Kilgore scene analysis

 Kilgore sees himself as the boss and a heroic self image.  An example of iconography is his hat which he wears with his uniform. The hat has the American flag and swords crossing each other. He symbolises the American industry and believing that he will never be defeated. Even his stance and shades symbolise an American action, military figure. 

Even when hes talking about the smell of napalm, with all the bullets firing he still has time to talk. When Kilgore takes his shirt off, he is showing dominance which is what he wants. He also does his by his stance which is both hands at his side and the right foot in front of the other and looking in the distance. The explosions in the background cant even stop him as it sends everyone else on the ground with their heads down but Kilgore acts the complete opposite way with his head up and looking in the distance and he acts like nothings happened and that the explosions do not bother him. This is because he's  used to this so he is not bothered by it. This shows the war is like his home and he's at his best in a war zone.

An example of editing is the loud, music over all the helicopters with a sudden cut to a peaceful village with singing children and mothers. It is effective as at first we see the loud planes with the dramatic music with a sudden cut to a quiet, almost eerie village with no noise at first. When the planes attack the village, they show no mercy and they clearly have an advantage over them and are winning. The civilians do attempt to fight back with the weapons they have but are still no mach for them. Kilgore even offers him something after the hut is destroyed.

A low angle shot is used with Kilgore to show dominance and power over them as he's above them and makes him seem more tougher and fearsome. The camera zooms in for a close up shot of Kilgore when he talks about the war which he says will one day come to an end. The close up shot is used to show he's saddened by this as the war is like home to him. This close up shot makes this his scene as he talks about the 'smell of napalm in the morning'.  For sound, the rise of the valkeres is used over the planes in the distance to make the scene more intense and as loud as possible as its a good contrast when the scene cuts to the quiet, peaceful village which is the exact opposite of the last scene. 

Apocalypse Now analysis

 for the cinematography, in the opening scene there is a long shot of the jungle followed by the same long shot but now with the burning jungle. It first highlights the beauty of nature as the camera pans from the left to the right but it then turns to disaster as then nature is being destroyed by the fire. There is a silhouetted, close up shot of his face in the dark room which contrasts nicely with the bright, orange flames playing over in the background as the two scenes merge with one another. His face is upside down while the planes are moving across to show his craziness.

For editing, the burning forest transitions to a shadowy shot of the mans face. In the scene there are two things playing out . The plane also transitions into a ceiling fan in his room which shows a similarity to the moving engines off the plane. There is also a silhouetted shot of his face moving from the right of the screen to the left while the burning jungle plays out in the same scene. the order of shots starts with the  jungle  but the next shot shows the jungle on fire with planes more planes flying past in the scene to show the difference and the disaster happening and how the beauty of nature can be destroyed.

For the mise-en-scene, the setting is Vietnam which takes place during the Vietnam war. A meaningful object in this scene is the ceiling fan as its meant to represent the planes engines as they fly over the jungle setting. The planes engines are played out as the fan is spinning round to give the character flashbacks of the war. The hotel room is another key object as this is where he has his breakdown. The planes are important as they fly over the jungle .

For sound, as the loud drumming is played over Martin Sheen having a breakdown as he drinks and punches the air makes the scene even more intense. There is a song 'the end' that plays over the burning jungle in the background.  The planes engines playing over the spinning fan is called a sound bridge and it makes us question whether the sound is in his head over is its the plane as both scenes blend in to each other. The sound of the planes engines plays over the spinning fan in his room.

For the performance, our main character is lying on the bed when that scene in his room merges with the forest. This highlights his suffering and the torment he's been put through. There is no dialogue or communication with someone else but is instead walking around the room while drinking. This indicates his mental state is deteriorating as the scene goes on when he smashes the mirror and getting drunk. He is also kicking and punching the air which shows his mind is somewhere else. 

