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EXTRA CREDIT FILM CRITIQUE GUIDELINES
SPRING 2005
You may write one film critique for extra credit. Many fine film versions of Shakespeare’s plays are available on videotape; I will announce optional screenings as I am able to arrange them, but you may rent them yourself or view them at Media Services. A maximum of three points may be added to your final grade; however, submission does not guarantee full credit. Your reviews must comment substantially (2-3 pages) on the scenic, directorial and acting decisions that translate the text to the stage or the screen; guidelines will be provided. Unfortunately, I occasionally receive plagiarized reviews; be advised that such submissions (even for extra credit) will result in failure of the entire course.
An “A” (full credit) review will feature (not necessarily in this order):
No extensive summary of the plot of the play, unless it deviates remarkably from the printed text.
A thesis statement that identifies the director’s or theater company’s apparent interpretive approach to the play.
Reference to at least two moments in the play where an important interpretive choice about characterization is left up to the actor/director, with attendant commentary on how these choices reflect an apparent overall interpretation of the play.
References to at least two aspects of the film or play’s visual qualities (scenery, lighting, costumes, makeup), with attendant commentary on how these choices reflect an apparent overall interpretation of the play.
Some commentary on how the original text of the play is cut or rearranged by the producers, and particularly how moments not explicitly described in the text are visually represented.
A conclusion that judges the success (or lack thereof) of the play based on the above criteria. In the case of any film/production that imposes a noticeably “modern” setting on the play (i.e., Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet), please be sure to comment on how well the play, and Shakespeare’s language and characters, “translates” to a modern context.
Please follow the following criteria for reviews:
• Reviews must be typed and double-spaced.
• Plays must be identified by theatrical production company and date of the performance you attended, films by director and distribution company (i.e., Miramax, 20th Century-Fox, etc.).
• You must discuss some of the interpretive choices made by actors and directors in scenes that contain moments of ambiguity or are especially open to a variety of interpretations.
• You must correctly use dramatic and film terminology. Refer to your handout on “Writing About Drama” or on the attached “What to Look for On Film”.
• You must back up opinions with concrete examples from the film/video/play.
What to Look for in a Play
STRUCTURAL — has the director/company:
• Followed the original text or added, subtracted or transposed scenes?
• Kept, cut or transposed lines?
• Developed a clear directorial point — i.e., can you tell what thematic aspect of the play the director has chosen to emphasize?
ACTION — look for:
• number of characters on stage
• positioning of characters — upstage, downstage, right, left, higher, lower — who’s in front of whom? Where is the audience focus supposed to be?
• acting: real, stylized, the actor’s being or inner life, gestures, expressions
• gestures — are a given actor’s movements supportive of his/her spoken words or distracting? pleasing or unattractive?
• voice — accent? tone (high, low)? loudness? clarity of diction?
• movement of characters — pace — fast or slow? rhythmic or not?
• Speaking: pace? interruptions? clarity? accents? intonation (emotional state)?
Do these details imply a clear directorial point?
SETTINGS/COSTUMES — look for:
• costumes: variety, hue, symmetry, historical period
• is setting realistic or symbolic, or both?
• how detailed is the set? what is shown and what is suggested?
Do these details imply a clear directorial point?
LIGHTING — look for:
• dim or bright? steady or changing?
• use of color or patterns in light? special effects?
Do these details imply a clear directorial point?
SOUND — listen for:
• Loudness and softness — presence of silence or cacophony
• Presence of music — onstage or off? live or recorded?
• Variety of sounds
Do these details imply a clear directorial point?
There are more helpful tips farther down this page -- please continue....
In addition, you may review for extra credit a full-length film of any of the Shakespeare plays on our syllabus. Recommended versions are:
RICHARD III CHOICES:
Richard III
— starring Ian McKellen and directed by Richard Loncraine (1995).
Richard III
— directed by & starring Laurence Olivier (1955).
