Evaluation

Q1. What were the aims of the script & 9 key frames?

The purpose of the script was to create either a disruption or resolution scene (I did a disruption scene) for a prequel film (I did the film Harry Brown). The script explores my MACRO study into the role of a vigilante; and also my thesis statement on how Harry Brown as a vigilante and motivated by revenge subsequently cleans up the mass criminal society (South London council estate). I also analyze how through Harry Brown’s actions as a vigilante he ends up committing morally wrong actions, but he never suffers for his actions, rather they actually lead to positive results. Through many aspects including: dialogue and scene directions I was able to convey my thesis statement and MACRO study within the script. The purpose of the 9 key frames I created was to carefully choose 9 key parts of the script that would be filmed to link with my MACRO study of the role of the vigilante. I was to show this through the use of location, costume, cinematography (camera shots & angles), props and character casting.

Q2. What codes and conventions identified in the textual analysis essay were used in the script & 9 key frames?
I used the conventions of a hybrid genre thriller-drama that I recognized during the textual analysis essay that I added into my script through dialogue and scene directions. I also colour graded the 9 key frames to match the dark mood I wanted to convey through a thriller drama. The colour grading also helped in showing that the 9 key frames were set in the past as the pictures appear black and white. The narrative aspect of Harry Brown being a vigilante was something I also used in the script and 9 key frames. In my 9 key frames I decided to use quite old (1950s - 60s) clothing on characters – this helped bring more realism to the scene, as it showed the time period effectively. I used a variety of camera shots and angles that helped established the role of Harry Brown as a vigilante (through low angle shots) and the thugs as less powerful characters (through high angle shots). Some shots also represent a characters point of view (I used an over the shoulder shot) which is something I again found from doing the textual analysis task. This helped a lot in communicating a character to the audience.

Q3. How was the location report used in the construction of the 9 key frames?

The location report was an essential aspect used that influenced the 9 key frames. My initial first location report had to be changed due to actors finding it difficult to travel there. This lead me to go and completely change the script from a war scene to a council estate scene, as my location report had changed so much. I also could not find a second suitable location to film a war scene. The second location report then enabled me to explore various estates and find the one that matched the Heygate Estate in the original Harry Brown film. The estate I found helped in creating the 9 key frames as it was much more accessible and dressing up the set to look like 1960s England was easier. The council estate was chosen as my location as it also links to the actual Harry Brown film and therefore is a continuation through my prequel idea. The location report was quite insightful as by completing it this helped me in knowing whether a location is suitable to film in depending on the health and safety along with determining if certain camera angles can be taken in these locations. Also whether any facilities (electrical equipment) I needed to use could also be present in these places was also something I took into consideration. I also analyzed how effective the location I chose to film at would be in terms of its look on camera by comparing the estates I went to with the one from the original Harry Brown film.

Q4. How successful was the script & 9 key frames in achieving the aims?

The script was successful in establishing my MACRO study focussing on Harry Brown’s role as a vigilante – this was through dialogue and stage directions that helped to communicate Harry as a vigilante. Also the narrative of the script involved me solely focussing on Harry Brown and his development into the vigilante character. However, I could have communicated my MACRO study more clearly within the script; this could have been done through showing character development with Harry, involving him transitioning into the role of the vigilante within the narrative and dialogue of the script. I decided to create a disruption scene, but now reflecting on it I could have been more congruent through telling this in the script. As a disruption scene within the script it seemed to resolve during the end, this raises the question how would the scene continue to a resolution scene. Next time I will make it clearer the type of scene I am doing through the script narrative. With my 9 key frames I did select the most relevant and important scenes to film, this was through me analyzing all of the script and carefully selecting these parts. Additionally I ensured these key parts that I was to film were all relevant by checking that they all contribute to Harry Brown with him becoming a vigilante. I would say my 9 key frames were not fully effective as in some shots, actors appear smiling when not necessary, I did direct them but I should have got better actors for the roles to avoid this. The 9 key frames were not fully effective through location, I did not secure the estate I had planned, and therefore I had to use another one. This resulted in my location having less significance as it didn’t really match the estate from the original film. More organisation through my work would mean me not having this problem.

