Film Review: Fantastic Mr Fox (2009)

Figure 1: Fantastic Mr Fox - Poster

Fantastic Mr Fox is a film in a long line of stylised films by Wes Anderson, you can instantly tell a film is by his auteurism which runs through all his films, it is suggested that one of the more recurrent themes he displays is related to his childhood and around parent figures towards him. There is a trend that looks at situations reminiscent of dysfunctional family units, this is evident in other films of his such as The Darjeeling Limited (2007), The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004) and The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), often we find a strong father figure stepping up which is read as "His films often highlight the importance of friends, family, love and death" (Roberts, 2018). Fantastic Mr Fox displays this same trend throughout, Mr Fox at one point admits to his wife he doesn't feel good unless he is doing better than others, in a sense. There is a lot to be said about his relationship with his son which is clearly linked to this idea of internal drive in MR Fox, His son resents his father for not being able to live up to his achievements, this is carried over to his cousin who is the idea of a perfect son to Mr Fox.     

Figure 2: Fantastic Mr Fox - Hiding from Farmers

Wes Anderson uses another very obvious trope in his work which carries through to Fantastic Mr Fox, the use of symmetry in his shots creates an incredibly balanced visual flow, it is suggested that "In the framing and composition of an image, the balance of visual weight is imperative to an environment’s sense of stability or instability" (Hurbis-Cherrier, 2012, p. 50) which is arguably managed in an indirect way, Wes Anderson often uses symmetry regardless of what a scene is trying to convey proving there isn't a rule book when it comes to film. The feeling of a scene comes from character acting, sound design, and pacing. 

Figure 3: Fantastic Mr Fox - Set

Due to the sets all being a real environment there is a certain degree of how much a camera can get into a scene in order to film. All the characters and sets are designed so"They live in a sometimes flat dimension; the cameras are happier sliding back and forth than moving in and out" (Ebert, 2009) this is important firstly for the logistics of the production and secondly to maintain a sense of auteurship, watching any of his other films instantly installs the same statement about the camera, which is always very static and two dimensional in its movement. Fantastic Mr Fox feels like a place located in the same world as his other films through the themes they all exhibit.    

Bibliography:

Ebert, R. (2009). Fantastic Mr. Fox Movie Review (2009) | Roger Ebert. [online] Rogerebert.com. Available at: https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/fantastic-mr-fox-2009 [Accessed 6 Mar. 2019].

Hubris-Cherrier, M. (2012). Voice and vision: A creative approach to narrative film and DV production (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Focal Press.

Roberts, J. (2018). Auteur: Wes Anderson. [online] So The Theory Goes. Available at: https://www.sothetheorygoes.com/wes-anderson/ [Accessed 6 Mar. 2019].

Illustrations:

Figure 1: Fantastic Mr Fox (2009) [film poster] - Wes Anderson, 20th Century Fox, 20th Century Fox Animation, Regency Enterprises 

Figure 2: Fantastic Mr Fox (2009) [film poster] - Wes Anderson, 20th Century Fox, 20th Century Fox Animation, Regency Enterprises

Figure 3: Fantastic Mr Fox (2009) [film poster] - Wes Anderson, 20th Century Fox, 20th Century Fox Animation, Regency Enterprises

Film Review: Ethel & Ernest (2016)

Figure 1 - Ethel & Ernest (2016) - Poster

Ethel & Ernest (2016) is like the cottage pie of animation, it's utterly wholesome and does not profess to be anything more than what it is. A quaint animation about real people in the real world, it does a good job of creating an abundance of detail and interest out of a subject content which is almost alien to a modern day audience which is why it works so well in the current age of technology, there is a scene where Adolescent Raymond Briggs can't seem to get his head around the fact his father thinks he is too dirty to wash in the bathroom, of course, this is a discussion which we as a modern audience are also totally baffled by, but it lends to the flavour of the animation style, like old hand-painted Christmas cards of churches and snowy fields, which is in turn reflected in its characters where it is suggested "The despair and anguish found in Briggs' work" (Kroustallis, 2017). is embedded from the style of the houses to the cars to the doorknobs, life is brought from the haven of their home through character animation and personality.    

