Walk The Line

(James Mangold, 2005)

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The establishing shot is from a Californian prison watch tower, (later determined to be Folsom) set in 1968. In the foreground, crows pick at scraps. The pace then quickly changes and follows the beat of the music as it rapidly passes by the bars of the cells, as feet rush in the same direction. Hands clap and feet stomp in time to the beat, creating a heartbeat-like frenzy of sound and movement.

Memphis, Tennesse, 1955. The Rock & Roll recording studio that emotes the complete opposite of a Rock & Roll atmosphere; boring and dull. Off-white walls, white blinds and grey furnishings. The three performers each dressed in black suits with their brown instruments. Contrasting hugely to this is the later scene, set in Texas, 1955. The music tour emotes colour and noise, liveliness and free-spirit. Cash's band now each donning white suits and slick dark hair. The diner is typically fifties Americana, with wood panelled walls and units painted opel green. The surfaces are polished and bright white, contrasting with the brown wooden wall shelves. The walls are embellished with a variety of mismatched picture frames and the curtains are typically red and white checked, hung above and below the windows. The table tops match the polished white surface of the counter, at which June Carter (Reese Witherspoon) sits in her very feminine, red and white flower dress, dark hair and cherry red lips.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show

(Richard O'Brien, 1975)
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RHPS started life in the Royal Court Theatre, in 1973, as a “fifties U.S. Cinematic experience”, where the cast of the theatrical performance would act as ushers and interact with the audience. The film was not initially a hit, in fact, it achieved it's cult status via VHS home invasion. It is largely a tribute to early sci-fi and hammer horror B-movies and is very much a British art college film, playing on shock value. In this sense, it aimed to be “everything your parents hate”, very alternative and underground, breaking convention. By the time of it's cinema release, fans of the stage show felt it was dated. In the eighties it was revived as a stage show in the US before the idea was sold back to the UK, where it had originated. Following this it has since become an industry in it's own right as well as something of a modern classic. The film was made in the UK and feels very British, I think.

The film offers a gritty realism in a pantomime sort of way, with levels of design never seen before. Set within a Berkshire country house (with a very “crystal maze” looking dome roof!), the interior varies from gothic to futuristic. The Lab set is sanitized, white-tiled and shiny with red embellishments. I really like the theatre space, with striped red deck chair audience seating, red and gold rope dividers and the classic red velvet curtains; it's very British and nostalgic/ classic amid such an odd array of things going on within the film.

Sweet Charity

(Bob Fosse, 1969)
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Directed and choreographed by Bob Fosse, every movement within the film has a certain fluidity to it; a sexual and syncopated feel that hadn't really been seen before. The film itself, revolving round Charity, a dancer at a strip club, is an example of Fosse tackling a seedy/ gritty subject, via movement and theatricality. Within the strip club, the décor is tacky and feels very uncomfortable, with cheap gold embellishments adorning the space. During “Hey Big Spender” the women roll their shoulders and hips in a way that suggests sexuality, but at the same time feels quite sanitized. The women stand in a line, all fixed against a horizontal bar in various poses. Some lean against it, whilst others drape legs or arms across it, much like puppets I think. The women's movements are superimposed upon each other The transitions between scenes feel very dated, done via grainy still frames.

In a stark contrast to the aforementioned strip joint, there is The Pompeii Club, filled with tall, statuesque, model men and women. Figures are silhouetted in black amongst a set of columns, candles and marble floors. The scene screams sixties class, in that massively desirable but overtly pretentious kind of way. A cheetah sits in a cage and moving pictures are projected onto the walls. The only colour really present is the selection of feather wigs that the female dancers wear. Everyone otherwise wears black; black sequins, black feathers, white silk gloves and diamonds. The dancers perform three acts; The Aloof, The Heavyweight and The Big Finish, all the while surrounded by an elegant audience of people not watching, but instead contributing to the atmosphere by just being sexy, mysterious and statuesque themselves. Each dance is, of course, accompanied by the obligatory “sixties head-bobbing” movement. During the three acts, the mood is changed by the colour of the main wall behind the stage area. Blue during The Aloof, red during The Heavyweight and amber during The Big Finish.

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari

(Robert Weine, 1920)

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Following the strange tale of a somnambulist who performs at fairs and around whom a strange series of murders occur. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari is a landscape of expressionism, complete with wonky and jagged sets, presented in a very theatrical way. The set for the fair, for example, could easily be a physical theatre stage, complete with it's own painted frame (like curtains) and it's canvas backgrounds.

The buildings in the foreground, as well as in the canvas background, appear very abstract, similarly in a way that much of the furniture featured in the film is highly impractical and stylised.

For the actual representation of murder, in true horror style, we see the actual act unfold as an exaggerated and stretched shadow against a wall. The film is widely considered to be one of the greatest silent-horrors ever made and the twist ending is said to be the first of it's kind. It's evident nowadays that director, Tim Burton, has likely taken heavy influence from Weine (though he denies knowing of the films existence until recent years!).

