Tom's Film Blog

City Of God conveys the themes of chaos and anarchy in the favella to the audience through cinematography, mise-en-scene, sound and editing. This shown in the opening scene where the gang is chasing after the chicken. For example, the first thing we see in the film is a knife being sharpened against a stone. Knives are typically dangerous objects and because it is being sharpened against a stone, it depicts somewhat of a barbaric lifestyle: this is foreshadowing the barbaric lifestyle Lil Z leads and by proxy, enforces upon his gang. This immediately creates tension and makes the audience unsure of the characters. The tension is reinforced through the editing, with the almost whiplash inducing, flashing cuts between the knife and the black screen, once again creating a sense of urgency.  Furthermore this shown when the scene reveals itself to be a cookout with the gang. Normally a cookout would be a scene that is fun, calm and familiar; but this subverted through the tight camera a...

  How are the ideological themes in your chosen films resolved? In this essay i will display how the themes of my two chosen films have been conveyed in vivid and suspenseful scenes, using various elements of film form and is ultimately resolved by the end. My first film is Shaun Of The Dead which showcases the theme of responsibility and growth. This is depicted through the character of Shaun, who at the beginning of the film is selfish, ignorant and has no consideration for other's lives but through his trials and tribulations, evolves and starts to be responsible. His growth is climaxed in the final act of the film when Shaun and the others are in the pub and find out that his Mum has been bitten. When this happens, the film's tone becomes more mature and intense: there's a lot of death and more complex decisions for each of them (should I kill my mum, should I let them go). This is representing the apex of Shaun's growth, he needs to make a decision for the greater ...