Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Play review

If you order your custom paper from our custom writing service you will receive a perfectly written assignment on play review. What we need from you is to provide us with your detailed paper instructions for our experienced writers to follow all of your specific writing requirements. Specify your order details, state the exact number of pages required and our custom writing professionals will deliver the best quality play review paper right on time.


Our staff of freelance writers includes over 120 experts proficient in play review, therefore you can rest assured that your assignment will be handled by only top rated specialists. Order your play review paper at affordable prices custom writing service!


DRAMA ASSIGNMENT- PLAY REVIEW


JUICE


Juice by Stephen Davis was written in 17 after a series of workshops with South-East Queensland schools including Ipswich Grammar, Nudgee College, Somerville House and several large State Schools, in which students and teaching artists' collaborated the ideas, issues and desires relevant to students in the 14-15 age bracket. The purpose of the play is to educate young people about the hidden dangers of alcohol.


Juice is a play about the trials and tribulations that a group of school-mates go through after the drunken suicide of one of their best friends, at a small party to celebrate the end of grade ten.


Order custom research paper on play review


The themes of the play highlight major physical, mental and social issues evident in today's teenage population. There are several subtle messages hidden within the text of this play, the main being that of Alcohol and its effects when you are trying it for the first time, like many of the characters were on that fateful night. Other issues raised in the plot are deceit and freedom or lack of it especially in Rodney's case, deceiving his parents at the outset for some freedom and then kept rambling on about flying which is usually categorised with the feeling of freedom i.e. the saying "Free as a Bird".


The plot of the story


A group of friends are celebrating the end of grade ten with a party. Two of the friends Rodney Borax (the central character) and Melissa-Anne are not allowed to go, so they decide to sneak out when Rodney's parents go to sleep. They call one of their friends with a car to pick them up, so they can join in celebrating the end of year 10.


At the party they discuss the future and have a few drinks but Rodney has too many and gets drunk. He rambles on and on about flying and then, in a drunken stupor decides to climb the water tower in the paddock adjacent to where they are having the party. When Rodney reaches the top of the water tower he goes on more about flying while his friends encourage him to come down so he doesn't hurt himself. That's when he jumps in a vain attempt to fly free from his over protective parents.


The story takes place in either the late 10's or early 000, but because there is no mention of historical events it is difficult to discern when the story is set, which gives the work a timeless quality and makes it relevant to any generation of teenagers. The main parts of the story are set in a semi rural suburb of Brisbane, this is identified because of the mention of the Ekka (which is the only morsel of information concerning when and where it was set).


The fact that a good portion of the play took place in a paddock works against the limited performance space in the Nudgee theatre as the stage is barely 4m x 10m, so it therefore cannot accommodate a water tower, trashed car body and a big video screen.


The costumes for the actors would have been fairly easy to organise as the actors could just wear some of their normal casual clothes and fill the costume requirements perfectly. I don't think that make up would be necessary for the actors playing the role of a boy but in our case where male actors are playing a female role a bit of makeup wouldn't go astray to accentuate their feminine features.


The venue and performance space partially affected the performance as there was limited space and the audience needed to use their imagination to see what the cast was acting out. Prime examples of this were when the actors where supposed to be in a paddock.


The set was quite boring and my attention started to wander as the play went on, if the set had more structure it would create more interest in what was happening, as the audience would have a bit more eye candy, other than a few colourful clothes against a jet black backdrop. The addition of a painted backdrop and a few logs for the actors to sit on would have achieved the outdoor feel more effectively than a few chairs positioned around a torch wrapped in red cellophane.


Lighting was used to good effect, with spotlights used to isolate actors on a separate stage space this effect was used well to represent an interview; overall lighting was excellent despite the limited amount of equipment at their disposal. Sound and other media could have been used to give the play a bit more life and set the mood of the scenes. The use of a big screen to represent a TV interview would have added another dimension to the production.


The actors were quite convincing especially the he-she's considering that most of them maintained a feminine voice throughout all of their dialogue, but on that note a pair of skin coloured stockings or a once over with a razor wouldn't have gone unappreciated.


Because the stage isn't much higher than the floor it was quite hard to see any action going on down the front of the stage especially for those at the back of the audience, the actors also needed to slow down their speech and project their voices a more as it was quite hard to hear further back.


There was one performance that really stood out above the rest, the character of Craig who was played by Callum Wilson, he articulated clearly and projected his voice really well.


The mood of the play was that of a solemn recollection of events, that lead up to the death of Rodney. The mood is conveyed by the character's dialogue, the tone of their voices and the use of lighting.


Overall the play was enjoyable but hard to follow, as the scenes presented were only excerpts from a larger play. The changing of actors for several key characters made the flow even harder to follow. Even though the play was cut down from what would be a production of well over an hour to just fifteen minutes, it still delivered a strong message.


The main source of comical enjoyment came from the "he-she's" wearing pink wigs trying to maintain their dulcet tones and other "he-she's" constantly adjusting themselves.


Fine tuning of several minor production and technical aspects such as stage height and seating arrangement would have been of benefit to the audience.


On the whole the performances were very good considering the amount of stage time (or lack there of) that the performers had. I would give this production a ½ out of five.


Please note that this sample paper on play review is for your review only. In order to eliminate any of the plagiarism issues, it is highly recommended that you do not use it for you own writing purposes. In case you experience difficulties with writing a well structured and accurately composed paper on play review, we are here to assist you. Your college papers on play review will be written from scratch, so you do not have to worry about its originality.


Order your authentic assignment custom writing service and you will be amazed at how easy it is to complete a quality custom paper within the shortest time possible!


Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Academic Research Paper on the Film "Citizen Kane."

If you order your custom term paper from our custom writing service you will receive a perfectly written assignment on Academic Research Paper on the Film "Citizen Kane.". What we need from you is to provide us with your detailed paper instructions for our experienced writers to follow all of your specific writing requirements. Specify your order details, state the exact number of pages required and our custom writing professionals will deliver the best quality Academic Research Paper on the Film "Citizen Kane." paper right on time.


Our staff of freelance writers includes over 120 experts proficient in Academic Research Paper on the Film "Citizen Kane.", therefore you can rest assured that your assignment will be handled by only top rated specialists. Order your Academic Research Paper on the Film "Citizen Kane." paper at affordable prices! Academic Research Paper on the Film "Citizen Kane.


Name Gan Chee Keat, Philip


Abstract


This is an in-depth research paper on the greatest film of all time in America, Citizen Kane. The objective of this paper is to help readers understand about the facts behind this film, the controversies and how it became the best-remembered and highly-rated film in history and as well as understanding the characters of the film. The beginning part of this paper will dwell on the history behind the two figures commonly associated to the film. Then, this paper will feature an analysis of the main and important characters in the film, mainly in the form of a behavioural analysis. Then, I will discuss two important scenes from the film that made a huge impact in Kanes life, the breakfast table scene and the picnic scene before concluding my research paper.


Do my essay on Academic Research Paper on the Film "Citizen Kane." CHEAP !


1. Introduction


Recently named by the American Film Institute (AFI) in Los Angeles as the number one film in America, Citizen Kane is perhaps the worlds most famous and highly rated film ever made. Even before the film was released in 141, there was much hype and buzz surrounding the film and about the boy genius that made it (The Battle Over Citizen Kane, 16). That boy genius was none other than the man who caused widespread panic among listeners of the radio drama War of the Worlds, thinking that Martians had really invaded New Jersey (Vivian, 1, chap.15, pp 8-85), Orson Welles, who also wrote, produced and starred in the film.


