Film Influences

Planning - Filmic Influences:


The Seventh Seal:





There are several reasons as to why we have chosen Ingmar Bergman’s ‘The Seventh Seal,’ as one of our influences for our short film.

The first, and probably the most obvious and blatant, is that ‘The Seventh Seal’ features one of the most famous images in cinema history, that of Death, played by Benget Ekerot, appearing suddenly on a beach in the opening scene, armed with a scythe, ready to take Antonious Block, played by Max Von Sydow, away into death. Given the nature of our film (i.e., dealing wholly with the theme and nature of death, and using lots of death imagery), it felt appropriate to sit ‘The Seventh Seal,’ as an influence because A) it is, as we have said, one of the most famous examples/depictions of Death in film, and B) because there are themes within ‘The Seventh Seal,’ which are clearly echoed within our film (i.e., that of Death coming to take an person unexpectedly, etc, etc), and so it felt fitting to use this film as an influence.

The second is the heightened use of ambient and natural sounds. In our film, we are planning to present all aspects of the ‘world,’ within our film, in particular the sounds and scenery, in such a way that it proves to be very disarming and disorientating towards the viewer. We feel that ‘The Seventh Seal,’ is a perfect springboard in order to allow us an insight into how to do this effectively.
The third and final reason is the use of Gunner Fischer’s black and white cinematography. Since it is arguable that the use of black and white cinematography within ‘The Seventh Seal,’ was used by Bergman in order to act as a metaphor for death itself and the bleak situations the characters find themselves in, we feel that it would be a worthwhile consideration to shoot our film in black and white, as this would be, like ‘The Seventh Seal,’ the perfect way to get our point across.

The Godfather:



There are several reasons as to why we have chosen Francis Ford Coppola's 'The Godfather' as one of our influences for our short film.
The first is Coppola’s heightened use of sound. In the earlier part of the scene, before Don Corleone is shot, there is the very loud and distracting use of a trumpet. It may be implied that this trumpet sound, whilst maybe just being there in order to add an extra layer of “street realism,” to the piece, and to be very much in keeping with the time and place in which it was set (i.e., 1940s Italian America, etc), it may also have been used to add emphasis to or foreshadow a particular event (i.e., Don Corleone’s shooting).
The second is the way in which Don Corleone’s murder has been staged/framed. Coppola makes heavy use of medium close ups of both the Don and his assassins in order to possibly add emphasis, drama and tension to what is going to happen/is happening, and trying to draw the audience closer to the action. The use of the medium close up of the weapons may be to, again, emphasise danger, and that this man is going to be killed. Also, the guns possibly connote phallic imagery, which may add to the feeling that this killing is very much to do with honour and respect, themes which are stereotypically linked to the male psyche. Finally, the use of a single, unbroken take of the Don as he slips from the car in agony is not only effective in hammering home the point that this man is close to death, but is also (as was the case with ‘The Seventh Seal,’) one of the most famous and iconic moments in film history, and this again gives us a springboard for our own ideas and the desire to, with our film, create images which are just as visually powerful as the ones we have sited.
The third and final reason is Coppola’s use of costume. For instance, the Don is presented as wearing a long, brown coat and a pinched Fedora hat. This is effective as this is indicative of who this character is (i.e., that he is a smart, sophisticated man with a wonderful dress sense). Also, not only is this choice of dress indicative of the sort of character we are watching, but it is also indicative of the period in which the film is set (i.e., late ‘40s, etc). This helps to create a sense of realism and verisimilitude and has given us ideas in to how we can dress our characters in our film to create the same type of feeling.


American Psycho:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXlkq9vHuAE

NOTES: Bateman's interior monologue, the use of music, fitting with the motifs of the film and the character's construction.

Taxi Driver:



Again, the music is very brooding, the scene itself is very internalized, giving us the events going on in New York from his point of view. What he talks about fits in with what we see on screen. His interior monologue is very judgemental of the society which is being portrayed. We are using this because it is, again, a classic example of proper use of interior monologue which we wish to integrate into our film. There are constant use of extreme close ups in addition to slow motion shots, which helps to further internalize the events seen on screen, and to imply that we are seeing a biased, twisted view of society. Also wished to use slow motion in our film which again is seen in this extract.

Peep Show:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOe5n8M0ldw

NOTES: Very realistic, full of versimilitude. Also, comedic in style, which is expressed through in interior monologue. Also, again, what is heard in the monologue complements what is seen on screen.

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre:



We have also selected Tobe Hooper's 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre,' as an influence in our film because of the way in which Hooper chose to introduce the killer, Leatherface, and the way in which he kills his victim, is almost identical to our film. To explain - we want our film to end very much with a "surprise," that the audience never sees coming (i.e., the young boy being killed by being hit with the hammer). Since a possible way of presenting this can be through a point of view shot, and since the way in which the shot in 'Texas Chainsaw' is presented is very similar to a p.o.v. shot, it felt appropriate to site this as an influence. Also, the overall atmosphere of the piece, and the way in way Hooper gauges tension (such as the animal noises, the constant cutting back and forth between Kirk and the empty, ominious doorway [which is, arguably, similar to our film, metaphorical of death and a transition into the unknown]) is undoubtly a major influence on us, and that is why we have selected 'Texas Chainsaw' as one of our influences for our film.