Intro to Film 2025 • Professor Gregory Zinman • Emory University

Category: Reader

  • Montage vs Total Realism: Cruel Intentions

    This week’s readings, Sergei Eisenstein’s “A Dialectic Approach to Film Form” and Andre Bazin’s “The Myth of Total Cinema” both attempt to define the meaning of cinema. The two perspectives present very different ideas about the origins and purpose of film.

    In “A Dialectic Approach to Film Form”, Eisenstein argues that the essence of cinema is conflict. He writes about how all art (poetry, music, architecture, etc) expresses conflict, and in cinema this is created through montage. Eisenstein’s view is that rhythm, dynamism, and intellectual engagement arise not from perfect representation of reality on a screen, but from intentional juxtaposition. In the text he uses the example of how a shot of workers being killed crosscut with a bull’s slaughter in Strike is more powerful because it transforms, rather than simply replicates, reality.

    Bazin, on the other hand, believes that cinema is driven by the impulse to perfectly replicate reality, what is referred to as “the myth of total cinema”. His opinion is that each new technological development brings us one step closer to achieving total realism. He writes, “In short, cinema has not yet been invented!”. He claims that the better the technical aspects get, the closer cinema gets to its origins: the dream of recreating the world in its own image, with sound, color, and relief. So, in Bazin’s view, cinema’s history (silent film, black and white film) is a gradual fulfillment of this myth.

    When thinking about these theories in relation to a film I recently watched, Cruel Intentions (1999), I can see both perspectives at play. In line with Bazin’s notion of total realism, the movie leans heavily into aesthetics, attempting to completely immerse the viewer in the late-90s New York City prep school world. Lavish penthouses, Hamptons mansions, and the intricate webs of manipulation among characters create a convincing and recognizable social reality. The authenticity of the setting and behaviors allows viewers to feel as though they are peering into the ridiculous lives of the privileged elite.

    At the same time, the film’s editing and symbols throughout heighten the audience’s emotional responses and ideological tension while watching, underscoring Eisenstein’s idea of conflict and montage as the core of cinema. A representation of this is Sebastian’s journal which has many purposes throughout the movie. It functions as narration, revealing his manipulative schemes while also charting his vulnerability toward Annette. The film intercuts his reflections with images of his changing relationships, creating a clash between self-interest and sincerity that ultimately transforms his character.

    Overall, the movie embodies Bazin’s myth by immersing us in a believable social world, while simultaneously relying on Eisenstein’s principle of montage to provoke thought and sharpen the film’s critique of privilege, morality, and manipulation.

  • Montage vs. Total Cinema: Rethinking Film Form with Parasite

    In this week’s reading, “A Dialectic Approach to Film Form,” by Sergei Eisenstein, and “The Myth of Total Cinema,” by Andre Bazin, both answer the question “what is cinema?”. 

    Eisenstein believes that the essence of the cinema is the montage.

    Eisenstein defined montage as an idea that arose from the collision of independent shots. He believed that a new meaning is formed in the film when shots collide. Cinema is not just a record or a reenactment of reality, but rather an art form created through manipulation and composition via editing. In this sense, montage can extend beyond stirring emotions: Eisenstein argued that intellectual montage serves not only as an emotional stimulant but also as a vehicle for intellectual dynamization. It pushes people to reach abstract and conceptual ideas through the collision of images in film. 

    Bazin, on the other hand, stated that the essence of the cinema is people’s desire to reproduce reality in film. 

    Cinematic technology was developed to achieve the aspiration of reproducing reality. 

    Bazin argues “…an approximate and complicated visualization of an idea invariably precedes the industrial discovery which alone can open the way to its practical use.” (The Myth of Total Cinema). Total cinema, bringing the complete illusion of life and recreating the world in its own image, is what Bazin defined as the guiding myth that inspired the invention of cinema.

    Both Eisenstein’s and Bazin’s views toward the essence of cinema are shown in the movie Parasite.

