MDIA 203 video

Blog Assignment 6

The Simpsons, still images

In the top picture we notice a split-complementary color scheme using yellow for the skin, red for the beer and blue for the woman’s clothing. Overall this color scheme adds a pleasing effect to our eye. On the other hand, the bottom picture consists of an analogous color scheme with pink (unsaturated red) for the walls and brown for the couch and rug. Next to that we also see an analogous scheme with the blue and purple being used. This adds four colors, all analogous to each other, which helps bring out certain images we are supposed to look at. On the bottom picture we have Homer Simpson sitting on the couch in his underwear. The brightest object in this frame is his underwear because that’s what draws our attention and makes us laugh. The somewhat dull colors around his underwear make the bright white come forward and be noticeable. The rest of the room is darkened for this effect whereas in the top picture we notice the bright colors. Almost everything is red besides the skin and eyes of homer and the girl, which is exactly what were supposed to be looking at. We notice the eyes of homer looking directly at the woman’s body because the brighter colors pop out at us.

            On bottom we can also tell that homer is wearing a superman t-shirt which symbolizes the oxymoron taking place. Obviously homer is not superman because he’s in his underwear, he overweight, and he’s not doing anything heroic besides watching TV. The picture in the background also adds to this symbolism in the way that it’s offset. The overall lighting of this room (bottom picture) is very dark as well which gives a feel that homer is in an unclean, unsafe place. The lighting affects the mood drastically. In the bottom picture the mood is more dark, lonely and dirty. The above picture displays a lighter and happier tone. The only shadowing we see in these is under the girl, which acts as a way of showing that she’s outside and the sun is right overhead. 

Blog Assignment 5

Ben Stiller, the director of Tropic Thunder, did a great job making this movie by the book. Within the first ten seconds we notice the 180-degree rule being used perfectly. We always see the character that goes by the name Osiris on the right side of the screen looking to the left at Four Leaf. Four Leaf has a straight on shot which is just on the line of the 180 degree rule but the camera never passes it leaving us with a perfect understanding of where everyone is and what’s happening. Osiris always moves from right to left as Four Leaf always looks from left to right. This is mainly because Four Leaf is trying to get away from the people shooting at him and can only desire to go one direction

The rule of thirds plays an interesting role in this as the middle third pulls our attention to the bottom lip of Four Leaf as he over-acts his role in the pretend movie. This is supposed to be seen as satirical toward Hollywood. This rule also pulls our attention to the side when Osiris isn’t doing much but Stiller wants us to see that the other characters are providing cover fire for him. Another way this rule makes the scene flow is because there isn’t ever more than two main objects in the shot at one time. The two objects allow us enough room to see both those and a little scenery in the background.

Throughout the entire scene we see the rule of 30 used well for the most part. Sometimes it seemed as though the helicopter was a little too far in the back from where we saw it last but it flowed nicely. I didn’t notice any jump cuts in this scene that stuck out at me. When we see a medium shot in on Four Leaf, the camera switched to Osiris before it showed a wide show of Four Leaf. This eased the transition from being zoomed in to zoomed out.

Blog Assignment 4 (cont'd)

The song “Turn the Page” was originally written by Bob Seger but was also remade by Metallica. The two songs have similar qualities such as the lyrics, tempo and tone in some parts, but also have many differences such as instrumentation, height, groove, and emotional architecture.

The tempo of both songs is roughly around moderato/medium range. It’s a very regular rhythm throughout the song. Also, the lyrics are exactly identical. We see a recurring theme (motif) in both songs that the guitar plays in the beginning of the Metallica version and the Sax plays in the Seger version. The notes start low then quickly swing high pitch and gradually become lower. This motif is heard in the beginning, parts of the middle, and the end of both songs. This becomes the melody in between the choruses.

As for the differences, the largest is intensity. The overall intensity of the Metallica version is much more to compensate for the 30 years of time passed between the two. Rock was much less intense back then than it is now, therefore, Metallica’s version is much more loud. Also the range of frequency/pitch is much great in the Metallica edition. The opening high notes are played on a saxophone in Bob Segers band and an electric guitar in Metallica. Metallica’s edition was much higher pitched. The overall groove or mood to these songs is different such that we have a rock solid rhythmic feel to Metallica and a jazzy, less intense feel in Bob Seger giving his song a more laid back feel. The timbre of the two songs is not far off from one another. The Seger version is definitely quieter with less distortion than Metallica but also has some complexity in the beginning with the fingerpicked guitar. The two timbres are somewhat similar despite the distortion from the electric guitars.

My choice of favorite song goes to Metallica simply because its more modern. The style of music is up to date, the intensity is much higher, and the vocals are better in a more distorted and loud manner. While both of these songs are very skillful and well put together, my favorite is Metallica’s version of “Turn the Page”. 

Blog Assignment 4

Turn the Page - Metallica

Turn the Page - Bob Seger

Week Three Blog (Cont'd)

This scene incorporates many aspects of sound that go along with the special effects of this and many action movies. Most of the sounds such as helicopters and grenades exploding are semantic in the sense that they aren’t actually blowing up.  Another example of a semantic sound is heard when Four Leaf hits the ground. Instead of a soft thud, it’s replaced by a loud timpani hit. There is also a fair amount of non-diegetic sound that is the music playing in the background. The characters can’t hear it but to the viewer it adds a lot more suspense and emotionality. One of the properties of the Gestalt Principle, illusion, is heard when Four Leaf is getting shot and all we hear is the helicopter and music playing. Here the audience only needs to understand that he is getting shot. The bullets noise coming from him and every other sound would be over-kill in this situation. In this same situation we see Figure and Ground taking place. Here the camera is only focused on Four Leaf while there is still other action in the background. It almost hurts our eyes to try and see what’s behind Four Leaf but the point of this Figure and Ground is to only focus on what’s important. This is a very intense scene and the sound and focus adds to that intensity.  

Week Three Blog