Closure work, part 5 - A nightmare on elm street (2010)

1- State how costume (as an element of mine-en-scene) makes us as an audience feel an emotion/opinion of/for/about a particular character in the film you have chosen. Chris - she is represented as a damsel in distress she is 'weak' when she dies she looks as though she is innocent and as she is a 'pretty' girl she is seen as disposable. When she dies we, as the audience, feel a sense of connection towards her as she is first represented as being caring towards Dean and distraught at his death.
2- How is the micro element of sound used in the opening 2 minutes of the film? Your answer should include key sound terms such as diegetic/non-diegetic/ambience etc.
Diegetic sound of a girl screaming to show the enjoyment of children. There's 'spooky' non-diegetic music to create a feeling of a horror movie to begin the film and set the genre.
3- Discuss how cinematography creates meaning in a particular scene of your choice. You should use key cinematography terms in your answer.
POV shots are used to show Dean, when he fall asleep the lights go from green to red, this immediately creates the feeling that something bad is going to happen, this is shown through a close up shot, this then cuts to a low angle shot, this show's that Dean is weak and Kruger is strong. We see the face of the villain very early on which is unusual in a horror movie.
4 - Discuss the use of editing in the opening scene. How does this create either meaning or spectator response? Your answer should include key editing terms (as in the attached KO)
The first person we see is Dean, shots that're faded together to show his death, there is cross cutting between the girl and Dean to show his death and how he died. The cross cutting enables us to see the emotions of Chris and how sad she is to see him die.
5 - Apply Narrative theory to the film you have chosen. Your answer should include Todorov's theory of narrative equilibrium, Vladimir Propp's character roles and functions and Claude Levi-Strauss' binary opposites
The film is linear, we go through the film there is never really a 'normal' and there are many disruptions with various different characters dying. The resolution is them bringing Kruger into the real world. The new equilibrium is that Nancy is alive (for now) and so is Quentin. The villain is Kruger, the hero is Nancy. The see weak vs strong throughout the film and see how weak the teens are compared to Kruger, Nancy wears white to represent purity and Kruger wears red representing danger.
6 - What genre is the film you have watched? Your answer should include Daniel Chandler's conventions of content theory.
I watched a horror movie, it fit Daniel Chandler's conventions of content through the 'creepy' music during tense times to show suspense. Red lights are used to show danger. There's also close up shots and extreme close up shots to show Chris' character expression, usually conveying fear. Dull/dark lighting is used and low angle shots of the house and of Chris to show her weakness and her being a damsel in distress. The use of diegetic and non-diegetic sounds are used to show fear. The scraping of the blades is a sound that is horrible to listen to creating a sense of uneasiness.
7 - How did the film make you feel at the end? You should make reference to Blulmer and Katz's Uses and Gratifications theory. Were you entertained? Were you informed and/or educated? Did you feel a personal relationship form with any of the characters? Did you feel any identification with the plot, a character of general them of the film?
There's a sense of relief at the end of the film that Nancy and Quentin are alive, we have a sense of emotion for them as we have seen there development throughout the film. There's a relief that Quentin is alive and that Nancy is safe. However she sees Kruger drag her mum through a mirror however we don't know what this means as it is left as a cliffhanger.
8- in your opinion, how could the film have been improved? The voice of Kruger could be improved, as it isn't very typically 'scary' it would be more successful if there was less dialogue from him. meaning that there were more questions to be asked by the children creating suspense of the emotions of the character.