As we know as film students and enthusiasts, film is one of the most all-encompassing, expressive art forms there is. It utilizes sound, visuals, music, and motion to engage all of the senses and communicate deep themes, experiences, and meaning like no other medium. Perhaps that is why whether you are documenting the events and moments or telling a story, film is the most effective way to communicate the horror, heartbreak, heroism, and sacrifice of war. The war genre in film is defined by its use of actual combat fighting or conflict as the primary plot or background for the action of the film. Typical elements in war film plots include POW camp experiences and escapes, submarine/air/land/naval warfare, espionage, personal stories of heroism, tough trench and infantry experiences, or male-bonding adventures. Themes are centered around main ideas of combat, survival in brutal conditions, escape, gallant sacrifice and struggle, studies of futility and inhumanity in battle, the eff
Images for comparison: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1d_ssPIYP3D_kJwJ6dL76qc_5kZMLbRnrpT49fywc8T4/edit?usp=sharing
ReplyDeleteThe director of Caligari often covers portions of the shot with objects in the foreground, to restrict the view area that the viewer has. Often these objects are slanted, adding to the off-kilter vibe German Expressionism radiates. The main subject of a shot is also often made smaller in the frame than one would expect, giving them room to move and express. Nightmare Before Christmas follows these principles, especially in the shot chosen. The statues, and even background, are at conflicting angles. Both shots are primarily black and white, albeit Nightmare has a blue hue to it. While Caligari was likely this way due to limitations of the time, it also adds to the dream-like aesthetic the whole film has. Nightmare follows these dream-like vibes, being both stop motion and meant to be fictional. The tilting of the objects in the foreground and background adds to the viewer's sense that something is wrong in the scene, building tension. Both scenes have an otherworldly vibe, Nightmare's is compounded by the blue hue, and this vibe makes sense in context. Caligari is meant to be a half-dream, and Nightmare takes place in an Halloweentown, a town that is disconnected from the rest of reality.
Link to pictures: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1cy-pNIELNSkMfLLsrSCQbLt0Hg02IyR3lzkFnaSnV-4/edit?usp=sharing
ReplyDeleteIn the two shots, it can immediately be seen that the composition is quite similar. Both characters, Dr. Caligari and Jack Skellington, are in slightly the same position at around the same portion of the shot with crowds below them; the only difference in that sense being that the crowd in Dr. Caligari is put on the left side of the shot while in Nightmare they are more centered or towards the right. This then goes into the next similarity, shadow. In both shots, there is heavy shadow in both, which although makes sense for Nightmare as it is nighttime, is reflective of chiaroscuro lighting with the darkness and contrast in both shots. In addition to this, there is a sort of shadow around the shots in both, though Nightmare might more so be because of the time of day. In addition to this, the angles and type of shot are also similar, in both being more of a wide shot and the angle being more of a slight low angle shot, showing their importance in their respective films. Outside of the scene, Nightmare Before Christmas also follows one of the themes of German Expressionism, his isolation when he leaves before the awards are given out and him being the higher up of the town while Dr. Caligari focuses more on madness. With this, it gives a sense of darkness coming as we await both characters, unsure of the situations yet, and while these scenes are towards the beginning of their films having these set up the events and elements thereafter.
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The two following shots originate from the films The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920) and The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993). The films were set at a seventy-three-year difference, yet are able to be successful in their representation of the timeless German Expressionist techniques. German Expressionism is seen in the directorial works of Robert Wiene and Tim Burton, with the exquisite use of shadows in both films. With the similar mise-en-scene of the Director going up the stairs in the first shot, then Dr. Finklestein travels down the stairs, both create shadows on the walls. This observation could be classified as chiaroscuro lighting, a common characteristic of the German Expressionist movement, as there is a sharp contrast between the light and dark lighting. With the shadows, a foreboding tone is created by both characters, as their large shadows are cast on the wall, and the limited lighting brings dread. In the two shots, the color of the stairs and the subject on the stairs are in dull colors. For the first scene, the upstairs that the Director is approaching is in a black shadow and it is the unknown that waits ahead. The Nightmare Before Christmas accomplishes this as well as the upstairs that Dr. Finklestein came from is also in a black shadow, which raises the question of who the doctor truly is and what his intentions are. In the first shot of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, no color is used, and automatically the black and white are already mysterious and curious. Similarly, the stairs in The Nightmare Before Christmas are colored in a dull green, with gray walls as Dr. Finklestein is off-white. This again brings the mysterious tone, which leaves the audience questioning if the two characters will play a villainous role based on the color choices made for both scenes from the films. Finally, referring back to mise-en-scene, both scenes appear to have the staircases at a curve, which seems to be more obvious in The Nightmare Before Christmas. This is known as the composition, of how items in the scenes are positioned. Looking at the meaning behind this, the strange angles and aesthetics brought with the German Expressionist movement, represented how the films took place outside of our world, and in a new word was created specifically for the film to tell a story in. Overall, the German Expressionist movement was a large influence in producing both scenes, which found similar mise-en-scene of character and object placement, color, and lighting of shadows.
