Vladimir Propp's Theory of Narrative

Vladimir Propp developed a theory of characters which can be proved in a number of narratives.

Propp's 7 structural characters are:

• The Hero - Reacts to the donor, weds the heroine.
• The Villain - struggles against the hero.
• The Donor - Provides the hero with essential objects.
• The Helper - Someone who assists the hero.
• The Heroine - May act as a prize for the hero.
• The Dispatcher - The person who sent the hero on a mission.
• The False Hero - A deceptive character.

The Walking Dead Example

Propp's theory can still be proved by modern TV and film.

• The Hero is Rick Grimes who risks his life in order to find his family. He takes control and try to keep his group of people safe.

• The Villain's are the zombies who persistently try to kill and eat the people.

• The Donor is Morgan who finds Rick and provides him with the information on the zombie apocalypse.

• The Helper is Glen. Glen saved Ricks life and then unknowingly led him back to his lost family.

• The Heroine is his wife Lori who he manages to find again.

• The Dispatcher is the event itself. The zombie apocalypse causes Rick to search for safety and his family.

• The False Hero is Shane. At first the audience believes that Shane is a hero as he saves Ricks family whilst Rick is in a coma. But we realise he's not as heroic when he raises a gun to his supposed 'best friend' Rick.

Tzvetan Todorov's Theory of Narrative

Tzetan Todorov proposed that stories and films start with an equilibrium, then they go through a disruption.

The disruption is then resolved so it ends with everything being in a restored order. It will then end with a new equilibrium.

This theory can be proved trough a number of films, one of which is 'Toy Story'.

In Toy Story the beginning is a equilibrium, even though Woody is favoured by Andy all the toys are friends and equally played with.

A disruption occurs when Andy gets a new toy for his birthday, Buzz Lightyear, Andy then favours him and all the toys become jealous, especially Woody.

The resolution occurs when Woody and Buzz decide to work as a team to get home, they both realise that they need to be in the car with Andy rather than lost on the streets.

We see the restored order when all the toys are in the moving van and happy around eachother.

The film ends with all the toys being played with in Andys new house, its a new equilibrium.

Different Genres

Action

Films in the action genre will usually include high energy scenes (like fights, escapes or car-chases). An example of this is 'Thor: The Dark World' and 'The Hunger Games'. Both of these films are high-budget and include fights or battles, all these aspects fit into the action genre.

Adventure

Adventure films are a lot like action films as some movies can fit both genres. Like 'Thor: The Dark World' can also fit into the adventure genre. Adventure films are usually exciting stories. Another film that fits this genre is Monster University.

Comedy

Comedies are used to introduce laughter. Films which fall under this genre will contain a lot of comical events. This type of film is likely to mix with other genres, romantic comedies and comic horror for example. An example of this is "We're The Millers", which is about a drug dealer who gets certain people to pretend to be his family in order to succeed in drug smuggling.

Crime

From the genre title it's fairly obvious that Crime films include crime. These may have been committed in the past or present times. Films in this genre can often be linked to 'Action' and 'Adventure' films.

'Dispicable Me: 2' is a child-friendly example of this. In this film Gru and his minions are on a mission to save the world.

Fantasy

Magic or supernatural powers are often present in fantasy films, these are used rather than technological abilities. Examples of fantasy films can be shown in the form of the Harry Potter series, in which witches and wizards have to fight the dark magic attacking them.

Historical

An example of a historical film is 'Schindlers List' which is about the concentration camps set up by Hitler. Films which fall under this genre are factual and tell stories from the past, these are usually significant points in time.

Horror
Horror films create tension and are used to frighten the audience. These films can also be linked to the comedy genre (for example 'Zombieland' and 'Shaun of the Dead'). Films like 'Jaws' are supposed to make the watchers jump and scare them.

Mystery
'The Others' and 'Hot Fuzz' are examples of mystery films. Movies put in this genre often creates a unknowing tension. It's usually the end of the film which uncovers vital information to make everything more understood.

Romance
Films like 'Perks of Being a Wallflower' fall into the romance genre. 'Perks' is about a boy who's had a hard life (abused as a child, best friend committing suicide), but then he meets Sam and falls in love with her. Romance films are usually about two people falling in love.

Sci-Fi
Sci-Fi films usually show fiction fantasies which can't be applied to real life. 'The Worlds End' shows this.. In this film a group of old friends go on a pub crawl but end up fighting of being turned into inky-monstery things. The generic sci-fi film would include extra-terrestrial species,space-crafts and time travel.