    The director Bong Joon Ho recreated reality in film by designing houses and towns that appeared to be real. Each room, window, wall, and staircase was meticulously constructed to look authentic. The production team even recreated the smell of mold and garbage, making the set indistinguishable from reality. The camera could freely move around when characters walked in and out of the house, which made the viewers, as well as the actors, perceive the movie set as real. This corresponds to Bazin’s idea of people’s desire to reproduce reality in film.

    At the same time, new meaning is formed when each shot collides in this film, as Eisenstein argued. The shots for the wealthy family’s house and the Kim family’s semi-basement apartment are colliding throughout the entire movie. For example, the light that the Kim family sees from the street lamp dissolves into the sunlight that the wealthy family sees (Parasite 1:18:09 and 1:18:00). A new meaning is formed through the alternating shots between the semi-basement and the mansion, as it visualizes the conflict of social classes through montage.

    For a closer look at how the production team built the sets to appear almost indistinguishable from reality, see this production video. https://youtu.be/CdD2OnID6hQ?si=5UWGE5O641mZPj2q

  • Chapter 6: Editing and its Relevance to Friendship (2024)

    Chapter 6 in Film Art: An Introduction discusses editing and how the relationship between shots controls the timing and impact of the action. There are 4 dimensions of film editing: graphic relations, rhythmic relations, spatial relations, and temporal relations.

    Shots can be linked via a graphic match, which entails linking shots with similar shapes, color, composition, or movement. Graphic discontinuities can be used to create contrast between shots.

    The patterning of shot lengths gives the film its rhythm. Flash frames accent certain actions in a shot, giving weight to that specific action.

    Editing can show where characters and objects are in a certain space. The Kuleshov effect, also called constructive editing, cuts together portions of space in a way that implies different emotions depending on what is shown. Another way to show space is analytical editing, which breaks an establishing shot into closer shots.

    Editing can control the timing of an action, thus creating an order of events that affect the story, known as chronology. Flashbacks give a glimpse into the past, while flashforwards reveal future events before switching back to the present.

    I recently watched Friendship (Andrew DeYoung, 2024), a black comedy about the male friendship between Craig, played by Tim Robinson, and Austin, played by Paul Rudd.

    While watching, I noticed that the film makes creative use of temporal relations. In the Toad Trip scene, elliptical editing was used to show an action quicker than it would take in real life.

    Craig lies down on the ground to get ready for his trip. We cut to a close up of the toad and we see Craig sit up and lick the toad. We then cut away to T-Boy, and when we cut back to Craig, we catch him at the tail end of lying back on the ground. Finally, we cut back to T-Boy, who has just finished putting the toad back in the carrier and closing the lid.

    In this scene, the actions are presented on screen quicker than they would take in real life. The actions of T-Boy are implied because they are nonessential to the scene. The 180 degree rule is also in play during this scene. The camera never crosses the axis of action, and the characters are in a shot/reverse shot sequence.

  • The Editing of Memento

    This week, we looked at how editing can change how a film feels through changes in rhythm, space, and time. Film Art refers to them as “relations” (rhythmic relations, spatial relations, etc).

    One particularly good example of a good execution of these techniques is Christopher Nolan’s Memento (2000). Based on Jonathan Nolan’s (Christopher Nolan’s brother) short story “Memento Mori”, Memento follows Leonard, a man with amnesia and short-term memory loss, as he uses polaroids, tattoos, and notes to find the man who assaulted and murdered his wife.

    Spoiler warning.

    The masterful editing is most evident through Dody Dorn’s (the editor) ability to manipulate temporal relations. For a film about amnesia, telling the story from start to end would be, as Jared Devin writes, “nothing interesting and…[lacking of] impact” (https://medium.com/@jdevin413/the-editing-room-memento-in-reverse-bd379b33620). Instead, this film is edited from end to beginning, working backwards through a series of black-and-white flashbacks and color lapses of memory for Leonard.

