Film analysis - Theory

Film analysis - Theory

Levi-Strauss - structuralist approach: conflict and binary opposition

Social anthropologist who studied primitive societies who communicated with signs/paintings/drawings - visually

Not spoken or written!

Primitive drawing/painting on a cave for example - recognise ideas around conflict - opposites/binaries - Strauss develops this to argue that intrinsic to most cultures is an understanding f the world through CONFLICT and OPPOSITES = MEANING

Narrative tension is based on opposition or conflict. This can be as simple as two characters fighting, but more often functions at an ideological level

Relevant to Get Out:

Black Vs White (Race)

Good Vs Evil (The family)

Girl Vs Boy (Relationship)

Empowered Vs Victim

Vladmir Propp: archetypal characters

Archetypal characters

He argues that a good story always needs a specific set of archetypes

The characters themselves are not important - focus is on their role on function as a type

Hero, Villain, Victim, Helper and messenger, Anti-hero

Folk tales - Emphasis

There were only 8 character types within every story:

Hero

Villain

Helper

Princess or Prize

Her Father

The Donor

The False Hero

The Dispatcher

Character Tropes - Vladmir Propp

Most Important character

1. Cynthia - The key - personal story - most related to each character - protagonist?
2. Maurice - Central to most characters
3. Hortense - Represents themes - Binary opposites - catalyst for the conflict 
4. Monica - Conflict with Cynthia - less present - Bad reputation, but then followed by sympathy
5. Roxanne - Limited further context - Clear contrast

Least Important character

Vladmir Propp

• Humans like things to be recognisable and defined in easy categories (Binary Oppositions)
• In 1928 Propp said that all stories follow a clear narrative structure which repeats across fairy tales, stories and now films
• Propp devised a list of character archetypes which are apparent in (most) narratives

Todorov’s stage of narrative based on ‘cause’ and ‘effect’

Proposed a basic structure for all narratives 

There is a distinction between the ‘PLOT’ and the ‘STORY’

Plot - Summing up the ‘action’/events

Story - The plot is fleshed out with characters, emotions, and context AND this same plot can be constructed into a narrative in a number of ways - USING NARRATIVE DEVICES AND TECHNIQUES.

Story unfolds as ‘cause’ and ‘effect’ from the first equilibrium to the last equilibrium - The final equilibrium is not the same as the beginning.

Everything that has happened in the interim.

TODOROV 5 KEY STAGES

1. Equilibrium 
2. Something happens - Sets the narrative in motion
3. A realisation that something has happened
4. Trying to put things right
5. New equilibrium at the end

Tropes

• The Villain: Struggles against the hero
• The Dispatcher: The character who sends the hero on their mission
• The Helper: Helps the hero in their quest
• The Donor: Gives the hero something to help them (Physical or wisdom)
• The Princess (or Prize): The hero deserves her throughout the story but the villain prevents her from doing so. The journey often ends with the hero marrying the princess, thereby beating the villain
• The Hero: The protagonist. Seeks something throughout the story, and reacts to the donor. Usually weds the princess/takes the prize
• False Hero: Disrupts the Hero’s progress by taking credit for that hero’s actions or trying to marry the princess
• The princesses father: Rewards the hero. Usually identifies the false hero

Todorovs Theory	Get Out
Equilibrium	When Chris and Rose are together at the beginning fo the film
Disruption	When Chris gets hypnotised
Realisation	When Andre had his photo taken - Rod does research on him
Repair	When Chris manages to break out the house and is saved by Rod
Equilibrium	When Rod brings Chris back home in the car

Denotation - What you ca literally see - eg a red sports car

Connotation  - The meaning you derive from a text - eg associations with the colour red such as anger, passion, glamour - When analysing a text, it is important to consider these connotations

Action Codes - Roland Barthes

Significant events which move the narrative on in a particular direction and cause us to questions what will happen next

She falls over - will they catch her?

She has been caught - what will they do with her

In some genres, Action Codes are often predictable to comply with our expectations of that genre.

Eg. we expect the killer to kill the couple who wonder off from the group

Enigma codes - Roland Barthes

Enigma codes pose questions to the audience which are the answered shortly after or later in the film. They force the audience to question who or why, enticing us to continue watching the movie.

Eg. Who is she? Where is she going? Why is she doing that? Why is there a shoe on the floor?

Genre and Audience pleasures

Rick Altman argues that genre offers audiences a set of pleasures

Emotional Pleasures

How does the text make you feel?  happy, sad, nostalgic etc

Visceral Pleasures

Gut responses such as excitement, fear, laughter

Intellectual Pleasures

Does it make the audience think?