Films and Me

Up until this year, I haven't watched films for anything more than the story line and possibly the soundtrack. Although I adore films, and it fascinates me how all of the elements come together to make the finished article (script, music, costumes, acting, sound effects put in afterwards), I haven't been very aware of these factors when watching a film, as I didn't know much about them. This is a further appreciation I hope to gain from studying film.

I try to watch different types of films, especially on recommendation of anyone, but I generally lean towards three main types of films: adaptations of books that I like (mainly young adult fiction), rom-coms, and superhero films. Firstly I love adaptations of books, because it's interesting to see one person's interpretation of a story, and seeing how the one type of media is transformed into another. Rom-coms I love because I generally like a story to have a romantic element, and I love any film that can make me laugh. I love the plot of superhero films, and how they appeal on multiple levels depending on your age/maturity/understanding. For a young child going to see the film, it's a simple fight of good against evil affair, but watching it at a slightly older age means that you see the problems that the heroes often face, and their struggles with their own morality.

As films go (and stories in general), I only enjoy a film if it has a satisfying ending. What is, you ask, a satisfying ending? In my opinion, a satisfying ending reaches a natural conclusion and leaves everything either all wrapped up, possibly with loose ends open to interpretation, or leaves the story on a suspenseful cliffhanger if there is already a confirmed sequel. And example of an unsatisfying ending in my mind is Atonement, which ends with (in my opinion) one of the secondary characters wishing that it could have ended differently, but not focusing a lot on the main characters' actual ending.

I'm going to be utterly honest and say that I'm not aware of many directors, other than the really famous ones (eg. Steven Spielberg, Richard Attenborough, Alfred Hitchcock, Martin Scorsese etc.) Looking at some of the films I appreciate cinematically, I do like David Heyman and Joss Whedon. My favourite actor is probably Logan Lerman, and my favourite actresses (I cannot choose one) are Emma Thompson, Emma Stone, Emma Watson and (to break the pattern), Lily Collins, as I appreciate all of their versatility through all of the utterly different characters that they have portrayed in their films.

So that is all for now, thank you for reading!