    Our perception of time and the film’s plot as a whole is altered by the editing because we’re suddenly thrown into Leonard’s situation. We don’t know the full picture, yet we’re barrelling ahead into the unknown. As the film progresses (backward), we learn more and more about the people around him, and how some characters aren’t what they seem. For example, Natalie is seen as a particularly benevolent character who is helping Leonard out of pity, but later on, it’s revealed that she’s taking advantage of his amnesia and manipulating him to do cleanup work for her late drug dealer boyfriend.

    Another way Memento manipulates temporal relations is through switching between color and black-and-white shots. When the color scene initially cuts to a black-and-white shot, we’re left confused as to why it happened. But as the film goes on, we begin to reach an understanding of what the color change is meant to signify – color means the story is going backwards, and black-and-white is going forwards. My favorite part of the entire movie is when the ending sequence begins in black-and-white, and halfway through, it seamlessly transitions into color, and you realize that the stories have converged.

    Another aspect I’d like to point out is how Dorn uses repeating actions (this could also be overlapping editing) in the film to help the viewers familiarize themselves with where they temporally are in the film. For example, one scene opens with Leonard frantically trying to find a pen to write something down. We’re not sure what he’s panicking about, and soon we forget as Natalie walks in. But in the next color scene, it’s revealed that Natalie is manipulating him. That color scene ends with him panicking to find a pen, which Natalie had taken out of the room. As jarring as this sounds, this film is able to transition between the two seamlessly. Dorn uses a variety of dissolves and fades to move between black-and-white and color snippets.

    All in all, this film is a masterpiece in both storytelling and editing. Nolan and Dorn are both so talented at hiding information from the viewer and foreshadowing future events that you will be on the edge of your seat for the entire movie. I wholeheartedly recommend you watch this film if you like psychological and/or thriller movies.

  • Editing and Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove

    This chapter covers how editors can manipulate time, space, and emotion through choosing which shots to include in a film and how they will be arranged. Film Art discusses four different relations that could happen between two shots: graphic relations, rhythmic relations, special relations, and temporal relations.

    Graphic relations includes using contrasts or similarities between two clips; one example is making a graphic match which links shots by close graphic similarities.

    Rhythmic relations is characterized by using cuts of certain lengths to create a rhythm. Additionally, this technique uses different cuts to evoke different emotions, such as flash-frames; this is often used in action films as it stresses a moment and can elicit suspense.

    Spacial relations uses editing to establish and manipulate space. One example of this is the Kuleshov effect, which we talked about in class. This effect is used to reveal the emotion or intent of a character by showing a person and then the object they are looking at, allowing us to interpret what they may be thinking.

    Temporal relations shapes how the viewer sees time. For instance, a flash forward manipulates the chronological order of information the viewer gets. Additionally, editing can condense or expand the duration that a certain action can take. Elliptical editing can present an action as taking less time than it actually does, while overlapping editing can prolong an action.

    One specific type of editing than manipulates space and time is crosscutting, when the plot alternates shots of one story with shots of another one elsewhere. My favorite movie, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, utilizes this technique very effectively. There are two simultaneous events happening during the film: the politicians and military deliberating in the war room, and the lieutenants in the B-52.

    The constant crosscutting creates suspense, as the people in the war room cannot communicate with the personnel in the B-52, unable to call them back to abandon their previous order to bomb the Soviet Union. Switching between these two simultaneous events, with each side holding limited information, builds tension for the viewer who can see the whole picture. We understand that if the B-52 successfully manages to bomb the USSR, it will activate the “doomsday bomb”, which will essentially wipe out all life on the planet. However, the people in the plane do not know that. Additionally, we see the B-52 evade getting taken down from Soviet airspace, but feel anticipation when we see that the people in the war room do not realize that until it is too late. Overall, I believe this film perfectly demonstrates how crosscutting can create suspense and highlight the motivations and emotions of two different places at once.

