Christmas Homework

Why should the creative process include things that are unfamiliar to you?

I think that if you only expose yourself to things in your comfort zone then you won’t be able to draw new inspiration meaning you will be limited in the ways your ideas can develope. Exploring art that we’ve never seen also means that we can question why they do certain things and some of the choices they made. Without already having a firm familiarity you’re forced to think a bit more and stretch yourself.

The film I watched was ‘The Duchess’ as I watch hardly any romantic/dramatic films.

Summary

The film is about a young woman who marries the dutch, expecting love to blossom. She quickly finds out that he has little interest in her other than her potential to bare a male heir. The Duchess is unsuccessful in having a boy but provides two girls. The Dutch however has fallen in love with the Duchess’s hand maid and has an affair with her. Upon discovering this the Duchess falls in love with a politician and has his child.

Shots

It starts of by showing the contrast between two different lives, the young being noisy, free and energetic. And the old in a silent room not talking or interacting with each other. This shows us the change that her life is about to undertake.

Some of the shots they are using seem to tell us a lot about the Dutch and Duchess’s relationship. The first view we get of them together is of him looking through a blurred window at her. I think this could show that he doesn’t understand her or even pay much attention to her. The window and large distance between them can also be used as a metaphor to show the separation between them.

One of the scenes in which we get have them interacting together is when they arrive at the Dutch’s home. He first addresses the dogs and then the Dutchess in the same manner, implying that he doesn’t think of her as equal or respect her. The film also uses a variety of height differences to show status, much like in this scene where he’s in the steps above her.

Large objects are fairly common in this film such as long tables and looming beds. I think the tables are being used to represent the distance between the two characters. They rarely interact and do not have any feelings for each other, the size of her in the frame compared to the size of the bed I think shows the task looming over her. Having to conceive a boy.

In this frame the wall is being used as a barrier. This shows the separation from her old life and the people she once knew. Also the size relation could represent her change in status as a result of her forthcoming marriage.

In this shot the duchess is entering the house where the child born of her affair has to be sent to. The lighting in this shot has been used to show the contrast of her rich home and where she is now.

This is when the Duchess leaves the table to answer a call from her lover, she must then tell him to leave. The steps here are being used to represent the hierarchy which they belong to. She comes down from the top as her place of Duchess to speak with him. After doing so she must return back to the top, showing the obligations she has and the expectations of her.

In this scene there are a sequence of close ups to show the friendship between these two characters. Also to make them seem closer there are a number of bodies that walk in front of the camera, I think this has been done to make everything feel busier but also to show the intimacy between them.

Most of the film features gentle camera movements such as slow pans and zooms. At some points it could be seen to show the characters softness but I think it is many used for dramatic effect.

Overall I enjoyed the movie and thought it was a good story line highlighting the oppression of women from that period. What stood out to me the most about how this was filmed is how they used distance and size within a frame to show meaning. I believe this has given me a greater understanding of how objects and positioning can be used for effect in a frame.