Zero de Conduite

(Jean Vigo, 1933)

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This title, that was banned in the UK until the 1970's, follows the lives of pupils at an all boys school who see their place of education as a dull, prison-like place. In this strict and regimented environment, the boys find several ways of rebelling against the school, along with the encouragement of new teacher, Huguet.

From the outset we witness the boys as rebellious, smoking cigars in the non-smoking carriage of the train in between showing each other their pranks and jokes. The dormitory of the school is a long, sterile room, resembling that of a hospital ward, with one curtain-enclosed area, in which a teacher sleeps. The narrow room is lined on each side, with a row of metal beds. In another classic act of rebellion, we witness the boys collected together, smoking in the toilets.

The teacher, Huguet, displays a similar view to the regimented environment and so acts, on numerous occasions, in a less than exemplary way. He steals possessions from the children whilst they are at break and then conducts his lessons through a visual chaos, in which the boys are scattered around the classroom. Some boys at desks, others on the desks, and others on shelves! The teacher is powerless amongst these boys, who display behaviour similar to that of wild animals. He also tries to outdo the boys' attempts at impressing each other by performing a handstand in the classroom, only with the use of clever filming, it appears he is stood on one hand, whilst using the other to draw! In another performance of editing “trickery”, one boy shows another a trick in which a ball disappears from his hand.

In a visual comparison to their lives at school, the kids home lives are dull and the impression is created that they'd rather be causing chaos, as they spend their time plotting revenge against the school's principal.

As well as this film being an obvious example of rebellion against a wider culture, an idea that was not to be be promoted at it's time of release (considering that this was the year the Nazis came to power), it also features the issue of homosexuality, by featuring an over-friendly relationship between two boys, one who appears to be very feminine, as he is favoured by another teacher who strokes the boys hair and tends to treat him very much like a girl. Again, homosexuality was outlawed in the UK until 1967, so this film succeeded in causing wide offence!

In a timeless scene, in which Vigo really plays with imagery, slow motion is used more effectively, I think, than almost any other film to date. We see a boy back-flip onto a chair, amongst the rest of the boys gathering in the dormitory, proceeding ahead like soldiers to war. Slow motion intensifies the determined efforts of these boys, about to fight their “dictators”, as they walk into a headwind of pillow feathers, holding their hand-made weapons proud. The scene is quasi-religious too, as the crowd carries a boy above their heads, on a chair. Also, they tie their sleeping teacher to his bed, displaying him upright, in a position that resembles Christ on the cross.

In the final scene, and in the boys' final push for freedom, they manage to escape by bunny hopping across the roof tops of Paris, only after causing more chaos and embarrassment to those trying to conduct order. Huguet, predictably the whole time, laughing along with the boys' antics! At no point in this film do you have any doubt that the audience are meant to be on any side but the boys', it suggests no respect towards order and heavy ruling, whilst remaining whimsical in a time when the world was still dealing with the effects of the 1931 depression.

Big Fish

(Tim Burton, 2003)

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The story of Edward Bloom, now an eccentric old man whose, once amazing, stories of his exaggerated life now become the source of unrest between him and his son, who has outgrown the fantasies and longs to know the plain truths. The film is constantly back and forth between “today” and Edward's exaggerated past.

A typically Tim Burton scene is the scene in which young Edward Bloom takes the old, haunted road out of town. As you would expect, the trees tower over the dark, damp path, casting dark, crooked shadows across the dirt track. The screen is engulfed by winding, intertwined branches of deep browns and thick cobwebs. At the end of the track lies the town of Spectre, a town so perfect that “no one ever leaves”.

Spectre is like a suburb within the American south, wooden houses of pale grey, with their wooden porches. The road is a perfect green carpet of grass, inviting and fresh; so green in fact that it's almost overpowering. It is perfectly linear and the town's white church lies right at the end of the grass road, perfectly centred.

In the evening, Spectre appears equally inviting and visually warm. With warm white fairy lights draped between buildings, creating a blanket of lights above the dancing town's people. All the women dancing in long flowing cream and pastel dresses, all with equally flowing long hair. The ribbons in their hair providing the perfect finish to these “perfect” people in this perfect town. The whole town is so intense that it's almost scary, the spinning camera shot during the dancing sequence only seems to heighten the madness.

When Edward returns to Spectre, as an older man, the magic seems to have faded and the place has decayed. The whole town is dull and shut down. The wood, dull and decaying and the houses completely overtaken by weeds and ivy. Jenny's house particularly, lies at the end of the town, slanted and wonky, (very Tim Burton) the house completely claimed by vines.

Gimme Shelter

(Maysles Bros, 1970)
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A supposedly “cinema verite” account of The Rolling Stones' 1969 performace at the free Altamont concert, this rockumentary documents an event, widely acknowledged in the music world as “The end of the 60's”.

The feature-length documentary starts with The Stones being introduced as “the greatest rock and roll band in the world” and in the lead up to the Altamont concert footage, this is what we're influenced to believe. Jagger shown, almost as a god, provocatively parading himself in front of the thousands of screaming fans, amongst which the camera is often placed. With lots of low shots from the crowd, showing Jagger towering over us, most importantly at this point- in total control of the crowd, something that later he certainly doesn't have.