  • Why continuity matters?

    In chapter 6 argues that editing is not just a tradition, but it is a viewer-oriented tool. The directors use these tools to shape viewer’s experience by manipulating time, space, and pictural qualities. These techniques can decide how the film is ordered, transitioned, and presented to guide the audience’s understanding of the whole film.

    180 degrees system (axis of action).

    This technique fixes the camera placement to one side of an imaginary line on screen, so that the spatial relationships stay the same. This makes the audience able to understand how the characters are doing within a scene.

    Eyeline match.

    The eyeline match connects the glance into shot A of character A into shot B of character B. Because of the space it created through the 180 degrees system and the space created through the connecting look, we can sense how it builds space for us to see.

    Shot/reverse shot.

    This shot pattern alternates views from two ends of the axis, typically with two people, each shot can represent one person talking or their relationships.

    After reading chapter six, I would like to discuss it along with some shots of a film I watched recently called the Contratiempo, or The Invisible Guest.

    This scene is from the ending of the story, where Adrian and the fake Ms. Goodman are discussing where exactly Adrian sunk the car, and how he should respond to the court to not get caught and be in jail.

    This part starts with a side shot of Adrian’s face, then it went on to have the 180 degrees system in the apartment room.

    Then follows a close shot of Ms. Goodman (fake). At this point their line of view already started to come at one point, where they each star each other into the eye. Ms. Goodman (fake) is acting angry as a lawyer role for her client not cooperating, while Adrian is angry that Ms. Goodman always leads him to say things he hide inside his heart that “will be good for him on court”.

    Then it went to medium, over-shoulder shots that records their conversation. We can also see the shot/reverse shot technique used here

    The last part is a long shot, but still on the 180 degree system, with the two apart, suggesting their fate will not eventually come together, and the “Ms. Goodman” will not win her case on court.

    We see how the director used the 180 degree system to show their final conversation carried on, and how different camera positions on the 180 degree system is used to achieve different effect and feeling for the audience.

    In short, the scene use continuity to stabilize comprehension, and create a clear map of space, time and causality, so performance carries our attention. The filmmaker can modulate intensity of a clip and its meaning through editing, and make the dramatic logic work more fluently.

  • Chapter 5: Cinematography and its applications

    Chapter 5 provided us with a lot of information, as well as a lot of new vocabulary to help us look at film in a new way. My main takeaways fall under the categories Tonality, Perspective, and Framing.

    Under tonality, there are a whole bunch of concepts and practices regarding lighting and coloration, but I must closely held onto Contrast and Exposure.

    I know this example doesn’t come from a film, but I have known it for a while to be the epitome of contrast in an image. Back in high school theatre, we learned about good poster design and often referenced the poster for Broadway’s Wicked, primarily for the substantial contrast shown. It showcases two characters: Galinda (or Glinda), whose all-white design only touches Elphaba’s black costume. This white-on-black contrast makes the image so much more engaging.

    Here’s an example from Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, which showcases rather low exposure. This comes near the end of the film, when the mood, given the previous chaotic events, is much darker than at the beginning.

    Continuing on this image example, the perspective shown appears to utilize a middle-focal-length lens. This avoids distortion at either end of the frame, while short-focal-length and long-focal-length lenses tend to distort the ends and obstruct binocular cues respectively. This image also showcases a certain depth of field. We see inside the house just fine, but, past the pole on the outside, the trees and background are blurred–outside of the given depth of field.

    I found framing to be the most interesting section of the reading. It deals a lot with how shots are taken through angle, level, height, and distance, among other elements.

    In Rabbits, by David Lynch, the framing often stays the same as its long, establishing shot, with slight reframing as characters move to the edges of the set. There are some exceptions to this, as seen in the below image:

    Being able to see the full set becomes unsettling after a while, as the viewer never knows what could pop out of any corner at any moment, but shots like these are even more off-putting. The height of the camera tends to be high like a security camera, but then we’re suddenly eye-level with creatures we’ve already labeled as volatile/potentially dangerous. Additionally, the duration of shots is extremely long, which draws out the creepy mood even more. Framing can truly fully frame the viewer’s experience as they peer into the world of the film.

