Collateral (2004)

Collateral is a movie about an LA Cab Driver named Max who seems dedicated and efficient in his line of work which he convinces himself is only temporary as he aspired to one day own his own limousine service. One night Max picks up a man who at first seems to just be another business man on his way somewhere but he makes a deal with Max to pay him more if he sticks with him, dropping him off at various different locations to which Max reluctantly agrees. At there first stop a body lands on the taxi Max is driving and he soon comes to realise that the man he is travelling with is a killer and his plan is to kill several people at each stop he makes that night.

Within one of the scenes, at what I believe is their second stop for  the night, Max is left tied to the steering wheel of the car whilst Vincent is dealing with what he came their to do. Max sees the opportunity for escape and the importance of this scene is that we are hoping for Max to escape. At the beginning in the scene where we met Max along with Annie Farrell and we created a relationship with Max, seeing him as a hardworking, innocent and kind man. So the audience is at suspense because they are hoping that Max can escape this situation he has found himself in. But we lose hope in this escape when we see the shot from inside of the car, where a man pulls a gun to Max's head. We then get a collection of close ups of Max to the man whom is threatening him so we are able to see the recoil of Max at the threat of being shot. We also understand that Vincents suitcase is of some importance to Vincent, as a hitman he would keep hold of things that would presumably be confidential, so when we see the close of the suitcase and witness the man take it from the car we realise now that something bad is going to happen to these men, as we know that Vincent is dangerous.

In the above scene Max is pulled over by the police whilst he has a body in the trunk of his car. This entire scene is incredibly tense. The police become more insistent and suspicious throughout the scene and almost come close to discovering the body and this creates the tension, we don't know whether or not the police will see the body and if they do what will then happen. The light coming from the torches that we see upon Max's face resembles an interrogation, as though he were a suspect for a crime and was being questioned within a police station, making it all the more tense because it's as though Max is being accused for the murder, so we believe if they discover the body it is Max who will be blamed. There's a moment of silence when one of the policemen ask Max about the blood upon his windshield, within this silence we are unaware if Max will tell the truth or what excuse he will make. 

Vincent threatens to murder the two policemen if they persist with Max opening the boot of the car to which we then see Max panicking in close ups of his face we see his worry and concern, he can see what is going to happen and this also makes the audience worry for him. They step out of the vehicle and we see Vincent holding the gun, we realise and accept now that Vincent will kill these two men but this is interrupted as both the men get a call to leave, which brings relief to the audience. We sympathized with these two policemen, innocent men who were almost killed.

Past Student Thrillers Analysis

The Catalyst

The Catalyst appears to be the opening of a thriller rather than a trailer as the editing isn't paced as fast as it would be if it were a trailer and the entire story is not packed within the few minutes that we watch. The credit to those who play part in creating the opening to the film are placed within the film so as not to disrupt our viewing so we can focus upon whats happening in the film. This piece of film very obviously has an opportunity for something further to happen next and is obviously only the opening.

Cinematography is well used and the correct camera angles and movements are used on shots, for example when we witness the close up when he is breaking into the house, this is so we can see he is breaking in. We get a clever point of view shot when he is looking through the gun we see it as though we would be looking through the viewer on the gun at then men and we also get the sound of the shot fire and then we fade away from the gun viewing so we are able to see the consequences of what has just happened. There is a character whom tries to run from the hit man, a chase scene is part of the typical thriller genre. We also get the scene in the car where the hit man strangles the other man but it is shot so we don't always see the man being strangled but we also see the hit man strangling him so we think that he continues to strangle him, when of course he doesn't. The use if the child whom is frightened is useful as a child signifies innocence which is not what we have witnessed so far but the child is spared not killed. The non-diegetic music used throughout matches the feeling of vengeance and the music used at the end gives a religious overtone to what has happened.

Transitions

Transitions are used to create a movement from one shot to another. Often transitions can also be used to show a change in time and scene or a flashback. There are various different types of transition that can be used to various different types of effects. 

