B. Fictional Adaptation - Analysis 3 films.
For my 3 film researching, I have chosen to pick 3 elements from different adaptions that I have watched over the years, I will look at narrative, style and the relevancy to my own work.
1. Film number one
The Colour Purple.
Alice Walker Novel 1982
The Color Purple documents the traumas and gradual triumph of Celie, an African American teenager raised in rural isolation in Georgia, as she comes to resist the paralyzing self-concept forced on her by others. Celie narrates her life through painfully honest letters to God. These are prompted when her abusive father, Alphonso, warns her not to tell anybody but God after he rapes her and she becomes pregnant for a second time at the age of 14. After she gives birth, Alphonso takes the child away, as he did with her first baby, leaving Celie to believe that both have been killed. When the widowed Mr.__ (also called Albert) proposes marriage to Celie’s younger sister, Nettie, Alphonso pushes him to take Celie instead, forcing her into an abusive marriage. Soon thereafter Nettie flees Alphonso and briefly lives with Celie. However, Albert’s continued interest in Nettie results in her leaving.
Celie subsequently begins to build relationships with other black women, especially those engaging forcefully with oppression. Of note is the defiant Sofia, who marries Albert’s son Harpo after becoming pregnant. Unable to control her, Harpo seeks advice, and Celie suggests that he beat Sofia. However, when Harpo strikes her, Sofia fights back. Upon learning that Celie encouraged Harpo’s abuse, she confronts a guilty Celie, who admits to being jealous of Sofia’s refusal to back down, and the two women become friends. More significant, however, is Celie’s relationship with Shug Avery, a glamorous and independent singer who is also Albert’s sometime mistress. Celie tends to an ailing Shug, and the two women grow closer, eventually becoming lovers. (Foca, 2019:Online)
Adaption - 1984, Directed by Steven Spielberg.
The colour purple is a film that I have seen many many times and I wanted to use the narrative of the film to reflect the poet that I have chosen.
As an adaptation of a book, The Color Purple cannot compare to its source material, nor should it have to; as a movie unto itself, it’s remarkably expansive and offers textures, feelings, and experiences that are unique to the cinema, and especially to the kind of American studio filmmaking that the director prizes above all.
As with the colour purple I used the source material of William Blake to interpret what he writes into my own version, he also explained in his poem about how hard it is to forgive an enemy but easier to forgive a friend, The Color Purple has a similar narrative to that and has had a big influence in my final story.
Celie, the Main Character is tormented growing up by her violent father, then gets married to an older man who also abuses her. Although my film has no violence in it, I use the example of Celie not having to fight back but expecting her fate and in her own way forgiving the people who were the meanest to her, just by praying and cursing.
The colour purple: Everything you done to me...,2012
My own adaption is heavily to do with loved and lost ones and Celie's story takes us on the same journey of lost loved ones, hurt and pain.
My adaptation is about love and losing the one you love in a time that you have said bad things towards each other and about asking for forgiveness to a higher p[ower to search for your soulmate.
Celie thought that she had lost her children and she prayed all the time that they would be safe, its a spiritual journey for Celie like is with my Bride in my film, however, my character is searching for forgiveness and her husband who is now in spirit.
Colour
Speilberg, uses bright colours to really show the light in a dark storyline, he captures the sun and has lense flair in his shots, he also takes shades down in some sense to change the mood and tone.
The relevance to my film is that I also wanted to capture as many colours and light that I could to reflect on the mood of my story, however, I had to be very clever with this because it is a show me - don't tell me film that I created, without the use of dialogue.
Costume.
What the characters wear in the film is iconic to who they are Whilst Nettie (above left) is in the flowing white dress
Shots and Technics
There a many film tecnics that I took from this film, below are the order of the shots used in the color purple and how i used the shots in my film.
- Establishing shot: Celie and Nettie are holding onto one another in this beautiful field with purple flowers and are full of pure joy and happiness. Alfonso calls them to come back to the house for supper. Celie giggles in delight and Alfonso says, "you got the ugliest smile."
- lighting: dark vs. light- when Shug Avery comes to Mr.__ house for the first time there is a thunderstorm to foreshadow, and other times when things are sad, such as when Celie discovers that Mr. ___ has been hiding her letters from Nettie for decades the background is dark and grey
- Close-up: on Mr. __ face, Celie's eyes when she looks up at God, characters' hands such as Nettie's and Celie's, Celie and Shug Avery's when they touch each other, and Celie and Olivia's when they touch hands for the first time, on Alfonso's young bride to show she is terrified
- Flashback: Celie is reading Nettie's letters in the present and the movie fades into flashbacks of Nettie's past letters written from experiences in Africa.
- Tracking: Nettie and Celie in the field running towards each other.
- Fade: mailbox scene, elephant fade, etc.
-Reaction shot: when Celie finally stands up for herself against Mr. ___ it shows his reaction, Celie's reaction to how Mr. ___ treats her, Mr. ___ reaction to the women in his life (Celie, Nettie, Shug Avery).
- Sound track: classical music, Shug's songs such as ""Miss Celie's Blues," soft-calming music, and music to dance to when they are at the Jukejoint
- Shadows: instead of showing Nettie and Celie, at some scenes the audience can only see their shadow, but not the actual character. An example is when Celie is trying to teach herself to read, instead of showing her, the movie shows her shadow.
