Cloverfield (2008) Case Study

One of the trailers we watched was the Horror film, Cloverfield (2008).

Although this film isn't of the social realism genre we are studying we felt that some of the things they used in their trailer really worked well. The Mise-en-scene used in the first part of the trailer really drew the audience in and made it feel as if we were part of the party going on. 

The first scene was also shot on a handheld camera which  gave us as the audience the impression that it was just a normal party that a friend was filming on his hand-held camcorder. 

The trailer also contained quite sharp cuts towards the end which began to create some tension. this really worked because the audience didn't expect the trailer to suddenly become action and hyper-real. Whereas social realism films tend to rely more on non-diegetic sounds and music to create tension. For example, by inputting a simple fast paced instrumental whilst editing can create an obvious effect, whether that be, tension, excitement or fear that was non-existent without the soundtrack. 

One example of this comes from Kidulthood 5.56-6.24.

Another example of this from Kidulthood comes at 8.47-10.45
The use of two different soundtracks in this scene creates two different feelings for the audience, the first one creates suspense and the second soundtrack with speech creates more of an exciting affect for the audience as its fast paced and the character on the scene is on the move.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxtXbH-7v0k

They also used low lighting, this foreshadowed what was going to happen later on in the trailer. As later in the trailer it becomes more hyper-real by using CGI and special effects. Which is in complete contrast to the English Social Realism genre who because of their low production values, rely on natural lighting and normally just use what they have to create an effect. This is an example of the difference between the Hollywood industry and the British film industry, and how budgets divide them. An example of this would come from  the two films I have been comparing. The budgets speak for themselves in terms of the amount they had to work with and really anchors the difference between both Hollywood & British Film and also the Horror and Social Realism genre.

Cloverfield - $25,000,000
Kidulthood - £600,000

The trailer also used live sounds to create the party scene which made the scene more realistic; with very little use of sound effects in this scene. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=&safe=activeIqQzvfn_s30

Trainspotting (1996) Case Study

Trainspotting 1996 – Danny Boyle

The 1996 film ‘Trainspotting’ was distributed by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment as well as Miramax Films. Trainspotting was given an 18 certificate by the BBFC whereas the trailer was awarded a 15 due to the limited violence and other ’18 related themes’ that could be seen.

Film Specifics
The Cast – Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Johnny Lee Miller, Kevin Mckidd, Robert Carlyle, Kelly Macdonald
Budget – £1,550,000

Box Office – $72,000,000

Filming Locations – Although the film was set in Edinburgh, most of the filming was done in Glasgow and some ending scenes shot in London.

As a group we have decided to focus on ‘Trainspotting’ as one of our case studies as it reflects a different depiction of the social realist genre, however still manages to share the similar conventions of a social realist film.

Target Audience
The budget of $1,550,000 was one of the first features I noticed when analysing this case study. Although $1,550,000 is typically regarded as a lot of money, in terms of film production, the budget is very limiting. This is usually a common theme between UK Social Realist films as they are less likely to receive as much funding in comparison to a more commercial successful genre such as action because Social Realist films are targeted to niche audiences of a C2, D and E socio-economic bracket despite their increasing popularity.

Narrative Another feature that particularly stood out to me was the narrative. Trainspotting focuses on the protagonist ‘Renton’, who is greatly involved in the Edinburgh drug scene. His aim however is to clean up and get out despite facing distraction from drugs and friends. Cleverly this was not completed illustrated through the trailer which is common among teaser trailers as the aim is to entice the audience into watching the film. Although not all Social Realist films focus on drugs, Trainspotting shares the similar intention of a character in distress on dissatisfied with their current position is society, and trying to do better for themselves and/or those around them. This is also supports the idea of an escapist theme which we have associated with a film of the social realism genre.

Success
Trainspotting did really well in terms of critical success. After screening in Cannes as well as global cinema distributions the film ended up being the highest grossing film in Britain in 1996 and the fourth highest grossing film in British History at the time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9ZNKGrpnKM&safe=active

Camera Shots and Angles

 This image has been taken from a scene in Trainspotting. This can be described as an establishing shot which is common among all film genres but is usually significant to revealing the emotions of the characters involved as well as exposing the environment in which the characters tend to want to escape to or from.

The use of a close up shot is effective within a social realism film, especially at the beginning as it allows the audience to decipher the personalities of the characters presented within the film. The opinions of the characters tend to change as the movie proceeds but the initial connection between audience and characters within the film is necessary for the audience to fully connect with the film and therefore emote with characters.

 

Completed by Abena Amoako