Genre, cycle, tendency?
- Forking path film (David Bordwell)
- Mind-game film (Elsaesser)
- Puzzle film (Warren Buckland)
- Complex film
- Mental melodrama (David Sorfa)
Reoccurring Genres:
- Detective
- Sci-Fi
- Thriller
- Romance
- Melodrama
Semantic/Syntactic:
Altman, R (1984) A semantic/syntactic approach to film genre (cinema journal)
Altman, R (1984) A semantic/syntactic approach to film genre (cinema journal)
Semantic elements:
Focus on units of meaning
- Setting
- Objects
- Type of Character
- Visual Style
Syntactic elements:
- Themantic patterns
- Arrangement of element
- Narrative structure/narration
The semantic approach thus stresses the genre's building blocks.
Fabula - Story order (chronological)
Sujet - Plot order (progression)
Narrative:
Forking path films/multiple draft
- Complicates simple chronological story
- Cause has multiple effects
- Issue of coincidence
- Free will
Forking path films:
Blind Chance (1982)
Run Lola Run (1998)
Sliding Doors (1998)
It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
A Christmas Carol (1843)
Free will and narrative outcomes:
Fate/destiny - outcome will always be the same because:
- A greater force has arbitrarily predetermined this
- Causal links are inevitable
Outcome is indeterminable because:
- Causal progress is not predictable - the universe is not logical
- Causal progress is predictable but humans cannot process the massive variables involved - pseudo-randomness/chaos thery
Amnesia films:
Mulholland Dr (2001)
Spellbound (1945)
50 First Dates (2004)
Sullivan's Travels (1941)
The Hangover (2009)
The Bourne Identity (2002)
Interesting book - The wan who mistook his wife for a hat
Philosophy of mind: Scepticism:
- Rene Descartes: The Evil Demon (meditations on first philosophy, 1614)
- Hilary: Putnam: Brain in a Vat (reason, truth and history, 1981) update of Descartes
Virtual Reality:
Tron (1982)
Tron (1982)
The Thirteenth Floor (1999)
Avatar (2009)
The Adjustment Bureau (2011)
Brain in a Vat:
The Matrix (1999)
Vanilla Sky (2001)
The Cell (2000)
Source Code (2011)
'I think, therefore I am' - Descartes
Schizophrenia:
Harvey (1950)
Fight Club (1999)
Me, Myself and Irene (2000)
Shutter Island (2010)
Black Swan (2010)
Mental Ghosts
Henry James: The Turn of the Screw (1898)
The Shining (1980)
Donnie Darko (2001)
Time Travel
Back to the Future (1985)
The Butterfly Effect (2004)
Primer (2004)
Non-Linear
Groundhog Day (1993)
Pulp Fiction (1994)
Momento (2000)
(500) Days of Summer (2009)
I learned a lot today about the various types of mind game films. I never knew there were so many variations and I liked looking into these different styles because it gave me a clear insight in to how these films are made. I've now got the urge to watch more of them!
Speak soon!
Henry James: The Turn of the Screw (1898)
The Shining (1980)
Donnie Darko (2001)
Time Travel
Back to the Future (1985)
The Butterfly Effect (2004)
Primer (2004)
Non-Linear
Groundhog Day (1993)
Pulp Fiction (1994)
Momento (2000)
(500) Days of Summer (2009)
I learned a lot today about the various types of mind game films. I never knew there were so many variations and I liked looking into these different styles because it gave me a clear insight in to how these films are made. I've now got the urge to watch more of them!
Speak soon!
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