Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid Review

George Roy Hill's Western Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) tells the story of robbers, Butch Cassidy (Paul Newman) and his partner the Sundance Kid (Robert Redford). After a train robbery goes wrong, the two are on the run from the law and decide to leave the midwest and go to Bolivia in order to continue their criminal careers. Their companion Etta Place (Katherine Ross) joins them on their journey to South America and helps them become some of the most infamous robbers of their time.

One of the most striking cinematic aspects is the film's mise en scene. Ranging from creative lighting, to diverse set designs, to extravagant costumes, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid gives its viewers numerous magnificent shots to admire. Some cinematic analysis also reveals that these aspects serve special purposes in the film.

Like in many other films, the lighting in

Hill's classic movie was artistically manipulated to evoke certain emotions in the audience. One of the scenes where this is most easily noticed is when Etta Place is introduced for the first time. Here, Sundance Kid breaks into her house and startles her as she comes in. At this point in the film, the viewers have no knowledge of Etta and Sundance's relationship and the lighting plays a large role in making the audience think that Etta is in trouble. For example, the dark room establishes a fearful mood. This is the same technique that is used in numerous horror films to provoke anxiety. Lighting is also used to cleverly light half of Sundance's face. Like in Night of the Hunter, this tells the audience that the character has both a light and a dark side. As you can see, the filmmakers used these two techniques to evoke an unnecessary concern for Etta's fate.

Other parts of the mise en scene that stick out in this film are the set design and costumes. For an American Western, these are some of the most important aspects of the mise en scene. The film's protagonists are seen in various settings including bars, the desert, a brothel, and the mountains wearing outfits that correspond to the setting. Landscape shots, like the one to the left, are vital to Western films, as Richard Barsam and Dave Monohan's Looking at Movies explains; "Because setting is of such primary importance, Westerns are dominated by daylight exterior shots and scenes" (104). The costumes are also very

specific to the genre. Ross' character, for example, is seen throughout the film in elaborate dresses of the time. These costumes (long dresses, cowboy hats, etc) are signature items that are very specific to the genre. As you can see, set designs and costumes work hand in hand to make Westerns its own unique genre.

Overall, there are several aspects of the mise en scene that can be examined in Butch Cassidy and the Dance Kid. The lighting was purposefully manipulated to provoke certain emotions in the audience. Also, the shots of the landscape and particular costumes helps to define this film as a classic Western.

----------Citations----------

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Dir. George R. Hill. Perf. Paul Newman, Robert Redford. Twentieth Century-Fox Films, 1969. DVD.

Barsam, Richard Meran., and Dave Monahan. Looking at Movies; An Introduction to Film. New York: W. W. Norton &, 2013. Print.

Night of the Hunter. Dir. Charles Laughton. Prod. Paul Gregory. By James Agee. Perf. Robert Mitchum, Shelly Winters, Lillian Gish, James Gleason, Evelyn Varden, and Peter Graves. United Artists, 1995. DVD.

Juno Review

Jason Reitman's movie Juno (2007), tells the story of female protagonist Juno (Ellen Page), as she deals with her unplanned pregnancy at the age of 16. The film follows the young girl from the discovery of her pregnancy to the child's birth -- depicting the numerous challenges of teenage pregnancies along the way. 

Diablo Cody

One of the things that make this film so popular is the way it was written. Although it may not be apparent at first, Diablo Cody's script includes numerous aspects of Joseph Campbell's monomyth. For example, the first stage -- call to action -- is established within the first few minutes of the film when our protagonist receives her third positive pregnancy test that day. At this point, the "unknown" is must enter is being pregnant. Later, Juno crosses the first threshold by deciding to keep the baby instead of having an abortion. Similar Neo selecting the red pill instead of the blue, this is the decision that drives the rest of the story. In the end of the film, she goes through the master of two worlds stage when she delivers the baby. At this point she has overcome the challenges of her pregnancy, and in the process has improved her relationship with her friends and family. As you can see, the monomyth theory is not exclusively applicable to epic journeys or action-packed thrillers; even simple and realistic stories can use this structure. 

First shot of the film

Another interesting aspect of Reitman's film is the use of nondiegetic elements (things that can be see and/or heard, but do not exist in the world of the film). Throughout the movie, the filmmakers used a series of these elements to lend information to the viewers, and amplify certain emotions. Such elements appear in the first shot of the film. We see Juno standing in front of a house at dusk, when the word "Autumn" is generated in the top right corner of the shot. Although these first few seconds of the film raise many questions, the animation provides some information about the story's setting.  This trend continues throughout the movie as time goes on in the film's world. With these visual words superimposed on the shot, the audience gets a sense of how much time has elapsed in the story and how far along Juno is in her pregnancy. 

Another important nondiegetic element in this film is the music. Many scenes include songs that are not simulated by the film's world, yet play an influential role in the audiences understanding of the movie. For example, during Juno's delivery scene, the song "Anyone Else But You", by The Moldy Peaches, is edited over the sounds of the hospital room. Although this could be considered a stressful scene due to the pain and risks associated with childbirth, the song's happy melody calms the audience and reassures viewers that everything will be alright. 