Welles had just turned 4 when he decided to take on this film project, inspired by the life of newspaper tycoon, William Randolph Hearst. It was because of this factor that the film failed to make an impact commercially because of Hearsts influences over the media at that time. Though nearly everyone present at a preview screening of the film realised that they had seen a work of brilliance, Hearst exerted much influence over the failure of the film, with many of Hearst-owned newspapers and other media outlets boycotting the film and attempts by Hearst to buy the film over to burn the negatives. Hearst claimed that the film was slanderous towards him but the film did indeed draw certain similarities between him and the films Charles Foster Kane, which will be discussed in detail in The Real Charles Foster Kane section of this paper.


What the film really was about was that it was just a fictionalised biography of Hearst in the form of a mystery cum investigative reporting genre. The film focuses on the word rosebud, uttered by Kane before he breathed his last. An investigative reporter was assigned to resolve the mystery of rosebud so he set out on a search for the meaning. His search led him to interview people of Kanes past, which was revealed through a series of flashbacks but none was able to help the reporter solve the mystery of rosebud.


What really made this film famous was not because of its controversies but more because of the films style and complexity of the film, which will influence many films in the future. Robert Wise, the film editor who later won Academy Awards for West Side Story (16) and The Sound of Music (166) (Emery, 1), did a marvellous job to keep the film structure flow seamlessly and cohesively. It was not until 0 or years later that the film was revived - before Welles would gain popular recognition for having created one of cinemas great masterpieces (About the Program, The American Experience, 4).


Despite the controversies and problems that Welles faced, it did not stop the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to award the film eight Oscar nominations, of which it only won one for Best Original Screenplay, which Welles shared with Herman Mankiewicz. The film was nominated for Best Picture (producer Welles), Best Actor and Best Director (Welles); Best B/W Cinematography (Gregg Toland), Best B/W Interior Decoration (Perry Ferguson and Van Nest Polglase), Best Sound Recording (John Aalberg), Best Dramatic Picture Score (Bernard Herrmann), and Best Film Editing (Wise) (Dirks, 00).


. The Real Charles Foster Kane


The film Citizen Kane has always been known as a fictionalised account of Hearsts life though depicted a little differently. Hearst was born on April , 186 in San Francisco, California, as the only child of self-made millionaire George Hearst and Phoebe Apperson Hearst. At age and a student at Harvard University, he became the proprietor of the San Francisco Examiner, which his father had accepted as a payment for a gambling debt in 1880 (Wierichs, 00, ). According to Wierichs, the older Hearst was a US Senator and had very little interest on a newspaper. Though preferring his son to manage the familys mining and ranch business, he gave his son control of the Examiner at Williams demand in 1887.


Like young Charles Kane, the young Hearst proved to be versatile as he determined to make the Examiner popular. Thus, he began to purchase the best equipment possible and hire the most talented writers possible (Wierichs, 00, ). Hearst went on to publish exposes of corruption and stories that were filled with drama and inspiration just as Kane publishes stories of scandals in his newspaper. Inspired by the journalism of Joseph Pulitzer, his former mentor, Hearst turned the newspaper into a combination of investigative reporting and lurid sensationalism.


In 185, Hearst purchased the New York Journal and entered himself in a newspaper circulation war with Pulitzers New York World, vowing to out-Pulitzer Pulitzer (Vivian, 1, chap. 10, p. 64). Both papers began publishing articles on the Cuban Insurrection in an attempt to increase circulation; with most articles greatly exaggerated to make them more sensational (Wierichs, 00, 4). The term yellow journalism, derived from Pulitzers Yellow Kid comic strip that Hearst copied as well as hiring Pulitzers cartoonist, was used to describe the circulation war as they plastered New York City with yellow promotional posters of the comic strip (Vivian, 1, chap. 10, p. 64). The term was then used to describe the style of sensationalised newspaper articles that both publications ran.


Hearst then ran a series of powerful articles that he published about the Cuban Insurrection and several years later, blaming Spain for the bombing and sinking of USS Maine. The articles incited Americans to go to war with Spain, thus, resulting in the Spanish-American War in 188. Hearst famously claimed, …You furnish the pictures, Ill furnish the war when one of his reporters visited Cuba and reported that there would be no war (Vivian, 1, chap. 10, p. 65). Kane said a similar line in the film, too, in the scene where a telegram from Cuba arrived for him while he was with Thatcher. He told Bernstein to send a message to the reporter, saying, "You provide the prose poems - Ill provide the war."


For his leading role in inciting this war, Hearst was given the nickname Father of Yellow Journalism (Wierichs, 00, 5). It was this type of stories that Kane revelled in as well in the film Citizen Kane. Hearst also did what Kane did on Citizen Kane; he bought over the writers from his rival in an attempt to out-manoeuvre him (Wierichs, 00, 6).


In 10, Hearst married Millicent Willson in New York and she bore him five sons during their marriage together. During their honeymoon in Europe, Hearst decided to start his magazine Motor, which would become an international operation known as Hearst Magazines (Wierichs, 00, 7).


Hearst and Kane had many other similarities as well, not just in the paper business (Dirks, 00). Both of them were also involved in politics, aspiring to become president of the country. Hearst was like his father, interested in politics, and he was elected twice into the House of Representatives but in 106, he failed to bid for the seat as governor of New York (Wierichs, 00, 8). Kane aspired to become president by also running to become governor of New York but he also married the presidents niece in the film, Emily Monroe Norton.


Both Hearst and Kane were also embroiled in affairs with other women. The only difference is that Hearst truly loved his mistress and there was no breakdown in his unmarried relationship with her. His mistress was a young and successful silent film actress named Marion Davies (Dirks, 00). On the other hand, Kane had a souring affair with opera singer wannabe Susan Alexander, the primary cause of Kanes fall from grace. Unlike Davies, who was successful, Alexander suffered humiliating failure as an opera singer, attempted suicide and finally left Kane after she became fed up with him. Hearst and Kane also did their best to promote their mistresses popularity, with Hearst buying a film studio and Kane buying an opera house (Dirks, 00).


The last striking similarity between Hearst and Kane was that they both own glorious mansions of their own. Hearsts mansion was dubbed Hearsts Castle (www.hearstcastle.com) and was situated in San Simeon, California. Kanes extravagant, palatial Florida mansion was called Xanadu Both Hearst and Kanes mansion was also filled with expensive art collections as well (Dirks, 00).


Hearst died at the age of 88 on August 14, 151 in Beverly Hills, California. All his five sons from his marriage with Willson followed their fathers glory into the media business and became very successful (Wierichs, 00, ).


. The Man behind Citizen Kane


Orson Welles, the boy genius behind Citizen Kane was born George Orson Welles to Richard Head Welles and Beatrice Ives Welles, May 6, 115 in Kenosha, Wisconsin. He had one brother but his brother was sent away to school from home, making him, in essence, an only child. At the age of four, his parents were separated (A Welles Biography) During Welles early boyhood, his father had become increasingly became an alcoholic and not inclined to work while his mother, a former pianist became sickly. His mother died when he was nine and his father, in 10.


Welles had found his early education to be very tedious but in 16, rescue came in the form of enrolment in the Todd School. At eleven, he was introduced to the schools revered headmaster, the man who became his first real father, Roger Hill. It was here that Welles became an organiser of public entertainment, an impresario (A Welles Biography, 00). Given free access to the campus theatre and printing press and encouraged by the Hills, Welles wrote, directed and performed a variety of roles, including that of the Virgin Mary in the school nativity play (A Welles Biography, 00)!