Straight Cuts
Straight cuts are short, abrupt and basic. One shot simply just ends and the other shot is on screen with no use of effects. They do not interrupt what is happening and straight cuts are the most commonly used to show transitions between scenes. 

Fade

Fades are a useful transition between shots as they can portray different effects between two shots. Fades are often used at the beginning or end of films to show the beginning or end of what is happening, to end or begin a scene smoothly. Fades to Black or from Black can portray an eye opening so they can be used to reveal certain events, as we would when we see them. Fades can also represent death, fades to black or white are often associated with death or walking towards the light. Fades to white can also signify a flashback.

Dissolve

Dissolves are much like fades but rather than fading into a solid colour, one shot will fade into another. If you pause a dissolve half way you should be able to see both shots fading intoeachother.  Dissolves can be used to show a relation between two shots or an object within that shot. 

Wipe

A wipe is when one shot pushes another off of the screen. Most wipes go from left to right to show a forward movement in time as we read from left to right. It can also be used in the opposite effect, the wipe can transition from right to left to signify going back in time. Wipes are also significantly good in showing a change in location. 

No Country For Old Men (2007)

No Country For Old Men is a film based in Texas where a man named Llewelyn Moss discovers the remains of a bunch of drug dealers who in an exchange of two million dollars end up killing eachother after the exchange goes wrong. Rather than aware the authorities, Llewelyn Moss takes the money for himself. This is then the reason why a psychopath named Anton Chigurh is sent to find Llwelyn Moss, to claim the money he took. Anton follows Llwelyn and threatens thewellbeing of Llewelyns wife, Mrs Moss. Llewelyn arranges to meet his wife to give her the money to travel outside of the country so as to make her safe. But the next time she sees her husband he is dead. 

The opening to the trailer of the film begins slowly, introducing the antagonist and making us aware of some of the things that will occur within the film. Shots and edits get faster when the action begins (from the car explosion) to match what is happening and so we can cram in enough action into the trailer for the audience to know that this film is going to be full of action, murder and excitement. The trailer includes enough from the film for us to be aware that the film is based around the antagonist, a large sum of money and the antagonists search for this amount of money and will include many people getting hurt or killed along the way. We're made very aware that the antagonist of the film, played by Javier Bardem, is dangerous and becomes very intimidating. We're also made aware of the protagonist with the large sum of money and it makes us want to know what will happen, whether he is killed in the end or if he escapes.

The opening scene is just made up of long shots, of few edits, of the scenery of Texas. These shots are simple and as we listen to the narrator talk as we watch the shots we wont be distracted by what is happening within the scenes as they are just made of scenery and will not distract us from listening to the narrator as he tells us his story. This also introduces us to Ed Tom Bell, the sheriff, and what he's witnessed and seen as the Sheriff which then leads into the introduction of Anton Chigurh when he talks about a past criminal he'd dealt with who had no passion in his crime, which gives us the idea as to what Anton Chigurh is like as we see him being arrested, we question his crime. As the car drives off into the distance we know that Anton Chigurh is going to play a part in this film. It's important that we have seen Anton Chigurh so early on in the film, so they can build up the fact he is a psychopathic criminal from the beginning. Most films do not introduce the antagonist until later on and focus firstly on the protagonist but this way the audience will be more so intimidated by the presence of Anton Chigurh. The setting is isolated and abandoned, nobody is around apart from Anton and the man whom arrests him. We know from the narrative that Anton is going to be dangerous, so the fact Anton is arrested where nobody else is around we worry that something bad will happen to the man whom arrested him. The antagonist we see wearing dark clothing which is what we usually associate with those who play the antagonist in films. 

