Learn
About the Film's Production:
Know the film's dates of production; study the production
credits to learn more about the film's production; research
any interesting facts about the 'making of' the film.
Understand
Marketing:
Discover how the film was marketed and/or distributed -
what were its taglines, posters and trailers? See
this site's section on Great
Film Taglines.
Know
the Original Screensize:
Watch a film in a movie theater, if possible, where it
was designed to be projected, or purchase the film in a
'wide-screen' format or in its original format.
[Note: Understand that films made
before the late 1950s had a width-to-height aspect ratio
of 4:3 (or 1.33:1) called 'Academy Ratio,' similar to
a television screen, while more modern films have non-standard,
wide-screen ratios (that are often viewed in the pan-and-scan mode).]
Determine
Choice of Film Stock:
Consider why the film was made as either color or black/white
(if a choice was possible).
Watch how color (or black and white) is
used?
Research
Budget and Box-Office:
What was the film's budget? Did it go over-budget or under-budget
and why?
How did the film
do at the box-office? Did it go straight to video? See
this site's section on Top
100 Box-Office Hits of All Time.
Discover
Film's Context:
What was the social, political, and/or historical context
for the film?
Was there any controversy surrounding the
film's release?
Learn
About Initial Reception:
What was the film's original reception?
How is the film perceived today?
Read
About Reviews and Reviewers/Critics' Opinions: or ![](http://www.filmsite.org/images/thumbdown.gif)
Discern what major reviewers, press reviews, or critics
have said about the film.
Also consider its critics' ratings (i.e.,
stars, "thumbs-up", letter grades, number ratings,
etc.).
Understand
Film's Influence:
Learn if the film had an influential impact on future films.
Did it pay homage to (or reference) a previous
film in some way?
Study
Narrative Origins and Script:
Learn about the script-screenwriter (and other works)
- if a screenplay is available, compare it to the actual
film.
Read about the narrative origins of the
film (literary or otherwise):
- Is it adapted from some other work,
or based on an original idea? If adapted, how well
does it follow the original?
- If original, how fresh and innovative
is it?
Does the film's screenplay effectively
communicate the story through action and dialogue?
Learn
Whether It's Fact or Fiction?:
- If the film is based upon an historical
event or person, how true to life is the film?
- Is the film fact or fiction?
- Does it mythologize an historical event
or period?
Examine
Plot, Structure or Story:
How is the film structured?
Determine the film's pivotal scene(s) and
sequencing.
How is the story's plot told?
- through normal exposition
- by flashback
- with a narrator (by voice-over)
- chronologically or linearly
- character-driven
- objectively or subjectively
- otherwise
Additional Questions to Decipher:
- What is the vantage point from which
the film is presented?
- Does parallelism (the film cuts back
and forth between two scenes that are happening simultaneously
or at different times) exist between two or more scenes?
- Are the transitions between scenes effective?
- Is there a climax and resolution (and
denouement)?
- Does the film's narrative provide continuity
from scene to scene?
- Is there closure by film's end?
Study
Running Time and Timeline:
Know the entire run time of the film and
the locations of various segments (or sequences) or turning
points within that time frame.
Keep track of the timeline of the film's
parts - with the digital counter of a VCR or DVD player.
Ascertain
Special (Visual) Effects:
Learn about the special (visual) effects within the film
and determine how skillfully they are handled.
Consider whether the advanced, computer-generated
technical aspects of the film are essential to the film's
plot, or whether their unrestrained use overwhelms the
dramatic, story-telling elements and sacrifices substance
- namely, the plot and/or characters.
For reference, see this site's Greatest
Visual/Special Effects in Film History.
Recognize
Theme(s):
Look for the film's central theme, motif, idea or dominant
message, as well as the film's sub-text (the message 'beneath
the surface'), and then answer these questions:
- Identify prominent symbols and metaphors
within the film and determine their purpose and overall
effect.
- What popular ideologies are reproduced
and reinforced in the film?
- Does the film have an original theme
or a traditional one?
- Is the film's theme adequately or successfully
supported by the story, acting, and other film elements?
Observe
Style and Tone:
Decide the overall style and tone of the film (noirish,
sophisticated, suspenseful, slapstick, etc.).
Observe
Costuming:
Identify the use of period costumes, body physiques, hair-stylings, etc.
Identify
Dialogue:
Identify the most important line(s) of dialogue, and identify
any lengthy monologues or speeches (see this site's Greatest
Speeches and Monologues).
Note how the dialogue is delivered (fast,
mumbled, overlapping, loud/soft, etc.).
Are there any recurring lines of dialogue
and how do they function? |
Distinguish
Characters and Acting Performances:
List the following:
- the film's main characters (are their
names significant?)
