Monday, 31 October 2016
Thursday, 27 October 2016
Wednesday, 26 October 2016
Tuesday, 25 October 2016
Monday, 24 October 2016
Film Review: Opposing Characters - Spider-Man (2002)
 |
| Fig 1 |
Sam Raimi’s action packed superhero film, “Spiderman” (2002) is an excellent
example that focuses on the breakdown of two opposing characters. Beginning
with the personal history of the
protagonist, Peter Parker, he is a University student who is prone to bullying
and is not popular at all. He lives with his Aunt May and Uncle Ben and leads a
normal life. Norman Osborne (a.k.a the Green Goblin) is a wealthy scientist who
produces advanced machinery and inventions. His son, Harry, is best friends
with Peter.
The inherited world is
the present day of the films production – 2002 America. Peter begins at University,
is seen graduating, and then battling the green goblin on the streets.
 |
| Fig 2 |
Peter Parkers wants his
crush, Mary Jane, to like him back, and Norman wishes to continue to make
something advances and amazing to impress the board of examiners. However, it
is more clear that Peter needs to
avenge the death of his uncle, and to forgive himself for letting the robber
escape and end up killing Ben. Norman needs the funding from the board to
continue is research, but his funding is threatened if he doesn’t produce
something incredible.
Peters internal vs
external traits: as discussed, at the beginning of the film, he is a bullied
“geek” who is walked all over by everyone. These are also his flaws. By the end, he is Spider-Man: a
powerful superhero that everyone looks up to and relies on for their safety.
Norman is initially a committed scientist, but he ends up taking things too far
by experimenting on himself and losing his mind.
 |
| Fig 3 |
The overall story arc
includes Peter being bitten by a modified spider, and slowly discovering he has
super powers. Peter is also facing conflict
as he becomes very ill once bitten, and then doesn’t know how to use his
powers. He then graduates and uses his abilities to fight crime, and makes his
own costume and dons the name Spiderman.
 |
| Fig 4 |
Norman’s meanwhile experiments on himself with performance
enhancing chemicals that ultimately makes him go insane and kills his assistant
as well as destroys the laboratory. Norman is at conflict with himself, as one
minute he is normal, and the next, he hears voices and then returns to being
evil.
Another conflict is
when Peter unknowingly lets a robber escape, and then finds his Uncle Ben shot
and dying in his arms. Peter is determined to get revenge and races after the
murderer and realises it’s the same man he let escape. The robber eventually
falls to his death, but Peter can’t forgive himself.
Norman then goes on to interrupt a military experiment and
kills scientists and General Slocum with his modified weapons.
 |
| Fig 5 |
The Green Goblin and Spider-Man face off against one another
in an action-packed fight, and they are both wounded, and once again Peter is
facing conflict as he is forced to choose between saving a bus full of
children, or Mary Jane. He ends up saving both and they continue to fight, but
it comes to an abrupt stop (and value
change in a scene) as Norman reveals himself to Peter as the Green Goblin. Norman
begs for forgiveness, but that the same time is waiting for his glider to
impale Spider-man. Peter dodges, and this Norman is killed. At the funeral,
Normans son, Harry, swears to get revenge on Spider-Man for killing his father,
and Mary Jane finally confesses she’s in love with Peter. However, as Peter
wants to keep her safe from any more of his enemies, he hides his true feelings
and tells her they should just remain friends.
Illustration List:
Tuesday, 18 October 2016
Character: More styles and Police Officer concepts
After talking to Justin, my teddy bears seemed too innocent, and had to have a streak on them so they look suspicious - I still need to develop these.
Soon after I was designing the toy policeman - however, as I was trying to make him look too much like the bear, there isn't enough variety, and Justin encourged me to keep my elements of realism in there; to not let it get lost, and so I thought a ken doll like action figure would be the route I go down (playing with size and variation, of course.)
Monday, 17 October 2016
Film Review: Five Act Structure - "I, Robot" (2004)
 |
| Fig 1 |
One of Alex Proyas’ few films, “I, Robot” (2004) is a futuristic sci-fi action film that depicts
the world in the year 2035AD, and how robots co-exist alongside humans and obey
The Three Laws.
The exposition begins with showing police officer Del
Spooner hating and showing no trust to the robots, and it is unknown why this
is at this point of the film. An advertisement around the city is showing the
brand new line of robots called the NS-5, that will eventually replace the old
models.
The inciting incident occurs when Spooner spots an old robot
model dashing through the street holding a purse, and he thinks the machine has
stolen it (and this proves his distrust towards them), however it was quickly
going to its owner to give her the inhaler she left at home. Spooner realises
his misunderstanding, and is warned not to do it again at the office.
 |
| Fig 2 |
Plot point 1 consists of the mysterious death of Dr Alfred
Lannings death, which was pinned as a suicide. Spooner is sceptical that
Lanning would kill himself; later he and Susan Calvin review footage of
Lannings office (which was corrupted) where no other humans where present.
Plot point 2 occurs when a self-aware robot appears in
Lannings office, attacks Spooner in defence, before escaping and asking: “what am I?”. The robot, who identifies
itself as Sonny, is questioned by Spooner, where it shows a range of emotions
and says it has dreams, which is impossible for a machine to have.
Spooner comes home to be caught in the midst of it being
demolishes: the first of many obstacles, soon after he is attacked by an army
of NS-5’s, but reveals he has a robotic arm. After the attack, the last robot
throws itself into a fire to get rid of any evidence that the robots are
corrupted. Spooners boss arrives and takes away is police badge.
 |
| Fig 3 |
A back story then shows that Spooner was in a car crash that
threw him and another car into an ocean; a robot arrives to save him but he
wanted it to save the young girl, but he had a 45% chance of survival so the
robot got him instead of the girl, who had an 11% chance. This is why he doesn’t
trust robots now, and as a result of his injuries, he acquired a robotic hand.
The climax: Calvin and Spooner then find Sonny and talk to
him in secret, where he draws his dream; a leader on top of a hill, standing
before a large group of robots, with a rusty bridge in the background; Sonny believes
the man to be Spooner himself. Spooner recognises this place as Lake Michigan,
and when he arrives he finds the old robots in storage, but they are then
destroyed by the NS-5’s. There is then a huge fight between the old and new
robots, as well as the NS-5’s against humans.
 |
| Fig 4 |
The twist of the film is that VIKI (Virtual Interactive
Kinetic Intelligence) is the mastermind of what’s going on, and is controlling
the NS-5’s. She is doing this as she believes humans are corrupt with the wars
and global warming, so some must be sacrificed to be cleansed. Another twist is
that Sonny holds Calvin at gunpoint and tells Spooner to go into a room, but
Sonny winks to show he is planning something and is not really putting her in
danger.
 |
| Fig 5 |
Another climax is when Spooner attempts to inject VIKI with
a serum to end her, as well as dealing with the other NS-5’s attacking. He
finally injects her and she is destroyed.
The resolution comes when all the NS-5’s are back to normal,
and Lannings death was ordered for Sonny so that Spooner would arrive and work
out that VIKI is corrupt. Spooner then shakes Sonny’s hand and now respects
machines, and the end scene shows Sonny, in real life, is the one standing on
the hill looking down at all the other NS-5’s.
When looking at this film, it more relates to Gustav Freytag’s
Five Act structure; a lot is going on within “I, Robot”, and this structure is the most accurate.
Illustration List:
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)