Beguiled Screenplay
Scene 1 – EXT.
Harry walks away from the camera in slow motion, and throws her police badge over her shoulder.
Harry
Voiceover over a black screen
I was always told to keep my friends close but my enemies closer. Whoever told me that was an idiot.
Scene 2 – INT. – initially upstairs corridor in ash, then an office
Empty waiting room. Harry sits with back to the camera. Shot pans round to show a secretary. A phone rings which the Secretary picks up.
Secretary
Captain Carter will see you now Harry.
Harry gets up and walks through some doors into a busy corridor, with offices of either side. People walk about quickly, carrying papers and things between rooms. Harry goes through another set of doors stopping outside a closed door, she knocks and enters.
Office is large, showing his power and authority. The Captain sits behind a desk, which has a computer and thats it.
Captain
Ah! Stewart come, in take a seat.
Harry sits down on the chair in front of the desk.
Harry, I have some bad news. I don’t know how to say this, but you have to know before everyone else. (Pause) Harry, Nigel has been killed on duty. I’m sorry.
Long emotional pause
Harry
Does Lily know?
The captain shuffles in his seat
Captain
(Deep breath) That’s the main reason I brought you in. (Dramatic pause) She’s been kidnapped.
Harry is shocked. Silence.
Captain
We want you on the case.
Captain slides a photo of Nigel and Lily across the desk
We know this must be hard for you, but the fact you were so close to them means you won’t fail.
Scene 3 – EXT. –near the Deep
Harry is leaning on a barrier overlooking the river with a cup of coffee in one hand, she gets the photo out of his pocket.
Harry
(To photo) I won’t fail you.
Slowly walks away, putting photo back in pocket. She gets her phone out and calls her new partner Smith.
INT. Smith is sat in a busy office, in the same building from the second scene. People are bustling about handing him things. He answers the phone resting it between his face and shoulder.
Harry
Smith, meet me at Nigel’s, we're going to need a forensics team down there too. Have the forensics come back on Nigel’s body?
Smith
No, but the body was pretty messed up. They should be with us within the next few days. God, it’s hectic down here. Where are you?
Harry
Collecting my thoughts
Harry hangs up the phone. Smith is then left in a busy office, looking annoyed as he puts the phone down.
Scene 4 – EXT.
Smith waits outside a house as Harry pulls up in a car. Harry gets out of the car and walks up to Smith. Smith hands her a cup of coffee and they start to walk towards the house.
Smith
The white suits are already in there.
They walk out of shot.
Friday, 4 December 2009
Wednesday, 4 November 2009
Animatic
Here is my group's animatic. This is a formulation of our storyboard, and gives the basic outline of the film. The animatic is however not representative of the shot lengths as these will run for however i feel is natural.
Wednesday, 28 October 2009
Research
In our film I will be looking to evoke the feeling of the Crime Thriller genre. As a result I have looked for film clips on the internet which I will be hoping will help with the planning of the piece.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zPyEVeGb80
The ending of Dirty Harry (Siegel, 1971). This clip is the influence on our opening shot. We will however be using a different camera angle instead of the high-angle shot used here.
This shot from Goodfellas (Scorsese, 1990) has influenced the shot in the Police office. This was due to our attempts to keep the piece moving and have a good balance between stationary and travelling shots. As a direct result of Scorese's use of movement he will be one of the directors I will aim to evoke.
Here we see Christopher Nolan's Memento (2000). His interesting use of narrative structure has influenced our choice of starting at the end, and as the use of reverse play in the opening of the film we have chosen to edit our opening scenes brightness and slow the play down, creating a difference between this and the rest of our film. His use of natural light in this scene has also influenced us, as we know it will be hard to alter lighting due to limited resources, but also because it adds a certain amount of realism to the film.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7pgXS7bUBk
We will also be using the camera technique used in French New Wave films, and as so her is a compilation of shots from Godard's 1960 film A bout de souffle.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zPyEVeGb80
The ending of Dirty Harry (Siegel, 1971). This clip is the influence on our opening shot. We will however be using a different camera angle instead of the high-angle shot used here.