Thriller
Films in this genre will often create a feeling of suspense, tension and excitements. These tend to produce a lot of adrenaline. One film which follow these factors is 'The Hunger Games: Catching Fire', in this film the tributes are faced with life-threatening factors such as poisonous gas and dangerous monkeys.

War

War films, obvious from the title, are usually based on warfare. They are often historical or fictional. A few films which fall under this title are 'Saving Private Ryan' and '300'.

Western

Usually based on stories from American Old West in the late 19th Century, most western films portray the conquest over the wild. Films which are in this genre include 'The Lone Ranger' and 'Django Unchained'.

Although there are many more film genres i believe these ones to be the most popular and therefore more important to understand.

Run Lola Run

Plot: Run Lola Run is about a young woman in Germany who has twenty minutes to find and bring 100,000 Deutschmarks to her boyfriend before he robs a supermarket.

Question: What is the meaning of Lola's screams? Especially the third?

Scream 1: (9:26) The first scream takes place at Lola's flat. It happens when she discovers Manni is in trouble. He says to her "you can't do a thing". We assume that Lola screams to make Manni be quiet and to stop stressing out. 
As her scream increases in volume the camera zooms in on her and the phone. The phone is centre shot which tells us that it is the cause of her distress.
We also see that when she screams she shatters all the glass in the shot other than the bottle closest to her. This is showing us that the things closest to her she tries to keep safe (like Manni, for example).
As she screams a tortoise/turtle walks past her feet, this can be shown to contrast how fast Lola is going to have to be.

Scream 2:(21:12) The next scream takes place in her fathers office after he says that is doesn't matter if Manni dies. The purpose of this film is to silence her father as she doesn't like what is being said. During her scream the glass clock in the background smashes, this insinuates that she is running out of time.

Scream 3:(1:07:38) The final scream takes place in a casino, the purpose of this scream is to increase her luck during the game of roulette. She understands that if she doesn't win the money her life with Manni will be over. Her scream increase in volume until the ball finally stops on her number.
The same theme happens in this scene: the glass in the background smashes but the glasses a man in front of her is wearing remain intact.

Question: Why are all of the scenes with Lola's father shot in video rather than 35mm film?

Money theme: 35mm film is a more expensive method of recording as Lola and Manni are recorded in it we can see that this is done to show the contrast between the amount of money they originally needed and the amount of money they now have within the film.
Video is a cheaper method which can be linked to the fact that Lola's dad refused to give her money. The cheaper recording scheme can be used to contrast his lack of financial help.
The money theme represents the story line.

Quality: 35mm has a higher definition than video, its is also used to show the main characters (Lola and Manni) this could have been done to show the importance of each person in her life.

Video holds a worse recording quality, the characters recorded in this definition are less important to Lola.

Mise En Scene Analysis #3 - Orphan Black

I will now analyse a shot from BBC America's 'Orphan Black'.

I have chosen to analyse the shot below.

Orphan Black synopsis (IMDB) - 'After witnessing a woman's suicide, Sarah assumes the stranger's identity - who happens to look just like her. Expecting to solve all her problems by cleaning out the dead woman's savings, Sarah is instead thrust headlong into a kaleidoscopic mystery as she realizes the dizzying truth - she and the dead woman are clones. As Sarah searches for answers, she discovers the chilling fact that there are more people like her out there - genetically identical individuals who were planted in unsuspecting birth parents and nurtured in completely different circumstances. With no idea who created the clones, she'll need to discover the reason in a hurry as an assassin is killing them one by one.'

Lighting

- The lighting in this shot is high-key, although in this shot we are unable to detect where the light is coming from. We can assumes that it's coming from a window as the lighting looks natural.

- The effects of the lighting is that it makes the scene feel more real to the audience.

Costumes & Props

- There are two characters in this shot - both of them portrayed by Tatiana Maslany - the top one is Sarah Manning and the one underneath is Rachel Duncan. 

- Sarah's costume is more casual whilst Rachel's is smarter. This tells the audience that there is a class difference between the characters with Sarah being working class and her doppelgänger being higher.

- The main prop in this shot is the gun which is being pointed at Rachels head. This is the first indication that the genre of this show is action. It also tells the viewers that there is some rivalry between the two women which creates uncertainty and excitement.

