How far does the impact of the films you have studied for this topic depend on distinctive uses of film techniques?

In this topic, we have studied La Haine, a french film from 1995 directed by Mathieu Kassovitz. This film uses many different technical codes, one of which is the mise-en-scene. In La Haine, the mise-en-scene is very significant towards the message that is conveyed in the film. An example of this is when each of the protagonists are introduced, such as when Said is first introduced, he graffiti's on a police van the phrase 'Said fucks the police', which he writes in Arabic. This clearly represents his own personal identity, because he writes his own name and in his own language. This technique is also used when Vinz is introduced, there is a close-up of his ring with his name on like the rappers in the USA, showing how Vinz has been influenced by western culture, which is also shown in his room, or 'Chez Vinz' when we see the cannabis poster with the name of the Cypress Hill song "I Ain't Goin' Out Like That" on, his collection of western trainers and the picture of Bruce Li on his door. Also, when Hubert is introduced in his burnt down gym, there is a close-up of a match poster containing his name and a picture of him. In the picture, Hubert is holding rosary beads, which implies that he is spiritualistic and that he is clean cut, unlike the other youths presented in the film. The impact of each character having their names clearly shown on-screen implies how desperate each of them is to develop their own identity as opposed to just being one of the foreigners that live in the projects.

Another part of the mise-en-scene is the constant motif of planet earth. This is first used directly at the start of the film, where we see the earth and hear Hubert's voice talking about jumping off a building and with each floor you pass you say 'so far so good' (Jusqu'ici tout va bien) which is the film's tagline, and then 'its not the fall that kills you, its the landing' and when this line is said, a molotov coctail is thrown at the earth. This is basically saying that the world will burn through the hatred that is spreading across the globe. The earth is also used towards the end of the film when they walk past a billboard that says 'le monde est a vous' (the world is yours) and Said graffitis on the billboard to change it to 'The World Is Ours', which adds a sense of unity to the film, which is the whole moral that the character of Said stands for, Fraternity. The use of the planet is significant of the narrative of the film, which is circular, as they start off in les banlieues (the projects), then catch the train to Paris, and at the premise of the film they arrive back in les banlieues. Les Banlieues are housing projects on the outskirts of paris with a population of roughly 10,000 made up of over 60 different nationalities. These projects were built in order to try and incorporate and 'assimilate' different cultures into Parisian life, although in fact they caused the adverse affect because the media stereotyped the projects as areas of urban deprivation, crime and drug use.

Another technique that is also used to signify the same message of the earth is the 360 degree pan shot. This shot is used in the 'Chez Vinz' scene to establish some background knowledge of Vinz's character. This type of shot, coupled with the motif of the earth and the film's circular narrative are all significant of the moral that the earth is in a constant loop, and that no matter what happens it will keep spinning. This shows that all of our lives are worthless because we have no real impact on the way that the world works, but also the fact that no matter how hard those in poverty try to change their lives and make themselves better off, they will be forever stuck in a never-ending cycle and will not be able to pull themselves away from their poor and miserable lives.

Auteur Theory Annotated Catalogue

A great deal of Quentin Tarantino's work contains homage to films that influenced him, can this aspect make him an Auteur?

Films:

Item 1- Reservoir Dogs (1992)

This is Tarantino's first feature length film that were both written and directed (and acted in) by himself. Reservoir Dogs is a cult crime film, focusing on the aftermath of a bank robbery where everything that could have gone wrong does go wrong. This film has been chosen because some say that it is a loose remake of the 1987 crime drama City on Fire, however he has added his own elements to it. This is evidence both for and against his Auteuristic tendencies, as although he has copied the style of a previous film, he has also added his own style to it.