Everybody told me from the moment I could hear that I was absolutely marvellous, Welles once told an interviewer (About the Program, The American Experience, 7) and marvellous indeed he was. According to The American Experience, never one to shy away from trouble, Welles built his career on a streak of controversial productions--the more upset and swirl he could create, the better. His production of Macbeth (16) was set in Haiti and employed an all-black cast. His Julius Caesar (17) was also re-imagined as a contemporary drama about fascism and finally, his radio staging of War of the Worlds (18), about Martians invading Earth, caused so much terror and uproar it might have ended his career. However, his talent and ferocious energy seemed to lift him above the fray, delivering him unscathed to his next challenge and when he graced the cover of Time magazine, he was only twenty-three years old (About the Program, The American Experience, 14).


The following year after War of the Worlds, Welles entered the Hollywood scene, having received the best contract ever for his first Hollywood film, a contract from RKO Studios giving him a complete free hand to write, produce and direct his own films (Lodge et al., (11), p. 16). He famously declared I dont want money. I want authority (Orson Welles Biography, BBC Education, 14). Based on this declaration itself, we can see that Welles modelled Kane after himself very much. Welles wanted sole power to do things his way and do not like to be led by others and so was Kane, who did not like to be led under his guardians leadership and he always does things his way without considering others.


Moreover, according to BBC, the terms of the contract Welles accepted aroused resentment and his intention to cause some disturbance in the industry did nothing to endear him to Hollywood. In addition, according the American Experience, his first project was actually proposed by his co-writer, Mankiewicz whom suggested the story of Hearst and Welles seized on the idea as his last best chance to make a film that works (About the Program, The American Experience, 15).


However, Citizen Kane proved too close to the truth for Hearst, who saw a portrait of him in the film. Nevertheless, Hearsts actions, which delayed the release of the film, had given the film wonderful publicity (Orson Welles Biography, BBC Education, 15). The film was finally released in 141, the week of Welles 6th birthday. But by this time it was released, Welles had already left Hollywood, having attacked the studios in Hollywood in print, citing having problems with the studio system and the fact that his other films did not garner box-office success.


In 147, he moved to Europe where he continued his career in theatre and filmmaking, most notably the play Chimes in Midnight.(Orson Welles Biography, BBC Education, 17). Welles impact on cinema was both immediate and lasting, drawing from his experience in radio and experiments with wide-angle and deep-focus lenses to develop dramatic action within the frame. His career as a director was brilliant but erratic. His career was strewn with many unfinished projects. However, at his peak, Welles was regarded as one of the giants in cinema. Welles died in 185 and was buried in Spain.


4. An Analysis of the Main Characters in Citizen Kane


4.1 Charles Foster Kane


In the film, we are introduced to Charles Foster Kane, old and dying, lying on his bed in the castle-like Xanadu (resembles the castle from Walt Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs), barely whispering the word rosebud before he died. This set the premise for an exploration of Kanes life, from his boyhood, youth, life as a newlywed, middle age and old age, through a series of flashbacks. The News on the March newsreel sequence only offers a glimpse of the life Kane leads but in reality, the character Kane is one that is shrouded with extreme complexity that is difficult for one to comprehend. To illustrate this point, we have the scene where a defeated, old Kane walks past parallel mirrors, which multiplies Kanes reflection infinitely. His multiple reflections in this scene were used as metaphor to depict the complex nature and a lost of identity as well as a reflection of the complexity of his life.


A powerful newspaper owner, Kane was many things to many people, both in life and, as seen in retrospective in the film, in death as well. He was considered a colossus, a titan, a man who considers himself superior from others, as depicted in the promotional poster for the film (Appendix I). This section will detail what Charles Foster Kane was to five different people in the film.


Kanes boyhood was recounted in flashback through Walter Thatchers memoirs. Here in the first scene, we see the consequences of young Kanes separation from his mother and father, and the decision that Kane be raised under the guardianship of Thatcher to prepare him for his inheritance. Themes of a loss and a stolen childhood comes into mind as we saw Kanes mother gave Kane away to Thatcher with a hope for a better life for him. We see that young Kane was always in focus as Kanes parents and Thatcher discuss his future, which shows that he was the centre of their discussion. When Mrs. Kane informed young Kane about where he will be going, he kicks Thatcher and looks at him with such contempt and resentment, showing how much he dislikes the banker. We also see in another of Thatchers flashback sequence of Kanes lifelong rebelliousness towards all things Thatcher as well as other prominent figures. Thatcher was reading a series of newspaper articles that must be hitting out at him, judging by his furious looks could illustrate this. The confrontation that ensued with Kane and Thatcher further shows what Kane thinks of Thatcher, contempt and a sense of resentment. He seems to relish in attacking Thatchers interest but Thatcher could only glare at him. Thatcher himself had disliked Kane as well, judging from his memoirs the reporter is reading, a common adventurer, spoiled, unscrupulous, irresponsible. Those words practically summed up what Thatcher thought of Kane, a scoundrel.


Next, we see Kane from Mr. Bernsteins point of view. Through the loyal Bernsteins eyes, we experience the most uplifting and optimistic appraisal of Kane. He relates to us how Kane become a newspaper magnate and his take-over of the New York Enquirer, in which he fired its editor, hired an expensive, top-notch staff, and enlisted his college friend Jedediah Leland a critic. Kane was at first a crusader for the downtrodden, opening his first editorial with a declaration of principles. He became a champion to the little person, exaggerating his circulation with juicy scandals, crime exposes, and, like the real-life newspaper magnate Hearst, goading the U.S. into the Spanish-American War. We also see the side of Kane where he was free of problems that would soon befall him. Most of the scenes in Bernsteins recount capture the essence that Kane is just a healthy and happy young man having a wonderful time. Bernstein also recalled Kanes surprise marriage to Emily Norton, the presidents niece, depicted in several quick scenes, beginning with Kanes return from Europe. The recounts by Bernstein show that Kane was another typical man with high aims in life, and that if Kane had not messed up, he could have been the President of USA.


Kanes best friend, Leland, provided the third flashback of Kanes jigsaw-puzzled life. Leland provided a much darker aspect of Kanes life compared to Bernsteins happy recounts. Kane, to Leland, was a bad newspaperman since the beginning, entertaining readers but never telling them the truth, just like Hearsts yellow journalism. Leland went on to describe the crumbling marriage of Kane to Emily, depicted in the famous breakfast montage sequence. This happened because Kane was more committed to his work than to his wife, his wife's protests of him hitting out his uncle and simply because his love for Emily had died out. From Leland's flashback, we could tell that Kane could have married Emily for her good looks or to get him one step closer to becoming the president. All this happens in a matter of years, ending with him meeting Susan Alexander and the death of his wife and son in a car accident. Kane's affair with Susan probably came as a shock to Leland when he found out, and was probably angry, judging by his facial expression and the way he walked into the bar. Kane was a man of morals to Leland, a valuable person in society, which was why he forged a close relationship with him and came to work for him in the newspaper business. Kane was also shown as a person who allows other people into places they want to go, like letting Leland go to Chicago and later, trying to help Susan become a singer. We also see in Leland's flashback how Kane became contradictory with himself, in a scene where he tried to bribe Leland and him tearing up the ‘declaration of principles' that he himself wrote. In an earlier scene, Kane showed no regards to his friendship with Leland, firing him from his job. This scene, which shows Kane finishing Leland's bad review of Susan's show, tells us that since Kane himself was capable of doing Leland's job, why would he need someone else to do it. In conclusion, Leland's flashback showed to us of the man Kane had become after meeting Susan, how he had fallen from grace and became the total opposite of the man shown in Bernstein's flashback.