  • Chapter 5: “The shot: Cinematography”

    This chapter covered a wide range of different cinematic techniques, including the use of lighting and perspective. The chapter breaks up into 3 main categories with subcategories:

    1. The photographic Image
      • Tonalities
      • Speed of motion
      • Perspective
    2. Framing
      • Frame dimensions and shape
      • Onscreen and offscreen space
      • Camera Position
      • Camera Movement
    3. Duration of the image
      • The long Take

    I thought that this chapter did a great job in giving even a glimpse into the wide scope of cinematography. 3 categories are further broken into 8 subcategories, each containing pages of information. The main lesson I took away from this chapter is the wide range of things that one can do just with changing a few things on a camera, each resulting in a totally new shot with a new feel.

    As I was starting this chapter by reading about contrast, the film that jumped to mind (and specific shot) was Paths of Glory (1957, Kubrick). This shot specifically uses a high contrast to be able to visualize the light shining in on the prisoner from outside, representing the light he is gaining from the priest in his final moments. The shot also uses negative space to scream in the viewers face that the prisoner is isolated and lonely. Shot in black and white, this shot uses low-key lighting compared to the rest of the film to emphasize the character’s internal darkness.

    Another movie that is filled with absolutely beautiful cinematography is 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968, Kubrick). Another Kubrick masterpiece consistently demonstrates how cinematography adds to the story of a film. In this specific shot, a character’s lips are being read, as he speaks in private to his crewmate. The shot is silent, but with the use of masking, the viewer’s attention is drawn to the character’s lips, telling us that they are the object of interest. This is a perfect demonstration of how masking combined with a close-up shot can perfectly attract a viewer’s attention to a certain specific plot point.

    When reading the chapter on focal length, my mind immediately jumped to The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017, Lanthimos). The incredibly unnatural and off-putting vibe of the film is mirrored by Lanthimos’ use of wide angle, short focal length cinematography, creating a strong feeling of isolation and distortion. The technique is used throughout, and it makes the characters seem like they are almost unable to create connections with one another as they, themselves are unimportant.

  • Creative instrument _ Cinematography

    This week’s reading on Chapter 5, “The Shot: Cinematography”, which is actually an exciting part for me since creative and effective cinematography can always shock me a lot and make me marvel at the powerful role of cinematography in shaping a film’s narrative and emotional expression.  The reading emphasizes how the camera is not just a recording device but a creative instrument that shapes meaning.

    I believe that this chapter mainly focuses on four elements of cinematography:

    ·  Photographic qualities: such as tonality, contrast, and exposure.

    ·  Depth of field and focus: which guide the audience’s attention through selective focus, deep focus, or rack focus.

    ·  Framing: such as camera distance, angle, and aspect ratio, which determine how space is perceived.

    ·  Camera movement: from pans and tilts to tracking shots and long takes, which create rhythm and continuity.

    Then, I’ d love to share some cinematography that I appreciate a lot, and I hope these examples can better explain the power of cinematography.
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    For example, in Life of Pi, the shots of the glowing ocean at night left a deep impression on me. (I watched this film when I was in elementary school, but it is still the top 3 movies in my hurt, and will always recommend to my friends watch it!) The strong contrast between the bright bioluminescence and the dark sky creates this dreamlike, almost spiritual mood. The framing often puts Pi small against the endless sea, making his struggle feel even more overwhelming.

    In The Shawshank Redemption, I always think of the moment when Andy escapes and raises his arms to the sky in the rain. The low camera angle looking up, combined with the crane movement that slowly lifts, makes us share his feeling of freedom. It’s simple, but so powerful.