Scenes chosen: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1p58601biNqxkQ-SxrcE4LsaYGuPqkH6t9A82_dvybCg/edit
ReplyDeleteStylistically, by viewing both of the stills from the movies, I can see the similar use of color, mise-en-scene, and camera angles. The use of color from the Cabinet of Dr. Caligari was limited at the time of film production, however, the use of shadows and light was evident, dark shadows as black and grays for highlights, building depth in the film. In Nightmare Before Christmas color was available at the time of the release, but the director focused on dark colors; black, white, and gray tones. As seen in the still, the use of light and shadow build a darker look for the movie since Halloween is generally associated with fear, and night. Secondly, the mise-en-scene of both the films show the use of dramatic angles, distorted shapes, jagged edges and sharp lines. In the Cabinet of Dr.Caligari, the background has sharp edges and the walls angle inwards. The seat of the town clerk and the podium have edges contrary to regular rectangular podiums. I also learned that the shadows were painted onto the set of the Cabinet of Dr. Caligari to add another layer of shadow to the film. Nightmare Before Christmas has a very similar mise-en-scene, a man looking over a podium, on a high stool, and even higher podium. The manner of sitting is also very similar, and there is a doctor in both scenes at the bottom left of the still. The angles and sharp lines are also clearly seen, the curtains in the back, the stripes of Jack’s shirt, the podium itself, even the teeth on the jack-o-lantern. Lastly, the use of camera angles in both of the films show the stylistic similarities between the Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and Nightmare before Christmas. In the Cabinet of Dr. Caligari is a wider shot but also shows the doctor, crouching while looking up, by looking up it shows the point of view of the doctor while looking at the town clerk, similar to the camera angle in Nightmare Before Christmas. In the movie, the angle is much lower, closer to the doctor looking up at Jack and at the mayor.
To the viewer, the angles and jagged edges build a more ominous and discomforting mood to the film. In Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, the doctor seems suspicious and hunched over, seemingly conspicuous to the viewer. Similarly, the Nightmare Before Christmas makes the doctor seem controlling and mad. The specific scene was also important because Jack was changing an entire holiday and making others listen to him.
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Within watching both films, The Cabinet of Dr.Caligari and The Nightmare Before Christmas, direct parallels between the two and the directorial choices made can be seen. German expressionism was an important film movement that is continuously referenced in film today, and Tim Burton takes direct inspiration from this movement by utilizing the components of the time including chiaroscuro lighting, camera angles, the chosen themes, and criticisms of conformity. Comparing the two films being referenced, specific aspects such as mise-en-scene, lighting, and cinematography are stylistically parallel. With mise-en-scene, the main focus should be the placement of the characters and props of either scene, as this is the focus of everything in the frame. In The Cabinet of Dr.Caligari, the characters are placed with one laying down sleeping and the other startlingly crawling over her. This is exactly what happens in The Nightmare Before Christmas, as Jack crawls in a way that startles the children sleeping in the bed. For props, nearly everything is placed similarly with the placement of the beds, people, and lighting patterns. This is why lighting can be discussed, as well, as they light the scenes in similar and significant ways. For example, in The Cabinet of Dr.Caligari, high contrast is placed within the characters and the environment with chiaroscuro lighting, however, it can be seen that there is one direct lighting source of the still. One direct source of light is used in The Nightmare Before Christmas, as well, to keep the environment lit. While it doesn’t use chiaroscuro lighting, the lighting between the two is still stylistically similar and creates an eerie feeling before cutting to different scenes. The cinematic choices made by the director in these scenes are valuable, as well, as the camera placement frames each scene in a way that makes them parallel to each other. When watching the two scenes separately, the audience feels curious and on edge as to what may happen, but when viewing the two stills placed side-by-side, the audience feels comfortable as everything is set with crisp, sharp lines. Overall, the influences of German Expressionism can be seen in the visual elements highlighted by the director in these films both separately and together.