TWELFTH NIGHT CHOICE:
Twelfth Night
— starring Ben Kingsley and Imogen Stubbs, directed by Trevor Nunn (1996).
MERCHANT CHOICE:
The Merchant of Venice
(2001)
— The Royal National Theater's Made-for-TV production, directed by Trevor Nunn.
OTHELLO CHOICES:
Othello
— (1952) starring/directed by Orson Welles.
Othello
— (1995)starring Laurence Fishburne and Kenneth Branagh, directed by Oliver
Parker .
Othello — (1990)
Royal Shakespeare Company, starring Ian McKellen, directed by Trevor Nunn.
Othello
— starring
Laurence Olivier (1965).
LEAR CHOICES:
Ran
(King Lear) (1984) — Akira Kurosawa’s masterpiece places Shakespeare’s story in
the context of Japanese history.
King Lear —
(1998) Made-for-TV version directed by Richard Eyre for the Royal National
Theatre, starring Ian Holm.
King Lear —
(1984) Sir Laurence Olivier as Lear in a Stonehenge-era setting .
King of Texas -- (2002) a made-for-TV adaptation starring Patrick Stewart
as an Old-West patriarch involved in a cattle war.
*** Do not review a film not on this list without checking with me first!
Your extra-credit critique MUST follow the guidelines below. It is due on the day of the final exam, Thursday, May 5.
What to Look for On Film
STRUCTURAL:
Plot — has the filmmaker:
• Followed the original or added, subtracted or transposed scenes?
• Kept, cut or transposed lines?
• Developed a clear directorial point — i.e., can you tell what thematic aspect of the play the director has chosen to emphasize?
VISUAL:
Characters — look for:
• size of characters in frame (implies camera distance from the character) — long shot (ls), medium shot (ms), close-up (cu)
• number of characters in frame — one-shot, two-shot, etc.
• which character receives greater camera focus?
• position in frame (does the character appear close to or far away from the camera/viewer?) — foreframe, midframe, backframe
• depth of field (what is the angle at which the camera is pointed?) — left, right, high, middle, low, straight on — again note focus
• position of focus character in relation to others — higher, lower, closer, farther?
• movement of characters — gesture, pace?
• movement of camera around/about characters
• costumes: variety, hue, symmetry, historical period
• acting: real, stylized, the actor’s being or inner life, gestures, expressions
• is there a character in the scene who is deliberately left out of the frame?
Do these details imply a clear directorial point?
Settings — look for:
• establishing shot (the shot that lets you know where you are) — background, foreground?
• props (objects handled by characters) — realistic or symbolic?
• is setting realistic or symbolic, or both?
• stage-like or life-like?
• How does the camera move in and around the setting (see above)?
• Does the camera more reveal or conceal information about the setting?
Do these details imply a clear directorial point?
Lighting — look for:
• dark or light? low or high-contrast?
• color or black-and-white?
• patterns in light?
Do these details imply a clear directorial point?
SOUND — listen for:
• Loudness and softness
• Presence of silence
• Speaking: pace? interruptions? clarity? accents? intonation (emotional state)?
• Variety of sounds
• Background sounds — heard by characters or not?
• Sound effects, music
Do these details imply a clear directorial point?
This handout prepared and based on notes from Prof. Bernice W. Kliman, Nassau Community College, at the NEH Center for Renaissance and Shakespearean Studies, James Madison University, Summer 1995.
Invalid Criteria For Analytical Criticism:
The following list contains criteria to avoid for analytical evaluations of printed texts. film, television programs, music, art, oral presentations, etc. When I refer to a "text," I mean any creation of the human mind presented for critical evaluation.
1. Judging a text, film, music, etc. to be bad, poor, or inadequate because you found it "depressing," not "uplifting," or that it presented a "negative" attitude or viewpoint. This type of criterion is personal opinion. Authors and other artists are not duty-bound to "uplift" or comfort their audiences, and they approach their subject matter and themes with a diversity of purposes. Many artists (that includes writers) create works with verv serious, and even tragic, topics or themes, and some of these are among the world's most brilliant, influential, and outstanding works.