Figure 2 - Ethel & Ernest (2016) - Ernest becomes a Milkman

"What stops the film from sinking into mawkish nostalgia is the humour and level of detail." (Macnab, 2016)

Figure 3 - Ethel & Ernest (2016) - Ernest fighting fires in WW2

Ethel & Ernest fits perfectly into theories of modernism during each section of the film, during their younger life in the stages of being newlyweds common themes which relate to modernism such as optimism and a prospect for the future which slowly fades into the modern period where Ethel gets Alzheimers and passes away, which is followed by a soul-crushing scene of Ernest managing in their house alone and passing away as if one can't live without the other which is metaphorical of  ambiguity and pessimism of the post-modern era. "We seem always to be leading up to a big emotional event" (Bradshaw, 2016) which is the deaths at the end of the film, however there seems to be a nagging feeling of time is passing too quickly which could only be described as a great gravity of potential for the characters who spend their lives in a state of bittersweet innocence which creates a strong feeling of anticipation and anxiety.   

Figure 4 - Ethel & Ernest (2016) - Ernest living alone 

Bibliography:

Bradshaw, P. (2016). Ethel & Ernest review – moving adaptation of Raymond Briggs's graphic novel. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/oct/27/ethel-ernest-review-moving-adaptation-of-raymond-briggss-graphic-novel [Accessed 14 Feb. 2019]. 

Macnab, G. (2016). Ethel & Ernest review: Wonderfully evocative. [online] The Independent. Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/ethel-ernest-film-review-a7381006.html [Accessed 14 Feb. 2019].

Kroustallis, V. (2017). Ethel and Ernest Review: A Love Shelter Below The Rooftops of London. [online] Zippy Frames. Available at: https://www.zippyframes.com/index.php/reviews/ethel-and-ernest-review [Accessed 14 Feb. 2019].

Illustrations:

Figure 1: Ethel & Ernest (2016) - [Film Poster] - Roger Mainwood, Raymond Briggs: British Broadcasting Corporation, British Film Institute, Ffilm Cymru Wales

Figure 2: Ethel & Ernest (2016) - [Film still] - Roger Mainwood, Raymond Briggs: British Broadcasting Corporation, British Film Institute, Ffilm Cymru Wales

Figure 3: Ethel & Ernest (2016) - [Film still] - Roger Mainwood, Raymond Briggs: British Broadcasting Corporation, British Film Institute, Ffilm Cymru Wales

Figure 4: Ethel & Ernest (2016) - [Film still] - Roger Mainwood, Raymond Briggs: British Broadcasting Corporation, British Film Institute, Ffilm Cymru Wales

Film Review: The Triplets of Belleville - Belleville Rendez-vous (2003)

Figure 1 - Belleville Rendez-vous - poster

Belleville Rendez-vous is a film full of stylised characters, locations and a tendency for macabre exaggeration, Chomet created a film born in French artistry as "It playfully alludes to Jacques Tati" (Bradshaw, 2003), a style which bleeds through every aspect of its characters alone with Albert Debout whose caricature is evident in the design of its exaggeration.  

Society gains meaning through history of grand narratives, this alludes to the creation of tradition in genres, Chomet has carefully deconstructed the understanding of what animation is and uses this to create animation which is eerily bittersweet to a western audience, the example of Disney, a style which is extremely prevalent in western culture depicts characters who cater towards a young audience, this is done by giving the characters personalities less developed for an adult and more receptive to a child. "Audiences inevitably draw a sharp contrast between the text they are engaging with and the encyclopedic knowledge of texts that they carry with them" (Levine, 2013) Levine suggests our prior knowledge of animation creates an imbalance with Belleville which is disquietingly refreshing because it is catering for a more adult audience without being exclusive, its use of subject matter including murder, kidnap, poverty and the French mafia whilst remaining light-hearted through its whimsical environment, wacky humour and comical characters. (here's looking at you frogs!).   

