For my textual analysis I will be watching the openings of three films and dissecting them of all the key values an action film has. The first film I will be analysing is the 2015 Avengers- Age of Ultron.
To begin with I will start to analyse the genre of the film. For my production me and my group have decided to chose the genre action, which is why I chose this film to analyse because it represents a lot of action within the scenes and it is something we could represent in out production.
To start with the main genre of this particular film is a hybrid of action adventure. The action of this film is meant to bring excitement from a range of fighting scenes and chases and the adventure side brings new experiences and exciting stories. From the opening of this film there are many conventions that are seen for example in mostly all of the action films there is some for of movement that happens from intense battling to an escape, within these first few moments of the film it shows all the Avengers in a fight to try and get into a secret base. Another convention from this opening is the use of weapons, many of the avengers carry weapons which are a symbol of themselves and what they believe in (Captain America's shield and Thor's hammer) from having these stereotype weapons it symbolises that this film is closely linked towards action because of their violent and powerful nature. Yet another convention of an action movie is the amount of destruction that is needed to complete a mission or a common aim, just in the opening of this film it already shows a high amount of destruction that is being made so that they can reach the goal of breaking into the high security base. Finally the last of the conventions seen in this clip is the use of high tech vehicles such as motorcycles, the iron man suit and many cars driving around. By using these high tech objects it immediately interests the audience who watches this then they would want to see more interesting stunts which are used from these. All of these conventions used help to interact with the audience to make the film more enjoyable, also it helps them identify these conventions with the norms of action films which can help them have a better understanding of them. The purpose of the genre action is to appeal to certain audiences and provide them with satisfaction from watching these films. By watching these films it helps them distract away from the norms of life and look into the life which is full of adventure and excitement. It also helps people relax and forget about their worries for awhile so they can fully enjoy themselves with a film.
The next thing I am going to talk about is the narrative of this story. From the opening clip that I saw I could see that it was a linear plot line. I knew this because all the time events were in chronological order so it contained no flash back or memories, but throughout the whole film the plotline does become non-linear but I am only analysing the first clip. I could also see that from this film it had a clear closed narrative because if had all of the beginning, middle and end. Also from this clip I could see that it had multiple stands I could see this when it had multiple point of view shots from both the hero's and the villains side of the story. By using multiple stands it helps the audience pick up the clear plot from both point of views so it helps them see what troubles both sides face throughout the movie. I could also see from this clip that it is a mostly intertwined plot line, this it because many of the scenes viewed are happening at the same time but just with different point of views. Throughout the story it also relates a lot to Todorov's theory this is shown from the use of all the 5 stages used throughout the movie. For example at the beginning of the film it shows a disruption which then leads too more chaos through the creation of the artificial intelligence which is made called Ultron it then goes through all of the stages until Ultron is finally defeated and peace is once again restored.
The next thing I will be discussing is the use of sound. To begin with there was a use of some non-diegetic sound that was used in the form of dramatic background music, by using this music it helps bring tension into the situation and leaves the audience in anticipation to find out what will happen next it also develops the atmosphere of the movie and shows that it will have very dramatic and tense scenes. Another use of sound which is now diegetic is the sounds of explosions. By using these explosions it shows how exciting and fast pace this scene is, this effect also creates tension because the audience doesn't want anything bad to happen to the protagonists. With explosions there is also a lot of sound coming from various weapons in this scene. The sound of the weapons show that this film is action and it also adds to the fast paced and crazy atmosphere, it also creates the idea of mystery because the audience doesn't know if one of these weapons are going to hurt anyone or have any dramatic effects. Another use of sound is the diegetic sound from all the high tech armour, from these sounds the audience can decipher what time period this was around to have this sort of technology it also shows how advanced the weaponry is. The last use of sound which it diegetic is the use of talking. Talking is used as a form of communication to help solidify what method of action need to take place. In this specific scene Tony Stark (Iron Man) if trying to find a way into the secret base, when he realises there is a force field he used the phrase "Shit" to express his anger. To this his response from Captain America is "Language" from using this method of sound it helps to create humour for the audience. From this humour is helps to make the scene feel a little less tense so the viewers can relax knowing everything could potentially be okay.
Now I will be talking about the editing used in the film. Editing is used to create texture and make it possible to see other peoples point of views and to see how they overcome certain obstacles. In the opening scene it is very fast and rapid because there is a lot of different things happening from explosions to high energy battle scenes. Most of the editing used in this specific scene cuts to all the different scenarios the protagonists are in and how they handle their specific situation. For example it cuts to Captain America and it shows how he throws his motorbike into an oncoming vehicle to stop them from hurting anybody it then quickly cuts to another scene with a different scenario and protagonist to show what they have to overcome to achieve their goal. All of these cuts are very quick and only last a few seconds before focusing on a different person after all the action scene have stopped the high amount of cut editing slows down to a reasonable pace to show everything has calmed down reasonably. Another part of the editing that is used is to zoom in on the protagonist faces, by using this technique it helps the audience see the expression on their faces so they can understand what they are going through. Another part of the editing is to include most of the explosion and shots from the weapons, this helps to create more visually appealing effects which the audience wants to see. It also helps to make the scene seem more exciting and thrilling to the audience.
The next thing I will be talking about is the audience. For this film the direct audience could potentially be everyone because this movie contains a lot of things that most people find entertaining in a film. For example this film contains mostly action but also contains adventure with a bit of romance. Commonly though this film would be most suitable for people who like action and superhero's which could range from children to adults. Most likely thought children would not watch this because of some of the language used within. Action films are also a way for an audience to forget the troubles of real life and immerse themselves in the life of fictional characters. It also helps bring entertainment into the audiences life and helps them to relate their life to those of a superhero. It could also help people be informed or educated by this form of entertainment. Finally it could also help form good social interaction skills by discussing the events of the film with friends and other people who enjoy the action genre.
To conclude with all these components from sound to genre it helps to create this movie like it is today. It is also good for all these components to come together so it can satisfy the needs of the audience and make them pay to go see the film so the film industry can become even bigger and create more and more good films.
-Honesty Bradshaw
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