2. The author used words that were too big or unfamiliar. "You need a dictionary to understand his language! " If you do not understand words, concepts, or references in a text, etc., that is NOT the fault of the author. You are EXPECTED to know them. If you do not know them, look them up. ALL of the texts in this class incorporate ordinary English usage that appears regularly in reading matter for a general audience of adults, which includes, of course, college students.
3. Judging film, music, etc. from other decades by today's technological standards: "It had no interesting special effects," or "Black and white movies are boring." Today's technology and artistic techniques have been evolving for centuries. Movies of today look and sound the way they do because artists have developed certain standards over the course of many decades of experimentation and implementation. Quite simply put, it makes no sense to say that certain examples of movies or musical pieces of the past were done poorly because they do not sound or look like movies or music of today.
4. Personal preference for, or prejudice against, a particular genre: “I don't like westerns/ science fiction/romances/etc." Responsible critics leave aside personal preferences and judge texts (etc. ) upon what they themselves have to offer. The evidence of a film's greatness (or lack thereof) is shown in the film itself.
5. Dismissing a work based upon personal
taste, philosophy, interest, world view, etc.: "This movie had nothing to do
with my life;" or "According to my beliefs, this text is unethical;" "Politics
doesn't interest me;" "Opera is vulgar;" etc. The purpose of these critical
assignments is objective analysis! It is most important to keep in mind
that personal distance in these assignments is a very good, helpful thing. It
helps you to gain and retain critical authority and to put your learned
judgments (based upon study of the text and scholarly research) in the minds of
your audience. At times, it is acceptable to note that some texts are not
appropriate for certain audiences (i.e., young children) and that some people
may object to, or disagree with, a certain element of a text, but these
observations are best kept on the general level and not presented as your
opinion.
This material courtesy
Prof. Catherine Don Diego,
Mohawk Valley Community College
General Advice on How to Watch a
Shakespearean Film
from Dr. J.M. Massi’s “Shakespeare Classroom” — http://www.jetlink.net/~massij/shakes/films/filmgen.htm
1. As in any performance of the plays, everything you see is a decision on the director's part. But this is heightened in a film, due to editing. There are fewer incidental mistakes or improvisations present, in that the director undoubtedly knows of these when they happen, but she or he can choose to edit them out. In a live performance, everyone lives with the inevitable mishaps that will occur on-stage. All this means that in a film when you notice anything that strikes you or stands out, you are probably noticing it because you are meant to. Keep a list of the things that particularly impressed you about the film. Do not overlook techniques unique to film--presentation of credits and title, for example, or sustained musical effects. Why did the director do these things? Are they united in some sense, pointing towards a larger effect overall?
2. Watch how credits are handled. Directors do some marvelous things to tell you what they think of a play via their use of credit sequences. For example, compare the openings of the Olivier and Branagh versions of Henry V. What is going on behind the credits? When do the credits come? Does anyone speak before them? Are all the names of the cast given to us right away? What is the music like during them? What typescript are they in? What is the sustained general effect of the use of the credits?
3. On a second or third viewing of a film, it is often highly productive to keep a cheap copy of the play in your hands and loosely note which scenes the director has omitted or re-ordered. Even in a first viewing, you might want to have a list of scenes from the textual version of the play and a phrase as a title for each to remind you of the sequence of events in the text. Why have these scenes been dropped or re-ordered? What does this tell you about the differences between a film and a performance of a play?
4. What's been cut from the film? How does the director use the cuts to support her or his idea of the major themes of this film? What other possible themes are omitted or occluded by these specific cuts? To really see the difference the director's omissions can make, watch two different versions of the same play on film.