    In The Wolf of Wall Street, the cinematography almost becomes part of the chaos itself. The restless tracking shots and sudden zooms mirror Belfort’s manic lifestyle, while the rapid cuts in the office scenes—where dozens of brokers shout into phones at once – intensify the sense of frenzy. Together, these choices capture not only the dizzying speed of the financial world but also its obsessive, almost pathological hunger for money.

    All of these examples made me realize just how much cinematography directs our attention and emotions. It doesn’t just record the story—it tells the story. And honestly, it makes me marvel at the powerful role cinematography plays in shaping both plot and emotion.

  • The Visual Power of Mise-en-scene

    Even if you have never watched The Lion King (1994), given the image above, one could guess that the character depicted possesses evil qualities simply by analyzing the visual elements in this particular scene. This power lies in the technique of mise-en-scène: the visual orchestration of setting, lighting, costume, and performance (Bordwell 113).

    This week’s reading took a deep dive into exploring the technique of mise-en-scène. Mise-en-scène is introduced as the arrangement of everything that appears in the frame of a film, including elements such as setting, lighting, costume and makeup, and staging and performance. As discussed in Chapter 4, mise-en-scène represents the director’s control over the visual elements of a film and plays an important role in shaping how audiences perceive characters, themes, and tone.

    After reading, I found myself thinking about how mise-en-scène operates. The chapter emphasizes that mise-en-scène offers filmmakers four general areas of creative control: setting, costume and makeup, lighting, and staging/performance. These elements, when combined, allow directors to guide the viewer’s response and understanding of the story. For example, the reading discussed how lighting can influence the way a character is perceived. Casting shadows can create a sense of mystery, while bright lighting may convey warmth. Recently, I rewatched The Lion King (1994) and noticed how mise-en-scène is at play even in animated films. Take, for example, the following scene(s).

    In early scenes of the film, Pride Rock and the surrounding lands under Mufasa’s rule are depicted using a lively, earthy color palette, such as browns and lush greens. This use of color suggests prosperity and balance. However, when Scar takes over, the entire landscape becomes a desaturated monochromatic color design of grays and blacks. This dramatic shift in color and the use of monochromatic color designs is a clear example of how mise-en-scène is used to visually convey messages. Here, the audience is shown, through setting and color, that Scar’s rule is bad.

    In another scene, the filmmakers use the element of lighting to emphasize character transformation. When Mufasa’s spirit appears in the sky to speak to Simba, a beam of top lighting shines down on Simba, creating a “glow” that covers him. This moment uses top lighting to visually mark a turning point in Simba’s journey. Here, Simba begins to reclaim his rightful place as king, and the mise-en-scène enhances the storytelling.

    These examples helped me better understand how filmmakers use mise-en-scène to execute ideas and tones in a film. What I found interesting is how many of these visual elements operate on a subconscious level. Most viewers may not actively notice the shift in lighting during a film, but they still feel the significance of this choice. Personally, I know the first time I watched The Lion King (1194), I did not actively notice the mise-en-scène at play. This raises an important question for me: how much of mise-en-scène do viewers consciously register, and how much simply influences us emotionally in the background? Additionally, I also wonder if societal norms/cultural context affect how these visual elements are interpreted. For example, does the “halo glow effect” of top lighting rely on cultural/societal assumptions that may not be the same universally?

    Using Barbie (2023) as an example, I know that the use of bright, saturated colors was used to convey artificiality. In the Barbie (2023) movie, bright colors were used to give the set a toy-ish wonderland feel. However, viewing it from a different perspective, I wonder if the use of bright, saturated colors could be interpreted as something else, given that bright colors could be the “norm” for settings similar to that of Barbie (2023).

    Given this, I question how someone from a different cultural/societal background would interpret the same lighting and color design I picked up in The Lion King (1994)?

    Sources: Bordwell, David, et al. Film Art: An Introduction. 13th ed., McGraw-Hill, 2024.