Item 2- Kill Bill: Volume 1 (2003)

The first volume of the Kill Bill duo is Quentin Tarantino's fourth feature film, focusing on "the Bride" (Uma Thurman) after a gang of killers that she used to work with murders everyone at the rehearsal of her wedding, so she decides to act out her revenge. I have included this film due to the fact that it contains homage to many of the works that impacted upon Tarantino, such as many kung-fu films, spaghetti westerns, Japanese samurai, gang and anime films, plus imagery and sounds that can be linked to western horrors. However, due to the fact that Tarantino has incorporated many different genres into this film, it is clear why he can be considered an auteur.

Item3- Inglorious Basterds (2009)

I have included this film because the title is a homage to the 1978 film 'The Inglorious Bastards' it is completely unrelated to this film as the storyline and narrative are completely different, despite both being set in WWII. Also, this film contains some homage to his influencing work, it does not contain anywhere near as much as my focus films.

Magazines:

Item 4- Total Fim Magazine Kill Bill: Volume 1 Review

This article has been included as it gives a fair analysis of the film and identifies much of the work that aided QT when he produced Kill Bill.

Books:

Item 5- Quintessential Tarantino- Page, Edwin (2005)

this book has been included in my catalogue because it has separate chapters for each film, each of which contain reference to the work that Tarantino has homaged in his films.

Item 6- Fifty Contemporary Filmmakers (Tarantino Section)- White, Glyn (2002)

I have included this in my catalogue, due to the fact that within this section it references much of the work that influenced Tarantino and talks about his odd but individualistic style, which is dissimilar to the style of any other director/auteur.

Internet:

Item 7- http://whatculture.com/film/quentin-tarantino-definitive-guide.php/

This webpage has been included in this catalogue, because it gives clear analysis of the homages embedded within Tarantino's work and what films these pay homage to.



Item 8- http://wallstcheatsheet.com/entertainment/7-killer-movies-that-inspired-quentin-tarantino.html/?a=viewall

This piece has been included so that I can also begin to analyse not only Tarantino's work but also the works that inspired him.

Videos:

Item 9- http://holykaw.alltop.com/the-movies-kill-bill-pays-homage-to-video

This video is crucial in helping me with my analysis of the work that kill bill pays homage to, as it shows how 'everything is a remix', therefore highlighting the fact that kill bill is just a remix of other director's work.

Item 10- Quentin Tarantino: A Life In Pictures

This interview has been included as it gives a detailed review of Tarantino's life as a film maker and also as an avid film fan, therefore it will help me analyse his inspiring works.

DVD Commentaries:

Item 11- Kill Bill DVD Commentary

Images

Item 12-http://levonbiss.com/news/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Levon-Biss_Quentin-Tarantino_071212-2890_V1.jpg

Item 13-http://www.ronlim.com/worldarchive/tarantinoimages/ripoff.jpg

Item 14-http://inthekan.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Kill_Bill_1_757.jpg

Item 15- http://www.formantera.com/files/6113/9856/3964/kill_bill.jpg

Rejected Sources:

Item - Django Unchained (2012)

Django Unchained is the eighth film written and directed by Tarantino. This western is unlike any western before, about a freed slave named Django (Jamie Foxx) who, with the help of a bounty hunter (Christoph Waltz), attempts to free his wife from brutal plantation owner, Calvin Candie (Leonardo Dicaprio) This film has been included in my catalogue because it pays homage to Sergio Corbucci's 1966 film 'Django' and also acts as a homage to the whole Spaghetti Western sub-genre of films, as this type of film pays much influence to most, if not all of his work, due to how he incorporates references to westerns within many films.

Item- http://www.prometheusforum.net/discussion/4600/is-tarantino-a-thief-or-does-he-pay-homage-to-other-films/p1

I have not included this website in my catalogue because although it contains many valid points on either side of the argument, it is a forum page, therefore anyone can contribute toward it and it could be made up of completely irrelevant points to my question, as it is mainly made up of opinion.

Item- Empire Magazine Reservoir Dogs Review

This article has not been included in my final catalogue due to the fact that it does not reference any of the work that influenced tarantino and that is what my final essay is going to be looking at, therefore there is nothing helpful embedded within this article.