The only women with spelling lines in the film are the three playboy bunnies that have come to entertain the lustful, rowdy crowd of American soldiers. They are presented as sexual objects whose here for entertainment purposes. Soon after the women begin their dancing, the men start acting savage, screaming things like ''Take it off, you bitch!'' These actions highlight men's sensitivity to the presence of women and that gender roles have become sharpened in the eyes of the soldiers. 

On Apocalypse Now, an example of a production context that effected the content were the natural disasters that were taking place where they were filming, various people were coming down with tropical diseases and the helicopters uses in combat scenes were constantly being recalled to be used to fight the war against anti-government rebels. 

How does the director make an impact on the audience through the character of girl?

 The Direct to camera address style of filming makes the audience feel involved and interested in the girls life as she's talking directly to the audience, drawing them in to her life. Towards the end it is like she's emotional when she speaks and talking to the audience like she's nervous and regretful of what she has done. When she dumps the baby into the river and talks to the audience we no longer feel sorry for the times when she's alone and isolated from people and the audience loses trust with her as she could of done this lots of times before and we didn't know about this.

Another way in which the director makes an impact on the audience is through the use of close up shots used when she's talking directly to the viewer. A shot-reverse shot is used when she and her dad is at the café talking to one another. At the end a crane shot is used when she's singing and we get a birds eye view of the river where the baby was dumped and her walking away. This impacts the audience as we get to take in the shocking news at the end by taking in the location of where it all happened and taking in the tragedy that occurred. The camera is very shaky and s she's walking it shakes a lot. This makes it feel even more realistic.

New Hollywood

New Hollywood ran from 1961 to 1990. Well known directors include Steven Spielberg, who directed films like 'ET', the Indiana Jones movies, 'Jurassic Park' and 'Close Encounters'. Spielberg also directed one of the most famous films of the 70s - 'Jaws' that was released in 1975 and was the first major film released by him. The film was based on the novel by Peter Benchley and was a huge global hit but the budget for the movie wasn't high and Spielberg struggled to make the shark model (nicknamed 'Bruce') work on camera. 

George Lucas was a producer during the New Hollywood era and produced films like 'Raiders of the Lost Ark', 'Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull' and directed the original Star Wars movie as well as The Phantom Menace. He also produced films in the series. Films shifted to high budget productions but films like 'Star Wars' were surprise hits but worked by targeting the teenage demographic as they can relate to the coming of age and the films being about trying to find acceptance in their life.

In New Hollywood, there was a new method used that accepted characters who were not traditionally motivated and a new European style of editing was used. Roger Corman who was a producer at this time is known as one of the most respected in cinema for his many successes. He directed over 50 films and produced over 300 films. He is known for his low budget film pictures which he produced  rapidly with 9 films being released a year including 'the little shop of horrors' which only took 2 days and 1 night to film.

Another popular director at the time was Francis Ford Coppola who is considered one of the greatest filmmakers. He directed the Godfather films and in 1979 brought out 'Apocalypse Now' which is famous for its lengthy production time as it took four years to make. The movie is centred around the Vietnam war. Some critics said that Coppola sensationalised the violence and glorified it. Other critics saw the film as expressing the horrors witnessed in a war that only left victims and losers with no winners. The aftereffects of war on servicemen was shown in films such as First Blood with Sylvester Stallone as a 'Vietnam Vet' encountering small town hostility and the rage he felt back towards these people and that turned to violence (he suffered with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder from the horrors of war). Coppola in Apocalypse Now provided violent outbreaks on screen too which corresponded with social outbursts at the time from anti-war campaigners.

In 1993 Coppola's use of violence became less real life when he brought out 'Bram Stoker's Dracula' which was based on the novel by Stoker and was a close adaptation of the book. In his films, the families he portrays come in all shapes and sizes and have conflict, love and loyalty as being important - like the Corleone family in 'The Godfather'. This is due to his fascination with family structure and how they can be different. Another auteur signature of his is the protagonist who is usually a man in his films who goes on a journey of discovery and by the end, comes to terms with himself and is more mature and his character more developed.