Film Techniques: Shaun of the Dead

In the movie Shaun of the Dead, there are many angles that give the suspense of the movie more surreal and give you a good one or two jumps of your seat. The Camera movement is superb, it goes from a long shot into a zoomed in close-up. There are some Montages, but some just depict what the action is going to be about(e.g. When Liz was telling the group how to act like a zombie, and then they actually tested the action). The Film Techniques are great too how they make the suspense to combine with the camera movement.

Horror Movies

My Favorite Horror Movie would be the "Dawn Of The Dead" movie from 1978. Scary to me is not the way how a character that is "supposed" to scare you, pop up from nowhere, but how it builds suspense to the final action of what that character does. They would probably use low keys, lightning in the background, tracking shots, close ups, medium shots.

Civil Disobedience

I am against the fact that the government classifies ordinary people racially. Like if a person stole something from a market, and another person of colored skin, they would blame the guy of colored skin automatically after they get out of the store. Well some ideas like Martin Luther, like hunger strikes, stop buying stuff on big corporations having a relationship with government.

Gangster Movies

Gangster Movies in America have come and gone. The popularity of these genre type movies are very describable on how people lived in those days and how a "family" stays together no matter what. It sort of does say something about our culture, that maybe there was a rebellion against the government or just having some one owing you money and just shoot people with your 34 Caliber Tommy gun, its simple as that. What is really common in Gangster Movies are very dull, the hero is introduced while the movie goes on. The outlaw is known for doing something bad, and then the outlaw dies at the end.

Practice Test

Buster Keaton

1. Why does he keep a serious face?

he learned acting with his parents in the acts

1. Why is he like Chaplin?

He does mostly everything on accident, and he is mostly like the small guy in the movie

1. How does he perform his stunts?

He does it by himself, with no wires attached to him

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari

1. What is the significance of the set design?

It reflects on a crazy, demented persons thoughts

1. What was different from German Expressionism acting than from Hollywood?

The acting style was more realistic than fake hollywood

1. How does lighting set the mood in the film?

The lighting actually gives more depth of mysteriousness with Chiaroscuro lighting

Modern Times

1. Why did Charlie Chaplin base his movie Modern Times on the Great Depression?

He wanted to show how the working class was in the great depression.

Eisenstein

1. What other important movie did Eisenstein direct? (Look on the wiki)

October: Ten Days that shook the world

1. How does Eisenstein use the film to develop his theories of film structure?

He develops his film with what is called "intellectual montage"

The Last Laugh

1. Why did Murnau decide to use German Expressionism to this film?

He was one of the first to start a film based on German Expressionism and the fact that he made this film when the genre came out

1. Why was the movie made silent?

The movie was made silent because German Expressionism allowed characters to be more emotional with the lighting, and they would use text titles to show the dialogue

1. What type of lighting did they use?

Chiaroscuro lighting

Metropolis

1. True or False-Freder was in love with both "Robot Maria" and "Maria"?
False
2. Fill in Blank:(Blank) trades places with one of the workers for a day?
Freder

1. True or False-One of the villains in the movie was named "Rotwang"?

True
4. Why did Rotwang originally create his robot?
So the robot can resemble Helen
5. Who did Rotwang change the robot to look like?
He made it look like Maria
6. Who did Joh Fredersen send to spy on his son.

Thin man

Introduction to Essay

Could there be a connection with Comedy films and Science Fiction films? Well what I have seen by the two examples of films, Metropolis and Modern times, there are some differences and some similarities between the two. In Metropolis, its known for its Chiaroscuro lighting, and for the special effects it has. Modern Times on the other hand has incredible sound effects, and overall it is a movie that leaves people laughing to the actions of Chaplin. Both movies have a great way to express each others feelings, but they have something more in common for having the same style to reflect the desperate working conditions of their era.