This shot from Goodfellas (Scorsese, 1990) has influenced the shot in the Police office. This was due to our attempts to keep the piece moving and have a good balance between stationary and travelling shots. As a direct result of Scorese's use of movement he will be one of the directors I will aim to evoke.
Here we see Christopher Nolan's Memento (2000). His interesting use of narrative structure has influenced our choice of starting at the end, and as the use of reverse play in the opening of the film we have chosen to edit our opening scenes brightness and slow the play down, creating a difference between this and the rest of our film. His use of natural light in this scene has also influenced us, as we know it will be hard to alter lighting due to limited resources, but also because it adds a certain amount of realism to the film.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7pgXS7bUBk
We will also be using the camera technique used in French New Wave films, and as so her is a compilation of shots from Godard's 1960 film A bout de souffle.
Friday, 23 October 2009
Friday, 16 October 2009
16th October's Lesson
Today we began to outline shots and stylistic elements which will be included in our sequence. Although we didn't finish the outline, we decided that we would have our Dirty Harry homage fading up to a black screen with a voiceover, saying that this is Harry's story. We have then decided to go straight to the beginning of the story and from there let it run linearly.
Final Aims and Context
Again after input from both Tim and my group:
Our film will be aimed at 15-30 year old males and also females of the 15-30 age bracket. It is aimed at both sexes as it is a Detective Crime Thriller, which the male audience will enjoy, but also a film where one woman takes centre stage, so they will be able to relate to our main character.
I will use formal influences from other crime film directors. E.g. Michael Mann’s Heat (1995) and especially Dirty Harry (Siegel, 1971).In homage to Dirty Harry we will begin the film with the main character, Harry, throwing his badge down and walking away. We will then have the film in flashback. We will also take influence from Film Noirs (e.g. Double Indemnity, Wilder, 1944) and Neo-Noirs (e.g. Memento, Nolan, 2000) whilst writing our script. As a result the approach we will be taking is a genre-based one and as such I have been collecting information on films of the genres. However, we will also use techniques from French New Wave to influence the stylistics, (e.g. French New Wave will be referenced through the camera techniques, especially when filming conversations) as well as conventional Hollywood shot-reverse-shot ways of filming.
I will be undertaking the role of directing the piece, and as a result will draw on my previous experience from both FM1 and Digital Video Production. From FM1, I know that lighting was a big problem and as a result I will concentrate on finding suitable locations with the right amount of natural light, creating a realism in the film. Also from my analysis of Gladiator(Scott, 2000) I was very interested in how the camera was rarely fixed and as such want to work with Sophie to keep finding new and interesting ways of filming static people.
As a result I hope to advance my directing skills and will be hoping to complete the work to a high standard.
Our film will be aimed at 15-30 year old males and also females of the 15-30 age bracket. It is aimed at both sexes as it is a Detective Crime Thriller, which the male audience will enjoy, but also a film where one woman takes centre stage, so they will be able to relate to our main character.
I will use formal influences from other crime film directors. E.g. Michael Mann’s Heat (1995) and especially Dirty Harry (Siegel, 1971).In homage to Dirty Harry we will begin the film with the main character, Harry, throwing his badge down and walking away. We will then have the film in flashback. We will also take influence from Film Noirs (e.g. Double Indemnity, Wilder, 1944) and Neo-Noirs (e.g. Memento, Nolan, 2000) whilst writing our script. As a result the approach we will be taking is a genre-based one and as such I have been collecting information on films of the genres. However, we will also use techniques from French New Wave to influence the stylistics, (e.g. French New Wave will be referenced through the camera techniques, especially when filming conversations) as well as conventional Hollywood shot-reverse-shot ways of filming.
I will be undertaking the role of directing the piece, and as a result will draw on my previous experience from both FM1 and Digital Video Production. From FM1, I know that lighting was a big problem and as a result I will concentrate on finding suitable locations with the right amount of natural light, creating a realism in the film. Also from my analysis of Gladiator(Scott, 2000) I was very interested in how the camera was rarely fixed and as such want to work with Sophie to keep finding new and interesting ways of filming static people.
As a result I hope to advance my directing skills and will be hoping to complete the work to a high standard.