Positioning

- The positioning element of mise en scene can be divided into two sub categories; objects and characters.

• People - One character, Sarah Manning, is position above the other (Rachel Duncan) this tells the audience that she has the most power in this frame.
• Objects - The gun in this shot is placed slightly left of the centre and is held by Sarah. It is also positioned behind the character so that the audiences main focus is on them rather than the weapon.

Setting

- This scene seems to be set in an office. We can assume that the office belongs to Rachel as her costume seeming more fitting to the surroundings. This makes the audience assume that Sarah must have broken in.

Mise En Scene Analysis #2 - Harry Potter

I am going to use mise en scene to analyse a shot within this clip of 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2'.

I will use the shot below of Filius Flitwick producing a spell which will help to protect Hogwarts.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 synopsis (IMDB) - 'Harry, Ron and Hermione search for Voldemort's remaining Horcruxes in their effort to destroy the Dark Lord as the final battle rages on at Hogwarts.'

Lighting

- Low-key lighting is used in this shot with the main source of light coming from the wand which is producing a spell. 

- The whole of the shot is relatively dark to make the audience aware that something bad is about to happen. The darkness offers suspense and fear to the viewers.

Costumes & Props

- Filius is wearing what seems to be a robe with a suit underneath. Robes are stereotypically worn by wizards which helps us to indicate that this film is in the fantasy genre and based around magic.

- The character himself, is very small in comparison with average-sized people. This also helps us to figure out that the film is very mystical.

- The main prop in this shot is the wand that Filius Flitwick - played by Warwick Davis - is holding. Wands are used in magic to create spells. This also helps us in identifying the genre.

Positioning

- The positioning element of mise en scene can be divided into two sub categories; objects and characters.

• People - The only person in shot is the before mentioned, Filius Flitwick. He is positioned in the centre which makes him the subject of the audiences attention.
• Objects - There is a lack of objects in this shot, this means that all of the audiences attention is on the character.

Setting

- It is difficult to figure out where this is shot just by looking at the picture. Watching the clip makes is obvious that this is based outside of a school. The only indication of this in the shot is the background light which appears to be coming from an entrance. 

Mise En Scene Analysis #1 - Doctor Who

I will analyse the mise en scene of a shot in this clip of BBC's Doctor Who.

This clip can be seen in Doctor Who (Series 3 Episode 10) - Blink.

I have chosen to analyse the still frame below as I believe the mise en scene can tell us a lot about the genre, characters and even parts of the storyline.

Doctor Who synopsis (IMDB)- 'The continuing adventures of The Doctor, an alien time traveller - a Time Lord - from Gallifrey. Together with his companions they travel through time and space in the TARDIS, battling evil where they find it.'

Lighting

- The lighting in this shot is low-key with the main source of light coming from a over-head light-bulb. 

- We see the darkness is mostly covering the character Sally Sparrow - played by Carey Mulligan. This indicates that she is the subject of fear and is the weakest character in shot.

- The light is on all of the monsters - Weeping Angels - showing that they have the upper-hand and are the subject of Sally's attention.

Costumes & Props

- Sally Sparrow's costume is casual, this makes it easier for the audience to relate to her. This is because it makes us believe that she is just like us and therefore we could be in her situation. The idea of her being similar to the audience induces more fear in the episode/shot.

- The actors who play the Weeping Angel's are clearly wearing very technical costumes. The stone appearance is made by prosthetics and special effects. The fact that 'Blink' was the first time Doctor Who fans met the angels meant that they produced fear of uncertainty within the viewers.

- The main prop in this shot is the iconic blue box, otherwise known as the TARDIS. This prop is a spaceship - this can be seen in almost every episode of Doctor Who.

Positioning

- The positioning element of mise en scene can be divided into two sub categories; objects and characters.

• People - The main character, Sally Sparrow, is position to the right-hand side but is placed in front of everything in the shot. This makes the audience able to see what Sally is seeing.
• Objects - The TARDIS is placed just right of the centre. This makes it easier to be noticed by the audience.
• Monsters - The monsters are placed all over this shot. This makes the audience aware that they are dangerous and a threat of everyone who is visible. 

Setting

- This scene seems to be shot in a darkened basement. This is clear due to the lack of lighting and a few background items.

- The darkened setting is used to create an atmosphere of fear and excitement to the viewers.