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Design contexts essay

                                              Design contexts Essay

FLANDIN Alban

GIRARD Mihajlo

 SPOILER ALERT: Possible spoils about the following movies:

Deadpool, Very Bad Trip, Usual Suspects, The Lord of the Rings, Cloud Atlas, The Fountain, Interstellar, Arrival, Following, Memento, Mulholland Drive, Réalité, Sin city, Gone Girl

 Introduction

Most stories have always been told in a linear manner, be it in literature, cinema or storytelling in general. In essence, one way storytelling has always been the most logical choice since immemorial times, even during the first periods of humanity, for example, bards and poets would sing about knights’ stories from their birth to their exploits and finally their end. Stories would follow life’s course, that way they were easy to tell and easy to understand thus making them less confusing for the listeners and more captivating. Nowadays, these patterns are still used in today’s books and films but producers and writers become more and more keen to mixing up their storyline and making use of non-linear timelines to add complexity and originality to their works. Consequently, numerous processes regarding timeline manipulation became more and more popular like flashbacks, time travelling, etc… Certain producers go even further by making timeline manipulation become a major aspect of their stories itself. We will therefore seek to understand how the management of a film’s timeline can become a major aspect in its storyline and enhance the intrigue. In order to do so, we will first explain more in detail why the linear storytelling pattern is the one most widely used still to this day. We will then talk about the most commonly used ways of mixing up the timeline in one’s film and its impact on the story. Finally, we’ll see how some producers make the timeline become the major aspect of their scenario and the pros and cons it has in contrast to the classic way of telling a story.

 I – Classical timelines and chronological development of the storyline

Most films today use linear narration techniques meaning they try to display scenes in a chronological and natural order. They aim for a consistent and understandable experience in which the spectators can relate either to the characters or the action. This process adds a realistic dimension to the story as the characters’ lives are displayed chronologically, just like a normal human’s life would unwind. Aristotle was one of the first people to highlight the importance of a well-constructed story in his dramas, logically, a story must have well-defined beginning, to set-up the main plot, middle, to introduce the action and its climax and finally ending, where the problems faced by the characters are resolved. His theory is expanded upon by Gustave Freytag in 1883 who proposes a new model based on Aristotle’s, called the Freytag Pyramid in which the story generally follows a defined narrative plot comprised of 7 distinctive parts:

-          An Exposition phase, where the characters are introduced along their relations to each other, their motivations, goals as well as the context and environment they live in. Furthermore, the story displays what the main characters have to defend and what they have to loose.

  -          The Inciting Incident, where the main problems the characters are going to face are displayed as well as the beginning of their conflicts against the antagonists, if there are any.

 -          The Rising action, where the story builds up upon the conflicts and problems of the characters and the plot gets more exciting.

 -          The Climax, is the moment that the Rising action builds up too, the most intense part of the story.

 -          The Falling action then represents the events that happen after the climax that lead to the resolution and end of the story.

 -          The Resolution where the main problem or conflict is solved by either the main character or someone else.

 -          Finally, the Dénouement represents the end of the story where all the secrets, questions or mysteries which remained still after the resolution are solved.

 This narrative model implies implicitly a linear narrative approach to telling a story (The resolution of a problem should arise after it is evocated). It is used in most movies where the director doesn’t want his spectators to know more than the characters they are watching. This allows the film to keep the tension going through the whole action phase and captivate its audience with action rather than questioning. Now linear narration doesn’t necessarily mean non-complex story, even though a lot of films nowadays use this kind of pattern to concentrate on other aspects. We can see it very clearly in most blockbusters today where directors trade story complexity in order to focus on making the action scenes look more interesting and impressive with the use of special effects and such ( Yes we are looking at you Michael Bay).  In the end, the linear way seems like the most logical choice for a film producer to tell a story easily. But cinema is not only used as a way to tell a story but make the spectator experience something new and original, even though some producers manage very well to make use of linear narration to produce complex and engaging stories, some take the liberty to apply to their stories more thought out narrative outline to bring the spectators into their own world with their own crafted codes and make Cinema shine artistically.