Scene Selection
Yesterday after finalising the Synopsis we decided to make the opening sequence to the film. This as mentioned in the aims and contexts, will be influenced by Dirty Harry (Siegel, 1971).
Initial Aims and Context
This is my initial aims and contexts:
Our film will be aimed at 16-30 year old males. It will also be aimed at those who enjoy crime dramas, but the male audience is the one we will be aiming to please. I will use formal influences from other crime film directors. E.g. Michael Mann’s Heat (1995) and especially Dirty Harry (Siegel, 1971). In homage to Dirty Harry we will begin the film with the main character, Harry, throwing his badge down and walking away. We will then have the film in flashback. However, we will also use techniques from Film Noir and French New Wave to influence the stylistics. E.g. Film Noir will influence the lighting, and French New Wave will be referenced through the camera techniques, especially when filming conversations.
I will be undertaking the role of directing the piece, and as a result will draw on my previous experience from both FM1 and digital video production. From FM1, I know that lighting was a big problem and as a result I will concentrate on finding suitable locations with the possibility of easy control over the light.
As a result I hope to advance my directing skills and will be hoping to complete the work to a high standard.
Our film will be aimed at 16-30 year old males. It will also be aimed at those who enjoy crime dramas, but the male audience is the one we will be aiming to please. I will use formal influences from other crime film directors. E.g. Michael Mann’s Heat (1995) and especially Dirty Harry (Siegel, 1971). In homage to Dirty Harry we will begin the film with the main character, Harry, throwing his badge down and walking away. We will then have the film in flashback. However, we will also use techniques from Film Noir and French New Wave to influence the stylistics. E.g. Film Noir will influence the lighting, and French New Wave will be referenced through the camera techniques, especially when filming conversations.
I will be undertaking the role of directing the piece, and as a result will draw on my previous experience from both FM1 and digital video production. From FM1, I know that lighting was a big problem and as a result I will concentrate on finding suitable locations with the possibility of easy control over the light.
As a result I hope to advance my directing skills and will be hoping to complete the work to a high standard.
Final Synopsis
After feedback from Tim, this is our final synopsis:
Harry Stewart is assigned to the case of Nigel Flynn’s (his mentor) murder and Flynn’s wife, Lily’s kidnap. This gets into the case on which Flynn was killed which involves a major drug ring. Harry’s first priority is to get back Lily as he feels that he has a duty to the memory of Nigel. Whilst investigating the kidnapping and murder, using interviews and CCTV, the forensics of the body come back and they don’t match with Nigel’s dental record. Harry orders a second test but these only confirm that the body is not Nigel’s. Shocked by Nigel’s disappearance, Harry starts to investigate the possibility that both Nigel and Lily have been kidnapped. Later a ransom note is dropped at the station. Nigel decides to trace the person who left it through the CCTV. It leads him to a derelict building, which he enters after calling for back-up. As soon as he enters he is shot at. He engages in a shoot-out with the attacker whilst trying to get closer; eventually he recognizes him as Nigel. He reveals that he was attempting to take the ransom money and leave the country with his wife. He shoots at Harry but misses; consequently Harry shoots him and Nigel is killed instantly. Lily is arrested and sent to jail. Harry is offered a promotion, but doesn’t accept it because he is so disheartened with the police that he leaves.
Harry Stewart is assigned to the case of Nigel Flynn’s (his mentor) murder and Flynn’s wife, Lily’s kidnap. This gets into the case on which Flynn was killed which involves a major drug ring. Harry’s first priority is to get back Lily as he feels that he has a duty to the memory of Nigel. Whilst investigating the kidnapping and murder, using interviews and CCTV, the forensics of the body come back and they don’t match with Nigel’s dental record. Harry orders a second test but these only confirm that the body is not Nigel’s. Shocked by Nigel’s disappearance, Harry starts to investigate the possibility that both Nigel and Lily have been kidnapped. Later a ransom note is dropped at the station. Nigel decides to trace the person who left it through the CCTV. It leads him to a derelict building, which he enters after calling for back-up. As soon as he enters he is shot at. He engages in a shoot-out with the attacker whilst trying to get closer; eventually he recognizes him as Nigel. He reveals that he was attempting to take the ransom money and leave the country with his wife. He shoots at Harry but misses; consequently Harry shoots him and Nigel is killed instantly. Lily is arrested and sent to jail. Harry is offered a promotion, but doesn’t accept it because he is so disheartened with the police that he leaves.
