Fallen Angels: Ending Notes

Auteur Signature Film Form: 

  • Use of pop song – not used ironically
  • Step printing 
  • Roaming camera movement 
  • High key lighting 
  • Bold contrasting colours
  • Time manipulation 

 

Experimental Use of Film Form: 

  • Phasing/tinny sound 
  • Wide angle lens and use of close up – deep depth of field (distance, connection, loneliness) – realist approach to filmmaking normally, but not in this movie, it’s jarring, the film is jarring and doesn’t look real, but uses this to create and explore recognisable feelings 
  • Harsh lighting 
  • Close up camera 
  • Ennui – a feeling of listlessness and dissatisfaction arising from a lack of occupation or excitement.

 

Experimental Narrative Devices/Narrative Construction: 

  • Use of big star, but they only speak through voice over – use of V/O instead of dialogue 
  • Not about character motivation (or is it?) or development, but their feelings (link with themes) – why does the fight start??
  • Open endedness (or is it?) – no resolutions to any of the categories – maybe 
  • Cinematic time and space isn’t ordinary – ellipsis, parallel timelines – film as a whole 

 

Auteur Narrative Style and Themes: 

  • Connection (‘and we never connect’ V/O)
  • Love
  • Loneliness
  • Identity e.g. uniform (air hostess – also in Chungking Express) 

 

Auteur Signature as Experimental Process: 

  • Film without finished scripts
  • Third part if Chungking Express – aesthetically similar 

 

Auteur Signature and Meaning Making/Themes: 

  • Connection 
  • Love 
  • Loneliness
  • Identity 

Fallen Angels: Videoing Dad Scene Notes

 

Auteur Signature Film Form: 

  • Pop music
  • Reflection of father and son in bed (off mirror) 

 

Experimental Use of Film Form: 

  • Functional lighting e.g. light on the dad when sleeping  is seemingly unmotivated 
  • Phasing/tinny noise
  • Allowing the actor to dictate cinematography – authenticity 
  • Cinematography links to feelings 
  • Glitch in the video tape – authenticity 
  • Un-flattering camera angles – authenticity 
  • Deep focus – separated by wall, but together 

 

Experimental Narrative Devices/Narrative Construction: 

  • Non=professional actor (dad) – authenticity 
  • Not about character development/motivation – or is it?
  • Minimal cause and effect 

 

Auteur Signature as Experimental Process: 

  • Improv and unfinished scripts 

 

Auteur Signature and Meaning Making/Themes:

  • Theme of connection 
  • Nostalgia (music, home footage – pixels, camcorder), yellow – warmth 

 

Fallen Angels: Assassination Scene Notes

 Auteur Signature Film Form: 

  • Hong Kong cityscape
  • Dynamic editing – jump cuts
  • Reflections – rain on the streets
  • Pop song creating certain feeling (not romantic)
  • Step printing 
  • Extreme wide angle lens
  • CU of his feet waiting 
  • Jump cuts during the assassination 

 

Experimental Use of Film Form: 

  • Time manipulation – slow motion of unnamed assassin
  • Blood on the lens 
  • Wide angle lens 
  • Phasing sound (tinny)
  • Shower curtain divides the room and matches lipstick of the partner 

 

Experimental Narrative Devices/Narrative Construction:

  • No explanation of why he kills them – feeling not plot (narrative)

Fallen Angels: Opening Notes

 

Auteur Signature Film Form: 

  • Close up – contrast of foreground and background 
  • Black and white 
  • Dynamic editing – breaks 180 degree rule, jump cuts, not continuous 
  • Mirror 
  • Off-beat camera angles
  • Wide angle lens
  • Voice over
  • Editing – repetition – they both go to the same places, him in the station is edited the same as her 
  • All at night time 
  • High contrast, black and white, no explanation – this happened at a different time 
  • Harsh, functional lighting 
  • High contrast, extreme wide angle lens, depth of field 
  • Functional lighting e.g. lamp 
  • Close (house), city/outside is faraway – binary opposition and disconnected theme 

 

Experimental use of Film Form: 

  • Wide angle lens – unflattering 
  • Sound – phasing (tinny) and sonic perspective isn’t right? E.g. train far away sounds close 
  • Sped up train and plant shot – establishing shot, sense of emptiness 
  • Foley of police car when we don’t actually see (binary opposition of criminals and cops?)

