This is a continuation of last week's post about composition. Every time I look at films like this one I notice new things. Here are some more of my observations. Feel free to discuss in the comments section...
A combination of flat and deep space; the doorframe providing the flat space as well as framing what's inside. The door is angled perfectly to shoot your eye right at the mouse habiat in the background.
Also a combination of flat and deep space; the foreground elements of the table, computer, phones, lamp, coffee maker and the punching bag are all pretty much flat, and again are framing the deep space. The coffee maker and lamp are framing Chas. Although he is very small in the frame, those elements focus the eye on him (Chas' posture is a diagonal, one of the strongest ones in the shot).
Great shot; you can see 11 individual faces here, but two are important (Royal and Margot). Royal is the largest whole figure in the shot; Margot is the smallest figure; two extremes that draw the eye to them. Margot is smack dab in the middle of the shot, framed by the other characters, and if that's not enough, she's looking right into the camera lens. A diagonal of perspecting heads takes the eye from Royal to Margot. No confusion on where to look here!
All flat elements in this shot...not one diagonal here; great arrangement of shapes.
6 comments:
Fantastic observations about composition Ted. I love Anderson's films as well, not only is he a great storyteller, but his visual sense is really appealing. He is really good at leading the eye and telling you exactly where to look in the frame.
I think my favorite compositions still come from Kubrick though. I also think David Fincher composes amazing shots! I have a bunch of frame grabs on a disk somewhere, I need to hunt that down.
Yeah, Kubrick and Fincher are a couple of my favorites.
Se7en is the Fincher standout for me, although Fight Club is pretty good and Panic Room has some nice stuff in it as well.
Your tank girl is really cool, by the way!
Another good film for studying composition and strong use of film language is " The Hill". A little known Sean Connery movie shot in 1965. Directed by Sidney Lumet. He also directed "dog day afternoon". The use of camera angles and shadow is very profound in this film. B&W and almost a cinema noir quality to it.Characters who are portrayed as weak or disadvantaged have the camera pointing down on them. As some characters become more powerfull the angle starts to change as well as how they are lit. Check it out if you can find it.
I think it is Connerie's best work.
Excellent observations part II...
Thanks Rob and Rich for your comments. Rob, I will definitely seek out that Connery film. Is has never been released on DVD, so I'll take a look for it on Turner Classic Movies...
I love Wes' films. There is something amusingly frivolous yet real about his work. Tenenbaums is probably his best work especially with regards to production design. There is a slightly skewed feeling you get watching this film because he used objects both old and new from the recent past. (Old rotary dial phones, beat up taxis, An old Apple II and new Macs, etc) This film's timeline is almost set in some parallel universe not our own.
He does know how to fram shots and these are great examples of composition and i'm glad you posted them!
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