5. Films can achieve many things that a performed play cannot: special camera angles, special effects, orchestral experimentation on a grand scale, more sets, realistic settings, etc. Look for the striking elements of this film that are unique to a film. What are they? How do they manipulate your feelings about the production? About individual characters?
6. Where did the director find her or his cast? Are they popular actors? Do they specialize in one form of acting or performance (i.e. music, as opposed to theater) or another? If you know that the guy playing Hamlet is a rap musician, for example, how does this affect the way you see this character? Are the majority of cast members known for their theatrical or Shakespearean performances? Is the presence of any one actor jarring to you as audience in some way? Are these actors well-known? Is the director relying on star appeal? Shock appeal? What are the ages of the cast? Do they seem appropriate to you? Can you explain any of the director's casting decisions?
7. Where is the film set? In what era? How accurate is the costuming and landscaping for that era? How do these decisions on the director's part add or detract from your understanding of the play? Do you need a play to be set in its historically "accurate" setting--i.e. ancient Rome for Julius Caesar or Renaissance Italy for The Taming of the Shrew?
8. How has the costuming been handled? Is it era specific or does it just imply the general feeling of an era without total accuracy? In other words, is it being used to convey a general impression or to set forth a historical era or both?
9. How intelligent does this director take his audience to be? How knowledgeable are we expected to be about the original text? How can you tell? Have any subplots or characters been dropped for this film? Why?
10. Has the genre of the film been changed? This certainly happens; consider the rendition of Hamlet in Disney's The Lion King or the transformation of The Tempest that is Forbidden Planet. What is the effect of this change on your perception of the play? Why might the director see the new genre as more appropriate?
11. How is the music being used in this film? Are there specific themes for specific characters? How does the score affect your perceptions of the dialogue? Is the music overdone or intrusive?
12. What did this film teach you about this play that you had not gotten from reading it or seeing it staged? What would you change?
13. Especially when a new film comes out, watch the entertainment channels and shows for interviews with actors, crew, and director. Their ideas about what was actually happening in the film can be startling compared to what you may actually have seen. Try to keep track of their comments as you watch the film. How accurate do you find their observations to be? How successful were they in expressing their intentions on film?
Questions for Film and Videotape Versions of Shakespeare
(from Sharon A. Beehler, “Making Media Matter in the Shakespeare Classroom,” Teaching Shakespeare into the Twenty-First Century, ed. Ronald E. Salome and James E. Davis (Athens, OH, 1997): 247-254.)
1. Where in the scene is the camera looking from?
2. How does that positioning affect the view of the scene?
3. When is a close-up replaced by a distance shot, or vice versa, and how is the transition achieved? What effect does the shift create?
4. What does the camera angle prevent you from seeing? How does this affect your response?
5. How does the camera focus your attention?
6. What difference in mood, tone, or feel is created by a moving camera?
7. Does the camera "become" one of the characters (filming as if through their eyes)? a supplemental character who looks over other people's shoulders or peers around corners or through keyholes?
8. Which characters are framed by the camera? which ones are marginalized? How does this affect your interpretation of those characters?
9. How does contrast help to create the mood of a scene?
10. Does the filmic pace correspond with or contribute to the pace of the drama? (Pay special attention to the frequency of cuts.)
11. How many cameras are used in a scene? How do their functions differ?
12. How does the depth of field help to establish a "frame of reference" for characters? In other words, are the subjects enlarged or diminished by the field?
13. Do windows, draperies, barred dividers, walls, porticoes, or other barriers intrude between the subject and the viewer? To what effect?
14. Has the filmmaker used mirrors or other mediating devices for particular effect?
15. How does the soundtrack relate to the filmed images?
16. What does the film maker want us to notice indirectly? In other words, what are we supposed to be aware of even if it is not the center of focus? How does the film maker achieve this?
17. How do facial close-ups influence your interpretation of the drama?
18. How do opening and closing shots "frame" the drama? What implications do they have?
