Film Criticism and Its Aspects Research Paper

Exclusively available on IvyPanda Available only on IvyPanda

In studying the theory of literary criticism, we find that there are primarily three considerations for literary criticism: the author’s life, the author’s environment, and the text. While the text is the most important, it is often modified by the other two considerations. In criticism of the film, the text is almost the only consideration. That is, we use only the contents for analysis. This is partly due to the immense complexity of the medium: cinematography, musical score, sound quality, the performance quality of both the music and the acting, script elements, dialogue, and narrative.

We will write a custom essay on your topic a custom Research Paper on Film Criticism and Its Aspects
808 writers online

In addition to these main categories, numerous sub-categories are mentioned whenever notable. Good film criticism requires viewing the film several times to pay close attention to all of the various elements which make up the film. During the initial viewing, a good critic will merely experience the film and then view it again as many times as necessary to discover the elements which created that experience. In the end, it becomes an analysis of all the elements of the film which contribute to the initial experience of the film which matters.

Braudy and Cohn ask (2004), “Is the filmed world realistic or artificial? Is film a language? Is its world best expressed in silence? in sound? through stories that may be derived from other arts? through stories that can be told only on film?”

This is just the tip of this iceberg. The many elements which make up a film all influence the experience, and so we analyze the experience and then identify which of the dozens of contributing elements had the greatest influence on that experience. In addition to criticizing the film based on these criteria, many critics include such things as the film’s aim and how well it is achieved, or its place in filmic history.

Analyzing the experience is not difficult, but it needs to be as complete as possible to give a solid basis for identifying the contributing elements. It is not enough to say one enjoyed the experience. The experience itself must be described in great detail and reasons must be given for each reaction. As each reaction is described, the source of the stimulus must be identified and analyzed for the exact property of the source which caused the reaction.

For example, if the analyst says they were involved with the protagonist and identified with him or her, the elements which caused and maintained this involvement should be noted. Was it the script, the acting, the story, or some other element that made this connection? Examples should be given of key times when a connection was made. Then that element that was identified should be carefully analyzed for the various contributing elements. It can be done by simply identifying the key points in the film where the reaction was noticed, then describing that section of the film very carefully and identifying exactly what was happening.

For example: In Jaws(1975), the range of emotional reactions included all the various emotions that a human can feel. At one point in the very beginning of the film, the emotional reaction was so strong that it could not be dissected. It worked almost as well as if the author had simply sent someone to slap each audience member in the face. A simple, but powerful, catalyst brought instant reaction. When the girl was in the water and the music became ominous we felt tension.

1 hour!
The minimum time our certified writers need to deliver a 100% original paper

The actress managed to get so much emotion into so few words, that we instantly began feeling her terror and imagining her pain. It was very dark, and we really could not see much, which heightened the tension. Because we knew the film was about a “man-eating” shark, we did not need any other clues to know that this shark was attacking her. The audience also identified with her boyfriend who was completely helpless in this situation. The instant realization of what was happening to the girl and how the boy was feeling set the mood for the entire movie.

The combinations of the music and the limited vision of the dark film, which showed only a bare silhouette of the girl’s torso and a hint of the shark’s dorsal fin, and the acting communicated in the voices using very few words hid enough to raise the tension and communicated enough to allow the audience to instantly realize what was happening. By keeping this scene short and simple, the audience’s reaction was quick and strong. The reaction became complete when we were shown the single arm of the girl which was found.

To make a full analysis of this small section of the film, the analyst would detail the camera angles and frames, light factors, script, tone of voice, spacing of words and length of silences, musical cues and the instruments used, other sounds (lapping water) and action. The original shooting script would contain a bare description of what the audience would see, and this can be compared to the actual section of the film to see how it was accomplished.

For every major element which affected the audience experience of a film, a detailed analysis should be done. Because of this, a complete film analysis could, conceivably, cover many more pages than the original script. This is why the film stands up to criticism after criticism for even years because the experience of the film is different for every member of the audience, but the elements which cause this experience are always the same.

When analyzing any film, the critic is analyzing much more than the film itself. It is necessary to analyze the target audience, the author’s demonstrated understanding of that audience, the director’s understanding of the craft, the skill of the actors and all the other contributors to the film, even the editor, and the level of communication among all of these.

The major elements which should be looked at as possibly contributing to the experience of the film audience include:

  • cinematography (camera angles, shots, frames, lighting, color, panning, etc.)
  • soundtrack (music, as in melody, instrumentation, performance, assonance, dissonance and harmony, silence, spacing, and rhythm)
  • acting and all the combined elements (accent, voice tone, and quality, expression, body language)
  • script, dialogue, story (including theme, mood, impact, complexity, believability in the sense of enabling the audience to suspend disbelief)
  • expository elements (scenery etc.)
  • dialogue (believability, appropriateness, realism, difficulty, or simplicity)
  • set design, costumes, and make-up
  • stunts and special effects
  • editing and transitions

All of these major elements have multiple sub-elements which should be examined whenever the major element is noted as having a special impact. These may even include new elements created by the availability of computer technology. A good analysis of film is a deconstruction of the audience’s experience and its causes.

