SHORT AND TWEET

This is my entry for the Short and Tweet competition and is based on the news story about Jenny Jones winning bronze in the Winter Olympics:

Flying through the air, adrenalin pumping, wind roaring in my ears, falling to the ground. Landed - came 3rd! Bronze medal!

SOUND IN 'SERENITY'

The music in Serenity is used to create effects, for example when the rebels are getting ready to go to the raid on the factory. There is percussion music, including drums for instance. This makes the music simple but intense, with a strong beat that creates tension and gives the scene a feeling of importance. The music also builds in pace and tempo, which has the effect of creating suspense, a typical convention in the Action and Adventure genre. The music also heightens the intensity and makes the scene feel like it's getting to a climax, again showing suspense and tension. As well as this, the music can create an anti-climax, where the music swells to a climax, but then nothing happens in the narrative. Then, suddenly, if the music stops, this creates the effect of something very big and possibly dangerous which is about to happen. Therefore, music can create effects when it is playing and when it stops abruptly.

Another example of sound in Serenity is the sound of weaponry. For instance, the sound of the shotguns being loaded. It is a heavy, clanking, metallic sound, which immediately sounds intimidating and threatening. This creates the effect on the viewer of knowing that these men are very willing and able to use these weapons. It makes them seem dangerous, and makes it sound as if there will be a fight scene later on, which helps build tension. The sounds of the machine guns being fired later on also creates effects but different ones to the loading of the guns. The sound is very authentic, making the scene feel real and therefore involving the viewer in the world the characters are in. The sound of the weapons also adds to the spectacle of the fight scenes and conflict between the heroes and villains (more key codes and conventions associated with the Action and Adventure genre).

NB: I'm sorry if any of the descriptions are slightly inaccurate; I couldn't find the scene online so I did it from memory of what we watched in class

STAR WARS ANALYSIS

In what two ways are the narrative (characters and events) typical of the AA genre?

Firstly the events fit the typical AA genre because there is speed and motion. There is a pod race, and the vehicles are moving very fast throughout the race track, as well as a final high speed chase at the end creating speed. The track is a spectacular setting – magnificent and huge chasms. The pods do tight turns when going round corners and at one point even turns dramatically through 90 degrees to fit through a gap in the rock, showing motion and lots of extreme movements and manoeuvres throughout the race. The pods are open top, which creates speed again, and so does the fact that the canyon walls seem to be going past very fast and close by, involving you in the action and creating a lot of speed. The fights between the pods also creates motion, speed and suspense, because they are moving so fast while battling and you can see parts falling off the pods, so the suspense comes from not knowing which pod will break first. When Skywalker’s engine fails this again creates suspense and speed because you don’t know if he will fall or his pod will break, and he has to free fall at one point, illustrating speed again. The rocky, unpredictable terrain shows speed and motion also because the pods have to keep swerving to go through crevices and over rocks. The danger, speed, motion and suspense created by what happens in the race make it typical of the AA genre.

Skywalker is a heroic protagonist because he is represented as fighting ‘evil’, or the other opponents in the race. He is also shown as courageous because he is very young but competing against much older, more experienced racers. The pods seem very complicated to operate, with many controls, especially for a child, but Skywalker is not perturbed by this, doing whatever he can to win and working out how to manipulate the controls. This shows a high level of skill, as a stereotypical hero would have. He is a typical hero because he is very determined as he doesn’t give up when faced with a challenge like his pod engine failing. Skywalker is brave because he is represented as someone who doesn’t give up when he encounters a problem and will do whatever it takes to win the race. This is particularly impressive given his young age and inexperience. As well as this, he ends up winning the race, triumphing over ‘evil’ as is typical of the AA genre.

 

 

2 example of camera work

One example of camera work is the point of view shots you get from Skywalker’s pod, enabling you to be involved in the action. You see what he is seeing – the rocks closely surrounding him on all sides, and the twisting and turning of the track. The camera work is handheld so you feel the sense of panic and disorientation. You can experience what Skywalker is feeling, being in an out of control machine, seeing all the complicated controls and having no idea what to do. This type of shot makes you feel more empathy with Skywalker, but it also immerses you in the typical feeling of action and adventure films – the high speed chases, the jeopardy and suspense of whether he will crash, and the terrifying swooping motion of the pods as they speed around the track.

Another example is the high angle (birds-eye-view) shot of the pods moving round the track very fast. This illustrates how fast the pods are moving and means you can see the rocky, high chasms that the racers have to overcome and steer through. You see the twisting, dangerous track in more detail, and seeing the spectacular setting adds to the feeling of a typical action and adventure film. You can also see how the pods chase each other, when they are closing in and starting to catch each other up, which creates tension as you don’t know who will overtake who. This shot allows you to get an overview of the race while still adding to the suspense of seeing what is happening.

 

Mise-en-scene

Mise-en-scene is used to create many effects in this extract so I will focus on two particular ones. Firstly, the setting: the arid desert landscape with the huge rocky chasms that make up the race track. This creates a sense of peril and jeopardy – the race track looks authentic and creates to a sense of real danger in the race. The narrow crevices the pods have to go through and the height of the chasms adds to the feeling of danger and suspense – if the pods crash the results could be deadly. This suspense is typical of an AA film.

The strange, alien-like creatures create the effect of being in another world. There are creatures, for example the commentators, with two heads. The aliens look strange, often ugly and very unusual, even being different shapes and colours to humans (e.g. yellow or purple or green). For example, Anakin’s opponent in the race, who has a strange, evil, lizard like face with big, goggle-y eyes and robotic arms. He looks scary and evil, which contrasts with Anakin, who looks innocent and young. They are so unlike any creature we recognise that they immediately take us to another world, another place. They also look quite realistic, which makes it seem more authentic/believable. The creatures can also create the effect of good vs. evil because often the uglier, scarier looking creatures are the stereotypical ‘baddies’ (such as the one Skywalker raced against) and the less scary, friendly looking ones are the ‘goodies’. Therefore, the creatures can be used to create the effect of being in another world and to create the effect of typically AA ‘good vs. evil’.

 

How does the extract use sound to create effects?

The sound of the Pods at the start of the race is used to create effects because it makes the race sound fast-paced and exciting. They make a screeching, whining sound as they zoom along, very loudly, with noticeable difference in pitch as they come close by (there is an increase in volume) and then away again (when there is a decrease in volume). The effect of this increase and decrease in volume makes the scene realistic and involves the viewer in the action, making them feel as if they are there and enhancing the intensity. The engines make the kind of noises that Formula 1 race cars make, for example, and naturally people associate this with something moving quickly so you can tell the Pods are moving at a very fast pace. The sound of the engines is also juxtaposed with the sounds of brakes screeching, the effect of which again increases intensity and makes the scene more authentic.

The sound of the crowd cheering creates the effect of increasing the volume and the intensity. It also involves the audience in the race because the cheers of the crowds makes the viewer side with Anakin.

 

*increase in volume

*the effect of this is to enhance intensity

*alternated with

*…the effect of this

*juxtaposition

 

 

 

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