In the beginning, to Susan Alexander, Kane was just another man on the street, not knowing who he really was at first. She even thought she was a magician at first in the scene where Kane was shown to be very playful (playing shadow games) and funny (Susan's high pitch laughs confirms this). We could tell that Kane loved Susan the most compare with Emily. This was revealed in the scene where he opted to stay with Susan after his political rival exposed their relationship to Emily. This same scene also showed Kane's arrogance as well, his unwillingness to submit to his rival's offer to safe himself and by his words "I'm Charles Foster Kane! I'm no cheap, crooked, politician trying to save himself from the consequences of his crimes!" This showed that Kane does not need anyone to help him out of his troubles because he could do it himself.


Having lost everything, Kane felt that all he had was just Susan, whom he thought would understand him so he puts all his hope on Susan by trying to make her become an opera star. He hired a popular voice trainer to help Susan to sing better, builds her an opera house for her to perform in and he was the only one who applauded enthusiastically together with some of his associates when her performance was over. However, he became domineering, in the scene where his shadow towers over Susan, nearly pushing Susan over the edge by forcing her to sing again. Thus, Kane's papers published positive reports that emphasises Susan's popularity. Kane gave her everything, even building ‘Xanadu' for her but she left him anyway. We also saw the megalomaniac side of Kane in Susans flashbacks where Kane was seen sitting on his own throne in silhouette as if he regarded himself as a king living in his own palace. The silhouette effect made him look like a sinister king surrounded by the darkness that symbolises his life.


Kane's frustration of Susan leaving him was evident in him thrashing Susan's room to pieces. He loved her so much but he was selfish, wanting only to be loved but does not know how to love others in return. Susan's flashbacks proved that statement, but another point shown in her flashbacks was that Kane was actually a very patient and self-controlled man, enduring Susan's whines of boredom and sarcasm. However, it was Susan that pushed him to slap her and the arrogant side of Kane was again revealed when he replied to Susan's "Don't tell me you're sorry!" with "I'm not sorry!" No matter what Kane had done for Susan, Kane ended up alone, miserable and frustrated instead.


From Raymond, Kane's butler's perspective, Kane was nothing but a queer, old man. When he was talking to the reporter, Raymond always said, "I knew how to handle him", as if he was handling a poor animal. This said a lot about how Kane was in the remaining years that he was alive. He was revealed to have become a pitiable, old man; alone in a huge palace, a shocking change from the great man he used to be in the younger days. We saw how in the last days he began to pine for his childhood days, the happy times in the mountains of Colorado, playing in the snow with his mother and father, for that was what ‘rosebud' was, his lost childhood days. He could have been a different person had Thatcher not taken him away to grow up in a loveless environment.


In conclusion, Kane's life and character was actually a story of one man's journey to be loved and accepted by everyone. He was searching for someone who would love him the way his mother had loved him but he had been looking at all the wrong places. All his life his aim was to be loved and to love in return. Unfortunately, honest though he was with his feelings, he does not know how to show it. Like the words sung about him, "Who is this one?. . .Who is this man?", we may never really know who Charles Foster Kane was or what he had wanted in life. He may have wanted to find love or he may be looking for his lost childhood possession but we may never know. The reporter, Thompson, probably knew this well by his statement, "I dont think any word can explain a mans life."


4. Jedediah Leland


Jedediah Leland was perhaps the closest person to Kane and the most understanding of him in the film. Leland was a man with character, with the right moral values and he thought Kane had the same values as he did, which was the reason why he was willing to work for Kane. He regarded Kane as one of the most valuable person to him and therefore, he forged a close friendship with him, a friendship that had gone unappreciated and came to an abrupt end when Kane fired him.


The closeness of Leland's relationship with Kane was evident in his retelling of how Kane's marriage to Emily broke up. He must have been close to the family to know to what extent Kane's marriage to Emily had become. Kane or Emily might have confided in him about their marriage problem but Emily was more likely to have told Leland about it. In the original Citizen Kane script, Leland actually paid a visit to Emily at her request after she knew about Kane's affair with Susan (Mankiewicz & Welles, 18, pp. 108 110). From their conversation, we can tell that Leland was quite close to Emily since it was her who sent for him and she being grateful to him for coming. At this point, Leland was still trying to patch things up for Kane, being his best friend; this was the right thing to do. And as a friend, he was right in saying that Kane deserved what was coming to him for what he did to Emily.


In the film, it seems as if Leland was never really felt comfortable around with Kane, despite being friends for long time. Perhaps Leland's character functions as a light source to Kane to show him which right path to take in life. It seems that ever since Kane crafted the "Principles", Leland had become more wary of Kane's character, especially in the scene where he was looking hard at Kane while the latter was dancing. In an earlier scene where Thompson was visiting him, Leland was brightly illuminated compared to other characters in the film, as if to stress the fact that he represents the brighter side of Kane's conscience. Indeed, Leland had always been around Kane, as an advisor to him, to remind him of his morals and ethics, like the scene where Kane sent Leland a cheque only to be returned back to Kane along with the "Declaration of Principles" that Leland had kept all this while. The act of Leland returning the torn cheque together with the "Principles" reveals to us that he had stuck by Kane's "Principles" all this while and to remind Kane what he used to promise when writing the "Principles".


When Leland read about Kane's affair with Susan, he was furious, judging by the way he walked into the bar. This shows that Leland was unable to believe that Kane was willing to take such a risk to be involved with another woman when he was still married and in the middle of an important political campaign. The fact that Leland decided to drink himself to a state of drunkenness shows that he was very upset and disappointed. The meeting that ensued with Kane in the campaign office was practically the beginning point in the breakdown of his relationship with Kane, since Leland asked to go to Chicago. It seems that he had given up on Kane and had wanted to be away from him. A trust between them was lost as well and the final straw for Leland was when Kane had broken his promise to keep his "Principles", thus staying out of Kane's life throughout the remainder of the film.


Leland, in actuality, was a man who values friendship but in the end it was Kane, blinded by his hopes for Susan, which destroyed a long friendship. As we can see from the film, the friendship was not a great loss for Leland, but to Kane the most. If only Kane had followed by Leland's example, he could have led a better life, but unfortunately, it was not to be.


4. Mr. Bernstein


Mr. Bernstein, a Jew and supposedly one of Kane's most loyal stooges, have two distinctive personalities, a comic one and an understated, yet astute, wise one. When Mr. Bernstein was presenting his perspective on Kane, he fashions a simple, amusing vision of himself, however it was up to the viewer to link material from throughout the film and thus realise that Bernsteins dominant persona was his least visible one. Who was Mr. Bernstein? At no point do we learn his first name, nor do we know how he met Kane and came to be the General Manager. The same cannot be said of the other main characters; we know how, when, or where they met Kane. We do know, however, that he has been around Kane "since before the beginning" when talking to Thompson.


As a comical character, Mr. Bernstein was clumsy when the furniture falls on him, he was a wise-ass when he speaks to the moving man, and he was a constant joker to his boss. He was also very fixated with numbers and finance as he was always doing the accounts, which rings to mind the Shylock character in Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice. In fact, Bernstein's character was very much modeled after that shrewd character. Shylock was also a humorous character in Shakespeare's play and was also concern with his finance and estate.