Remember! This is just a sample
You can get your custom paper by one of our expert writers

Professionals in the field of film criticism have added many other dimensions to the craft. They identify the genre, the social issues, and the film’s place in film history, much as art or literary critics do with their genres. While these elements have little to do with the audience experience, they have importance in the field of art and art history. They are of interest to the student of the art, historians, and social scientists, though the general viewing public cares little about these matters. Some audience members may have a little curiosity about the actual techniques for making the film, but only on a very simple level describing how it was done.

One example is in the explanations of how the original effects in the TV series “Star Trek” (1966-1969) were done. Many people find these entertaining. However, the general public has almost no interest in the aesthetics or the intersexuality of film. This is because these things impact on a different level from the main aim of the art, that being entertainment. However, understanding these elements, even on a very minimal level, can greatly increase the understanding of the film.

“One significant aspect of this new phase seeks to merge insights owed to history, psychology, and linguistics into larger perspectives suitable for understanding individual films as well as film in general. These approaches some- times draw upon feminism, neoformalism, cognitive psychology, empiricism, or phenomenology. They may assert the shaping activity of the audience on film meaning (as opposed to the passive audience usually postulated in earlier approaches).” (Braudy & Cohen, 2004, p. xvi)

In some ways these authors have analyzed film analysis and criticize the methods and elements of modern film criticism, making this book very useful for the developing critical analysis of the film.

Braudy and Cohen examine the deeper question of film criticism (2004, p. 135), especially as this criticism contributes to the understanding of the art. They mention important considerations, such as how we define art and what purpose is inherent in each genre. In some ways, the film has an added dimension to other media, because it includes all of the other arts and places them in a temporal sequence bounded by the beginning and end of the film.

Braudy and Cohen cite Cavell as having postulated that “In watching a film we view a magically reproduced world while remaining invisible to it. This condition makes the experience of film essentially voyeuristic and even pornographic. ” (Braudy & Cohen, 2004, p. 285)

As time passes, more and more writers have added new dimensions to the analysis and criticism of the film. Gehring (1988) examines the range of genres in American film in his book. Other authors have covered the genres inherent to their cultures around the world. The film seems to have a character that is closely connected to the culture of the target audience. Gehring includes a, “look at “comedy genres” and the inclusion of such “nontraditional” genres as the problem film, the art film, and the biography picture. Other genres included are swashbuckling adventure film, western, gangster film, film noir, World War II combat film (in the category Action/Adventure); horror, science fiction, and fantasy (in The Fantastic); and the musical and the melodrama (in Songs and Soaps). (Gehring, 1988, p. ix)

The film is analyzed in many different ways for many different reasons. For example, social scientists, such as Maggie Humm, will look at social elements in film and identify their impact on society or society’s impact on the film. “Film studies, like much of communication studies in general, often separates its areas of inquiry from feminism’s social insights.” (Humm, 1997, p. vii) Some of the very militant social critics will even aim at devaluing a film for social contents, whether or not they reflect reality faithfully. One very recent example is the criticism of the film “Showboat” (1951), because of the racist contents.

We will write
a custom essay
specifically for you
Get your first paper with
15% OFF

Were the authors racists or just the opposite or something in between? Did they depict the reality of the time frame of the film? These questions are often ignored by those who would sculpt our society to their ideals by attempting to impose rules upon art.

Some authors, such as Brooks Landon, (1992) take one film genre (science fiction film) and deconstruct it completely, analyzing the content, methods, and technology and examining the collaboration among these elements and the various people involved in great detail. This can give a depth understanding of the films, the art, and the production techniques used. In many ways, the production methods are closely tied to the genre.

Special effects are supremely important in science fiction, while stunts are more important in westerns and action films. Music, costumes, and dialogue are primary in historical films and scenery figures heavily in panoramic films, such as Out of Africa (1985) and The Jewel in the Crown (1984). So studying genres can add to our insight into this artistic medium.

Finding meaning in movies is less technical than reactive. The collaboration among the various people involved in the production of a film, from the author to the editor is aimed at creating an experience for and communicating meaning to the audience. The transmission of that meaning for the film is almost as subtle as for poetry in that the meaning is not carried merely by the text, but even more by our reaction to the text.

One excellent example of this is the film Blazing Saddles (1974), which depended upon the knowledge of the audience for the success of its humor. While there were enough other elements to communicate much of the meaning, the assumed audience knowledge of cliché and even American history was an important element in the communication of this film’s meaning. Foreigners may indeed have missed some of the meaning of this film, merely because of a lack of social knowledge.

