Individual Research Essay - Gran Torino vs Arkham Knight PDF

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Individual Research Essay - Gran Torino vs Arkham Knight...

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Gran Torino vs Batman: Arkham Knight The language of the moving image contributes to the overall representation of an idea, issue or theme within a film, animation, game or new media. This essay will consider two screen-based works, Gran Torino, a film and Batman: Arkham Knight a game and how the notion of self-sacrifice demonstrates that there is nothing in life which is more important than saving the lives of those you love. A key sequence from both Gran Torino and Batman: Arkham Knight will be chosen to compare and contrast on how the language of the moving image is used to persuade the audience, through two different perspectives, in regards to the theme of sacrifice. When comparing and contrasting the two screenbased works, the use of the elements of the language of the moving image will be considered – i.e. cinematography, mise-en-scene, editing and sound. In this individual research essay, I aim to analyse the use of the language of the moving image by the director of the film, Gran Torino (Clint Eastwood) and chief designer of the game, Batman: Arkham Knight (Ian Ball), and how they persuade audiences that the act of self-sacrifice ultimately exemplifies how humans’ true nature is to sacrifice something for love. In Gran Torino, the director, Clint Eastwood, plays the character Walt Kowlaski, a white, unabashedly racist American retiree who is haunted by his painful experiences in the Korean War and is unable to connect with others – a fortress that keeps his family and friends out. Walt struggles to come to terms with the changes in the community. The plot revolves around his unlikely friendship with Thao, a teenager from a Hmong immigrant family. As the plot thickens, Walt realises that Thao chances of success is hampered by the growing pressure of joining a delinquent gang full of Hmong adolescents. The key sequence selected, follows Walt when he confronts the Hmong gang right on their doorstep – face-to-face, sacrificing himself for Thao and his family so they can live on with their lives gang free. In Batman: Arkham Knight, the final chapter of the Arkham series, Bruce Wayne sets out into the night to thwart the plans of Scarecrow and the Arkham Knight’s army. Scarecrow has attacked Gotham City through chemical warfare, now giving Batman’s foes a chance to unite and do everything in their power to end the reign of the Dark Knight. Bruce is forced to turn to his closest and more unlikely allies in the quest to defeat his inner demons as well as those who have launched an attack on Gotham. For this essay, the key sequence selected follows Poison Ivy’s sacrifice, as she eradicates Scarecrow’s fear toxin sacrificing herself for the betterment of nature and the citizens of Gotham. Although, originally in the previous Arkham instalments Ivy is seen as a true villain, however in this particular storyline she is painted as an anti-hero assisting Batman by creating a spore to counteract the effects of the fear toxin, absorbing and restoring Crane’s toxin. Leaving a weakened Ivy, Batman holds Ivy in his arms as she dissolves into dust, and thus deceases due to the effects of the toxin. With her plants living onward, cleansing Gotham of all fear toxin. In both the gaming and filmmaking world, mise-en-scene is notably significant in creating an emotional impact in regards to an idea, issue or theme, as it involves everything placed in front of the screen - the settings and props, lighting, costumes and makeup and figure behaviour. In the chosen sequence of Gran Torino, shot 1 opens with Walt emerging from the shadows of nightfall, standing on the street facing the block of flats where the Hmong gang are located. Eastwood uses mise-en-scene to create a tense atmosphere with the urban street virtually empty, with a subtle low key lighting creating an unnerving mood. With the camera positioned behind Walt, the lighting creates a sense of authenticity and realism (Jang, 2013). The audience can only see a brief outline of a person, but a glare of light revealing a head of grey hair and familiar elderly figure movements, suggesting it to be in fact Walt. Shot 2 transitions to a mid shot of the Hmong gang’s block of flats. The urban street setting creates a realistic and somewhat relatable visual for audiences. In shot 3, with the use of props, a Hmong gang member spots Walt through the blinds of the household. The inclusion of this shot creates a jittery, tense atmosphere and reminds audiences the true danger Walt has put himself into for Thao and his family (Furlan, 2009). In contrast, Batman: Arkham Knight creates a similar emotional impact but through a different means of mise-on-scene. In shot 1, Batman glides back to Gotham Botanical Gardens where Ivy is submerged within the trunk of the largest tree in the garden. When approaching the stump of the tree, an option to ‘check on ivy’ appears on screen. With the dispersion of Scarecrow’s fear toxin, this manufactures a hazy, glare of orange light against the night of Gotham, creating a bleak, apocalyptic setting and a feeling of hopelessness for audiences (Hamilton, 2017). In shot 2, the trunk of the tree slowly unravels to a weakened Ivy. This creates an unnerving atmosphere as the audience don’t know what to expect. Shot 3 transitions to Ivy rising sluggishly from her knees to a stand. The colouring in this shot is desolate, as Ivy is ordinarily coloured as bright green with tints