Anton Chigurh

Anton Chigurh is a hitman who seeks to kill Llewelyn Moss throughout the film. 
His costume is pretty basic and dark. Dark clothing is usually worn by hit men as it is a colour that does not stand out and it's simplicity will not draw attention to him. Also it is hard to see those who wear dark clothing within darkness so he is able to use that to his advantage to being hidden and unseen. Black is also often worn by antagonists as dark represents who is supposedly the "bad guy" within films. Anton also speaks little throughout the entire film, probably to show how little emotion he has for what he does, he doesn't speak to apologize or taunt his victims as he gains satisfaction from killing not from taunts, which just makes him all the more threatening. The most we see Anton talk is when he makes the man decide his fate by getting him to make a bet on which side of the coin it will land on, which creates tension and makes him seem even more so intimidating. His main weapon is simple and quick and isn't recognized as a gun or as a weapon, it doesn't usually take him more than one shot to have killed a person so he as a hitman makes sure his kills are quick and efficient by using this weapon. 

Source Code (2011)

Source Code is a film about a man named Colter Stevens who was a Helicopter pilot in the US Army who awakes on a train, his only last memory being of him working in Afghanistan. He discovers he has taken the identity of another man and within the next 8 minutes the plane explodes. He awakes again from the explosion to find himself in a small room and speaks to a woman by the name of Goodwin. Colter Stevens is told he is to repeatedly relive those 8 minutes upon a train which exploded earlier that day to discover the whereabouts of the bomb and who planted it. But Colter Stevens is determined to find out whats happened to him.

The trailer takes various different scenes from the film to show us the basic story line to the film and does this using fast editing so all of it is crammed in. At first the shots are fast to be in parallel with the action and to build up to the explanation as to what is happening. We get the basic jist of what the film is about but not enough to tell us everything so we are enticed to go see it.

The film begins upon the train and we are as clueless as the main character is as to what is happening, we have yet to given any information about whats happening and why this man appears to be somebody he doesn't believe himself to be. The editing and shots are long at first to match the feeling of disorientation and trying to become aware of whats happening and become shorter to portray the characters panic as he cannot figure out what has happened to him.
The audience watches the film as though they are Captain Colter Stevens, observing what is happening around him and focusing and unfocusing out of certain things. There are also several points in which there are close ups on his face so we can see his confusion. The change between close ups of Colter Stevens face to witnessing whats happening on the train gives the impression we are seeing everything from his eyes.

Continuity Editing

Continuity Editing is when one scene will follow on to another in order and as it would be expected to be set out. The definition of continuity is consistence, so the narrative follows a structure and scenes will flow into each other.

Shot/Reverse Shot
A Shot/Reverse shot is usually used in narrative parts of the films between people whom are talking.  It is used so we can see the alternate characters talking to one another. So we will film a shot of someone talking and then it will cut and the person responding will be filmed. These shots are not necessarily filmed in the correct order and in most cases, one persons side of the conversation is filmed first and the next persons side of the conversation is then filmed and it is cut and edited together.

180 degree rule

An angle between two shots should not exceed 180 degrees. When filming, in order to maintain seeing the scene and people within the scene we imagine a line and an 180 degree angle we can film within in order to avoid confusion or to disorientate the audience as the scene has suddenly switched sides. Also when filming moving objects, if we disobey the 180 degree rule then the object may be filmed moving in one direction but by going over the 180 degree barrier it will seem to the audience as though the objects direction in which they are moving has changed. 

Eyeline Match

An Eyeline Match is when we film a cut between a couple of shots, one in which someone appears to be looking towards an object or person and we would then film what it is they were looking at so the audience can then associate that it is then that object or person that the subject was looking towards.

Match On Action
A Match On Action shot is made of two shots, the second shot carrying on the action of what the person had begun in the first shot. So there will be a shot of someone going through a door and from the other side and the next shot will be on the other side of the door and be of them passing through the door. Match On Action can be shown in the video below.

Graphic Match

A Graphic match is a dissolve from one shot into another and there will be some sort of similar shape or composition that will link the two shots. For example:   

                                         

The clip above is taken from War Of The Worlds (2005) and shows the use of a Graphic Match when the red planet dissolves into a red traffic light signal making a transfer from the setting of space to that of Earth.