A review of the film There Will Be Blood - Christopher Williams 7.9/10

Usually when writing a review about a film I prefer to look up some online criticism and read the wikipedia article as they both tend to offer some enlightenment to aspects of the film I may miss but as I wished to review this film straight after watching it (the credits are still rolling) I thought it best to make this as soon after as possible.

EXTRA LISTENING

Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo's weekly film reviews on BBC Radio 5, click here to check it out.

CAMERA TERMS (covered 25/09/13)

CAMERA SHOTS

EXTREME LONG SHOT

•Also known as “establishing shot”

•Usually an exterior to establish a time and location

•Can’t see/feel for the characters

•Set the scene

LONG SHOT

•See the characters from head to toe

•The relationship between the character and the environment

MEDIUM SHOT

•Also known as a “mid-shot”

•Usually for dialogue scenes

•Allows you to see facial expressions

•Wants to focus more on the person than the setting

OVER THE SHOULDER SHOT

•Similar to mid-shot

•Expresses the relationship between the two characters

•Focusses on one person whilst showing interactions

POINT OF VIEW SHOT

•Feel what the character is feeling

•In this example: interrogated, slightly uncomfortable

CLOSE UP

•Includes the characters head or head and shoulders

•Emphasises emotions

•OR emphasises an object of importance 

EXTREME CLOSE UP

•Intense, unfamiliar view point

•Magnifies beyond what the human eye would see

•Dramatic and tense

CAMERA ANGLES

BIRDS' EYE VIEW

•Overhead -> show the setting

•Shot is God-like as it is watching over and doesn’t feel part of the scene

HIGH ANGLE

•Smaller and insignificant

•vulnerable

EYE LEVEL

•Empathise with the character

•Friendly angle

•Not dramatic

LOW ANGLE

•Makes the subject seem powerful

•Makes the audience feel small

CAMERA MOVEMENTS

PAN

•movement scans a scene horizontally

TILT

•Scans a scene vertically

TRACKING

•Moves backwards and forwards

•Can draw you into the action

•Crabshot- sideways tracking (keeping track of the action)

HANDHELD

•Juttery movements

•Chaotic atmosphere

•Show the fast paced action

New Beginnings

Welcome to the WCGS Film Society! We have yet to have a session, but we've begun preparations for the coming weeks and hope to have fun, watch some films and get stuff done. Cracking.

James