Mr. Bernstein also symbolises Kanes ambition and his appetite for sensationalistic yellow journalism, which was one reason why he was so loyal to him. Mr. Bernstein had always regarded Kane as his role model therefore; he treated him with very much respect, even when Kane had died. In his office, Mr. Bernstein had put up a huge portrait of Kane and at times, when referring to him, he would look up at the portrait with respect and affection. His respect towards Kane was also one reason why he was willing to help Kane in every way he can. When Kane lost in the elections, he quickly arranged to publish the "Fraud at Polls!" article in the Inquirer, and he also struggled to pay attention to Susan's opera performance, a sign that shows though he felt the show was boring, he had to enjoy it for Kane's sake.


However, if Mr. Bernstein portrays himself as a humorous, loyal, right hand man to Kane, how do the others treat Mr. Bernstein? Only once do we see Bernstein display a surprising degree of humanity that contradicts his bosss temperament. This was when, in Lelands flashback, Bernstein seems to express sadness at the possibility of a Leland-Kane falling out, which did indeed occur after Kane fires Leland. Despite this moment, Leland went on to describe Bernstein as being a thorn in Emilys side, and he ridiculed Bernstein as being a Kane sycophant when he showed him clapping at Susan's performance and choosing the Fraud at the Polls type for the front page. Bernstein was especially dejected in the shots surrounding the election defeat, in keeping with his character Bernstein had wanted to ride Kanes roller coaster of power as far as possible, so a political defeat for Kane was also likewise a power defeat for his sidekick.


As for Thatcher, we saw that he regarded Bernstein as a clumsy person and a mere assistant to Kane. However, we also saw the same side of Bernstein when Kane lost in the election, only that it took place in Thatcher's office for Kane's bankruptcy meeting or something. We saw that Bernstein had the same serious, depressed and stunned look, again confirming that Bernstein had expected Kane to go all the way and not lost some sort of power. In Susan's account, however, we saw the same overzealous Bernstein applauding Susan's performance, probably in a hope to keep his boss happy. But she increased the degree of ridicule towards Bernstein by showing him falling asleep during her performance.


Raymond's flashback, combined together with the opening sequence, was perhaps the most telling of what Bernstein's character was actually like. Here in Raymond's flashback we find that what we thought as one of Kane's most loyal and faithful subjects was nowhere in sight during Kane's final days. Bernstein was not at all in Raymond's flashback, which happens sometime after the opera period when Kane and Susan retired themselves within the confines of ‘Xanadu'. The message here is overwhelmingly clear If Bernstein was not in love of Kane the man; he was in love with Kane the power and Kane the wealth. Where was Bernstein when Kane passes away? He was Chairman of the Board, and had nothing but time. These were Bernsteins own words to Thompson, and they reflect a tremendous amount of dissembling, for Bernstein had much more than time at his disposal.


Naturally, Bernstein depicts Kane in extremely favourable terms. Kane wrote his Declaration of Principles in Bernsteins perspective; he expanded circulation to record levels; he displayed business acumen by buying The Greatest Newspaper Staff in the World; he hosted fantastic parties; and he had great fun travelling. It was in Bernsteins best interests to glorify Kane and misrepresent his own role. The striking reality contradicting Bernsteins impressions was that Kane never honoured his stated Principles; since he made up Susan's apparent popularity and tore his "Principles" into pieces. It was important, however, to note that Bernsteins recollection was the only one that ended on a positive note. We saw Kane, whom Bernstein declares to be the future President, riding away in a white suit with his new bride, the current Presidents niece.


Therefore, we saw that Bernstein was neither really loyal nor faithful to Kane. He only wanted to bask under the shadow of his boss's wealth, popularity and power in a hope to become "Chairman of the Board" one day, which he did. After Kane was reduced to nothing but a shadow of his former self, Bernstein had deserted him and was not even by his deathbed.


4.4 Emily Monroe Norton Kane


We were introduced to Emily Monroe Norton Kane in the scene where Kane returned from Europe to the Inquirers office but rushes off in a hurry. Mr. Bernstein then read a message that announced the marriage of Charles Foster Kane to the Presidents niece, Emily Norton. In the subsequent scenes that followed, we would see a marriage that will slowly come to an abrupt end due to Kanes work commitments and his infidelity. Emily, together with her son, died in a tragic car accident.


We knew of the reasons why Kane chose to marry Emily, among them to be close to his dream of becoming President of USA. It could also because through Emily, he would be able to have the support he needed to become the next president, since Emily may have been a popular public figure. However, he was also quite attracted to her physical beauty but was never really in love with her at all but she did still bore him a son anyway. Her mannerism was also very formal. We can see this in the way she walks, the way she speaks, the way she dresses and addressing Kane by his formal name Charles. Emily was also very concerned with her reputation, and thus she conforms to the standards set by the society for her kind of people.


Emily was revealed to be a woman of high social status, one who belongs to the elite upper class through her relations with her uncle, the president. From the way she dresses and the way she speaks, we could tell that she had been brought up in a strict, no-nonsense environment where social etiquette were observed. Thus, it explains Emilys princess-like appearance and her no-nonsense attitude, especially in the scene where she was in Susans house. The elegant white dress that she wore was just simply awesome and beautiful, perfect for royalty and a woman of her maturity. Her no-nonsense attitude was clearly shown in those scenes where Emily found out about Kanes affair with Susan, when she made a decision for Kane and gave him a choice to stay or follow her (Mankiewicz & Welles, 18, pp. -107). Emily was also clearly disgusted by Kanes attitude when he threatened to break his rivals neck (Mankiewicz & Welles, 18, pp. 100-101). We have also saw a strong side of Emily as well as she, unlike a Susan, was in control of her emotions and did not become hysterical. Emily was also not possessive of Kane, as she was liberal minded in giving Kane an option to choose her or Susan.


Kane and Emily had always been an odd couple from the beginning. Kane was a newspaper tycoon, whose aim was to attack high-level persons while Emily was the niece of a high level person. One would expect Kane to give face to Emily and spare her uncle but he did not. Kane went on to attack the President of the USA anyway, one of the cause of the strain in their marriage. Moreover, Emilys standards were so much higher than Kanes, which would one day have caused a strain in their relationship. His unhappiness in the marriage was the cause of him involving himself with Susan. Therefore, it was not Emilys fault that Kane got involved with Susan, it was Kane himself who thought by marrying a Presidents niece would get him to become one as well.


4.5 Susan Alexander Kane


Susan Alexander Kane was the bane of most of Kanes problems later in life. It was Susan that caused Kane his political career and eventual separation from his Emily. Susan had also wanted to become a singer so Kane build a US$ million opera house in Chicago for her but she was not talented at all. Susan had also wanted to live in a palace so Kane built Xanadu for them to live in retirement. Eventually, she began to whine and moan about how terrible life was being trapped in a vast empty palace until she was fed up with Kane and left him.


Viewers were first introduced to Susan went Thompson went to visit her in the night club where she now probably now work as a cabaret, judging by her costume. She was reduced to a hopeless, haggard person, getting drunk in her own sorrow and past regrets. It was evident that Susan had regretted leaving Kane because she could have had a better life in the end with him. The once Queen Susan now mourning over the loss of one man that had truly loved her and would have given her everything when he died if she had not crushed Kanes heart by leaving him. It was probably all this thoughts running through her mind that made her hostile towards Thompsons attempts to interview her.


