Formal Analysis Flashcards
Form
the overall system of relationships among the parts of a film
Narrative Elements
events that involve the characters
Stylistic Elements
the way the camera moves, the arrangements of color in the frame, the use of music and other elements
Referential Meaning
allusion to particular items of knowledge outside of the film that the viewer is expected to recognize
Explicit Meaning
significance presented overtly, usually in language and often near the film’s beginning or end
Implicit Meaning
significance that the film divulges, often against its will, by virtue of its historical or social context
Interpretation
the viewer’s activity of analyzing the implicit and symptomatic meanings suggested in a film
Ideology
a relatively coherent system of values, beliefs, or ideas shared by some social group and often taken for granted as natural or inherently true
Motif
an element in a film that is repeated in a significant way
What is film form?
the pattern of elements in a narrative film by which it is organized
What are the two dimensions of film form?
the film itself
the viewer’s engagement
What is the dimension of the film itself in film form?
a system of cues that directs a viewer’s attention to relevant details of the film itself to trigger cognitive and emotional responses
a system of cues that seeks to create expectations of what will happen next
most film possess design intentions
What is the dimension of the viewer’s engagement in film form?
the construction of the story and character based on the cues the film supplies
the emotions the viewer feels as a result of their construction of story and character
What are narrative elements?
those elements of a film that constitute a film’s story: plot, settings, characters, the goals and subjective states of the characters
What are stylistic elements?
those elements of a film through which the story is told: mise-en-scene, lighting, camera movement, editing, music, etc.
the narrative and the stylistic elements of a film work in tandem
What are the two viewer components?
what the viewer brings to the film
knowledge about the world and knowledge about films
What is the viewer component knowledge about the world?
nature, history, social situations, social institutions, social customs, human behavior
What is the viewer component knowledge about films?
includes story conventions and genre conventions
What are story conventions?
beginning, middle and ending
protagonists and antagonists
characters are normally goal oriented
What are genre conventions?
in musicals people sing and dance
in film noir there are often femme fatales
in romantic comedies the romantic couple unite at the end of a film
What is function?
if form is the pattern of elements, we would expect that those elements would fulfill purposes
they do something in the larger whole
of any element in a film, we can ask: “What are its functions?”
What is motivation?
the narrative function of an element of a film
can be narrative or stylistic devices
What is a motif?
any significant film element that is repeated in a film: can be narrative or stylistic devices
frequently bear thematic significance
What is variation?
any significant film element that is repeated in a film but that repetition entails variations on past instances: can be narrative or stylistic devices
frequently bear narrative significance
What is development?
the progression of a film’s development from beginning, middle, and end
often described as a film’s plot structure
What is unity vs. disunity?
unity: the degree to which all elements of a film serve a narrative function and are interrelated to other elements in a film
often used an evaluative criteria when assessing a film