Overall, there is much more to this film than an interesting plot and funny dialogues. The structure of Juno's story can be studied through the view of the Hero's Journey, much like many other great stories. Also the use of nondiegetic elements play a subtle, yet important role in telling the story and helping to express emotions to the viewers. 

--------------------Citations--------------------

Juno. Dir. Jason Reitman. Prod. Lianne Halfon, John Malkovich, Russell Smith and Mason Novick. By Diablo Cody. Pref. Ellen Page and Micheal Cera. Fox Searchlight Pictures, 2007.

Barsam, Richard Meran., and Dave Monahan. Looking at Movies; An Introduction to Film. New York: W. W. Norton &, 2013. Print.

Erlewine, Stephen T. "AllMusic." AllMusic. N.p.,18 Jan. 2008. Web. 8 Feb. 2014.

The Matrix. Prod. Andy Wachowski and Larry Wachowski. Dir. Andy Wachowski and Larry Wachowski. By Andy Wachowski and Larry Wachowski. Perf. Keannu Reaves. Fox Studios,   1999. DVD.

Newman, Nick. "'Juno' Oscar Winner Diablo Cody Making Directional Debut With 'Lamb of God'" The Film Stage Juno Oscar Winner Diablo Cody Making Directional Debut With Lamb of God Comments. The Film Stage, 29 June 2011. Web. 13 Feb. 2014.

"What Irene Did." Weblog post. http://www.wordpress.com/. Word Press, 23 Sept. 2013. Web. 13 Feb. 2014. 

The Matrix Review

The Wachowski Brothers' film The Matrix (1999), follows the story of Thomas Anderson (Keannu Reeves), a computer programmer who learns that the world he lives in isn't as it appears. After being contacted by Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) Anderson learns that his reality is simply a computer program, called the Matrix, designed by machines to keep humans dormant while they harvest energy from the bodies. Anderson (or Neo as he is called in the real world) is then set loose from the Matrix and leads a rebellion to free the human race and expose them to the truth.     

This analysis will cover some of the cinematic techniques used in the “Follow the White Rabbit” scene of the film, which can be viewed above.

The transition used to enter this scene subconsciously tells the audience that this is a completely different setting than the pervious one. We begin by seeing a computer search and Anderson asleep in front of the desktop. The shot dollies in on our protagonist’s head to give us a closer image of his face. During this, the song “Dissolved Girl” by Massive Attack is playing; perhaps an illusion to the previous scene where Trinity vanishes just before getting hit by the bus. Then, there is an overhead shot looking downwards. This serves several purposes. First, it gives the audience some special awareness of the area. The desk is cluttered and messy, suggesting that he does not care to clean and likely lives alone. This shot also shows how somber the room is; as the only light source is from the monitor.

Next is a shot of the computer screen with Anderson’s sleeping body in front of it.  The square monitor is perfectly centered in the shot, bringing the audiences’ attention to what is being displayed. As Anderson sits up, he takes off his headphones and the song fades away, quickly being replaced by a long high-pitched note. This seems to tell us that there has been a shift in the characters emotions, which is confirmed by the confused look on Anderson’s face.

We then jump forward to Anderson’s interaction with Troy and his friends. This conversation is full of hints about what is to come in the rest of the film (see section below for a breakdown of the conversation).  At first, the door is only slightly opened and we see Troy from Anderson’s point of view. This may have been done to give the viewers a sense that the group on the other side of the door are not trustworthy. After the short conversation, Anderson notices the tattoo on the shoulder of the woman. Here several cinematic techniques are used. The first is an unnatural sound that plays right when Neo sees the rabbit. To me this was used to signify importance and a shift in the character’s train of thought, similar to the way it was used when the first message appeared on the computer. Another technique that was used is a close-up shot. This draws the audience’s eye to the tattoo, and without any further explanations, we understand Anderson’s change of opinion for going out with the gang.

Foreshadowing in the conversation:

-Troy call him his "savior", there are many illusions to Neo being "the one" that will save the human race.

-"I get caught with this... you don't exist", the reality they are currently live in does not exist.
-"You ever have that dream where you're not sure if you're awake or still dreaming", the Matrix is like a dream state.

-"It's the only way to fly", at the end of the film Neo flies away from the phone booth.

-"Sounds to me like you might need to unplug", later in the film Neo is literally unplugged from the Matrix.

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CITATIONS:

The Matrix. Prod. Andy Wachowski and Larry Wachowski. Dir. Andy Wachowski and Larry Wachowski. By Andy Wachowski and Larry Wachowski. Perf. Keannu Reaves. Fox Studios,   1999. DVD.

Barsam, Richard Meran., and Dave Monahan. Looking at Movies: An Introduction to Film. New York: W. W. Norton &, 2013. Print.

TheMatrixFan314. "The Matrix White Rabbit Scene HD." YouTube. YouTube, 05 May 2012. Web. 20 Jan. 2014.