We will now see the most used means of breaking linearity in Cinema today in the second part of our essay.

  II – The common tools used to make non-linear timelines

One of the retrospective tools most used in Cinema today is the flashback. It allows the film to communicate important information that had not been previously revealed during the story and eventually fill story gaps and questions the viewers could have asked themselves. It can also be used as a mean to make the viewers understand a character’s actions, be it the protagonist or the antagonist, by showing elements of their past that can explain their behavior or emotions. There are mainly two types of flashbacks, the objective flashback that shows something that happened in the past without the characters necessarily mentioning anything about it. It gives the viewers information that even some of the characters may not have themselves, In Gone Girl (David Fincher) a flashback explains why the wife of the main character has disappeared while he himself is ignorant as to the reasons why. Then there is the subjective flashback, which doesn’t really break the story’s course as it is mainly following one of the character’s point of view, it is sometimes used to back-up talk with images, when one of the characters is telling his story for example. There is a good example in the hateful eight, when the character played by Samuel L. Jackson explains to another one how he killed his son.  In this case the flashback is often used by producers to respect one of the main principals of Cinema, the “Show and don’t tell” as a linear dialogue would be way less engaging for the viewers. It is part of one of the cinema’s paradox, to avoid talk shows as much as possible and focus on what can be shown to the viewers and what can be explained to him without too much dialogue. It gives importance to certain aspects of the characters or the story and it lifts a problem we can have with linear narration that makes it hard to give consistency to the story and keep the viewers interested as everything is revealed from the get go. Either way, the flashback in general is a powerful tool to break storyline linearity as it allows some parts of the story to remain untold and create narrative gaps that will keep the viewers questioning until said information is revealed. It gives a realistic feel to the characters’ lives not in regards to how it would unfold but how it would be felt with its proper emotions, memories and marking events. Even though the flashback is a tool used by producers to break storyline linearity and put emphasis on certain aspects of the story, there are also other processes like ellipsis that settle only on focusing on important parts of the plot while keeping its order.

Certain movies resort to flashbacks as the main way to tell their stories:

-          “Deadpool” in essence has a very basic plot in its present form and relies mainly on flashbacks to explain the hero’s story and how he got to the point he is now.

 -          “Very Bad Trip”, where the main goal of the characters is to find out what happened to them the night before their hangover, mainly by flashbacks triggered by videos of themselves or testimonies from people that were there.

 -          “Usual Suspects” makes use of flashbacks to illustrate the testimony of the main character to the police (Even if we learn at the end that what he says didn’t really happen).

The main limit of the flashback process is that you can make the film confusing for the viewers by making them loose the notion of the timeline or story order, thus flashbacks need to be correctly delimited in the story and carefully inserted with the use of special effects and such.

There are other basic tools that are used to make the intrigue less linear, in the same vein as the flashback we have the flash-forward that shows elements of the future that are bound to happen eventually. It can be presented either as a prophetic vision or an alternative future. It can give sense to the character’s actions by showing what they have to aim for or what they have to prevent from happening and display clearly what is at stake for the viewers to see. In “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring”, the queen of the elves shows to the main character what will happen if he fails his quest to destroy the ring of Sauron.

Even though these processes break the linearity of the storyline of the movies in which they are used, the movie still keeps its linear construction. So in our third part we will see some examples of movies where the non-linearity of the timeline is one of the major aspects of the plot, which is sometimes even entirely constructed around it.

 III – The timeline as a major part of the scenario

We will now talk about films based around a nonlinear construction. Certain movies choose to show multiple characters evolving in different eras by either by following a linear construction like in “2001, A Space Odyssey” where each story is showed completely before the movie transitions to the next, more recent one. In contrast, in “Cloud Atlas”, the directors tell six different stories in different ages and alternate scenes of each one of the stories. The plot bounces between timelines just like in “The Fountain” (Aronofsky) even though we can imagine that some of the stories are only symbolic and do not really happen, just like the part in the future. This way of telling the story brings dynamism into the movie and draws close to the TV shows’ ways of teasing what will happen next, a lot of scenes just end up on at a point in the story that leaves us wanting to see more (Especially in Cloud Atlas).  To a lesser extent we can also talk about “Sin City” where many different stories are told and even though they happen at the same time, each one is shown separately and the movie goes back in time when a new story begins.