- also consider a few of the minor characters
and how they are used
- a brief description for each one
- their major motivations or ethical values/assumptions
- their character development
Then, ask yourself these additional things:
- Is there a hero or anti-hero?
- Are the characters
believable and three-dimensional?
- Is the acting
memorable, exceptional, or inferior?
- Ask yourself about 'star quality' -
why were specific performers (or stars) chosen (or
cast) to play each role - were they appropriately cast
(i.e., the right age or size, or with the proper accent)?
Were any of the performers cast against type?
Were there any debut performances?
- Were their performances appropriate
for the roles?
- Was the acting professional or non-professional?
- Does one performer steal the spotlight
from others?
Disclose
Stereotyping:
Were the popular stereotypes (attitudinal or imagined)
about different kinds of people (fathers, gays, Native
Americans, the elderly, women, the mentally-ill, blacks,
rural folks, etc.) challenged or reinforced?
Were there any caricatures?
Reveal
Directing:
Learn about the director's entire repertoire of films,
stylistic characteristics, and favorite techniques.
Is the director a
veteran or a novice?
How has the director
shaped, auteured, interpreted or controlled every
aspect of the film's making, and the telling of its story?
See this site's Greatest
Directors section.
Perceive
Cinematography and Visual Cues:
Identify the film's cinematographer, stylistic and visual
characteristics, use of lighting and color (or black and
white) to create a mood, use of a static or moving camera,
amount of closeups, and favorite techniques. Compare screen
time to 'story time.'
Be attentive to various visual clues, such
as the following:
- establishing shots (the
initial shot in a scene)
- camera lighting (diffuse, high-key,
low-key, muted, highlighting, spot-lighting, use of
light and dark areas)
- focusing (zooms, rack-focus, blurry,
deep-focus)
- camera distance and framing (full
shots, medium shots, closeups)
- compositions (positioning of elements,
symmetrical vs. asymmetrical, use of shadows, doors,
low ceilings, windows, mirrors, etc.)
- camera angles (tilted, wide angle,
telephoto, POV shots, low/high angled, etc.)
- camera movements and shots (dolly
shots, crane shots, pans, tracking, hand-helds, freeze-frames,
reaction shots, the number and order of shots,
the use of shot/reverse shots in conversations or
interviews, etc.)
- colors used (or color filtering)
- film speed (reversed, or fast/slow-motion)
Overall, is the cinematography effective?
Listen
to Score and/or Soundtrack:
Identify the film's composer, and any previous similar
works. Note any memorable songs (and their lyrics) and/or
dances.
Listen carefully to how the music/score
functions within the film to underscore the action, to
move the story along, or to provide an emotional tone
or mood.
- Is the film's soundtrack appropriate,
subtle and effective, or inappropriate, overwhelming
and domineering? Note if silence is used, at times,
in place of sound
Find
Out About Mis-en-Scene:
Understand the 'mis-en-scene' of the film. (Mis-en-scene can
include the setting, costumes, make-up, lighting, and camera
positioning and movement.)
How were the scenes
'orchestrated' or set up for the camera?
Identify
Locations or Settings:
Identify the settings for each scene. Are they each appropriate
and effective?
Note the different kinds of settings:
- geographical (place)
- temporal (time period)
- locations (on-site)
- studio sets
- important props
Notice
Film Conventions or Cliches:
Notice the typical conventions used in the film, for instance,
(1) cars that crash will almost always burst into flames,
or (2) all telephone numbers in America begin with the
digits 555.
Detect
Editing:
Is the film seamlessly and smoothly edited? (See this site's Great
Film Editing Sequences)
Note the film's transitional edits, such
as the following (see this site's Film
Terms Glossary):
- jump cuts
- wipes
- fade-ins
- fade-outs
- fade-to-black, dissolves
- lap dissolves
- mixes
- use of montage or rapid cutting
between shots
- juxtapositions (cross-cutting, cutaways, match
cuts)
- aural editing (how music, noise, or
transitional dialogue create the illusion of continuity
between cuts)
- the pace and rhythm of editing (the
typical length and speed of sequences or shots)
Listen
to Audio Clues:
Listen for the film's audio clues, including one of more
of the following:
- sound effects
- music
- dialogue or voice
- silence
Study and distinguish the use of the following:
- sound bridges
- on-screen vs. off-screen sounds (to
provide an impression of 3-D space)
- post-synchronized sound vs. direct sound
- diegetic sound (i.e., dialogue
and sound effects)
- non-diegetic sound (i.e., the
musical score, narrative voice-overs)
Note when sound transitions do not match
shot transitions.
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