The film, released in 1970, a year after the events at Altamont, is shown being played to the band, as if they are watching with us and trying to recount the events. We see them react to things that they have already experienced first hand, but their presence guides us through the film, manipulating us to kind of feel on their side, as opposed to the Hell's Angels, who were hired as security for the event and seemingly sparked most of the trouble there.

In my favourite scene, we are shown a heavily edited performance of “Love in vain”, in which Jagger is shown superimposed upon himself several times. The use of slow motion highlights his complete and utter power as the ultimate rock icon of the time. There are lots of indulgent shots of Jagger dancing and performing, throughout which the crowd remain totally transfixed.

The sequence is completely red too, a colour that emotes a lot of different possible meanings; those of lust, danger and even the devil. Appropriately too, during performances of “Sympathy for the devil”, Jagger throws red confetti. Ironically later at the concert, it is during this song that he makes an appeal to the crowd to behave and sit down, going completely against the attitudes and behaviour that the song is promoting.

The phrase “cinema verite”, literally translated means cinema truth. During the entirity of this film, we are manipulated into believing this perfect dramatic narrative so that, like a work of fiction, the tension builds bit by bit and then explodes into an exciting and dramatic finish. While the events that we see on screen did happen, the order in which they appear is altered for dramatic build-up.

The only cinema truth in this film, as far as I'm aware, is the scene in which the band and there entourage are draped around a room listening to the playback of “wild horses”. A moment in this sequence that, to me, screams true rockstar quality, is the shot of Keith Richard's worn snake skin boot tapping along to the music. There's something about that moment that I just love.

The Assassination of Jesse James (By the coward Robert Ford)
(Andrew Dominik, 2007)

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The assassination of Jesse James is the story of Robert Ford, a 19 year old who idolises Jesse, but who later is branded a coward for killing one of America's most loved criminals. Set in 1881, the film is a recount of the last few months of James' life and the events that followed his death.

The story is told by a narrator whose voice is always accompanied by childlike, soothing and almost haunting music- like that found in a musical jewellery box. The film is often in slow motion as the narrator speaks. He talks of Jesse like a legend, and his image appears on screen amongst a haze of blurred edges, like some sort of mythological being, tinges of red and blue surrounding the image like a 3D filter creating a very surreal and detached effect.

The colours of the opening scene are very washed out, lots of white, pale brown and grey; the long grass a dry, muted gold. The first scene creates a sense of mystery around Jesse James, the tall, linear, dry white trees surrounding The James Gang, towering above them like columns of withered marble. The key word for the majority of scenes that follow seems to be the word dry. Everything drained of water, colour and health, maybe reflecting The James Gang as a whole- tired and dry, many members now dead or too old to partake in any more criminal activity.

The scene continues at night time, showing the robbers waiting in the trees aside the railway line, waiting for the train to reach their previously set block. The screen is pitch black until we see the train approaching, the lights flooding the trees with bright white light, revealing their pale dryness once again. The shadows from these dry columns cast over the masked horrors, silently waiting in the trees. Their makeshift masks of cloth and sack, equally as dry-looking as their setting.

Once on the train, the setting is very different. Inside the mail carriage the lighting is very dark, lots of polished dark wood surfaces and panels. The main colour appears to be brown- the dark wood and the lighter brown for the package wrapping paper. The James Gang appear very out of place here, their somewhat tatty, itchy-looking clothes, much less at home on this train than amongst the dry trees. The layout of the train is very narrow and linear. Each carriage very long and thin. The mail carriage particularly linear, with it's wooden panels, windows and bars/railings. Following this scene, there is a substantial shift in tone and colour. The heavy rain, bringing with it, tones of midnight blue, deep purples and black.

The difference between Jesse James and Robert Ford is considerable. The way each man composes themselves is difference enough; James composed and still, quiet but still an overwhelming presence. And Ford, awkward and fidgety in disbelief of being so close to his childhood hero. Ford also still so young, rocks contently in his chair, grinning.

Throughout the film there are several shots of long, dry grass. Lot's of browns and muted yellows amongst a lot of framing within the camera frame, (shots filmed through frames, e.g. Windows, door frames, bars, etc.)

In a later scene, filmed in the house of Ed Miller, (one of the James gang), the mise-en-scene is very cluttered and run down, a house that has been left to gradually decay. The curtains merely rags of cloth, damaged furnishings scattered amongst the ruins of this broken home- as broken as Miller who knows his fate as Jesse appears at his home. “Insomnia stained his eye sockets like soot”- an accurate observation of the house as well as the man who exists in it. The scene is very washed out, pale and pasty. The home is very tired and again dry, sunlight beams through the one small window, casting light onto the dust that blankets the room. The scenery surrounding the house is equally run down, the dry grass overgrown, the wooden panels deteriorating, the fence broken and in a state of decay. The sky, an overcast sheet of grey, over the once white, wooden house that now sits quietly dying, paint peeling from it's tired panels. I like the whole decaying effect, I think there's a real beauty in the natural wear and tear of life.