Initial Synopsis
This is our pre-marked synopsis:
Harry Stewart is assigned to the case of Nigel Flynn’s (his mentor) murder and Flynn’s wife, Lily’s kidnap. This gets into the case on which Flynn was killed which involves a major drug ring. Harry’s first priority is to get back Lily as he feels that he has a duty to the memory of Nigel. Whilst investigating the kidnapping and murder, using interviews and CCTV, the forensics of the body come back and they don’t match with Nigel’s dental record. Harry orders a second test but these only confirm that the body is not Nigel’s. Shocked by Nigel’s disappearance, Harry starts to investigate the possibility that both Nigel and Lily have been kidnapped. Later a ransom note is dropped at the station. Nigel decides to trace the person who left it through the CCTV. It leads him to a derelict building, which he enters after calling for back-up. As soon as he enters he is shot at. He engages in a shoot-out with the attacker whilst trying to get closer; eventually he recognizes him as Nigel. He reveals that he was attempting to take the ransom money and leave the country with his wife. He shoots at Harry but misses; consequently Harry shoots him and Nigel is killed instantly.
Harry Stewart is assigned to the case of Nigel Flynn’s (his mentor) murder and Flynn’s wife, Lily’s kidnap. This gets into the case on which Flynn was killed which involves a major drug ring. Harry’s first priority is to get back Lily as he feels that he has a duty to the memory of Nigel. Whilst investigating the kidnapping and murder, using interviews and CCTV, the forensics of the body come back and they don’t match with Nigel’s dental record. Harry orders a second test but these only confirm that the body is not Nigel’s. Shocked by Nigel’s disappearance, Harry starts to investigate the possibility that both Nigel and Lily have been kidnapped. Later a ransom note is dropped at the station. Nigel decides to trace the person who left it through the CCTV. It leads him to a derelict building, which he enters after calling for back-up. As soon as he enters he is shot at. He engages in a shoot-out with the attacker whilst trying to get closer; eventually he recognizes him as Nigel. He reveals that he was attempting to take the ransom money and leave the country with his wife. He shoots at Harry but misses; consequently Harry shoots him and Nigel is killed instantly.
Change in Genre
After much consideration, my group has decided to alter the genre from Gangster to Crime Thriller. This decision was made following problems with the initial story, and so we have now decided to re-start our piece.
Genre Essay
What are the conventions which appear in a gangster crime drama?
Every film genre has certain conventions which are associated with them. These can range from certain camera techniques, to much larger things such as settings or plot devices. In this essay I will discuss the conventions of gangster crime dramas.
To begin with gangster crime dramas are morality tales of epic proportions and can be seen very much as urban westerns. Instead of wide sprawling plains, these are swapped for confined city alleyways and back streets. An excellent example of this is Once Upon A Time in America (Sergio Leone, 1984). This is set in New York and Leone uses many extreme long shots to reflect the seedy settings which his characters operate in (see below).
These films are also morality tales in the same way as westerns, as from the beginning of the film we know that they cannot continue to live like this. We know they will either end up being killed or in jail, but we cannot help but be sucked into their worlds. This is one of the major reasons why gangster crime dramas are so popular, because they are tales about morality and real people.
In most gangster crime dramas we see the success of the main character reflected in his material possessions. This is often made more dramatic by the fact that the character often starts with nothing, and then all of a sudden has great amounts of money, with which they buy cars and yachts.
Success is also shown through their success with women. In most films of the type we have women who become infatuated with the main character, and are often very loyal, not leaving their man for any reason. A good example of the use of women to represent the success of the main character is Public Enemies (Michael Mann, 2009). In this we see Marion Cotillard’s character become loyal, and stay loyal to the last to John Dillinger even landing herself in prison because she would not give up his location.
Gangsters, in films portrayed from their point of view, are often represented as victims of circumstance. This means that we often see them with little in the beginning and then they find a route out of their misery through organised crime. We will also often see society and the status quo of ordinary life as the antagonists in the films. The police in these films are therefore just the enforcers of the status quo.