Figure 2 - Jacques Tati

"A deliberately antiquated visual style" (Dawson, 2003)

Figure 3 - Albert Dubout

Belleville is primarily about the connection with the people we love, and the efforts of persistence we make to the ones we love, Scott sums that up by remarking "The movie is more about passion and the importance of the bonds that we share" (Scott, 2008), its arguable that the films exuberance of French-ness attest to this comment because of our understanding of French history. A nation who has always stood up to 'Bullies', be it Politicians, Royalty or corporation. Its ability to explain personal connection is symbolic of the rise of big business, the home environment of Champion and his grandmother is of a quaint French town which over time has built up. It is arguably it is a humble amount to increase, Belleville is literally spilling into the sea where it is overflowing with the corporation. Food is symbolic of money it could be argued, which then suggests that the obese residents of the city are all rich, this is reinforced during the scene were Madame Souza tries to pay for hamburgers but has no money, connecting the two items together, this leads to her meeting the elderly Belleville Triplets who have very little in this world which suggests that having less is in fact culturally and creatively more. 

The film ends with blue, white and red fireworks and a discarded beret as the protagonists escape the city, all of which leaves us with a final taste of France. 

Viva La Francis!   

Bibliography:

Bradshaw, P. (2003). Belleville Rendez-Vous | Reviews | guardian.co.uk Film. [online] Theguardian.com. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/film/News_Story/Critic_Review/Guardian_review/0,4267,1030893,00.html [Accessed 8 Feb. 2019].

Dawson, T. (2003). BBC - Films - review - Belleville Rendez-Vous. [online] Bbc.co.uk. Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2003/08/06/belleville_rendezvous_2003_review.shtml [Accessed 7 Feb. 2019].

Scott, J. (2008). The Triplets of Belleville analysis. [online] Satirist.org. Available at: http://satirist.org/swapa/belleville.html [Accessed 8 Feb. 2019].

Levine, S. (2013). Intertextual Rendez-Vous: Viewing The Triplets of Belleville from an American Perspective. [online] Media Theory and Digital Culture. Available at: https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-748-spring2013/2013/03/13/intertextual-rendez-vous-viewing-the-triplets-of-belleville-from-an-american-perspective/ [Accessed 8 Feb. 2019].

Illustrations:

Figure 1: Belleville Rendez-vous (2003) [Film Poster] - Sylvain Chomet: Les Armateurs, Vivi Film, Production Champion

Figure 2: Tati, J. (2019). Untitled. 

Figure 3: Debout, A. (2019). Untitled.  

Film Review: Waltz With Bashir (2009)

Figure 1 - Waltz With Bashir (2009) - Film Poster

Waltz with Bashir (2008-09) is an animated retelling of the 1982 war of Isreal and Lebanon where the main character experiences repressed memories through his guilt for the Sabra and Shatila massacres which is told using a collection of interviews with people who witnessed the events first hand with the main character, the film is told from the perspective of members of the Isreali Defense Force allowing an audience to sympathise with them, "It is open to the objection that the overdog's pain takes precedence over that of the oppressed" (Bradshaw, 2008) Bradshaw suggests that the perspective is one that instead of being incredulous towards the oppressor, it leads an audience to understand the individual opinions of members of the IDF rather than the entirety of the nation collectively. The examination of the subject is interesting because of its ability to explain the destruction of war isn't solely held by the loser. 

