Quiz

Important Definitions

Archetype:

[ahr-ki-tahyp] noun

1.

the original pattern or model from which all things of the same kind are copied or on which they are based; a model or first form; prototype.

2.

(in Jungian psychology) a collectively inherited unconscious idea, pattern of thought, image, etc., universally present in individual psyches.

a character, place, or thing, that is repeatedly presented in films with a particular style or characterization; an archetype usually applies to a specific genre or type classification.

ex: the anti-hero detective in film noirs,

Two big Ms

mise en scène

a French term for “staging,” or “putting into the scene or shot”; in film theory, it refers to all the elements placed (by the director) before the camera and within the frame of the film — including their visual arrangement and composition; elements include settings, decor, props, actors, costumes, makeup, lighting, performances, and character movements and positioning; lengthy, un-cut, unedited and uninterrupted sequences shot in real-time are often cited as examples of mise-en-scene; contrast to montage

Examples: the harsh lighting or expressionistic angles used in classic film noirs (such as in Fritz Lang’s work), in F.W. Murnau’s Sunrise (1927) with the striking contrast between the marsh, rural life and the city; or in angular set designs of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920, Germ.); or in the visual magnificence of the sets in David Lean’s epic films, such as the frozen dacha in Doctor Zhivago (1965) (pictured) or the searing desert in Lawrence of Arabia (1962), or in the claustrophobic feel on-board the Orca searching for the Great White in Spielberg’s Jaws (1975)

From Filmsite.org

http://www.filmsite.org/filmterms13.html

motif

refers to a recurrent thematic element in a film that is repeated in a significant way or pattern; examples of motifs – a symbol, stylistic device, image, object, word, spoken phrase, line, or sentence within a film that points to a theme.

Examples: Keys in Hitchcock’s Notorious (1946), seen in the poster design for the film; the word ‘Rosebud’ in Citizen Kane (1941); and the visual use of the X-symbol in the gangster film Scarface (1932) signifying male violence