All elements of the film are used to communicate meaning. That is one reason why an excellent director is important to the success of most films. The film communicates much more than the mere story on many different levels. What is wonderful about the medium is that it can be enjoyed even if some levels of communication fail to reach some of the audience. The film is even maturing in recognition of this quality to where a “G” or “PG” film can be as sophisticated as any other rating since much of the communication of the film can be quite subtle.

So whole families of several generations can enjoy the same film, even though it touches each of them on a very different level. Shrek(2001) is one such film. Adults can delight in the subtle sexual innuendo and enjoy a review of their reading history, while young children will be immersed in the story, the animation, and the music. Older children can enjoy the special effects and the talent of the actors. Everyone takes away something different from this film.

My considerations for critiquing a film are whether or not I enjoy it. For me, the most important element of any art is enjoyment. Does it entertain, inform or excite me? Does it touch me on some deeper level than mere proselytizing can? Does it change me in some way? The initial experience is very important, and my analysis and criticism will be based upon this. The story must involve me or I become quite bored. I have a love of poetry, so for me, a good film is the ultimate poetic experience. However, after subsequent viewings, I can usually identify the aim of the film and judge how well this was achieved. In addition, I enjoy looking at ways it might have been better.

When considering “average” films, entertainment is the main criterion. However, for really good films and really bad ones, I like to look at all of the elements and how they fit together to create a unique experience. I enjoy deconstructing really bad films almost as much as really good ones. Mostly, for me, the film is like a little vacation from reality, and I do not want to have to recuperate after I get home. I much prefer when the various elements of the film fit together seamlessly to create an experience. The absence of expected nudity or the addition of gratuitous violence or other “popular” action can disrupt this experience and will lower my rating of any film.

The nature of the film is so complicated and the creation of a film involves so many elements that the nature of criticism is defined more by the critic’s aims for criticism than by the craft of criticism. As in all art, the film is very subjective, and so leaves tremendous room for differences of opinion. The experience of the audience is created by the combination of all the various and numerous elements of the film, from the text to the technical and all the items in between.

It is necessary to identify one’s aim for criticism first, and then to deconstruct the experience of the film and identify the causes to successfully criticize any film. These are the only boundaries, so the files of film criticism are huge and still growing. It is a medium that contains all the other media in combination, as close to reality as the producers want to make it.

References

Blazing Saddles, 1974, Brooks, Mel (Director) Steinburg, Norman (author), Warner Brothers Burbank Studios.

Braudy, L. & Cohen, M. (Eds.). (2004). Film Theory and Criticism: Introductory Readings (6th ed.). New York: Oxford University Press.

Gehring, W. D. (Ed.). (1988). Handbook of American Film Genres. New York: Greenwood Press.

Humm, M. (1997). Feminism and Film. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.

Jaws, 1975, Spielburg, Steven (director), Benchley, Peter (novel and script), Zanuck/Brown Productions.

Landon, B. (1992). The Aesthetics of Ambivalence: Rethinking Science Fiction Film in the Age of Electronic (Re)production. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.

Out of Africa, 1985, Pollack, Sidney (Director), Blixen, Karen and Thurman, Judith authors, Mirage Entertainment.

Showboat, 1951, Sidney, George (director), Mahin, John Lee (screenplay) and Jerome Kern (music).

Shrek, 2001, Adamson, Andrew and Jenson, Vicky (Directors), Steig, William (book), Elliott, Ted (script).

Star Trek, 1966-1969, Roddenberry, Gene (producer/director), Desilu Productions.

The Jewel in the Crown, 1984, Morahan, Christopher and O’Brien, Jim (Directors, Scott. Paul (novel) and Shubik. Irene (deviser), Granada Television.

Print
Need an custom research paper on Film Criticism and Its Aspects written from scratch by a professional specifically for you?
808 writers online
Cite This paper
Select a referencing style:

Reference

IvyPanda. (2021, October 4). Film Criticism and Its Aspects. https://ivypanda.com/essays/film-criticism-and-its-aspects/

Work Cited

"Film Criticism and Its Aspects." IvyPanda, 4 Oct. 2021, ivypanda.com/essays/film-criticism-and-its-aspects/.

References

IvyPanda. (2021) 'Film Criticism and Its Aspects'. 4 October.

References

IvyPanda. 2021. "Film Criticism and Its Aspects." October 4, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/film-criticism-and-its-aspects/.

1. IvyPanda. "Film Criticism and Its Aspects." October 4, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/film-criticism-and-its-aspects/.


Bibliography


IvyPanda. "Film Criticism and Its Aspects." October 4, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/film-criticism-and-its-aspects/.

Powered by CiteTotal, reference maker
If you are the copyright owner of this paper and no longer wish to have your work published on IvyPanda. Request the removal
More related papers
Cite
Print
1 / 1