Figure 2 - Waltz With Bashir (2009) - Painterly Scenery

Waltz with Bashir is "Told through painterly drawings in muted tones, it is an examination of repressed memories as much as it is of the Sabra and Shatila massacre that forms the agonizing core of its plot." (Bronner, 2008), it is arguable that the film is playing with animation to glorify the idea of war, a technique Folman uses to create an appeal to the film, and also to shield us from the brutality of graphic live action footage. The film works with the idea of repressed memories tying into the concepts of national guilt, Ari and his memory loss are metaphorical to Isreal and its repression of the events happening around the Shatila and Sabra Massacres which are widely being forgotten, the film suggests that the nation is repressing the events of 1982 from its history and therefore its memory.

Figure 3 - Waltz With Bashir (2009) - The camera breaks

Animation creates a lense in which to stylise a narrative, environment or in this case, a difficult subject matter, Waltz with Bashir uses animation to hide the extremely graphic nature of death, during an interview with a psychologist of Folmans she describes a technique used by one of her clients about how they dealt with the war, envisaging the war through a camera lense as a coping mechanism for the emotional impact on himself, the retelling is significant because it is a metaphor for the film itself in this regard it is suggested that "The camera breaks. We awake from our dream, unprotected." (Adams, 2008) which would arguably relate to the final scenes of the film where it suddenly loses the animation and switches to live-action footage of women screaming and mourning their murdered families amongst the destruction of their homes, it would suggest that our camera has broken and we suddenly see the real trauma which war creates, it is no longer romanticised and is fed to the audience in a naked, cold and merciless reality.  

Bibliography:

Adams, B. (2008). 'Waltz with Bashir': The Fallibility Yet Persistence of Memory. [online] International Documentary Association. Available at: https://www.documentary.org/column/waltz-bashir-fallibility-yet-persistence-memory [Accessed 5 Feb. 2019].

Bradshaw, P. (2008). Film review: Waltz With Bashir. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2008/nov/21/waltz-with-bashir-folman [Accessed 5 Feb. 2019].

Bronner, E. (2008). In ‘Waltz With Bashir,’ the Israeli Director Ari Folman Goes Looking for the Soldier He Used to Be. [online] Nytimes.com. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/14/movies/14bron.html [Accessed 5 Feb. 2019].

Illustration:

Figure 1 - Waltz With Bashir (2009) [film poster] - Ari Foleman, Bridgit Folman Film Gang, Les Film D'Ici, Razor Film Produktion, GMBH

Figure 2 - Waltz With Bashir (2009) [film still] - Ari Foleman, Bridgit Folman Film Gang, Les Film D'Ici, Razor Film Produktion, GMBH

Figure 3 - Waltz With Bashir (2009) [film still] - Ari Foleman, Bridgit Folman Film Gang, Les Film D'Ici, Razor Film Produktion, GMBH

Film Reviews - Ponyo (2008)

Figure 1 - Ponyo (2008) - Poster

Ponyo is an eastern take on a western fairy tale of the little mermaid, it is arguable that everything has been pulled out and what is left is the very essence of what made the little mermaid a captivating story. "Ponyo" is a film about friendship, independence, the power of imagination" (Propes, 2008) Propes suggests that the fantastical world of Ponyo is reflective of itself in a way which lends to the environment having a personality of its own, in this sense, it is understandable that the film is about friendship and independence, considering the constant battle of Ponyo leaving the relative safety of her father and the extension of her world, the sea. Ponyo experiences a dawning of clarity, a transition from the safety of her home, to a world much larger and more challenging, but infinitely more rewarding and interesting. 

Figure 2 - Ponyo (2008) - Ponyo rides a boat

Whilst experiencing Ponyo for the first time as an individual geared towards western cinema, it came across arguably distant, after researching this it was suggested that "In the west, the animator is the actor. In the east, the animator is the director of the scene." (Wager, 2018), which is something that begins to ring true when analysing the film, a western audience is used to character-centric cinematography in live-action film and animated film, we are accustomed to understanding the thoughts and feelings every second of the character, these are guided by a single personality which lends to the idea of consistency in a character and makes them feel less disjointed from the world they inhabit. It was suggested that Eastern animation works slightly differently on the whole by passing off a scene to a single animator which means the character doesn't have the entire personality of one sole person, the risk of this is reasonable that it could create characterisation which could come across disjointed and inconsistent to a western audience such as myself. Eastern cinema focuses on the cinematography of the animation, which in Ponyo really evokes scenery and environment which provokes real emotion which is reflective of its characters.  

