kubrick

Plot: Alex DeLarge, a charismatic delinquent, carries out acts of "ultra-violence" along with his fellow "droogs". Subsequently, he ends up in jail but is given the opportunity to participate in a psychological experiment that attempts to solve abnormal and sadistic behavior. However, all doesn't go accordingly.

Reviews: 
"Brilliant, stunning and disturbingly entertaining" - Wilson Huff, Boston (2005)




How does Stanley Kubrick portray generic conventions of the thriller genre in "A Clockwork Orange"
   
          

The use of the tunnel indicates Kubrick's establishment of generic locations. This is as it is an enclosed location, which connotes entrapment and adds a sense of claustrophobia, the particular tunnel used further conveys this idea as there only seems to be one exit. Furthermore, the use of shadows and the diegetic sound of footsteps builds suspense. This is as the footsteps get louder and the shadows get larger, this implies the impending evil as the darkness from the shadows begins to fill the tunnel creating an immense amount of tension.

Leading lines are very effective in this long shot of Alex and his gang, they guide us to the main point of interest and further highlight how narrow the location is. Also, the vanishing point plays a big part in this shot, it could suggest that the gang have come out from no where, and that they are bringing their reality of "ultra-violence" to the old man. Additionally, Kubrick has established noir lighting through the use of a non-ambient source of brightness within the background, of which allows for a light to dark transition from the back to the front of the shot. This is effective in making the gang seem a lot more notorious and intimidating, therefore making their entrance even more powerful and suspenseful. Furthermore, two of the characters' shadows have engulfed the old man's figure which could be connotation to suggest he's in trouble as he's been overwhelmed by their darkness.

Noir lighting is very effective in this shot as it masks each of the characters identities, leaving their faces unreadable. This means that we are unable to identify with their emotions and rely more on the diegetic sound and action to establish what their feeling. Kubrick challenges generic conventions of weapons in "A Clockwork Orange" as instead of using props such as knives or guns to inflict terror, Alex and his gang use canes. We can see that these props are effective in asserting dominance and power particularly in this still, whereby the old man is forced under the cane showing that Alex is above him in the social hierarchy.

This is a great example of chiaroscuro lighting, it highlights Alex's face and therefore gives us a clear clarity of expression and emotion. From the use of chiaroscuro lighting and a close-up shot we can identify with Alex's  sadistic manor, this is as his expressions show signs of pleasure and anger, as if he is getting enjoyment out of inflicting pain to the defenseless old man.


Influences on other media texts:

"A Clockwork Orange" has had a significant impact on a variety of films and television, it's brilliant cinematography and compelling characters have evoked a huge amount of intertextual references. For example, Quentin Tarantino's "Reservoir Dogs" directly references two scenes from "A Clockwork Orange".

Film:

            
          
 This scene is a direct reference to "A Clockwork Orange" whereby Mr Blonde is dancing around and torturing the cop to a rather upbeat and unfitting song. Much like when Alex is singing a usually joyous and happy song whilst performing acts of violence and rape.

Another scene that Tarantino references from "A Clockwork Orange" is when Alex and his "droogs" are walking alongside the river in slow motion. Tarantino refers to this scene in the opening sequence by having the gangsters walking along in slow-motion aswell. 








Television:

                     
Matt Groening continuously references "A Clockwork Orange" in running family cartoon "The Simpsons", further proving how influential the film has been on modern media.

Reception:

"A Clockwork Orange" was released in 1971 with the rating "X", which means only suitable for over 18's, this was the most explicit rating of films within that time period. Furthermore, "A Clockwork Orange" received a lot of bad criticism when released, stating that it's incredibly graphic violence and rape scenes would damage society by influencing teenagers to recreate acts seen. Throughout 1972 and 1973, police linked cases of teenage violence to the film, therefore forcing Stanley Kubrick to withdraw the film from British distribution. The most shocking copy-cat case was the incident of a rape after the film had been banned, whereby in 1973 a gang of men raped a 17-year old dutch girl whilst  singing "singing in the rain".

These user ratings from IMDB show how highly different age groups and genders rated "A Clockwork Orange". The results here show that males under 18 gave the highest rating for the film, this may because of Alex DeLarge, the main character being of a similar age. Therefore, posing as a relatable character to these audiences. This relation to Alex DeLarge could be the cause of such similar cases in reality as the character, although very sadistic, is quite charismatic and therefore seems less serious in his acts. This personal quality to the character may have lead those to re-create acts as they didn't see them as genuinely bad, this idea in particular applies to the "singing in the rain" rape case.  