of red. However, in this shot both Ivy and the tree trunk due to absorbing the fear toxin, have shades of orange and faded brown covering the screen, signifying the rotting and decomposition of Ivy and nature itself (McElroy, 2015). Both Gran Torino and Batman: Arkham Knight create an emotionally tense atmosphere but through different means of mise-en-scene – lighting, props and figure behaviour. Cinematography is extremely important in the world of film and games, bringing the vision of the director/designer alive on the screen. In shot 4 of Gran Torino, Fong (the leader of the Hmong gang) and two other gang members open the door to confront Walt. The use of a low angled mid shot, establishes the dominance the Hmong gang have over the situation. Shot 5 opens from the perspective of Walt, with the camera placed behind him looking upon the Hmong gang. In this case, the use of a low angle mid shot acknowledges Walt’s bravery and heroism, as he is severely outnumbered by the Hmong gang (Newton, 2010). In contrast, Batman: Arkham Knight, although conveying a similar message, the use of cinematography in the key sequence differs to that of Gran Torino. In shot 4, an extreme close up of Ivy’s pallid face covers the majority of the screen, with the background out of focus. This extreme close up emphasises the true pain Ivy has endured for the city of Gotham, displaying her acts of bravery and heroism to audiences. Shot 5 transitions to a mid shot of Ivy with the vines of the inner tree plying onto her arms. With one last burst of power Ivy restores and absorbs Crane’s toxin through the tree. As the fear toxin surges through her flailing body, the camera shakes in the direction in which Ivy spasms. This use of the technique ‘shaky camera’ creates a hand-held camera feel, forcing the audience to feel panicked and a strong sense of uneasiness (Tassi, 2015). Although, both the film and game exhibit the characteristics of bravery and heroism, ultimately they use different cinematography techniques to support their characters and storyline. Editing, the process of selecting and arranging shots is widely regarded as one of the most important jobs in both the film and gaming industry, as it can influence audiences to feel emotionally connected and sometimes truly immersed in the film or game. In shot 6, after looking from Walt’s perspective, the camera quickly cuts to a wide shot of Walt. In the background, neighbours can be seen coming out on their balconies. In shot 7, the camera suddenly cuts to an array of mid shots where more families start to emerge from their front doors and balconies. This sudden string of cuts, gives the audience an impression that no violence will take place as innocent bystanders will witness it (Schenk, 2015). In shot 8, similarly to that of the neighbours, an array of mid shots display additional Hmong gang members emerging from the balconies above Fong and his goons. Corkery (2012, 8) suggests the use of editing in this particular scene creates a western, final showdown atmosphere with the onlooking neighbours and audience watching in anticipation. Contrastingly, Batman: Arkham Knight, although creating a final showdown atmosphere, the designer (Ian Ball) uses different editing techniques. Shot 6 cuts to a long wide shot of Ivy wrapped within the tree trunk spellbinding Crane’s toxin. Suddenly, the tree starts to gain its original colours causing Ivy to collapse from the vines of the tree. Shot 7 suddenly cuts, as Ivy falls to the ground. With shot 8, quickly cutting to a mid shot of Batman’s concerned reaction. All three shots similarly to Gran Torino, creates a western duel atmosphere with a sense of hopelessness as both Batman and the audience can only watch this battle between Ivy and Scarecrow’s toxin transpire. Both Gran Torino and Batman: Arkham Knight create a western, final showdown atmosphere but through the use of different techniques of editing.