Figure 3 - Ponyo (2008) - Opening Cinematic Scene

It is easy to understand a defined link between the characters and their environment, emotion is carried through the characters and into the world around them, much like a rhymth instead of a conveyance of empathy through characterisation. During the scene where Ponyo is looking for Sosuke after escaping her home underwater in a fit of rebellion "She races along the surface of huge peaking waves she has summoned up by the force of her power, Ponyo is expressing not only her bliss, but also ours." (Dargis, 2009) which says a lot for this aspect of eastern cinema, Ponyo responds visually to an emotional reaction in its audience arguably creating a fun-loving and whimsical place for an audience of any type to lose itself in momentarily. 

Bibliography:

Dargis, M. (2009). ‘Ponyo,’ From Hayao Miyazaki. [online] Nytimes.com. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/14/movies/14ponyo.html [Accessed 1 Feb. 2019].

Propes, R. (2008). The Independent Critic - "Ponyo" Review. [online] Theindependentcritic.com. Available at: https://theindependentcritic.com/ponyo [Accessed 1 Feb. 2019].

Wager, C. (2018). Animation East vs West. [online] CritPoints. Available at: https://critpoints.net/2018/03/09/animation-east-vs-west/ [Accessed 31 Jan. 2019].

Illustrations:

Figure 1: Ponyo (2008) [film poster]: Hayao Miyazaki: Studio Ghibli, The Walt Disney Company 

Figure 2: Ponyo (2008) [film still]: Hayao Miyazaki: Studio Ghibli, The Walt Disney Company

Figure 3: Ponyo (2008) [film still]: Hayao Miyazaki: Studio Ghibli, The Walt Disney Company

Film Program: Mary & Max (2009)

Figure 1: Mary & Max (2009) - Film Poster 

 Mary & Max (2009) is a dramady claymation about two characters one that lives in Australia named Mary, a young, slightly overweight girl and the other in New York a middle-aged aspergic man named Max. Adam Elliot, the Director has used claymation in a stylistic fashion to make the subjects on screen more visually palatable. Mary is a small, poor and lonely child with an alcoholic mother who neglects her. Mary is bullied for having a birthmark on her forehead which is remarked as the colour of 'poo'. Max is also very lonely and struggles to make sense of social interactions in a place where social interaction happens on a daily basis, New York City. The two characters become penpals and form an emotional lifeboat with each other where their happiness in life comes from the connection to the other. 

Stylistically there is a definitive split in the two environments of Austalia and New York, Mary occupies a world of sepia tones and childlike cobbled together scenery, it reflects the characters child-likeness and innocence, Max occupies a world which is drained of all colour, it is arguable that the world is black and white because we see the world as a reflection of how Max views the world. New York in Mary and Max is a cold and empty place regardless of being populated by many characters and business. "It’s a film that both believes in the power of human connection and friendship" (Todd, 2015) Todd remarks, it is visually uncontested when we see Max receive a pom-pom from Mary, it's like a beacon telling us that we aren't simply seeing a black and white film, we are in fact seeing a black and white world, the red pom-pom is from outside this environment and is symbolic of the two characters friendship, their similarities and their differences. 