In certain movies, timeline manipulation appears like a consequence of the plot itself. In “Edge of tomorrow”, the main character is thrown into a time loop and comes back to the beginning every time he dies while keeping his memories, desperately trying each time to fix the mistakes that led to his death. By doing this, the movie scrambles the viewer’s expectations as in essence, the main character could end up doing the same things over and over again. This lets the producer try to impress the viewer and renew his experience with the same scenes but with different outcomes.

In “Interstellar” the timeline mainly follows the law of physics, as an example when the main characters arrive on a planet where gravity is really strong, time flies by more “slowly” than the people that had stayed far away from the planet. The most interesting thing we can talk about the timeline of this film is when the character of McConaughey goes into the black hole and becomes able to interact with objects of the past. By doing that, the character transcends time and tries to influence his past self not to become his present one. Here too, the timeline creates a story loop which links the beginning and end of the story, more or less like in “Back to the Future”.

On some other films, there is only one story and nothing in the scenario would justify a non-linear narration in itself. But it’s the producer’s choice to just tell his story in another way, in Arrival, Denis Villeneuve tries to trick his audience by showing what appears to be flashbacks but is in reality flash-forwards revealing that the main character had in reality visions about the future making her face difficult decisions. Sometimes, timeline manipulation is an integral part of the intrigue of the movie, for instance, in “Following” by Nolan, the story of the main character is told originally, scenes from three different periods in his life are mixed up together and put end to end to form a confusing puzzle that the viewer has to resolve. The viewer can differentiate each periods of the character’s life by looking at his face: he first has long hair, then short hair and a beaten up face on the last part. It gives a disconcerting feeling to the viewer during the movie and finally a sense of accomplishment when the pieces of the puzzle are put together. It is also the case for “Memento”, by the same director, it is the story of a guy that lost his short term memory due to a rare condition of amnesia. To bring the character closer to the viewers, the film is constructed upside down, each scene ends where the previous one began. By doing that the viewer, just like the amnesic character, does not know what has happened before. In consequence, the director creates complicity with his viewers and totally changes the classical stakes of the usual movie, here the story begins with the main character killing someone and the whole interest of the movie is to show the steps that led him to doing that. As we said before, using this process can give a feeling of accomplishment to the viewer when he finally solves the puzzle, but this narration can also be used to create a confusing experience where plenty of interpretations are possible, just like in “Mulholland Drive” by David Lynch, where the movie is divided in two parts, one where the character played by Laura Elena Harring (Camilla Rhodes) is with Betty the other where she is with(Played by Naomi Watts) and Diane (Naomi Watts too). Many interpretations are possible about what the signification of each part is. This confusing effect is even more present in “Réalité” by Dupieux: this film tells a story where there is, in the beginning, a big border between two timelines, dream and reality but the more the story goes, the more the border becomes thinner between each timeline, to the point that we can’t distinguish whether the scene is a dream or reality. To conclude, the manipulation of the timeline in an intentional way can really create an original and unique experience for the viewer, furthermore, if the process is well done it can enhance the intrigue.

    Conclusion

 We’ve seen why linear narration has always been so popular being the easiest way to tell a story without losing the viewers and letting the director focus on other part of his film even though it has its limits. To face them, a lot of movies nowadays began using “classic” tools and processes that could allow them to mix up their storyline and timeline such as flashbacks and flash-forwards as we have seen. Finally, some directors decided to produce movies that embraced timeline manipulation fully and make it an integral part of the storyline to add originality to their films and make their viewers experience new emotions and discover a new way of entertainment by trying to decipher the true meaning of the story.

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Sin City 2 Critique

                                                       Critique 2

                                             Sin City: A dame to kill for

GIRARD Mihajlo

In this critique I will talk about the second iteration of the Sin City movie series, Sin City: A dame to kill for which was produced by Robert Rodriguez and arrived in cinemas on the 17th of September 2014.

