Understanding Movies

by Giannetti, Louis

• ISBN13: 9780132336994
• ISBN10: 0132336995
• Edition: 11th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-01-01
• Publisher: Prentice Hall

Summary

Helps readers understand how the many languages of film work together to create meaning.Louis Giannetti organizesUnderstanding Moviesaround the key elements of filmmaking, including cintematography, Mise en Scegrave;ne, movement, editing, sound, acting, drama, casting, story, screenwriting, ideology, and theory. He synthesizes every element through a complete case study:Citizen Kane. This book's ideas are illuminated with hundreds of high-quality still photos, more than 70 in full color, taken from movies such asThe Matrix, Almost Famous, jackass the movie, Chicago, Lord of the Rings, Mystic River, and Traffic . New in this edition: a full section on contemporary special effects and computer generated imagery (CGI); up-to-the-minute information on new developments in film technology; more coverage of recent films and filmmakers; more ethnic diversity (including new material on the Islamic cinema); and more lavish use of color and high-quality paper. An updated Companion Website contains animations, video clips from interviews with movie professionals, and Research Navigator access toNew York Timesfilm reviews.For everyone who wants to understand the artistry and meaning of the movies.

Table of Contents

Preface

Photography: Overview

Realism and Formalism

The Shots

The Angles

Light and Dark

Color

Lenses, Filters, and Stocks

Special Effects

The Cinematographer

Further reading

Mise En Scne: Overview

The Frame

Composition and Design

Territorial Space

Proxemic Patters

Open and Closed Forms

Further Reading

Movement: Overview

Kinetics

The Moving Camera

Mechanical Distortions of Movement

Further Reading

Editing: Overview

Continuity

D.W. Griffith and Classical Cutting

Soviet Montage and the Formalist Tradition

Andre Bazin and the Tradition of Realism

Hitchcock's North by Northwest:Storyboard Version

Further Reading

Sound: Overview

Historical Background

Sound Effects

Music

Musicals

Spoken Language

Further Reading

Acting: Overview

Stage and Screen Acting

The American Star System

Styles of Acting

Casting

Further Reading

Drama: Overview

Time, Space, Language

The Director

Settings and DFcor

Costumes and Makeup

Further Reading

Story: Overview

Narration

The Spectator

The Classical Paradigm

Realistic Narratives

Formalist Narratives

Nonfiction Narratives

Genre and Myth

Further Reading

WRITING

Overview

The Screenwriter

The Screenplay

North by Northwest: Reading Version

Figurative Comparisons

Point of View

Literary Adaptations

Further Reading

IDEOLOGY: Overview

The-Left-Center-Right Model

Culture, Religion, and Ethnicity

Feminism

Queer Cinema

Tone

Further Reading

Critique: Overview

Theories of Realism

Formalist Film Theories

The Auteur Theory

Eclectic and Synthesizing Approaches

Structuralism and Semiology

Historiography

Further Reading

Synthesis: Citizen Kane: Overview

Photography

Mise en ScTne

Movement

Editing

Sound

Acting

Drama

Story

Writing

Ideology

Critique

Further Reading

Glossary

Index

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