Through Lelands recount, we saw how Kane first met Susan in a chance encounter on a street corner and was delighted that she liked him even though she does not know who he was. He described her to Leland as a cross-section of the American public, suggesting that he believed this proves that he can be loved by the people. Kane loved Susan the most, because she captured the young part of Kane, making him feel as if he was young again. It was her innocence that attracted him towards her and because of Susans acceptance; he thought he found someone who would unconditionally love him in Susan. There was much depth in their intimacy and more quality in their relationship compare to the one with Emilys. Evidence? Susan calling Kane by his pet name Charlie instead of Emilys formal Charles. Because of this chance encounter, Kane was unwittingly drawn into a relationship that would forever alter the life of them both.


However, Susan had probably known that Kane was still married to Emily but she still went on with the relationship, proving that she was not a woman of morals. She must have also known of the consequences of her relationship with Kane but she did not stop the relationship and acted selfishly for her own interests. This happened in the scene when Kanes political rival, Boss Jim Gettys exposed her relationship with Kane. She had only one thought in her mind and that was What about me? He said my named be dragged through the mud.


She did get Kane all to himself at last, marrying him three weeks after his wife and son died in a crash. Taking advantage of his wealth and influence, Susan tried to learn to sing from an instructor only to be told that she had no talent but through Kanes pressure, she continued and when she performed on her opening night, it was disastrous. She became furious at all the bad reviews she received and was so clearly embarrassed that she vowed never to sing again. This showed that Susan was not one who perseveres but one who gave up easily. Forced to continue by his domineering husband, Susan finally cracked under pressure; unable to take the humiliation she suffered and thus, attempted suicide. Kane finally allowed her to stop singing and they both retired into their pleasure palace.


We would quickly see that power rather than love was his motivation because he insists that she stay in the castle although she comes to regard it as a joyless prison. Unable to take the boredom of living in a palace with nothing to do but jigsaw puzzles, Susan began to constantly whine and moan and gripe about life in the palace, which tested Kanes patience but he endured it because he needed her. Susans whines and complains shows that she was a very fickle-minded person, one who changes his/her mind a lot. One would also notice that Susan was always seen piecing together puzzles that depict outdoor scenery. This tells us the longing Susan had for the beautiful world outside Xanadu. To make her happy, Kane decided to go for a picnic but instead of being appreciative, she became lethal with her sarcasm, Invite everybody? Order everybody you mean and make them sleep in tents! Who wants to sleep in tents when they have a nice room of their own - with their own bath, where they know where everything is? This again shows how she changes her mind so much. She also contradicts herself, since it was she that wanted to go out in the first place.


She went to the picnic with him anyway, and there, in a tent, she again threw a temper tantrum, making scathing remarks about Kane. Kane had just about enough with her and slaps her but she just glared at him. At that point, we would know that Susan would soon leave Kane to his misery. Indeed, the marriage ended when Susan could no longer tolerate Kanes not-so-benevolent despotism. As she told Thompson, Everything was his idea, except my leaving him.


In conclusion, we see that Susan is a character that contradicts herself very much and changes her mind quite a lot as well. She wanted to sing but then she wanted out. She wanted to live in a palace but then wanted out because it was boring. She loved Kane but she had enough of him because of his despotism. In the end, she regretted ever leaving him because she now has no more money, also showing how materialistic she had become by being with Kane.


4.6 Mr. & Mrs. Kane


We are introduced to Kane's parents, Mr. James Kane and Mrs. Mary Kane through Thatcher's recount in a memoir read by Thompson in the Thatcher Memorial Library. Some sort of valuable minerals were discovered on their property, thus explaining Thatcher's visitation to Mary's boarding house in snowy Colorado. We saw in the house that Mary was contemplating to sign a contract that also meant sending Charles Kane away to live with Thatcher. Mary's posture was a commanding one with a stern and stiff look on her face. She had an air of superiority in the household as well compared to James who looked a bit wimpy.


At first we thought that James was the more loving one towards Charles as he tried to discourage Mary from sending him away to live with a stranger. But we saw that Mary had the final say in the matters concerning Charles' well being in the future. This showed that instead of a father being in command of the family, it was the mother that took over the role here in the Kane's family. But Mary's feelings towards Charles was evident in her eyes as she looked out the window longingly at her son playing in the snow, and also by her tone of voice when she called out to Charles to pull his muffler around his neck. Then, when she said the line, "Ive got his trunk all packed . . ." it sounds as if she was sad and trying to choke back tears. If that was the case, why then did she want to send Charles away?


We would find the answer when Mary, followed by Thatcher and James, went out to get Charles. The way she speaks to young Charles was in a manner of a loving mother as she holds her son close to her, as if protecting him from somebody. We also saw that Charles was so much closer to his mother than his father because whenever his father spoke to him, he would turn to look at his mother as if to confirm what he said was true. Charles also only asked his mother and not his father when he was told he was going away, "You goin, Mom?" We find that Charles became angry and hit Thatcher, and he ran to his mother who hugged him closely to her, reassuring him as Charles cried out, "Mom! Mom!" His father apologised to Thatcher, saying, "Sorry, Mr. Thatcher! What the kid needs is a good thrashing!" to which Mary replied, "Thats what you think, is it, Jim?" James nodded saying, "Yes." Mary then turn to look at Kane with an affectionate look in her eyes as she said, "Thats why hes going to be brought up where you cant get at him."


Mary's last line was enough to give us all the answer we need to explain why Mary sent Charles away. Charles' father had not been a loving figure after all, instead, he was the abuser, who must have constantly beat Charles up until Charles lost all respect and love for him. Charles had been leaving in an abusive environment after all this time and a chance discovery of something valuable on their property led Mary to send Charles away to a place where James would not be able to lay a hand on the boy. This shows that Mary was very protective her son because her son means everything to her. She believed he would have a better life in the future growing up with Thatcher instead of spending his life in a dilapidated boarding house in the coldness of Colorado. This is Mary's survival goal for Charles, to provide physical survival and health to her child. Therefore, Mary remains an angelic being to Charles, who would in the future be looking for the kind of love his mother had given to him.


4.7 Walter Parks Thatcher


One person that comes to my mind that resembles Walter Parks Thatcher was Scrooge from A Christmas Carol. He was very much like Scrooge in a way that he puts his business first above all else. Therefore, he was not the best person to raise a child like Kane up. A child like Kane needs warmth and affection but we do not see that in Thatcher who was probably taught not to be emotional. Thatcher was the same domineering figure that Kane would eventually become, as he tries to take control of Kane's life. He could do so when Kane was young, like in the scene where young Kane was on the floor with Thatcher towering over him. But he was unable to do so when Kane becomes an adult.


Why would he want to agree to raise Kane up in the first place? The reason was simple, he wanted to show people that he can raise a successful person when that person is a child. The fact that Thatcher had always been single and unmarried showed that he was too busy with work to worry about having a family. He may have thought that by raising a trustworthy successor to inherit his business and wealth, he could die peacefully, knowing that his wealth are at the hands of someone he shaped up. As we all know, his dreams did not materialise as Kane was never interested with Thatcher's world of business.