Textual Analysis (Final Version)

Harry Brown and The Dark Knight are two films in which the narrative involves the protagonists taking on the role of vigilantes; embarking on taking revenge for deaths they blame themselves for. Batman blames himself for the death of Rachel, who he has feelings for and Harry Brown blames himself for the death of his best friend Leonard. Through the motive of revenge Batman and Harry Brown end up cleaning up the mass criminal society around them, (Harry Brown with the South London council estate and Batman with Gotham city). As vigilantes Harry Brown and Batman end up committing morally wrong actions, but as the audience we never see them suffer for their actions, also through the long stride of violence Harry Brown and Batman follow and with the clear up of society, this shows that their wrong actions actually lead to positive results. Harry Brown’s actions in killing more people than he needed to enables him to experience peace and safety, this shows that as a film Harry Brown really demonizes modern day working class youth as the epitome of evil. As Harry is never punished the film justifies the killings of youth as a liberal decision. The Dark Knight is a contrast as Batman does end up leaving Gotham, whilst he does much less wrong doing in comparison to Harry Brown. The Dark Knight represents human nature in not being believing that someone can do good for intrinsic benefit rather than an extrinsic reward – this is seen with Batman.

Harry Brown is a film in which Daniel Barber makes his directorial debut in this fast paced, grimy thriller. The film is an independent one distributed by Lionsgate UK. Harry Brown the lead protagonist, an elderly man who witnesses the council estate he lives in quickly deteriorating into youth crime; when his best friend Leonard is murdered Harry decides enough is enough. Through his transition into a vigilante Harry then returns to his past lifestyle of when he was fighting in the Marines, except as he says’ those people were fighting for something; for a cause. To them out there, this is just entertainment.’ Harry Brown makes the audience side with Harry automatically, seeing as his threat is the ‘youth hoodie chav culture that was being paraded around the media around the same time Harry Brown was released. The Dark Knight is a big budget film in which Christopher Nolan directs his second of the Batman trilogy. The film is distributed by the major Hollywood production Warner Bros. Gotham city is being invaded by mass amounts of crime, the most significant being the menacing threat of the Joker. The only one who can challenge his authority and power is Batman. Although like many other Hollywood films The Dark Knight has a large budget, there is still a large focus on the narrative, something that is not that common with Hollywood movies, especially movie franchises. 

Harry Brown and The Dark Knight are both introduced by showcasing the mass threat of the antagonists of the film. This sets up the narrative of both films, showing the audience that the protagonists are going to have to overcome the antagonist’s control of the society around them. This is seen at the beginning of both films. Looking at props in Harry Brown there is drug abuse, and gun control the estate gang portray. Looking at mis-en-scene the use of guns in broad daylight really shows the audience how the estate is really a warzone with no respect for others. With cinematography the opening of Harry Brown is shot in a POV handheld camera phone form, adding a more realistic ideal to the film, along with the camera quality representing the quality of life the youths on the estate have. Along with The Dark Knight in which we see the Joker using menace, violence and smart tactics to kill the other bank robbers who he is meant to be teaming up with him, showing how cunning he is. With the use of masks looking at mis-en-scene this establishes that all the bank robbers posses some menacing and disguised tactics used to cause havoc on others, they also show savagery as when a mask is worn an identity is lost. With cinematography we see The Dark Knight start with an establishing shot to show the audience the scale of crime being committed and the Joker is rarely really shown through close-ups to add to the mystery of his character until he reveals his face at the end of the scene.

Harry Brown and the Dark Knight both follow and break genre conventions. They both follow the classic Hollywood narrative structure. Harry starts of weaker to the youth thugs on the estate and this is shown in the tunnel scene where he walks past the tunnel in which the youths are in fear. Looking at costume Harry is shown wearing bright clothing and the location around him is generally quite bright showing good, whereas the tunnel is very dark showing evilness. The use of graffiti on the tunnel location also indicates some form of property belonging to the youths. A wide shot is used on Harry as he walks off away from the tunnel in which the location becomes bigger than him to show that the place in which the youths are situated is more powerful than him. In comparison, The Dark Knight shows Batman losing power over the antagonist the Joker who is constantly mentally and psychologically defeating Batman. In the interrogation scene Batman and the Joker are constantly in uniform, the Joker in his war paint mask shows the re-birth of a new evil identity in which he can hide behind. Batman in his dark black cloak and mask shows a sense of hidden darkness inside him, and also a new identity hidden behind a mask. The fact that Batman is in Black which represents evil in comparison to the Joker in purple, green and white showing goodness also breaks the typical genre convention as the evil character is hard to identify. Until the last part the Joker is constantly shown through mid and low angle shots to show his power along with Batman who is also shown through these shots. Only later when Batman uses physical violence does he gain power and this is seen where he is shown through low angles shots in comparison to high angle shots on the Joker. The fact that the antagonists in both The Dark Knight and Harry Brown are shown having the upper hand allows the films’ narratives to show the protagonists development in overcoming the antagonist.