 

Experimental Narrative Devices/Narrative Construction: 

  • No explanation of these characters relationship 
  • Not about plot but feelings 

 

Auteur Narrative Style and Themes: 

  • Loneliness – pager – can’t reply 
  • Not about plot, but feelings 

 

Auteur Signature as Experimental Process:

  • Use of big star, but he doesn’t let him speak (apart from voice over, which is in the opening)

 

Auteur Signature and Meaning Making/Themes: 

  • Narrative repetition – explores characters relationship 

 

Fallen Angels: General/Overview Notes

Auteur Signature Film Form: 

  • Rain – brings characters together
  • Mirrors
  • Use of colour, contrast of bold colours – doesn’t use colour theory 
  • Pop songs – romantic not ironic 
  • Step printing – alienates character 
  • Hong Kong cityscape, neon, night 
  • Wide lens and close up (?)
  • High key, functional lighting 
  • Unfinished scripts 
  • Dynamic editing 
  • Ignores narrative form 

 

Experimental use of Film Form: 

  • Wide lens 
  • Time manipulation – fast motion, slow motion, step printing, freeze frame 
  • High key lighting 

 

Experimental Narrative Devices/Narrative Construction: 

  • Ignores narrative form 
  • Unfinished scripts
  • Lack of exposition 
  • No closed endings 
  • No explanation of motivations 
  • Ecliptic 

 

Auteur Narrative Style and Themes: 

  • Crossing paths (characters)
  • Loneliness
  • Love
  • Narrative – feeling not plot 
  • Not standard narrative/structure – feeling not plot, circling, ecliptic 

 

Auteur Signature as Experimental: 

  • Wide lens (and close up)
  • Unfinished scripts
  • Use of same actors
  • Getting main actor, who’s a big star, to not speak 
  • Amateur actors (the dad)

 

Auteur Signature and Meaning Making/Themes: 

  • Alienated characters
  • Loneliness 
  • Love 
  • Mirrors – shows internal climate of his characters 

Strike: Ending Notes

Expressive Elements: 

  • High contrast, high key, close up of their hands
  • Knife – violence 
  • Tilts up – see people and people on horses – silhouetted (?)
  • Editing of the falling child, long duration shot of them on the ground – no reaction shot 
  • Crowd movement , fast paced editing – chaos (tonal montage- feelings)
  • Sped up film (like middle) 
  • “Sea” of dead bodies 
  • Children fighting emphasises the innocence of the people 
  • Cross fade to the man behind the event – like he’s devouring the people
  • Editing – high cutting rate – he hits them, table shakes, ink spills over where the workers live (violence and blood) – puts his hand on the ink (like blood is on his hand)
  • Montage – cow (graphic) and people – symbolism, working class, treated like cattle 
  • Pan – shows extent of the devastation
  • Breaks 180 degree rule – chaotic 

 

Visual Representation of Sound: 

  • Title cards 
  • Expressive performances e.g. the laughing 
  • Chaos of the crowd

 

Extent and Limits of Verisimilitude: 

  • Black and white – changes the way we view the film 
  • Non-professional actors
  • Pessimistic ending – ignites anger – propaganda

 

Positioning and Address  of the Viewer: 

  • Positioned within the crowd
  • Looking up at the people on horses
  • CU of eyes looking at the camera
  • Directly addressed at the end – writing 

 

Context and Messages: 

  • Propaganda- focusing on the time it was made, not the past 
  • Only one meaning that cannot be interpreted in a different way  (cow and people symbolism) as it’s a propaganda film (need to get the message right)    

 

Narrative Devices and Structure: 

  • Part of ‘Part 6’
  • Pessimistic ending 
  • No protagonist – strength together, links in with the propaganda throughout the film (e.g. Lenin quote)

 

Strike: Middle Sequence (Police on Horseback) Notes

Expressive Elements:

  • Dialogue shown as text on screen
  • Expressive shadows – light tracks man in corridor (neo-classical architecture – shows power)
  • Exaggerated performances 
  • Harsh directional lighting 
  • Juxtaposition of men making drinks and squeezing the lemon while workers get harassed/abused
  • Squeezing of the lemon is symbolic of crushing the revolution (editing) – menacing expression when squashing the fruit, then cutting to the horses and people on the ground – his power is why the people are being harassed 
  • Police on horses – literally and metaphorically are higher and have more power
  • Horses and police come over the hill
  • Didn’t run away/disperse – unity is power 
  • CU lemon shot 
  • CU of wc man with men – laughs at the note 

 

Visual Representation of Sound: 

  • Dialogue shown as text on screen – expresses what characters are like e.g. ‘clean it up’ 

 

Extent and Limits of Verisimilitude:

  • Black and white
  • Realism – naturalistic setting 

 

Positioning and Address of Viewer: 

  • Text on screen (e.g. when they pick up the paper, and it tells you it’s the demands and after he’s wiped his feet with it the text creates the idea of what they think of the working class)  (‘considered…care’ – ironic)
  • We’re in the crowd, eye-level, in position with them
  • Directly addressed – fruit guy looks at us, directly lit – evil, villains expression 

 

Context and Messages: 

  • Unity of workers – propaganda 
  • Wipes feet with the needs  of the working class – power dynamic 
  • Power of the men – menacing expression when squashing the fruit, then cutting to the horses and people on the ground – his power is why the people are being harassed 

 

Narrative Devices and Structure: 

  • Large ensemble cast – targeting the masses, telling us we’re a group, should be 
  • No character names, just functions (bar the spy names)