Try as he may to shape Kane the way he wanted, a symbol of success, he could not as Kane, by acquiring control of a newspaper, began rebelling all things Thatcher, from Thatcher's business to prominent people like Thatcher. Because of Thatcher's way of bringing him up, Kane showed much disrespect towards Thatcher when the latter became an old man. This was evident in the scene where Kane was the one standing over a sitting, frail-looking Thatcher and saying, "You're an old man, Thatcher, and will always be one." Thatcher must have died alone, miserable and unloved, chillingly similar to Kane's last days. All that remains of Thatcher's memories were all recorded and entombed in his memoir in his library.


4.8 Raymond, the Butler


Raymond is considered an important character to me because through him, we found out many details about what happened in Kane's life that proceeds to the time Kane uttered the word "rosebud". Many arguments have been made as to who actually heard ‘rosebud' because Kane seemed to be alone when he died. But in the script, it was stated that Raymond was the one who was there when he told Thompson, "That ‘rosebud' - that dont mean anything. I heard him say it. He just said ‘rosebud' and then he dropped that glass ball and it broke on the floor. He didnt say anything about that, so I knew he was dead" (Mankiewicz & Welles, 18, p. 144).


Nevertheless, through Raymond's memory, we saw what had become of Kane after Susan had left him. We also saw him friendless, even his closest associate, Mr. Bernstein, had abandoned him. He was alone in his great castle, except for Raymond and his other servants. Raymond was never really loyal to Kane or respectful towards him either. He had regarded Kane as a queer, old man who was something lose in the head. By the way he said, "I knew how to handle him", one can tell how he regarded Kane, like any other animal that needs proper "handling". During his interview with Thompson, we could see him extinguishing his cigarette on a pillar, which shows how he felt about the place.


The extent of his relationship with Kane was only until an employer-employee one. This means that him being with Kane was purely out of economical reasons, not one of loyalty. We can tell that Raymond had never really liked his boss but he never left him because he was rich and he get to stay in a palace even though it tends to get bored. Therefore, Raymond was the ideal person to recount what had happened the last final days because he was the only one there with Kane when the latter uttered ‘rosebud'.


5. The Breakfast Table Montage Sequence


Soon after Charles Foster Kane marries Emily Norton, the woman of his dreams who was brought back from Europe like one of his statues, their marriage gradually collapses. Told from Lelands flashback, this two or three minute sequence is one of the most famous and best remembered in the history of film. What made this sequence famous was how Welles cleverly used a mixture of techniques to compress time so to look as if many years had gone by in just a few minutes. Using a series of dissolves, make up, props, music and clever editing; Welles successfully created one of the most striking examples of his evocative and economical editing in the film.


The sequence began with a medium-level two-shot of Kane and Emily in relatively bright light. The table they are sitting at in the beginning was quite short, enabling them to sit closer to each other. Their conversation was teasing and intimate, visually reinforced by a shot/reverse shot exchange of loving looks, the mood was rather pleasant and they both looked youthful and exuberant. He told her she was beautiful, and when she complained of him having to leave for the office, he said he would call and change his appointments.


That exchange was followed by five more short shot/reverse shot pairs, and in each, the eyes of the couple grew increasingly wary and suspicious of each other. There was no longer an intimacy between them as the conversations were progressing in a hostile and clipped manner. The newspaper finally became a visual and verbal symbol of their growing division. In the first scene, she complained, Charles, if I didnt trust you . . .What do you do on a newspaper in midnight? Then in the third, Emily pleaded with Kane to stop attacking her uncle, the president, in his newspaper. By the fifth sentence, he did not even allow her to finish her sentence. Emily said, Really, Charles, people have a right to expect . . . only to cut off by Kane replying, What care do I give them.


Through the entire sequence, the changes in the clothing and other aspects of mise-en-scene like make up, props and music indicate that the passage of time was also a passage away from emotional intimacy. Kane changes from a good-looking tuxedo into a more formal business like suit while Emilys dress and hairstyle varies according to the time passage. The breakfast table, once unobstructed between them, was now cluttered with plants, flowers and newspapers. The sequence was then powerfully concluded with another shot/reverse shot and another two-shot. In the shot/reverse shot, Kane and Emily no longer saw each other eye to eye, as they once did but were now reading separate newspapers, him The Inquirer and her, The Chronicle. Both newspapers were rival newspapers and by having both reading these separate newspapers, it reinforces the idea that they were now opposing each other. Then, as the camera pulls back for a two-shot, we realised that the breakfast table was now much longer than the earlier one and the two former lovers were now sitting at opposite ends of the table. The lighting in this shot had a much colder and darker lighting compared to the earlier bright one, so that it establishes the dark mood of this scene.


The real time that this sequence described was most likely to be several years. Yet, through creative use of edited space and a series of conversations within that space, Welles managed to depict not just the synopsis of a failed marriage but also by linking the six encounters appropriately with flash pans, he was able to tell the entire tale of Citizen Kane. The tale was of how Kanes greatest desires seem to turn to dust almost immediately after he achieves them and also of how he consequently became a man constantly alienated in the great spaces that surround him, particularly in the interiors of Xanadu.


6. The Picnic Scene


We have seen how Welles used film as an art form to energetically communicate and display this narrative story of a man's life through imaginative and powerful cinematography, setting, sound, lighting, editing, music and performance, like the breakfast table sequence above. The focus of this part is the picnic sequence that appeared late in Susan's recount to Thompson. Consisting of about 0 or 5 shots and lasting for about three minutes and 10 seconds, this scene signalled the end of the relationship between Susan and Kane, much like the breakfast table sequence.


The sequence began with a medium shot of a joyless and casually dressed Susan and Kane side by side in the rear seat of a car. Kane was wearing a hat and sunglasses, representing the day that was visible through the rear window along with another vehicle. We could see that she was obviously unhappy with where she was going because the music was a Blues-like music that was very dull. The music seems to compliment Susan's feelings at that moment in the vehicle, and the frigid distance between herself and Kane. She continued arguing with him throughout this scene, punctuated by Susan's remark, "You never give me anything I really care about." Kane's expression was that of a hidden annoyance, we could never really tell through his sunglasses but we would expect him to retort but he patiently endures.


The next scene was linked by a dissolve, which was a shot in deep focus with the bright light of midday casting thick, black shadows directly under the line of cars. A new variant of dull, monotonous and muted trumpets makes the rigid, seemingly infinite stream of cars on the beach look so much like a funeral procession in their black, uniform order. The use of a Blues music piece in this shot allows a seemingly continuous flow of music that was totally absent of any abrupt change in tone or style, which was then followed by the mournful rendition of ‘This can't be love', obviously indicating how Susan felt about his current relationship with Kane.


A dissolve shot to the next scene showed a black singer singing the lyrics of the song above, the line "this can't be love, because there is no true love". Like I had mentioned, they serve as some kind of existential comment on not only the relationship between Susan and Kane but also Kane's life. Using deep-focus cinematography, the mise-en-scene becomes vital in directing the attention of the audience to the surrounding scenes of the particular frame. We also get to see Raymond there, who shows us that the uneasy couple were unable to leave behind ‘Xanadu' and thus, it travelled with them in the form of staff and finery. Among the sea of tents that we could see on the background, looking very much like an island surrounded by water, the brightest and closest of all was the one occupied by Susan and Kane. Set apart from the others as the only one with a canopy at the entrance, the camera zooms forward and enters the tent via another dissolve.


