October
11
September
25
Narrative analysis of a Pixar movie
Here you can see me and Jacque’s poster on the narrative of the Disney Pixar Movie MegaMind.
This films narrative like most films is split into 3 sections Act 1, Act 2 and Act 3. In Act 1 we have the setup where the film follows an antagonist who’s s goal is to take over the city and defeat Metro Man but in reality he just wants to fit in. Also in Act 1 we have the disruption where in this film Mega Mind kills Metro Man in a fight and he finally after many defeats takes over the city and has power over everyone. In Act 2 we have the climax where in Mega Mind the whole city discriminate against him for being in control. He then feels guilty and he wants everything to be back the way it was where good was against evil, so he makes his own hero from a random person and trains them to be heroic and for them to fight against him. Before Act 3 we then have the resolution where he realises he wants to be good as he prefers keeping his dignity when he is in his disguise with his girlfrend. In Act 3 tighten becomes evil as he finds out that his mentor is MegaMind. He then gets out of control destroying the city and stealing Mega Minds girlfriend. In the denouement Mega Mind defeats tighten in an epic fight and saves his girlfriend and a happy ending is concluded.
I think the theme of this film and the message behind it is that we all have a choice about how we act, and it is our actions, not our past, that determine what kind of person we are. The “duality of man” is also a major theme in Mega Mind and we see it in the denouement. It is the idea that every single human being has good and evil within them and Megamind being the antagonist at the start of the film shows us that he doesn’t want to be good and that he likes being evil. But at the end of the movie he develops as a character and becomes the protagonist as he Fights Hal Stewart (Tighten) to save the people of the city he now cares about, here we see he understands and acknowledges how wrong he was for his ignoble actions and need of power at the start of the film.
September
24
Mise-en-scene in The Captains Feast
The Captain’s Feast establishes the nature of the fascist ruling class in rural Spain and the attitudes and values of Captain Vidal, the villain in the film. The feast is a scene of indulgence, greed and power. Vidal is a fascist brute, he is proud of his reputation and dominates the scene. The guests are hypocrites and prove to be arrogant, patronising and snobbish. Carmen, seems out of place and is represented as fragile, elegant and intimidated by the other guests, we also get the impression that Vidal does not care for her.
Taking a look at the Mise-en-scene of Carmen in the Captains feast we can see that the costume design of her character has been chosen to show she is wealthy and has class we know this as she is wearing a dress, earrings and other jewellery. The lighting and colour through out this scene remains Dark and low toned with quite a few shadows being highlighted around her face. Having low key lighting and shadows helps to create a mood of tension, threat and sinister, this juxtaposes Carmen and the Captains awkwardness throughout the scene, as the guests and even the priest, who is meant to help others stuff their selfish faces with food while the others cue for just one slice of bread. In the scene the action she makes is eating and talking, she is timid at the table as she doesn’t speak much as she is scared of the Captain, Later in the scene she stands up to go check on Ofelia. The hair and makeup in this scene is done up as it a special occasion as the family are over and she is trying to make an impression to the guests and wants to please the captain. The props in this scene are the wheel chair, cutlery and the food. Everything is beautifully displayed and we see the proxemics of the rich food, this shows they have status and power over the poachers. The body language in the scene, Carmens timid and timorous, she doesn’t make eye contact or talk expressively to Vidal as she is intimidated by him. Finally in the setting of the scene we see Carmen to the side of Vidal showing that he dominates the head of the table and has empowerment over everyone there. The dinning room however is warm and cosy as there is a fire place but because it is put behind the captain it makes him look more maculating and menacing.