In later Hollywood films of the genre, they have started to concentrate far more on the police investigating the gangsters. However this can often lead to many comparisons between those inside the law and those outside it, and we begin to realise how similar they really are.
Films of the genre are also often biographical. Most of the films in the genre are about, or representative of, the lives of many criminals. Whether the criminal is Al Capone, John Dillinger or Bonnie and Clyde, they have all had their lives turned into movies, whether it was as a straight portrayal of their lives or a loose adaption.
Gangster films contain lots of extreme violence, which reflects the anger of the men involved. The extreme violence is often a representation of their frustration at their place in the world, and could be seen as their way of crying out for attention in a world where they have nothing.
To conclude the gangster crime drama genre is successful because it is an urban western which focuses on the morality of criminals, and shows how they pull themselves up from having nothing to have many material goods. In my group’s project I will take all of these conventions and create a crime drama which would fit into contemporary Hollywood well.
Word count: 650
Every film genre has certain conventions which are associated with them. These can range from certain camera techniques, to much larger things such as settings or plot devices. In this essay I will discuss the conventions of gangster crime dramas.
To begin with gangster crime dramas are morality tales of epic proportions and can be seen very much as urban westerns. Instead of wide sprawling plains, these are swapped for confined city alleyways and back streets. An excellent example of this is Once Upon A Time in America (Sergio Leone, 1984). This is set in New York and Leone uses many extreme long shots to reflect the seedy settings which his characters operate in (see below).
These films are also morality tales in the same way as westerns, as from the beginning of the film we know that they cannot continue to live like this. We know they will either end up being killed or in jail, but we cannot help but be sucked into their worlds. This is one of the major reasons why gangster crime dramas are so popular, because they are tales about morality and real people.
In most gangster crime dramas we see the success of the main character reflected in his material possessions. This is often made more dramatic by the fact that the character often starts with nothing, and then all of a sudden has great amounts of money, with which they buy cars and yachts.
Success is also shown through their success with women. In most films of the type we have women who become infatuated with the main character, and are often very loyal, not leaving their man for any reason. A good example of the use of women to represent the success of the main character is Public Enemies (Michael Mann, 2009). In this we see Marion Cotillard’s character become loyal, and stay loyal to the last to John Dillinger even landing herself in prison because she would not give up his location.
Gangsters, in films portrayed from their point of view, are often represented as victims of circumstance. This means that we often see them with little in the beginning and then they find a route out of their misery through organised crime. We will also often see society and the status quo of ordinary life as the antagonists in the films. The police in these films are therefore just the enforcers of the status quo.
In later Hollywood films of the genre, they have started to concentrate far more on the police investigating the gangsters. However this can often lead to many comparisons between those inside the law and those outside it, and we begin to realise how similar they really are.
Films of the genre are also often biographical. Most of the films in the genre are about, or representative of, the lives of many criminals. Whether the criminal is Al Capone, John Dillinger or Bonnie and Clyde, they have all had their lives turned into movies, whether it was as a straight portrayal of their lives or a loose adaption.
Gangster films contain lots of extreme violence, which reflects the anger of the men involved. The extreme violence is often a representation of their frustration at their place in the world, and could be seen as their way of crying out for attention in a world where they have nothing.
To conclude the gangster crime drama genre is successful because it is an urban western which focuses on the morality of criminals, and shows how they pull themselves up from having nothing to have many material goods. In my group’s project I will take all of these conventions and create a crime drama which would fit into contemporary Hollywood well.
Word count: 650
Friday, 25 September 2009
Initial Setup
For my Film Studies Coursework this year I am working in a group of three to create a sequence from a gangster crime drama. My group has been allocated roles:
- Sophie Thompson - Cinematographer
- Kate Mulligan - Editor
- Me - Director
We have also outlined the basic flow of the plot through the diagram below:
(Sorry about the quality)
This week I have also done some research into the conventions of gangster crime films. My findings are in a short essay which I handed in on Friday.
Next week our synopsis and part of, if not all of, the script should be finalised.
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