Christian Anderson
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https://docs.google.com/document/d/1R-ebXmPOlxsIRiBEZzMi6IzL_TboucH15_HVMDyIJ00/edit?usp=sharing
The first element I noticed when comparing these two scenes was the character’s lighting. The two scenes have a very high contrast lighting where the focus of the scene is also backlit by the light source. In film backlighting a character is meant to make them seem mysterious and spooky. The scene both accomplishes this and helps set an uncomfortable and suspenseful mood.
To go along with the lighting of the sces, the Nightmare before Christiams reflects the color and mood of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. While there were no colored movies at the Time of the Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, the Nightmare before Christmas also has very little color, and when color is used it is often muted and grey. This is important because of the historical content of the German expressionist movement which was largely inspired by the misery and depression in Germany following the first world war.
The second element of film in these scenes most noticeable is the mise en scene that embodies German expressionism. The shapes of the landscape as well as buildings appear to be off balance or irregular which is a reflection of the disturbed or even supernatural motifs in the film.
From Andrew Martinez:
ReplyDeleteThe director of the Cabinet of Dr. Caligari likes to have a very exaggerated mise-en-scene. This is also the same with The Nightmare Before Christmas. The backgrounds of the shots would be very big and open which would make the character in them seem smaller with such large landscapes. These landscapes would not be realistic to the proportions of real-life things which made it seem that the movies were set in a distant world other than our own. It creates meaning for me as the viewer that this movie is not in the same world as my own by a very more exaggerated and sharper world.
Another element that I see used in the Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and The Nightmare Before Christmas is the use of sharp and dynamic shapes. The scenery has sharp blade-like trees that hang over the wall. Even the wall is very wingy and sharp road lines in the cement. This is also the same in The Nightmare Before Christmas with sharp barriers to the cemetery and a sharp entrance that I see used a lot in these scenes. Even in the ground, the hills are sharp in the picture of The Nightmare Before Christmas. This illustrates to me the viewer that these worlds are more dangerous and threatening with every place in the films. This could connect to the way Germans felt in Germany during the wars that they did not feel safe anywhere with lots of danger and potential violence everywhere they were.
Lastly, the element of the dark and gothic design of the cemeteries are similar as they both have similar architecture. Gothic architecture was very apparent in both films which to me the viewer set a darker atmosphere of dread and darkness that surrounded everywhere. Gothic architecture is mostly used in German Expressionism films which makes sense that they would be in these films as well. This type of architecture says to me as the viewer to create the meaning of darkness and solitude and loneliness which are the same feelings that Germans felt when they were living in Germany during both World Wars. Gothic architecture made the directors express their solitude and loneliness in such depressing scenarios that also match their moods in Germany.
From Nyah Stufkosky:
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In the two scenes, we see that our perspective is distorted and we don't really know what er are looking at or for. The lighting is dramatic in both as we see the way the light almost feeds through. And the very high contrast of colors, in Nightmare Before Christmas the contrast is a bit lighter in the scene picked but anytime we are in Halloween town (is that the name?) there are lots dark colors and high contrasts."
Please use this to view the pictures: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MNLQITwu9z0sKrGNV0xTIkDbbqWwNeqED2M_bQfUjn0/edit?usp=sharing
ReplyDeleteRight off the bat, we can see many similarities between the two shots. For example, the placing of the characters within the shot. Both Jack Skellington and Cesare are slightly of center to the right, in a wide shot that encapsulates their entire bodies. The graves in Jack’s scene emulate the same feeling of being trapped that the thorns produce in Cesare’s scene. Both shots use very few straight lines, and when they do they’re still crooked. This gives us a general feeling of uncomfortableness, as Jack is sick of being stuck in his same routine and Cesare is trying to kidnap Jane. Another thing both scenes share is the way they put “pressure” on the character. In Jack’s scene, he’s walking along the very edge of his path, while being sandwiched by these gravestones in front and behind him. This symbolizes Jack’s desire to walk off the beaten path of his life, but the constant pressure from the residents of Halloween town to be the “Pumpkin King.” In Caligari, Cesare is enclosed by the walls of the bridge as the scene is being constricted with thorns. As Cesare looks for places to go, the thorns cut off his every route, thus giving us that "trapped" feeling.