   

Figure 2: Mary & Max - Max at his TypeWriter 

Figure 3: Mary & Max (2009) - Mary on her bed

Throughout the Animation the narrator steps in constantly to provide information for the audience in a deep and salty tone which creates a more cartoonistic and lighter version of what's on screen, is it argued that "The narrative structure of the film is less satisfactory, skipping from year to year with abandon and ultimately unable to complete the emotional arc of the relationship with anything but cartoonish simplicity." (Goodridge, 2008) however the narrative is something that is complementing the emotional relationship between the two characters, which is the sweet spot of the Claymation, it would seem that "Her emotional journey culminates in a scene that is so loaded, so transfixing, so masterfully made, it is impossible to look away" (Buckmaster, 2014) I think it is plausible that an audience couldn't feel so strongly towards a climax as they do if the characters didn't have such an emotional connection which is established in the audience. 

The Childlike simplicity of the animation gives the film an easiness in watching and dealing with trepid subject matter, the characters feel connectable, and the film never treats its characters like they are difference from the audience, it does well to create a film based completely in the perspective of the characters and it makes it completely relatable.  

Bibliography:

Buckmaster, L. (2014). Mary and Max: rewatching classic Australian films. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/film/australia-culture-blog/2014/may/30/mary-and-max-rewatching-classic-australian-films [Accessed 21 Jan. 2019].

Goodridge, M. (2008). Mary And Max. [online] Screen. Available at: https://www.screendaily.com/animation/mary-and-max/4042619.article [Accessed 21 Jan. 2019].

Todd, A. (2015). Love Yourself First: Mental Illness In MARY AND MAX. [online] Birth.Movies.Death. Available at: https://birthmoviesdeath.com/2015/06/19/love-yourself-first-mental-illness-in-mary-and-max [Accessed 21 Jan. 2019].

Film Review Links for Assessment (2018)

All Film Reviews 

All film reviews following the Film Reviews Lecture Series. 


Exploitation Cinema - Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

B-Movies - When Worlds Collide (1951)

Character Opposites - Labyrinth (1986)

Three-Act Structure - Geostorm (2017)

Archetypes - Venom (2018)

The Heroes Journey - Django Unchained (2012)

The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Film Reviews: Mad Max - Fury Road (2015)

Figure 1: Mad Max - Fury Road - Film Poster

Exploitation Cinema is a category of B-Movie which focuses on a theme which runs throughout to target a specific audience. Exploitation films generally run on a Lower Budget and follow themes characteristic of B-Movie Cinema. Mad Max is the defining film series of B-Movie in the Ozploitation genre. 

Ozploitation is the exploitation of Australian film in order to appeal to a particular demographic audience. Other characteristics of the genre contain a strong trait of Anti-authoritarian subjects, anarchy reigns and there is little regard for life. Ozploitation follows the same trait of having a low budget especially in the case of Mad Max (1979), the first of the Mad Max series by George Miller and an anti-authoritarian nature, where even the main character played by Mel Gibson, admits that he feels like one of the 'crazies' and the only thing that separates him from the lunatics which he catches is a metal badge. 

Figure 2: Mad Max (1979) - Mad Max and Jim Goose Investigate

Mad Max: Fury Road is 100% an Ozploitation cinema film, it is basically Mad Max (1979) on an extended budget. The success of the series has built a franchise in this fantastical environment. The Main character played by Tom Hardy is the same character as Mel Gibson, there is an emphasis on his mental state from the outset which relates back to the previous films, and how the environment finally can impact a mind. The enemy in the first film consists of low budget leather wearing psychotic criminals who hysterically laugh at high speed riding motorbikes through the outback. In Fury Road, high budget leather wearing psychotic mutant men hysterically laughing at high speed driving rusty, ugly and brutally beautiful vehicles through the outback. The arch-enemy in Mad Max (1979) 'Toecutter' represents the exact same character traits as 'Immortan Joe' the Leader of the War Boyz (Both characters are in fact played by the same Actor Hugh Keays-Byrne)

Figure 3: Mad Max - Fury Road - Flamethrower Guitar vehicle and War Boyz Fleet

Fury Road promises the audience a non-stop car chase from start to finish, and doesn't disappoint, it exploits this theme to draw in an audience from people who enjoy car chases and non-stop adrenaline rides. Extreme violence and gore is prevalent throughout exploiting an audience from the genre of gore and violence. There is a female protagonist to bring the film more in line with a modern social outlook whilst playing on an already strong stereotype of helpless females needing to be saved. The Final theme is of Australia, using the environment of the Australian Outback as the set for an epic duel of metal and death. 
  