Harry Brown and Batman start to grow in development through narrative as vigilantes. Both Harry Brown and Batman are motivated by revenge based on the death of loved ones, due to the deaths both characters equilibriums are disrupted. Harry Brown is motivated as his best friend Leonard is murdered and decides to avenge those who are responsible. Looking at the Harry Brown subway scene the atmospheric music with rhythmic editing sets the iconic suspense of a thriller. Through mis-en-scene the tunnel location is used to show this scene as it is the estate youths main place to ‘hangout’, and the fact Harry is coming in there shows him being voyeuristic and invading their area. This also shows through narrative Harry no longer fears the threat of the antagonist’s. The use of lighting to show Harry coming out of the darkness into the bright tunnel shows his development as an anti-hero through him becoming evil. The Dark Knight shows the Joker’s threat as an antagonist, as Batman is motivated by revenge through the death of Rachel. The Joker is shown growing as a threat. The use of costume with the Joker being in a nurse uniform this shows his natural evil ability to be threatening even whilst looking like a woman. Also when the Joker hands Harvey a gun to shoot him the Joker is still shown through low angles, showing he is still in full control. The location of the hospital being used to be blown up shows the Joker’s success in beating Batman as he is able to continue to wreak havoc on Gotham city. Also the long shot of the hospital building being blown up shows the large threat the Joker has as opposition against Batman.

Batman and Harry Brown’s actions as vigilantes effect others and it is evident how both protagonists have fulfilled their roles as vigilantes. Harry Brown by killing all the estate youths involved in the revenge of Leonard does restore peace on the council estate and restores a stable equilibrium. At the end of the film Harry is seen walking through the tunnel he once feared with peace, through mis-en-scene the removal of the graffiti on the tunnel is shown and replaced with a white background, which shows purity, this also represents the removal of evil from the estate. Depth of field is used effectively to show Harry walking into the tunnel and being bigger than it, showing how he has overcome the antagonists and is more powerful now. Also the use of sound when the tunnel is now being shown is with quite calmly atmospheric music, rather than the suspenseful dark music that was associated with the tunnel previously. Through narrative Harry Brown has now finished his task and can return to his normal life. In The Dark Knight Batman’s role as a vigilante is not fully fulfilled, he does not completely stop the crime in Gotham and also has to leave Gotham. The narrative is able to continue in The Dark Knight as Batman still has tasks to fulfil which is why the film ends like this due to the fact it is the middle of the Batman trilogy. Although Batman leaves Gotham he is still shown through low and mid angle shots foreshadowing him regaining power and returning to Gotham. As he also leaves with the Batman costume and bike it shows he is still not finished and this foreshadows he is to return a hero. 

Looking at both The Dark Knight and Harry Brown, the protagonists of the film take up the role of a vigilante. Through both the films narratives, we see the characters progression as vigilantes.  The use of In The Dark Knight and Harry Brown we see how through the motive of revenge and redemption both vigilantes (Harry Brown and Batman) therefore clean up the criminal society around them. This is seen with Harry Brown cleaning up the crime in the South London council estate and Batman cleaning up the crime in Gotham city. Although we as the audience see Harry Brown & Batman do morally wrong both protagonists escape punishment, this shows through narrative both films communicate that the protagonists are right through their actions. In Harry Brown we see Harry's equilibrium restored at the end of the film as the estate he lives in is no more infested with youth gang crime, rather replaced with peace. Also the fact that he has avenged his best friend Leonard's death by killing all those involved in the murder, he restores his equilibrium as he no longer feels guilty for the death. In the Dark Knight we see Batman's equilibrium still unstable as he does not avenge Rachel's death. Comparing both the two, Harry Brown is not as morally right compared to Batman. Harry kills many people and perhaps more than he needed to but Batman does not intentionally kill anyone and ends up leaving Gotham for greater good. Also because he no longer feels he is a worthy leader and also "Because he's the hero Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs right now“.

9 Key Frames

These are my 9 key frames that accompany the prequel screenplay. Each picture represents a key event that is essential to the narrative, which is also my MACRO study for the film I'm studying  in my textual analysis - Harry Brown.

Shot 1.Medium angle, medium shot of both Tommy and John, with them both together this pictures conveys they have a sense of territory over the estate they are in. The use of levels and proximity also shows a sense of friendship in the shot By having this shot, the next shot appears as if Len is invading into the thugs territory.

Shot 2. Medium angle, wide long establishing shot of both thugs (Tommy and John) along with teenage boy (Len) walking. Tommy and John appear more prominent by taking up more of the shot. The wide establishing shot helps show location of the estate (congruent as being a continuing aspect from the original film) and the medium angle on all characters represent the neutral position they have in-terms of their power. 