13 (Tzameti) - Scene analysis

Film title: 13 Tzameti
Director: Géla Babluani

Plot: Sebastian, a French immigrant builder lets his naivety and thirst for the money a previous employer owes him get the better of him. He follows a trail of instructions left for his recently deceased customer which lead him to corrupt and deadly game.

Reviews:
"A simple premise filled with style and tension" - Vincent, Ireland (2007)


 


Analysis of "Round 1" scene:

At the beginning of this scene we are introduced to the umpire of the corrupt game, the camera is level to his feet and then pans up to represent a low angle shot of the character. This is effective as it signifies how much power the character has over the game and therefore portrays to us his authority. His laid back body language, costume and even looks resemble and could be a sign of intertextuality to Tyler Durden, the nameless character's alter-ego in the film "Fight Club". They also both harbor similar roles as an overseer to illegal underground events.





There is significant contrast between tones and furthermore character in this particular shot. The vast crowd of smartly dressed men are mostly wearing dark colours, whereas one of the players is just wearing a white t-shirt. This indicates how insignificant players are in comparison to the gamblers, almost as if they are animals owned and controlled by the men in the background, completely worthless to the world and purely a source of money and luck. In addition, the rule of thirds shot used draws attention to the player and further divides the boundary between player and gambler. Babluani
challenges generic conventions of claustrophobic location here. This is as, instead of being trapped by walls or dead ends, players are trapped by people instead.

A close-up of Sébastien allows the audience to identify with his worried and confused feelings, showing us that he's in deeper than he imagined. Furthermore, this is a great example of how Babluani focuses on close-ups, facial expressions, character movements and fluid cinematography as apposed to dialogue in order to tell the story.


Babluani establishes an interesting contrast between generically used point of view shots. This is as apposed to an over-the-shoulder shot or a point of view shot from a character's eyes, Babluani features the character's out of focus head in the center of the mise-en-scene. This is effective as it masks the central action and therefore creates tension.

The panning camera movement could be symbolic of the spinning revolver cylinders. Aswell as this the panning movement is also effective in portraying the different characters expressions, for example, there is a huge contrast between the emotions of the first character focused on and the second. The first looks determined and not phased by what's about to happen at all, whereas the second looks terribly frightened.

This particular shot further symbolizes the amount of power the umpire wields. We can see this through him being portrayed on the same level as the raised weapons, therefore indicating his force as being identical to that of the revolvers.

Babluani establishes generic conventions of noir lighting, we can note the indicated connection through the dimly lit and shadowy face of the player.  This adds suspense and heightens the tension of the game. In addition, Babluani could also be referencing noir thrillers, particularly through the combination of the pointing gun and lighting. For example, Harry Lime aiming his gun at the police in "The Third Man". 

The close-up of the light bulb symbolizes how much of an important component it is for characters in relation to the game. Where by as soon as it lights up it will reveal each players individual fate be it relief, death or the reality of killing another man. Furthermore, the panning camera action and shot reverse shot cuts between bulb and players shows the amount of focus everyone has on the light bulb. Aswell as this, the atmosphere suddenly becomes completely quiet with only a few nervous breathes, this combined with camera movement creates an enormous amount of tension and leaves us on the edge of our seats.  

As the light finally turns on, quick camera cuts move us from player to player. Suspense is further utilized throughout these transitions as non-diegetic sounds of gun shots are used that don't correlate with the shots in the mise-on-scene, therefore leaving us to wonder who's dead and who's alive. Furthermore, in this particular shot smoke could be a symbol of the spirit escaping the characters body/mind.

The movement of the camera zooming in to the eye could indicate to us how shaken the character is by what he's seen, the transition from close-up to extreme close-up effectively emphasizes this. Furthermore, this could be seen as an intertextual reference to Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho", whereby the camera reveals an extreme close-up of Marion Crane's eye. However, the movement is zooming out as apposed to zooming in.

  







The overall idea and process of the game proves to be a more contemporary version of Russian roulette. Therefore, I believe 13 Tzameti makes a wide intertextual link to a late scene within "The Deer Hunter", where by characters Mike and Nick play Russian roulette in a rather similar situation.