Just like the first film, “A dame to kill for” follows the story of three different characters in the most wretched and corrupted city of America, Basin City.  Each of the characters get their own sequences following their own story which are transitioned between using jump-cuts. Most of the time, their respective scenes have no real relation to the other characters’; hence why the producer transitions between them quite quickly. These stories mainly take place before the events of the first movie and we’re happy to see old faces as well as brand new characters.

In fact, two of the three stories are centered on brand new characters, and there lies the main problem of the film. If the “principal” segment A dame to kill for is masterfully narrated and gives us the same vibe as the first movie, the other two stories are sadly not as striking. The reason is they do not have time to really express themselves, the film being centered mostly on the main plot, the other two characters are not developed well enough and their story does not show them off as the strong, punchline – delivering characters you weld expect from Sin City. The strong point of the first film was developing each anti-hero character to the maxima and giving him time to shine thus renewing the interest of the plot each time you would switch from a character to another. In the end the second movie decided to focus mainly on the central plot and apart from the characters we already knew from the first one, there isn’t much interest to be put in the other parts of the scenario.

To elaborate on the heart of the film, “A dame to kill for”, its scenario takes up the original comic really well and it almost follows it square by square and is really well represented on screen. It takes you nine years back, with striking dialogues, strong characters like Marv (Mickey Rourque), an interesting intrigue that flows without problem with the help of a well thought out mise-en-scène and backed up by a skillfully designed background music. The producer still exploits his previous work on the colors in this movie which worked incredibly well in the past and is still pleasant to see to this day. Furthermore, some anecdotic scenes from the comic were further developed here, giving some value to the secondary characters. In the end, this sequence really portrays the vice and depravity of Sin City and plunges the viewers in its darkness.

Now the main story makes up for more than the half of the movie. With this, the other two stories feel like they didn’t have enough time to express themselves and feel anecdotic. The part following Johnny (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is still surprising and pleasant at times while the other one following Nancy (Jessica Alba) gives off a non-polished and rushed vibe. In the end, it feels like these two stories where made only to make the movie last longer and it could have well went on without them.

Technique-wise, this movie stays true to the previous iteration. There is a dominance of black and white which contrasts with the apparition of more striking colors at times such as red mainly used for blood. The comic-like look has been pushed to the extreme in each scene with low-key lighting which suits the movie really well and gives it an immersive dimension. Overall the movie is really violent, just like the previous one, and it almost feels like violence has been rendered cartoony and “fun”. So much that some of the most frightening scenes of the first Sin City have been completely replaced to give a cooler aspect to the film. An artistic choice that kind of takes off some identity of the series as the city is depicted less like a permanent danger where violence reigns and the weak are crushed by the strongest.

Overall, Sin City: A Dame to kill for is not a bad movie per se, but I’d recommend it more to the fans of the comics. It’s hard to not appreciate the way some characters evolve in this shady and dirty environment but some sequences feel out of place and if you’ve never read one of the comics or watched the first film you’ll quickly get lost in its quite hectic timeline. Furthermore the rhythm of the main plot is cut away by the other less pleasant stories which creates a kind of confusing pattern for the viewers.

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Dark souls 3 Critique

                                                     Critique 1

                                                    Dark souls 3

GIRARD Mihajlo

 Dark souls 3 is a game made by From Software that was released for PC, Xbox ONE and PS4 on the 26th of April 2016.

I will begin this critique by resuming the plot of the first Dark Souls so it is easier to understand this one’s.

The main plot of the Dark Souls series is quite difficult to grasp but could be resumed like this: humanity and all that lives is allowed to exist thanks to the light brought by what is called the “First Flame” that burns deep within the depths of the earth in the “Primal Bonfire”. Every now and then the fire starts to fade giving a chane to the forces of Darkness to try to bring forth the Apocalypse and an end the Age of Fire (light). In order to prevent this from happening, powerful warriors become known as “the Lords of Cinders”, charged in protecting and rekindling the “Primal Bonfire” by giving away their lives to the flame. To renew this process every time the fire starts to fade, random humans are marked with the “Curse of Undeath” and the most powerful ones become Lords of Cinders.