The sound and audio of a screen based work is extremely important for the emotional impact of a shot or cut scene, promoting a particular idea, issue or theme. In the key sequence of Gran Torino, the conversation between the two parties continue, until Walt picks a cigarette from his pocket and asks if anyone has a lighter (Shot 9). As in previous sequences, when Walt was on the verge of using a gun to resolve an issue, the sound of military drums could be heard, reminding Walt of his previous experiences of armed conflict in Korea. According to Jang (2013) “This effect is further developed as orchestral strings play to build anticipation in the audience”. With this use of sound, Eastwood infers to audiences that a shootout may commence. In shot 10, with the increasingly agitated Hmong gang members pointing their guns toward Walt, Walt slowly goes to grab a lighter from his inner jacket and quickly draws his hand from his pocket – acting as if he is drawing a gun. The music stops and only gunshots are heard. The bullets penetrate Walt’s torso forcing him to fall to the floor. With no gun in his hand, an extreme close up of Walt’s hand reveals it was his military cigarette lighter. Walt never intended to kill anyone. According to Corkery (2012, 6) “The self-sacrificial nature of Walt’s death is inextricably related to his role as saviour or redeemer”. In contrast, Batman: Arkham Knight, although exemplifying the theme of sacrificial love, the designer (Ian Ball) devises a different use of sound. In

shot 9 and 10, there is both Batman holding Ivy in his arms. The backing soundtrack of a violin signifies a sacrificial death (Tassi, 2015). Although, both the film and game exhibit the characteristic of sacrifice, ultimately they use different use of sound to support their characters and storyline. In conclusion, this essay has highlighted how the director of Gran Torino (Clint Eastwood) and the designer of Batman: Arkham Knight (Ian Ball) have effectively used the language of the moving image to demonstrate the notion of self-sacrifice and how there is nothing in life which is more important than saving the lives of those you love – humans’ true nature. Two anti-hero characters, Ivy and Walt expiate themselves from previous ideologies and transgressions, sacrificing their lives for innocent ones.

Gran Torino - Shot List Key CU = close-up; ECU = extreme close-up; ECU = very extreme close-up; LS = long-shot; MLS = medium long-shot; MS = medium-shot Shot Time in seconds Description Number and frames 1 3 MS of Deckard clinging on to the steel bar suspended on the ledge of the building 2 3 4 5

7 4 6 4

6 7 8

6 10 8

9 10

6 6

MS of mid shot of the Hmong gang’s block of flats MS of Hmong gang member spotting Walt through the blinds MS of Fong and two other gang members opening the door to confront Walt MS from the perspective of Walt, with the camera placed behind him looking upon the Hmong gang LS shot of Walt with neighbours’ houses behind him An array of MS’s where more families start to emerge from their front doors and balconies An array of MS’s display additional Hmong gang members emerging from the balconies above Fong and his goons MS of Walt picking a cigarette from his pocket and asking if anyone has a lighter CU of Walt slowly grabbing a lighter from his inner jacket and quickly drawing his hand from his pocket

Batman: Arkham Knight - Shot List Key CU = close-up; ECU = extreme close-up; ECU = very extreme close-up; LS = long-shot; MLS = medium long-shot; MS = medium-shot Shot Time in seconds Description Number and frames 1 4 MS of Batman gliding back to Gotham Botanical Gardens 2 6 MS of the trunk of the tree slowly unravelling to reveal a weakened Ivy 3 5 MS of Ivy rising sluggishly from her knees to a stand 4 5 ECU of Ivy’s pallid face 5 8 MS of Ivy with vines of the inner tree plying onto her arms 6

12

LS of Ivy wrapped within the tree trunk spellbinding Crane’s toxin

7 8 9

4 2 8

MS of Ivy falling to the floor MS of Batman’s concerned reaction MS of Batman holding Ivy in his arms

10

6

CU of Batman holding Ivy in his arms

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