Crash

Movie: Crash, 2004; 112 min

Director: Paul Haggis

Actors: Sandra Bullock, Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, Brenden Fraser, Terrence Howard, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges

Summary:

The stories of people from different races all interconnect with one another in different ways. The racial and social tensions in Los Angeles are depicted in dramatic, yet very real scenarios.

In what way does the director connect shots from different scenarios together? Why is this technique useful?

            There are numerous times in the film when scenes are connected through common shots such as a door closing or opening. The director uses these common connections to intertwine the scenarios of different characters. For example, when one character walks through a door, another character comes out of another door that is in a different shot and location. These subtle connecting devices allow the director to switch from story to story without too many choppy transitions.  It also draws in the audience’s attention because the transition into another character’s story is, in a way, unexpected. Normally, the audience would expect the screen to go black for that split second and then cut to a new scenario and location. These transitions though common shots help the film and storyline run smoothly, and they also give deeper meaning to the fact that all the different stories are similar and connect with one another.

What is the significance of the spotlight on the car crash as the camera zooms out over the streets in the final scene of the movie?

            In the final scene of the movie, a car crash occurs between an African American woman and two Asian men. They all step out of their cars and begin yelling racial slurs towards each other. The verbal fighting continues as the camera begins to zoom away from the crash. A spotlight remains on the crash and people yelling at one another. The camera zooms out over the other city streets in Chinatown with the spotlight still remaining but everything else outside the spotlight seems to be continuing normally without disruption. This depicts the fact that even though these racial tensions occur everywhere, the rest of the world goes on without taking notice of anything wrong. Some people remain unaware that racial hatred still occurs today and do not take notice of it until they are affected. The darkness over the rest of the city streets compared to the spotlight on the car crash shows how people are oblivious or pay no attention to racial tensions that occur daily in a country where everyone is to be treated as equals. 

City Lights

Movie: City Lights, 1931; silent, black and white; 87 min

Director: Charlie Chaplin

Actors: Charlie Chaplin, Virginia Cherrill

Summary:

            A tramp falls in love with a beautiful, blind girl and he desires to help her gain her sight. The tramp develops an on-and-off friendship with a wealthy drunkard that allows him to give the blind girl enough money to help her out of financial trouble and for an eye surgery. The tramp realizes that once the girl gains her sight, she will discover that her suitor is not a wealthy man at all. Yet, in the end, the girl remembers the tramp and what he had done to help her.

In what ways does Chaplin incorporate sound effects into the film? Why?

            Though City Lights is a silent film accompanied with music, Chaplin incorporates sound effects in certain scenes in order to enhance the comedic effect of the scene. For example, when the tramp is hiccupping bubbles, the music score is stopped and the only sound is of the bubbles popping. These simple sounds, along with Chaplin’s facial expressions, give the scene a comedic substance. Without the added sound effects, the scene would be no different than the other comical scenes throughout the movie. Chaplin also incorporates sound effects into the scene where he is slurping spaghetti at a fancy restaurant. This sound effect is different because the main musical score is still playing along with the slurping sounds. This is because the slurping sound and specific scene is not as profound as the bubble scene, so therefore it is accompanied by the silent film music.

In what ways are body language and facial expressions important to the story?

            Facial expressions and body language are especially important to a silent film because there is no dialogue to tell the audience how the characters are feeling. Instead of saying they are disappointed, the actors must show it in their face and posture. Exaggerating expressions and postures is also essential in telling a story and developing a character. Charlie Chaplin uses the tramp’s distinct, turned-out walk to show what emotion his character is feeling. For example, after the tramp gets out of jail, he walks with his head down and his shoulders heavy. Then, when the beautiful girl recognizes the tramp, his face lights up as his eyes meet hers and there no longer seems to be that heavy weight of sorrow upon his shoulders. These simple expression and posture details give the audience an unspoken insight into what the tramp is feeling at that exact moment. 

Hollywood's Golden Age

            During Hollywood’s Golden Age from the 1930’s to late 1940’s, the movie industry experienced a revolution in sound and color. The full integration of sound was achieved in 1930, and people began going to the theater to see what they called “talkies.” Though the “talkies” were poor quality due to an unmoving microphone and camera, they were still very popular at the box offices. At first, the once-silent-film actors had difficulty adjusting to their speaking roles and directing their speech towards hidden microphones around the set. After the development of sound mixing in 1932, recording on sets and locations became easier, allowing writers to start developing more realistic plots and characters with witty dialogue.

            The revolution of incorporating color into movies was first introduced during the Golden Age and had a large impact on the movie industry. At first, two-color movies were hand-tinted in red and green, but then when three-color cameras were introduced in 1932, a whole new meaning was brought to Technicolor. In addition, vertical integration of the film industry changed the way the movie business was run from the 1930’s until the end of the Golden Age. When vertical integration began, the “Big Five” major movie studios, Warner Bros., Paramount, 20^th Century Fox, MGM, and RKO, realized that they could maximize their profits by controlling every aspect of a film’s life. “The Big Five”

formed an oligopoly, when the market is shared by a small number of producers or sellers, with “The Little Three” studios, Universal, Columbia, and United Artists. Together, they controlled the production, distribution, and exhibition of their movies, therefore, practically controlling the entire business and movie market. These eight companies owned about 95 percent of film rentals and about 70 percent of the movie box-office until 1948, the end of the Golden Age. Independent movie producers and exhibitors fought against the oligopoly because it gave them little power in the industry. When these small independent producers and exhibitors won their battle against the big studios’ oligopoly, the movie market was opened to smaller producers.

            Many famous movies, actors, and directors came about during the Golden Age. One notable director, Frank Capra, won Academy Awards for best director of It Happened One Night (1934), Mr. Deeds Goes To Town (1936), and You Can’t Take It With You (1938). He later directed the Academy Award nominated film, It’s A Wonderful Life in 1946. Young, new stars also emerged during this era. Shirley Temple began her acting career at the age of five and became the most famous childhood actress in history. Frank Capra and Shirley Temple are just two of the many influential people who emerged during the Golden Age. These significant people, along with the revolution in sound and color, changed the movie business and continue to influence directors and actors in the present day.