5 W's and the H

Week 3 lecture: To reiterate a further understanding on week threes lecture (learning the language of the cinema) I went and watched a movie just as Josh recommended to explain the who, what, when, where, why and how questions as they are subconsciously answered through different types of shot sizes. I made myself a smoothie, chucked on a dvd from my fav stash and watched it according to shot composition. The movie I watched was Domino, it rates pretty high on my scale of 1 to 10 so check it out. 

The close up - sweet and simply answers the question of 'who' by showing the character in detail as they deliver dialogue. The main character, Domino Harvey, is unearthed through close up shots on ears end.

The mid shot - answers the 'what' question by showing the character or subject performing an action. So basically Domino is a bounty hunter and I think the guns give this one away.

The long shot - is the answer to 'where'. It helps to identify spacial relationships and at the beginning of a scene it is also known as an establishing shot (because it establishes the location). 'Where' happens to be in and around the glitterati of LA.

Both the wide and close up shots - can help answer the 'when' question. Time though, can be a difficult thing to capture on the screen as mentioned in the lecture. I only really took note of the wide shot answering the when question as it made day and night a clear contrast.

The big close up shot - answers the 'why' question usually by revealing more about a character and their actions. Domino in this instance is portrayed in becoming bored with her LA model lifestyle.

Then finally the medium close up or a serious of general close ups - can be used to answer the 'how' question and explain the event that is occurring. Well, she gets bored, becomes a bounty hunter, runs into trouble and fights to get out of it..

This analysis of the movie is considered 'internal'. An 'external' view relates to the production side of things. My external view is short and sweet...

Who: The who would be the actors involved in the film - Keira Knightley, Mickey Rourke, Edgar Ramirez, Delroy Lindo. Also the director - Tony Scott. 

What: It is an action, crime, drama, thriller.

Where: Filmed in LA for French production. 

When: Released in 2005.

Why: Money, profit, fame, ratings for New Line Cinema. 

.. and thats a wrap!