FILM ANALYSIS PAPER #2 (Version 2)
Comparative Analysis
Objective: To continue honing film analysis skills by comparing and contrasting two different films of the same mode.
Length: 4-6 pages, typed, double-spaced, 1 inch margins, 12 point font. STAPLED!
Where to start:
For this assignment, compare and contrast the ways in which formal techniques are used in sequences from two different films of the same mode. As always, you will concentrate on how these techniques produce meaning in similar and different ways between the films.
Start by choosing a film we’ve screened in class (except for the films from the first paper – The Wizard of Oz, Citizen Kane, and Jaws are off-limits). Then, choose a sequence of particular importance to that film, and analyze it carefully. As with your first paper, your focus should be on how this sequence contributes to the theme of the overall film and how formal techniques are used to convey meanings about characters, about the story, about ideology, etc. How does the film’s form contribute to our understanding of its content, i.e. the story?
Then, choose another film from that same mode – viewed on your own – for comparison. The second film can be any film of your choosing, as long as you have access to it and it is appropriate to the mode. Do the same with this film – choose a key sequence (keeping in mind how it might serve as a useful comparison to your first film), and analyze it carefully.
Once you have examined these films, choose two or three formal techniques that provide rich fodder for comparison between these two films. So, you can choose to look at cinematography, mise-en-scène, sound, editing, patterns, motifs, the film material, etc.
Objective:
The goal of the paper, then, is to identify points of similarity and points of difference between the films and, especially, to examine why these techniques produce similar or dissimilar results. Be sure to also discuss how the conventions of your chosen mode shape the kinds of techniques or concepts under discussion. Some (but certainly not all!) questions to consider are:
- Do these films use similar formal devices to produce different kinds of meaning? How?
- Do they use different formal devices to produce similar meanings?
- How similar/dissimilar are the techniques used? Does only a slight variation produce a radically different effect?
- What does a comparison of these two films teach us about the use of film form in conveying meaning?
Although you should assume that your reader is familiar with the films you write about, be sure to state clearly which films you are discussing (including the director’s name and year of release), provide an introduction that offers context for the subject of your paper, and a specific thesis statement – underlined!
Any outside research should be properly cited in-text and on an attached Works Cited page.
Rough drafts: If you need extra help, I will be happy to offer feedback on a rough draft of your paper (or any part of it), but you must turn it in to me a WEEK PRIOR to the due date (that’s November 17th).