How To Analyze Movies – Film Studies 101

The video, presented by Curiosity Stream and Nebula, deviates from the usual content and serves as an academic class on "how to analyze movies." The speaker, Patrick Willams, introduces the concept of viewing cinema as an art form, akin to analyzing literature or painting. He aims to teach viewers how to look beyond the surface story of movies to understand the artists' choices and the emotional impact and meanings expressed.

The speaker introduces a two-step process for art analysis: describing what is seen (the piece itself) and questioning why each aspect is a deliberate choice. Analysis considers artists' choices and happy accidents and embraces subjective interpretations. The audience's interpretation is as valid as the artist's intention. Thus, all art, even accidents during creation, merits analysis since art is subjective.

The speaker discusses ways to identify a movie's primary themes by summarizing its story and highlighting the main conflicts and characters' transformations. Using "Home Alone" as an example, he identifies multiple interconnected themes such as responsibility, forgiveness, and the importance of family. He articulates that observing the story's arc helps in extracting its central theme effectively.

Cinema is a visual medium, and the storytelling is enhanced by how stories are told through images. "Mise-en-scène" refers to the visual frame elements like lighting, camera placement, and actor positioning, influencing the narrative impact. Movie understanding begins with analyzing its early scenes, which reveal the tone and visual language. Each filmmaking choice is deliberate and adds to the narrative understanding.

The choice between realism and formalism in cinema determines a film's aesthetic. Most films fall into classicism, balancing realistic and formalistic elements. Analyzing "Home Alone," the speaker highlights the blend of realism with formalistic elements like music and exaggerated angles to convey the protagonist's perspective. These techniques help portray subjective events through the protagonist's eyes.

Films use lens choices to create different perspectives and effects. In "Home Alone," wide lenses emphasize the environment and height differences, reflecting Kevin's perspective. Long lenses highlight isolation, and technical aspects like these subtly shape the viewer's perception. Understanding these lens choices can improve the analysis of emotional and narrative nuances in cinema.

Color enhances storytelling by affecting viewers emotionally and adding subtext. In "Home Alone," warm colors symbolize home and family, while cold colors depict distance. Kevin's mother is portrayed in warm colors to signify her connection to home, even when away. Color harmony or contrast serves to symbolize belonging or displacement, enriching the narrative's emotional impact.

Aspect ratios affect how the story is framed, influencing viewer perception. "Home Alone" uses the 1.85:1 aspect ratio, enhancing the portrayal of comedic elements and highlighting Kevin's smallness relative to his environment. Although a minor choice, aspect ratios reflect creative decisions that, while subtle, contribute to storytelling by setting up the visual framework of the narrative.

Lighting significantly impacts a film's mood and reality depiction. "High-key lighting" in "Home Alone" establishes a comforting comedy tone, while "low-key lighting" adds suspense in certain scenes, like when intruders approach. These lighting choices guide audience emotions, emphasizing narrative shifts between safety and danger within the story.

Camera movement and actor blocking tell unique stories within each scene. "Home Alone" employs different movement techniques to emphasize character emotions and plot points, like using close-ups and subjective perspectives to visualize emotional transitions (e.g., Kevin's bravery quickly turning to fear). Each camera and actor positioning decision supports the narrative dynamically.

Editing links shots and scenes, maintaining continuity and shaping viewer interpretation. In "Home Alone," techniques like montage and crosscutting emphasize timeline changes and connections between characters (e.g., Kevin's home alone contrasts with his family on a plane). Editing structures the story seamlessly, adjusting tempo and perspective while delivering narrative meaning.

Sound design, Foley, and music shape the film's environment and emotions, deeply affecting viewer perceptions. "Home Alone" uses minimal sound to accentuate Kevin's loneliness and exaggerated Foley effects to convey perspectives and humor (such as BB gun hit sounds). Music underscores themes, like the complex mix of safety and unease when portraying Christmas, shaping both mood and narrative tone.

The opening scenes of "Home Alone" employ strategic framing and perspective transitions to establish character dynamics and emotional context. Through visual contrast and implied attention shifts, the film subtly transitions from objective observation to Kevin's subjective viewpoint, enhancing audience understanding of character relationships and subsequent plot dynamics.

Authorship theory explores film authorship by considering a director or producer’s creative influence. With "Home Alone," John Hughes' thematic influence is prominent through recurring motifs in his work, while Chris Columbus's directorial decisions embellish the narrative, demonstrating how multiple creators can shape a film’s identity through thematic continuity and stylistic execution.

Film history influences current releases, as films reflect upon and reference previous works. "Home Alone" includes nods to classic films and draws thematic parallels with others like "Die Hard." These intertextual connections enrich interpretation as films converse with and are inspired by their historical context, sharing common tropes and innovative storytelling methods.

Genre expectations influence the viewer's perception of a film's aesthetic and narrative framing. "Home Alone's" comedic genre supports warmth and humor and borrows elements from horror to communicate Kevin's perspective, enhancing emotional resonance. Genre analysis helps unravel narrative techniques and expectations, offering insights into storytelling approaches intended by filmmakers.