Relevence to my Film
- Establising shot: My Bride is seen walking up the isle to meet her husband.
- Lighting: dark vs.light - Inside the church on the wedding day I use colours and the sun light to create shadows - this foresees an ominous feeling.
- Close-up: When my bride is standing at the alter, I use the focus pull to add a depth of field.
- Flashback: The wedding day is a flash back from my brides POV - remembering the happier times.
- Tracking shot: I track from the sideof my Bride using the track and dolly.
- Sound Track: The music is called Valentina's death, it has an emotional yet erieness about it, but is also from a collection of gothic church music.
- Shadows: The use of shaods are used in the grave yard but this was done in post of the shadow of the husband.
film two -A Christmas Carol
Charles Dickens 1843.
A Christmas Carol is on of the most celebrated Christmas story in the world, it has also been adapted over 50 times for TV, Film and Radio.
Picking this film as one of my choices was done to the narrative at first because it is about, forgivness and about ghost of the past.
I have seen many adaptations of the novel and the film I am going to pick to anylasis is a modern day version called 'The Ghost Of Girlfriends Past' as there is one scen in partivuller that has many elemnts for my creative choices.
Connor is a womanizer and makes no apologies about it. He goes to his brother's wedding rehearsal and tries to convince him to back out. He tries to sabotage the wedding and tries to play mind games with both the bride and groom. While there, Connor is visited by his uncle's ghost, Wayne, who taught him everything he knows in seducing women. Wayne wants to open Connor's eyes to his womanizing ways and tells him that three women from his past, present, and future will show him these different aspects of his life. In his past, we learn that Connor was badly scarred by a girl named Jenny (who is also at the rehearsal). Since then, he has never committed to any girl and dates casually. In his present, his assistant Melanie shows him his shallow ways, giving him a peak into what his women say about him. In his future, he sees that Jenny is with someone else and he dies alone with no one loving him. At this point, the bride learns about a secret that Connor lets out about his brother which convinces her to call off the wedding. Connor becomes the savior and salvages the wedding by giving a convincing talk to the bride. They come back to the venue, where Connor opens up to Jenny about how he never stopped loving her.
The scene that I looked at for lighting and shots:
Lighting
At the start of the film the reveal of the bride walks in with a bright light behind her, showing the angelic character that she is, I used the light in the same way for the exit of my bride and groom, showing that they are pure and happy, bright light simbalisis happeniss.
Costume
The use of costume is very simbolic in this move as the Bride is in her pure white dress and the Ex Boyfriend (The ghost) is in all black, making the piece feel ominus, I wanted to create the same reaction of costum to demonstraight who they are.
Transistion.
When the Ex jumps through the new couple, it was a great editing transittion that I feel that I utalised that in my edit by overlapping my actors to seem like my husband was in fact a ghost.
Although this scene was full of people in my chossen movie, I wanted my film to demonstrate the flashback as a memory rather then a full wedding (it would have been full on the day) because it tells the audience that this is not a present situation.
Shots.
In this scene the camera on tracks the bride towards the alter, but having thought about the emotions behind the shot (Ie: the scene was happening in present time and needed to focus on the brides joy and happy expressions) I deside against the idea, i want detailed views on the bride walking lonely yet still have the element of joy in her expressions, yet the use of my lighting exumed such emotions.
Third Film - The God Father
The God Father By Mario Puzo.
The Godfather, American gangster epic film, released in 1972, that was adapted from the 1969 best-selling novel by Mario Puzo and has been regarded as a masterpiece since its release. Its creative cinematography, haunting score, and unforgettable performances by such actors as Marlon Brando and Al Pacino made the multigenerational saga an enduring cultural touchstone.
The Godfather is set in the 1940s and takes place entirely within the world of the Corleones, a fictional New York Mafia family. It opens inside the dark office of the family patriarch, Don Vito Corleone (also known as the Godfather and played by Brando), on the wedding day of his daughter, Connie (Talia Shire). Vito’s youngest son, Michael (Pacino), who has distanced himself from the family business, attends the festivities with his non-Italian girlfriend, Kay (Diane Keaton). A few months later, Vito is nearly killed by gunmen sent by a rival family, and Michael saves him from another attempt while he is recovering in the hospital. Michael then takes revenge, killing a corrupt police captain as well as the man who ordered the hit on Vito, after which he flees to Sicily as a gang war breaks out. Vito’s eldest son, Sonny (James Caan), is gunned down, and the violence eventually reaches Michael when his Sicilian wife is killed during an attempt on his life. Michael returns home and marries Kay, and Vito makes peace with the rival families. Michael succeeds his father as don, and, after bringing prosperity to the family, he launches a campaign to systematically wipe out all those who had ever attacked the Corleones.
I looked at the style of directing for this film as the pace is slow yet meaningful with shadow shots and lighting, the audience can get a real sence of 'whats going to happen next'.
The god father hardly uses dialouge yet focus more on how to use the camera, lights and music to create such motions.
I created the same with my film, by using natural lighting and having slower camera movements to create the non-ergancy, and capturing the details of the locations and characters, as well as expressing a story.
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