The Book of Eli Documentary

1. What questions are posed by PA movies?
2. What are the 'walking dead'? How have they been used in other movies?
3. What might be the key to survival in PA movie narratives?
4. How far will Eli go to survive?
5. What would survivors of the apocalypse ask?
6. In Book of Eli, what has happened to bibles and why?
7. How is religion used in BOE? How is religion used in reality?
8. How do societies in reality avoid catastrophes?
9. Who will the future leaders be in post apocalyptic scenarios?
10. What does Eli represent?

1. If the worse was to happen, what would we do? How would we strive to maintain our humanity? Who would guide us? How would we rebuild our communities? Who would lead us into the future? If we had to build the world all over again, how would we?

2. The walking dead are people who are numb, dazed, their body is in shutdown, they are connected but not connected, they walk around not having all of their senses available to them. They are a walking spirit; they are alive but they aren't living. 

3. They have to live like people did 50-100 years ago; they have to learn how to kill and hunt for food + drink, trade things with other people and fix cars. 

4. He has to protect his book; he has to kill others in order to keep this book in his hands. He will do anything so that he can keep his book safe.

5. They would ask: is there a god?

6. The bibles were rounded up and destroyed because people lost faith in thinking that god was real.

7. One person wants the bible for good, but another one wants it for bad. Eli has the book, as he still believes and he reads it everyday, however others believe that due to the deaths of thousands of people, they stopped believing. In reality, people may re-think what they were originally thinking (if they believe in god), wondering why all of the conflict is happening, and why god isn't doing anything to help.

8. Democracy, altruism; positive, generosity and you give. 

9. If you can persuade people that you are right; "the gift of the gab". 

10. Eli has faith and belief in everything that he does, and that idea that we would rebuild the world with good in the world. He also represents hope. 

Music in films

Music Used in Films

Movie:
Psycho

Music:
Instrumental, violin discords


Role Played:
Reflects a screaming sound as the victim’s voice is edited alongside the music. The music amplifies her screams with harsh, rasping sounds.


Effectiveness:
Shocking and deliberately upsetting.  There is only the sound of a shower running beforehand and the violin shatters the silence.


Movie:
Trainspotting

Music:
Lust for Life - Iggy POP.

Role Played:
Reflects the characters 'lust for life'. The characters are heroin addicts, and their lust in life is shown to be drugs.


Effectiveness:
Describes the lives of the characters to the audience and shows that they have a lust for something in life.

YouGov Surveys

YouGov

The website YouGov is an informational page which informs the audience of a stereotypical person who likes a certain band, brand, celebrity, TV show or movie. This allows you to see if you are a stereotype or not, however, this is only based on the people who have taken surveys on the YouGov website and not the wider audience.

For the film 'The Book of Eli', I found that the stereotypical age range of this film is between 40-54. The biggest majority of the audience are male and are in the social grade of ABC1. They tend to be within the right wing supporters for politics. To describe themselves, the descriptions of easy going, well balanced and relaxed are given. However, they also can be described as grouchy, mean and fickle occasionally. A stereotypical 'The Book of Eli' fan is a customer of Strongbow, ASDA, Windows and Android. Additionally, it is stereotypical that these fans shop at the clothing brands of Yves Saint Laurent, Burtons and JD Sports. Furthermore, it is said that a stereotypical fan of this film spends 26-30 hours per week online. They typically read the Vogue magazine and the Mirror newspaper. On average, they spend approximately 46-50 hours watching the television. 

Moreover, for the film 'I Am Legend' the stereotypical person who likes the film are males, aged between 40-54, and within the social grade of ABC1. These fans too are within the right wing group for politics. They describe themselves as easy going, sweet and bighearted, but on occasion they can be nervous, dizzy and restless. They are a customer of Sony, eBay and ASDA.

The Road Analysis

Edits
In the opening scene of 'The Road', we see a graphic match. This edit shows the doors closing, making the scene look dark; when it moves to the next scene is it also dark. Additionally, there is also another graphic match in the opening scene. This shows flowers in the garden, we also see flowers on the female characters clothing. A little later in the film, we see that she is pregnant. The flowers used could connote the sense of life, the season of spring and fertility. Moreover, a jump cut is used when the child and the father is walking down the road with their trolley. This has been done to speed the action up, so that the audience isn't watching the whole of their journey.

Camera Shots
A POV shot is used when the child is looking up at a deer head on the wall. We know that this is a POV shot as the camera is slow down, indicating the height of the child. Also, there are a lot of close ups throughout the opening scene. This has been done to create tension and focus onto something significant.
A tracking shot was used too in the opening scene when the two characters were walking. This could have been done so that the audience can follow the action and that they are with them during the scene. Furthermore, a panning shot is used to show the logs in the lake, which are from the trees that had fallen. It could have been done to inform the audience on the treacherous conditions which the characters are in, and how the world is slowly falling apart.  

Sound
At the start of the opening scene, a piece of slow paced, emotive piano music is used. This could have been done so that the audience feels a sense of sympathy for the characters. This then changes into a more tension-building sound, which creates the atmosphere of mystery and the audience may wonder what will happen next. When we see the father and the son in a cave, we hear the sound of the rocks moving. This creates the effect that the earth is still moving and is still unstable. 

Costumes and Props

Costumes and Props

In different genres of films, the costumes differ depending on what the film will be based on. For example, the genres of western and comedy both have different types of costume. The two films in which I will compare are 'Once Upon A Time in the West' 

  In a typical western film, a costume includes a hat, a waistcoat or a shirt, a bandana, ponchos/ long coats.
These pictures show scenes from the western film 'Once Upon A Time in the West'. From this, we can see that a typical cowboy from a western movie wears clothing that isn't necessarily new. Their clothing looks old fashioned and rough, which could represent the places that they are in and where the film is based.
It could also represent the events that they supposedly go through each day; shooting scenes etc. Being set in the 19th century and in the dusty/deserted areas, very worn, old clothing is expected and is stereotypical of the genre.
They typically have a horse and guns as their props, as this is usually related to violence, which occurs often in the genre of western.