Illustrations:

Figure 1: Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) [Film Poster] - Georgie Miller: Warner Bros. Pictures, Roadshow Pictures.

Figure 2: Mad Max (1979) [Film Still] - George Miller: Kennedy Miller Productions, Crossroads.

Figure 3: Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) [Film Still] - Georgie Miller: Warner Bros. Pictures, Roadshow Pictures.

Film Reviews: Three-Act Structure - Non-Linear Film Scripting

The film is shot in a way which responds to the emotional strength of Grayson's personal guilt for causing the death of his Wife and Daughter rather than chronologically to the occurrence of critical events in time. 

Above is a full list of the events which would be considered scenes in the film, they can be matched up with the Three-act structure denoting numbered ticks to see how they would be placed into the Non-Linear film. 

The two Three Act Structure diagrams in the embedded document denote a Linear Structure then a non-linear structure. 

Film Review: B-Movies - When Worlds Collide (1951)

Figure 1 - When Worlds Collide (1951) - Movie Poster

When Worlds Collide is a B-Movie category film produced in 1951 by Rudolph Mate. It is a story about the anticipation of the destruction of the earth and a desperate struggle to prepare for lift-off and colonization of another planet much like a space-age version of Noah's ark, instead of a great flood coming it is a planet hurtling across the solar system.     

The film makes use of small areas in which to hold large scenes, the film only has one large environment which consists of when the first planet rushes past earth causing huge amounts of destruction to the apparatus and rocket, I-beams, scaffolding, fires and vehicles all occupy the scene as well as a large number of extras. The film is heavy on scenes containing dialog, this helps the narrative greatly and from a budget point of view it's cheaper to do because there isn't a need to incur costs in special effects or props other than that of the set.

The film uses miniatures for fantastical set designs like when New York floods and to show the construction of the interplanetary rocket, this helps to keep costs low because it's cheaper to build the environment on a tabletop with a backdrop instead of going to an actual location with real sized props. When Worlds Collide does well to keep some of its budgets down by investing in the use of stock footage, the film used shots from the Vatican during a period of time when crowds were gathered, it used footage from New York Time square and stills from the Brooklyn Bridge, these are only some of the examples.

Figure 2 - When Worlds Collide (1951) - Miniature Set

Although the film is categorized as a B-Movie it has a lot of redeeming qualities firstly 1) the narrative is simple to grasp and goes through the motions of a three-act structure like other disaster movies meaning it conforms well to other films in its genre. 2) The scripting is good and the audience can completely suspend their disbelief even for a modern audience the dialog has become timeless, suspense and tension work well to balance the characters. 3) Sydney Stanton the Capitalist Billionaire money pot works well to provide a sinister character to balance David Randall who embodies the selfless essence of the American peoples' hero. 4) Although Miniatures were used to create large scenes they have been done well, whereas scenes where more time is spent on them by the characters requires more investment, shots have been set up carefully to economize on what it requires to be a prop and what can simply be a matte painting. 5) The quality of acting was high, there weren't any moments when watching the actors act made them feel out of place in the film. All of the cast looked very much like they were all meant to be in the film as their characters. 