Dark souls 3 takes place in the Kingdom of Lothric, the central convergence point of all the Lords of Cinders, this time the Lords of Cinders have decided that rekindling the flame once more would be futile and that they want to give way to the age of darkness. You take control of an Unkindled Undead, made of ashen remains and considered to be even less a being than a normal Undead. Your goal is to beat some sense into the retired Lords of Cinders in order to put them back on their thrones and make them rekindle the fading flame once more.

The first striking thing about Dark Souls 3 is its Medieval/Dark Fantasy ambience. Just after arriving on the main menu, you are welcomed by one of the best musical themes in the Souls series, and that only tells you of what is to come in the game. The beginning is classic, you wake up from death in a dark and foggy cemetery only to be welcomed by other undead gone mad that want you dead, again. It is only the beginning, but already the game gives you a taste of its incredible landscapes and atmosphere and faces you against a memorable first boss to test your nerves and your skills, there is no doubt, this IS Dark Souls! After discovering Fire link shrine (The place that plays the role of the “Hideout” in Dark souls 3 and is central to the story), you are sent out on your own to face the harsh world of the game. Now this might be a problem to players new to the franchise because unlike other games, the Dark Souls series gives you no indication of what you are to do whatsoever and it is easy to lose oneself amidst the game’s immense world but you quickly get accustomed to the great level design and it should be no problem navigating after having played for a while. Throughout the whole game we can sense the inspiration this last opus has taken from the previous iterations of the series and while the environments keeps this epic “Dark Souls” feeling while giving off a certain nostalgic vibe, it is nonetheless completely unique and in no way do we end up feeling like it is a “Déja vu” copy of the previous games. It is a pleasure to explore the world of the game and find its secrets in meticulously crafted zones, populated by savage and brutal monsters ready to kill you in two hits. Furthermore almost none of the bosses feel like they shouldn’t have been there, and apart from some exceptions each have their unique traits and challenges that should keep you occupied for some time.

NPCs have been really worked on this time around and most of them are not there only to fill some kind of role before disappearing, each one has its own story and you will encounter them multiple times through the game with new dialogue, sometimes based on your previous actions. Some will reveal you more about their life and others will slowly fade to madness resolute to bring you with them.

Gameplay-wise the game is similar to the other Dark Souls game, third person view with a wide range of weapon choice, from axes to great swords, crossbows and even magic, fueled by a mana bar, that you will have to loot throughout the game. It stays true to the series’ mechanics without bringing much innovation which is a bit of a shame but seeing as how everything already worked so well in the previous games it is still fine. We still find the same RPG elements with character customization and Stats that you will have to level up by killing enemies and obtaining Souls (The XP of the game). Factions that you can join are present as well even though they act as the main Multiplayer Component this time around. They allow player either to help each other or enter into fierce PVP battles to gain specific rewards depending on the faction the player swore allegiance to. Finally the difficulty of the game, that which the series is known for, is more forgiving this time around, rather than having an insurmountable wall from the beginning the game ramps up the difficulty as you progress and it is more accessible for new players. Now don’t get me wrong, the game is still really difficult at times and has, without a doubt, left many a controller shattered in pieces.

Graphics-wise the game is really beautiful and uses mostly high-res textures, beautiful magical effects and is really well optimized. Loading times are short in general and the fluidity of the game and the transitions is appreciated. Some zones that are not accessible to the player get really low res textures though which would be completely fine if they weren’t displayed in plain sight which can sometimes ruin immersion but it’s a minor detail anyways and doesn’t really impact your ability to enjoy the game.

As you may have understood already, I am a huge fan of the Dark Souls series and find little to be criticized in Dark souls 3. Even though some problems may arise during the game and you may find some not so good bosses and background musics, as a wholesome experience, this iteration may well be the best of the series in my opinion. The accent has been put on making the player feel nostalgia and making him understand that this game is the last Dark Souls, and what a conclusion it is! Whether it be the general ambience of the game, the musics, the bosses, the gameplay, the environment, everything has been worked on meticulously and From Software has brought a masterful end to the saga that will keep you occupied for hours and asking for more, unfortunately.

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