Writing About Film

The formal analysis discusses and describes all of the different aspects of a film and see how each part contributes to the whole. To name a few these aspects include the cinematography, sound design, story, and art direction. Looking at these different aspects is important to see how the individual parts of the film adds meaning to the film. By breaking down each essential component creates a better sense of how they serve a bigger purpose in terms of theme, meaning or value.

Film writing can also look at the history behind the film. Most films have a history to them in which they acquire a sense of historical background by being based on a time period, but more specifically an event within that era. This encompasses the history that the actual film reflects, the culture and society that the film was made in, and even factors during the film's production that could have affected the outcome of the film. For example, the movie The Raven (2012) was based in the time period of 1849. This film follows the story of the renowned poet Edgar Allan Poe and his most famous works of literature. Using his life and poems, the director (James McTeigue) was able to develop a storyline that reflects the life of Poe, but simultaneously manipulating his background to create a film in which acquires more suspense due the movie consisting of dynamic murder mystery. Film history involves the banning or wide acceptance of certain movies due to cultural values or morals.

All films reflect some kind of ideology. Ideology papers examine the ideology behind film. Many times the ideology comes from the director or writer of the film. Film can be a medium to express one's views on topics and themes such as family, redemption, or trust. When watching a film, it is important to understand that the film may being trying to manipulate our feelings about certain topics. The film The Breakfast Club (1985) works to express how looking beyond stereotypical features and cliques can result in numerous realizations about one another. This is done through five high school students who don't know each other at all but receive a Saturday detention, giving them 8 hours to sit and "ponder the error of their ways", but eventually baring their souls to each other. 





Similar to ideology, Cultural Studies and National Cinema focused papers look at the society that made the film. This is when the films reflect the cultures and nations that they were produced in. Films are usually produced to appeal to a certain culture or society. For example, a French filmmaker would take a different approach to a movie than an American filmmaker would approach a movie. Especially in national cinema, films can show audiences what the culture is like in other countries beside our own.

Finally papers that look at auteurs focus on the body of work that the director has made and how they relate with each other to emphasize certain themes.This criticizes the film as the view of a single person, usually the director. Many times, directors use similar techniques in making their films such as recurring plot structure, themes, and types of conflicts.When discussing Auteur one must consider that film is still collaborative, because people such as the make-up, cinematographer, editor all have a part in the final product.

Annotating a film sequence is like taking notes, except with a film. It can be a very helpful technique to efficiently articulate your ideas when writing about a film. This technique is done by taking notes on individual shots or certain shot sequences of the film. Especially when looking at excerpts of film, noting down the certain aspects and adding notes to significant shots is effective in breaking down a sequence, which can help to delve deeper in a specific scene's meaning and/or purpose.

When thinking beyond the frame one should consider other aspects that do not pertain to a certain shot or scene. One should question who made the film. The scene might have similar themes or motif that relate to other movies made by the same director. Factors like sound, production history, and expert opinions on the film. A film is much more than the film itself. External factors play a big role in defining the film and what it come to represent, outside of the subject matter