Shot 3. Low angle, over the shoulder shot of both Tommy and John intimidating Len. The low angle shows Tommy and John's power over Len and the over the shoulder shot shows Lens point-of-view as he's being submissive looking up at Tommy and John - the dominant characters, this also helps foreshadow what is to come.

Shot 4. Medium angle, medium shot on Len getting wallet robbed by Tommy and John. The prominence of the thugs represents Len's lack of power and also creates a more omniscient atmosphere in which all characters are being looked at, this shot still shows the power of Tommy and John with them being more prominent and the use of levels in the shot to convey their power.

Shot 5. Low angle, medium shot on Harry Brown walking in the road. The low angle shows Harry's power and conveys to the audience he's on the same level of power as Tommy and John. The mid-shot also shows his significance as he appears very prominent in the shot. 

Shot 6.Low angle, medium shot on Harry punching Tommy who has his hands on Harry. The medium angle close-up brings out the facial expression and tension levels between Harry and Tommy. The low angle shows Harry's dominance over Tommy, also combined with the use of levels, the shot conveys Harry's superiority.

Shot 7. Medium angle, wide shot of Len and Harry looking at one another from sides of the road. The medium angle captures both characters looking at each other with equal eye level, and this also helps in establishing a relationship between both characters as they both do this action simultaneously.

8. Low angle, medium close-up on Harry’s punching John. The low angle confirms that Harry has gained power over both thugs and the medium close-up establishes facial and physical expressions of both characters in reaction to the punch.

9. Medium angle, medium close-up on Harry and Len together  whilst Len goes to shake Harry’s hand,  he smiles. The medium angle shows Harry and Len being on the same level of power and the wallet in shot establishes Harry as a vigilante taking the law into his hands and getting the outcome he proposed for.

Harry Brown Screenplay with Camera Shot Annotations

By having these camera shot annotations they help in moving the script forward to transitioning it into a shooting script.

 

Costume Design - 9 Key Frames

For my 9 key frames, it will involve all characters wearing 1950's boys school wear, to help me get a realistic overview of have compiled pictures. A mix of these is what I am aiming for in terms of using costume to reflect the time period.

9 Key Frames - Planning

To make sure I am fully prepared for doing the 9 key frames shoot I have compiled a shot list, this help me know everything I'm, doing on the day.

9 Key Frames – Shot Types:

1. Medium angle, wide long establishing shot of both thugs (Tommy and John) along with teenage boy (Len) walking. Tommy and John appear more prominent by taking up more of the shot. The wide establishing shot helps show location of the estate (congruent as being a continuing aspect from the original film) and the medium angle on all characters represent the neutral position they have in-terms of their power.

2. Low angle, POV over the shoulder shot of both Tommy and John intimidating Len. The low angle shows Tommy and John's power over Len and the POV shot over the shoulder shot shows Lens point-of-view as he being submissive looking up at Tommy and John - the dominant characters, this also helps foreshadow what is to come.

3. High angle, medium close-up on Len getting wallet robbed by Tommy and John. The high angle represents Len's lack of power and also creates a more omniscient atmosphere in which all characters are being looked down on, this shot still shows the power of Tommy and John with them being more prominent and the use of levels in the shot to convey their power.

4. Low angle, medium shot on Harry Brown walking in the road. The low angle shows Harry's power and conveys to the audience he's on the same level of power as Tommy and John. The mid-shot also shows his significance as he appears very prominent in the shot.

5. Medium angle, medium close-up on Harry pushing Tommy away as they square up. The medium angle close-up brings out the facial expression and tension levels between Harry and Tommy, as they are both in mid-shot, both characters appear to be at the same level of power.

6. Medium angle, wide shot of Len and Harry looking at one another from sides of the road. The medium angle captures both characters looking at each other with equal eye levels, and this also helps in establishing a relationship between both characters as they both do this action simultaneously.

7. Low angle, medium close-up on Harry punching Tommy who has his hands on Harry. The low angle shows Harry's dominance over Tommy, also combined with the use of levels, the shot conveys Harry's superiority.

8. Low angle, medium close-up on Harry’s punching John. The low angle confirms that Harry has gained power over both thugs and the medium close-up establishes facial and physical expressions of both characters in reaction to the punch.

9. Medium angle, medium close-up on Harry and Len walking together with wallet in Len's hand whilst he goes to shake Harry’s hand, as he smiles. The medium angle shows Harry and Len being on the same level of power and the wallet in shot establishes Harry as a vigilante taking the law into his hands and getting the outcome he proposed for.

Harry Brown Screenplay