Se7en

Se7en was made in 1995. It is an American Thriller. A lot of David Fincher's films are related to serial killers. David Fincher has been very successful and released the film Alien 3 in 1992 which then grew into what we now know it is Aliens vs Predator.
The opening credits are quite disturbing with the things that the character does. For example, he is shown cutting off his finger print. Already this shows that he has done something and he doesn't want to get caught for doing it. At the start it opens up with a sort of old fashioned timer that is going tick tock. This make the scene feel very eary for the audience and it makes them want to watch on. There is not a certain soundtrack for the credits but there are lots of uncomfortable sound effects. This makes it hard for the audience to relax due to the suspense of the sound effects as they grow throughout the scene. These sound effects match the images that are on display as they are also mysterious and disturbing. The camera angle never shows the identity (the face) of the character so he remains unknown. This helps create suspense in the film as the audience will have to wait to find out who this mysterious character actually is.
The credits end with a high tense sound which then transitions into a long shot of the city where this film is set. It then has diegetic sound of police sirens in the city so that this creates an atmosphere.
The two protagonists are detectives, Detective Mills and  Detective Somerset. Both of these characters have completely the opposite personalities. Detective Mills is a hothead and is a character that is not respected. He always wants to fix everything. Detective Somerset is a nearly retired detective that only has 7 days left on the job hence why the title of the film is Se7en. He loves his job and throughout the film you get to know the real Somerset and not the Detective Somerset. This is shown when he goes to dinner with Detective Mills and his wife.

Preliminary task evaluation

1.What is the 180-degree rule? A match on action? And eye line match? And a shot-reverse-shot?

The 180-degree rule is a rule that should be followed in all aspects of film making. It is a very important rule. It is the idea that you can only film on one side and not the other so none of the props and characters look like they have changed position. 

A match on action shot where one bit of the scene is split into two different shots to show it from a different angle. An example of a match on action shot is someone going to pick up there phone in one shot and then changing to a different shot when he has got his hand on it. 

An eye line match it where the eyes have to be level in the shot. For example if there is two people talking to each other in a scene, it has to look like they are looking into each others eyes. 

A shot-reverse-shot is where one character is shown to be looking at another character and the other character is looking back who only has the back of their head shown usually. helps create tension and an element of suspense.

2.Describe how you incorporated (the shots above) into your final film?

We used the 180-degree rule throughout the whole film as we filmed it all on one side. We used the match on action shot when the phone was exchanged from one character to the other character. The first shot is a two shot and then changes to a low angle shot when the phone is being passed over. We used the eye line match and a shot-reverse-shot in the same scene when the two characters are speaking to each other. This was good because it showed the focus on the characters face after being told what to do.

3.How did the film making process go, in terms of filming shots from the storyboard and filming around college?

The film making process went well because we had planned using a storyboard beforehand so we all had a clear idea of the storyline and what our roles in the film were. For example we planned a close up shot of one of the characters opening the locker whilst the camera was in it so this helped boost the intensity of the scene. However, whilst we were filming around the college we though of new ideas which helped improve our film so some of the shots were not presented on the storyboard. The area we used in the college was suitable for the film and allowed the filming to be done at a higher quality. 

4.What did you learn about video editing on Adobe Premiere?

I learned how to edit clips and put them together into an actual film. This included adding in transitions and music. The music and sound affects we added in were suitable to the film and it helped create suspense. We also learned how to add titles to the end of the film so we could have credits to shows who had which roles. We learned how to put the whole film together in one piece.

David Lynch - Blue velvet

In the opening scene of blue velvet it shows the happy, suburban America in around the time of the 1960s.  At the start of the scene there is a white fence with red roses and a blue sky, which is the typical red, blue and white American flag.  The roses shown in this shot could represent love, which could represent what could happen later on in the film.  However it could also represent loss of love as it is a mysterious scene and doesn’t give away much for what could happen next.  The yellow lilies represent death which could also link to what happens later on the film. The lilies contradict the scene as everyone seems happy and the jolly music shows the positive atmosphere.

Everyone seems happy which shows this is a safe place and everyone is friendly which shows the ideal, peaceful America at this time. This is used to hide the other side of America as this is the typical stereotype of what America was like. Other sides of America are not portrayed as they don’t want America to be viewed like that. This is because there was lots of gang crime at this time. Even when the fire engine passes the house the firemen wave at people and he has his dog on there with him, which shows there is never any danger and there is no rush to get around. However the scene does show it patrolling around so it therefore forebodes that there is danger around. The fire engine is also shown driving past the house which shows that it might be needed later on in the film to help. It is an old fashioned fire engine, which give the audience a feel for what time period this is set in.
It then shows a normal male who seems like he is a late adult doing the gardening peacefully and nicely. However he gets the hose pipe tangled in the bush and the atmosphere seems to change. This is because as soon as this happens the happy music seems to get quieter and the tone of music seems to change.
When the camera goes through the house it shows a gun on the TV which could show what might happen later on in the film as the music seems to stop for a second when it shows the gun.
When the camera goes back out of the house it focuses on the hose to make it seem like that is going to cause danger for the man but it becomes irrelevant it shows the man fall to the floor instead. The director keeps it mysterious as to what happened to him so it makes the audience want to watch on to see what happened. After he has fell, the dog jumps on him and starts drinking the water aggressively in slow motion which could also link to the fact that they don’t have to keep an eye on their dogs as they know nothing will happen to them. As it focuses on the dog it could also show the lack of importance the man has in the film.
After the man has fallen the camera starts to go through the grass and then tense music starts to play but before you get to the end, the scene ends so it puts the audience at ease to carry on watching it.