Figure 3 - When Worlds Collide (1951) - Film Still

Illustrations:

Figure 1: When Worlds Collide (1951) [Movie poster] - Rudolph Mate: Paramount Pictures 

Figure 2: When Worlds Collide (1951) [Movie Set] - Rudolph Mate: Paramount Pictures

Figure 3: When Worlds Collide (1951) [Film Still] - Rudolph Mate: Paramount Pictures

        

Film Review: Labyrinth (1986) - Character Opposites

Labyrinth is a heroes journey style of film where the hero undergoes an adventure and comes out the other end as the master of their world and transcending characteristically also. Sarah played by Jennifer Connelly is the main character for the film and it is her who must undergo the journey. The Goblin King played by David Bowie is her nemesis, it is important to know how characters reflect each other in film, this can be put into relative categories.

Firstly their physical worlds, Sarah occupies a space in a small American town, she lives in her fathers' house with her father and stepmother who has recently had a baby. The Goblin King occupies an illusory world of a castle surrounded by a fantastical labyrinth. these are opposites because one is utterly mundane and the other is utterly whimsical, one is small, one is huge. The town will always remain the small rural town whereas the labyrinth is forever changing in state.

the Characters often have opposing personal views on the world also, Sarah is under the opinion that she is bored with her small town and feels trapped, she is frustrated that she can't seem to escape this mundane world which is blatantly obvious in the opening scene. The goblin King holds the opposite opinion even if it is not specifically mentioned, it is implied, his opinion of the world is that he has ultimate power and control over his world, the ability to shape it in whatever his whim fancies, he has the ability to move freely with the state of the labyrinth, in essence, it is an extension of himself.

Sarah inherits the world of the labyrinth when questing to save her brother from the Goblin Kings spell, her exterior personality is brave but internally she is scared of the unknown, it is like traversing the mind of The Goblin King and she knows it is his to change at will.

Sarahs' character wants adventure away from her boring world space, freedom from her demanding baby stepbrother and her bossy stepmother and excitement other than mundane daily life. The Goblin King wants power, which is exhibited over the labyrinth and through the ability to manipulate Sarah, and inevitably to play games as a form of amusement.

Wants differ from actual needs however, Sarah needs to have a sense of courage to advance in her quest, she needs friendship to stop feeling lonely, and she needs self-worth in order to give her purpose in life. The Goblin King needs power ultimately, this is saught in the form of manipulating and harassing Sarah throughout her quest.

Sarah exhibits a particular persona, which is what we see as an exterior character, it is often that there is an internal persona which balances the character, proving there is generally an opposite within the same character. Sarah appears externally as uncaring, harsh and hot-tempered, we find out through dialogue and acting that the implied persona internally is insecurity, loneliness, sadness and a longing for her fathers love and inclusion. Sarah has flaws which give rise to conflict and tension in the audience, her flaws create metaphorical obstacles which the character must overcome to succeed, Sarah has the flaw of being completely hot-tempered, this is something which she spends the entire rest of the film trying to correct this is known as a major flaw due to its severity of detriment to the character and how much danger it put her in as a consequence. The Goblin King has what is known as a fatal flaw, this is a flaw which ultimately is the entire downfall of the character. This is exhibited as the incessant need to be the trickster, to make bets and do deals, its all a huge game, this means he practically allows Sarah to go unheeded through the Labyrinth instead of simply smiting her and being done with it.

Through the journey Sarah traverses her inner feelings create conflict leading to external change, her character arc goes from beginning the film as Angry and lonely > ending the film joyous and surrounded by friends. There is a major change in Sarah in an early scene, it is the moment her major flaw happens when she says the correct incantation and her brother is taken by the Goblin King, moments later a huge realisation of truth occurs in the character and she wants to undo the wrong instantly, she begins the scene angry and reckless, when the scene is finished she has transcended to regretful and guilty.

The two characters reflect each other almost completely oppositely, is it a constant battle of good and evil, it is important to remember that ultimately the difference between a maze and a labyrinth is that a maze is designed in a way of which there are multiple incorrect paths in order to halt progress, a labyrinth is actually a single path designed to completely disorientate but ultimately they will reach the end if they just keep going, a lesson in perciverance which is a theme through the film and the overriding quality which brings about the success of Sarah.