Evaluative anlysis

Evaluative Analysis 

 Jack Talbot

My production is the short film The Game – a film that establishes and develops a character. The Game explores the thought process of a gambler, who finds himself in high stakes poker game which then leads to an intense game of Russian roulette. Whilst making The Game, my intentions were to make the audience empathise with the narrator, and to show them how judgement takes place in the mind. I was inspired by films such as The Deerhunter, Locked Stocked and two smoking barrels and Rounders.

In preparation for this task I watched: La Jetee by Marker, The Gunslinger by Kissack, Curfew by Christensen, Wasp by Arnold, and High Maintenance by Van.

In terms of the story, I chose to have an almost circular narrative. This choice was influenced by Chris Marker’s La Jettee, where the events that take place at the start of the film take place at the end. Although The Game doesn’t involve time travel, flash backs or alternate realities, it does start with the same shots as it ends with, to create a story that explains itself. I took the narrative technique from La Jetee because I liked the idea of seeing the ending twice, it highlights the importance of  the events that took place, which is an attempt to make the viewer question why the events were shown.

I also took the method of narration from La Jetee and applied them to The Game. The idea of having a narrator who didn’t break the forth wall, simply just explaining what was happening, was appealing to me as it was basic yet very effective. I decided to use Marker’s method descriptive fundamental narration because it had a stylish way of portraying the story through a simple layer of exposition that tells the audience everything they need to hear to complement everything they are seeing.

Furthermore, Kissack’s The Gunslinger gave me the idea for the presentation of the narration in The Game. In the gunslinger, the narrator commentates on what’s actually happening in the film world. This clever use of narration allowed for comedic exchanges between the characters and the narrator, yet at the same time, help describe what’s happening on screen. This narrative technique of explaining what’s happening is present in The Game, however there is no exchange between the narrating voice and the characters, and more descriptions of characters and how they compose themselves. I liked the fourth wall breaking in The Gunslinger, but I didn’t want to have too much of it in The Game, so I decided to have one shot where the narrator looks directly into the camera and smiles, to mimic the same narrator-audience relationship from The Gunslinger.

In addition, I took the narrative cues from The Gunslinger and applied it in The Game. Throughout The Gunslinger, the narrator uses foreshadowing to progress the story. This method can be seen in The Game when the narrator is explaining how there are only two players left at the table, and questions what will happen next. This narrative prompting allows the audience to infer what will happen next, which prompts the story which helps the viewer to stay engaged.

Curfew by Christensen helped give me ideas for some of the cinematography in my production. This film about a man on the brink of suicide who makes an unlikely child minder has a variety of cinematic techniques which helped influence The Game. Around 12 minutes 55 seconds into the film, we are given a tracking shot which initially focuses on the man, but as the shot goes in, the man moves out of the frame, changing the depth of field, making the camera focus on the child and her mother. This technique is used in The Game, when a player places chips into the pot. Initially, the camera focuses on the player, but as the chips come closer, they become focused on. This cinematic technique is useful as it helps indicate a shift of importance of characters and sometimes objects.

Curfew also influenced me in terms of mise en scene. Around 4 minutes 10 seconds into the film we are given a mid-shot of the man and the girl at a table, sat at opposite ends. I took this positioning of characters and prop placement and applied it to The Game because it helped display how different the characters were. The idea of having characters that are different having to sit at opposite ends of the table and face one another is perfect for a Russian roulette type situation.

Wasp by Arnold helped influence the angle and perspective of some of the shots I used in The Game. At around 15 minutes 37 seconds, we are given a low angle shot from the point of view of one of the children looking up at her mother. I took this method and used it in The Game, when there is a low angle shot of ‘The Quiet one’. Shots like this indicate power, control and dominance, so I thought it would be a good opportunity to use it when ‘The Quiet one’ takes control of the situation and suggests they stop playing poker and start playing Russian roulette.

In addition, I was inspired to use a point of view shot in my production after seeing another one in Arnold’s Wasp. At around 23 minutes 17 seconds, we are given a point of view shot from the point of view of one of the children in the car looking out onto some people on the street. I used this technique when filming The Game, when ‘The Quiet one’ deals the cards, there is a point of view shot from the point of view of the narrator, from his position on the table. At this level we see cards sliding across the table, just as they would appear to in a real life dealing of cards in a poker game. Point of View shots are useful in creating a greater sense of verisimilitude, putting the audience in the shoes of the character, helping the audience become more immersed in the film experience.

The short film High Maintenance by Van helped inspire some of the shots I incorporated in my production, The Game. A lot of the shots towards the beginning of the film are close ups of the faces of The Woman’s face and the Man’s face. I used a series of close up shots for introducing the individual players and throughout the poker game and Russian roulette game, as I needed to present their emotions, traits and characteristics.

High Maintenance showcases a variety of interesting shots, one of which would be the over the shoulder shot. At around 24 seconds, we are given an over the shoulder shot from over the android man’s shoulder. I took this shot and modified it slightly in The Game. This shot can be seen in The Game, when the camera drifts from over the narrator’s shoulder, to then give a mid-shot of him. Over the shoulder shots are effective in creating a sense of inclusion in the film, it creates  a sense of close proximity to the events taking place within the film itself.