Alternatively, in the genre of comedy, a different type of costume is worn. In the majority of comedy films, simple, casual clothing is used. I think that this could be done so that it represents everyday life; the audience may be able to see themselves in the characters. For example, in the film 'Dumb and Dumber', the characters wear normal clothing, which isn't necessarily new, but is not dirty. Sometimes, comedy films include costumes which look funny on the character, and this will make the audience laugh. 



Post Apocalyptic films

In a post apocalyptic film, in my opinion, rough, torn clothing is used in the films. The use of worn t -shirts, big coats,   This represents the disastrous conditions in which the characters had been in, and shows that they don't have a lot of belongings. In the film 'The Road', the clothing looks dirty and old; this portrays that supplies are very scarce, and therefore they have to make do with the old things.  

As we can see in this photograph, the characters' clothing is unwashed, which shows that they have been living like this for a while. It could represent that something bad as happened to the world, therefore they are having to sleep in different places whilst they travel in search for supplies. Although props are quite scarce, the two characters have a shopping trolley in their possession as a prop. This could represent that their whole life is in a trolley, as they have no other belongings.

Additionally, in the film 'The Book of Eli', clothing tends to also be dirty, worn and old. This film is based upon a post apocalyptic world after a nuclear war had occurred. This means that things we would take for granted aren't available, and means the supplies are very scarce. The main prop used in the film is the Bible which the main character Eli has. This book is what the film is based around and many characters desperately want this book.  Another iconic use of prop within this film are guns and weapons. In order to survive in the world within 'The Book of Eli', you need to be prepared to kill and fight. This represents that life is hard for the characters and that if you want something, someones life has to be sacrificed. In the photo above, we can see that the main character is wearing protective clothing; this could have been used to represent the danger that the characters are under. The glasses that Eli wears in the film are used as he is blind; these might be used to portray that even though Eli cannot see, he is still able, strong and is able to accomplish himself to safety.


Costumes & Props for our Post Apocalyptic opening scene: 

• Torn clothing to represent the conditions in which the characters are in.
• Props could include some sort of weapon 

Classification Category Research

Film Classification Categories

Ratings:

• U (Universal)- all ages admitted, there is nothing unsuitable for children.

• PG (Parental Guidance) - all ages are admitted but certain scenes might be unsuitable for children. They might contain mild language and sex/drugs references. Also, it may contain moderate violence if justified by context.

• 12A - Films under this category are considered to be unsuitable for young children. Cinemas in the United Kingdom are only permitted to supply tickets to see a 12A film to children under the age of 12 if they are accompanied by an adult aged 18 or over. However, it is unlikely to be suitable for children under the age of 12. Films under this category can contain mature themes, discrimination, soft drugs, moderate language, moderate violence, sex references and nudity. Sexual activity may be briefly and discreetly portrayed. Use of strong language may be permitted based on frequency and how they are used, as well as contextual justification. Sexual violence may be implied or briefly indicated.

• 12 - Suitable for people aged 12 and older. It is illegal to supply a video work with a 12 certificate to anyone under that age. 12-A rated films are usually given a 12 certificate for the VHS/DVD version unless extra material has been added that requires a higher rating. The content guidelines are identical to those used for the 12A certificate.

• 15 - Suitable only for people aged 15 and older. No one younger than 15 may see a 15 film in a cinema. It is illegal to supply a video work with a 15 certificate to anyone under that age. Films under this category can contain adult themes, hard drugs, (frequent) strong language, strong violence and strong sex references, and nudity without graphic detail. Sexual activity may be portrayed but without any strong detail. Sexual violence may be shown if discreet and justified by context. Use of very strong language may be permitted based on frequency and how they are used, as well as contextual justification.

• 18 - Suitable only for people aged 18 or older, which means adults only. No one younger than 18 may see an 18 film in a cinema. It is illegal to supply a video work with an 18 certificate to anyone under that age. Films under this category do not have limitation on the foul language that is used. Hard drugs are generally allowed, and explicit sex references along with detailed sexual activity are also allowed. Scenes of strong real sex may be permitted if justified by the context. Very strong, gory, and/or sadistic violence is usually permitted. Strong sexual violence is permitted unless it is eroticism or excessively graphic, in which a work will require compulsory cuts where possible.

• Restricted 18 -  Can only be shown at licensed adult cinemas or sold at licensed sex shops. To be supplied only to adults, and it is illegal to supply a film with this rating by mail order. Works under this category always contain hard-core pornography, defined as material intended for sexual stimulation and containing clear images of real sexual activity, strong fetish material, explicit animated images, or sight of certain acts such as triple simultaneous penetration and snowballing.

Some U-rated films include:

These two films are U rated as they are animated and wouldn't include anything which would be unsuitable for children.




















PG rated films:

Both of these films are PG rated as they may include some things which could be unsuitable for children.It is under the parents discretion whether their children see this film with them. 

12A films:

These films include elements (including violence and mild language) which are unsuitable for young children. It is recommend that anyone under the age of 12 should be accompanied by an adult over 18. 

 

Some 15 rated films include:

The films shown here are suitable for viewers aged 15 and over, because they use sexual content and strong language. 

An example of an 18 film: 

This is an 18 rated film, as strong language, drug use, sexual content, mature themes and violence are used.