It is here that we saw Welles revert back to the more traditional shooting style, the shot/reverse shot. The action and dialogue inside of the tent becomes a succession of shot/reverse shot in favour of either Kane or Susan. When Susan speaks, we saw the camera focuses on Kane that we might able to see his facial expression. The same goes when Kane speaks, Susan was the only one in focus. Here we find a tired, aging and overweight Kane slouching in a chair, another remarkable use of make up to transform a man in his 0's to look like a man in his 60's or 70's. Before him was an agitated Susan, kneeling on the floor, a pose seen numerous times before in the shots in front of the Xanadu fireplace and after her opera debut. Kane was lit here using low-key illumination technique to cast a shadow over the left of his face, perhaps to suggest a dark side to Kane. As Kane sits above Susan, in a domineering position again, she accused him of confusing loving with buying, a rather poignant accusation considering both Susan and Leland emphasize that Kane had an inability to love, especially in terms of the way that Kane confuses love with ownership and monetary exchange. These comments made by Leland and Susan were of significance because their comments were not contradicted by anything else said in the film and were the only attempts at explaining Kane's behaviour. Also, it was clear by now that Kane was simply doing unto others as the bank, particularly Thatcher, did unto him.


Kane appears to be getting very tired of and bored of her continuous attacks. His obvious attempt to avoid the discussion through remarks on Susan's volume and his wish for her to cease display his desire to avoid conflict and keep up appearances with the guests. Kane had told Susan "Youre in a tent, darling. Youre not at home. And I can hear you very well if you just talk in a normal tone of voice" (Mankiewicz & Welles, 18, p. 1), suggesting he was trying to avoid guests from listening in their conversation. However, Susan did not care went on with her furious tirade. Kane stood over Susan in a dramatic low angle shot as he tried to explain and it was here that we see the love in his eyes as his face softens at he sight of the woman he loves kneeling before him, here we felt for Kane as he breaks the silence, "Whatever I do, I do because I love you". Susan, however, was clearly disgusted, "You don't love me! You just want me to love you...[mimicking] I'm Charles Foster Kane, whatever you want name it and it's yours, but you gotta love me!" the violence and poison in her voice and it's pitch escalated the tension to a chilling climax where Kane finally broke all resolve and slapped her. In her defiance, she did not allow him to see pain, "Don't say you're sorry!" to which Kane replied, "I'm not sorry."


The picnic scene ends with a close up shot of Susan glaring up at Kane and dissolving into the next sequence to a shot of Raymond who leads us to Kane to inform him of Susan's leaving. Marking the final blow to Kane, this sequence highlighted Kane's misconceptions of love, drawn from the theft of his childhood and his upbringing by the bank. His confusion of love with ownership and monetary exchange exhausted Susan and finally drove her away.


7. Conclusion


As smoke rises from the furnace of Xanadu, it signifies the wastage of ones life, as his possession goes up in smoke, meaningless at the end not only to himself but also to others around him. Kane died in misery, with no one to care for him as history prepares to forget all about him. This film teaches us on a lot of moral values, of how the consequences of ones actions will cause him in the future, of how a mans material gains is worthless to him when he dies and most of all, of how important it is to cherish and love those around you and not take advantage of them. Kanes life is a testimonial to those who thought that love and friends could be bought with power and material wealth when it does not. Kane lost everything in his pursuit for great power and recognition because he thought it could win him the love he had searched for a long time. Let this be a lesson to all of us.


A Welles Biography. (00). Retrieved March 4, 00, from http//www.bway.net/~nipper/biobirth.html


About the program, the American Experience. (00). Retrieved March , 00, from http//www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/kane/index.html


BBC Education Orson Welles biography. (n.d.). Retrieved March 4, 00, from http//www.bbc.co.uk/history/programmes/centurions/welles/orsonbio.shtml


Bordwell, D. & Thompson, K. (17). Film art An introduction. (5th.ed.). New York McGraw-Hill.


Dirks, T. (00). Citizen Kane (141). Retrieved March 4, 00, from http//www.filmsite.org/citi.html


Emery, R. J. (1). The films of Robert Wise. In R.J. Emery, The directors - take one (pp. 1-4). New York TV Books.


Epstein, M. & Lennon, T. (Producers & Directors). (16). The battle over Citizen Kane. [Motion Picture]. United States Lennon Documentary Group.


Lodge, J., Russell, J. & et al., (11). Hollywood 50 great years. Surrey Colour Library Books


Mankiewicz, H.J. & Welles, O. (18). Citizen Kane. [Online]. Retrieved March 6, 00, from http//www.angelfire.com/movies/coolscreenwriter/scripts/citizenkane.txt


Sklar, R. (n.d.). Film An international history of the medium. London Thames & Hudson.


Vivian, J. (1). Journalism. In J. Vivian, The media of mass communication (p. 64). Boston Allyn & Bacon.


Vivian, J. (1). Media effects. In J. Vivian, The media of mass communication. (pp. 8-85). Boston Allyn & Bacon.


Wierichs, J. ( 00). William Randolph Hearst. Retrieved March , 00, from http//www.spanamwar.com/Hearst.htm


Please note that this sample paper on Academic Research Paper on the Film "Citizen Kane." is for your review only. In order to eliminate any of the plagiarism issues, it is highly recommended that you do not use it for you own writing purposes. In case you experience difficulties with writing a well structured and accurately composed paper on Academic Research Paper on the Film "Citizen Kane.", we are here to assist you. Your cheap custom college paper on Academic Research Paper on the Film "Citizen Kane." will be written from scratch, so you do not have to worry about its originality.


Order your authentic assignment and you will be amazed at how easy it is to complete a quality custom paper within the shortest time possible!


Monday, August 26, 2019

Dissertation on style and meaning in films of Tarantino

If you order your research paper from our custom writing service you will receive a perfectly written assignment on Dissertation on style and meaning in films of Tarantino. What we need from you is to provide us with your detailed paper instructions for our experienced writers to follow all of your specific writing requirements. Specify your order details, state the exact number of pages required and our custom writing professionals will deliver the best quality Dissertation on style and meaning in films of Tarantino paper right on time.


Our staff of freelance writers includes over 120 experts proficient in Dissertation on style and meaning in films of Tarantino, therefore you can rest assured that your assignment will be handled by only top rated specialists. Order your Dissertation on style and meaning in films of Tarantino paper at affordable prices!


I N T R O D U C T I O N


Quentin Tarantino can be seen as a unique and entertaining figure in cinematic history. The power he has wielded within the film industry comes from writing about all he knows - from old and obscure films to fast food and popular television shows - pop culture and genre traditions will continue to be Quentin Tarantino's life within his works, but what is interesting to see is how he feeds these elements of life back into those very same traditions. The purpose of this dissertation is to reveal some of what lies beneath the surface of Tarantino's work explaining some of the images and techniques that have become his hall mark. There has been much criticism over the years about the work of this ex video store clerk, yet I would argue that he could be seen as one of the most charismatic voices in cinema today. This is due to his daring style, which is characterized by the use of witty dialogues, his unique structures and generally making movies about the movies.


From this I feel a need to prove through a lengthy discussion of his recognized qualities that Tarantino's works are not necessarily artless and that they do function on an entertaining level. What I aim to do in Chapter One is discuss the formal traits of this director's work. I will examine and identify the key concerns of Tarantino's main texts how he revitalized the art of film dialogue, rejected linear narrative style and his use of repeated images and motifs.


Chapter Two will then take a closer look at the underlying social discourses and debates within Tarantino's productions. I want to find out through a discussion of gender and race whether he is just using such issues to entertain or if this director is actually talking about the outside world of cinema through his works. I will endeavour to find out whether he wanted simply a reaction from his audience, usually one of disgust, or if he presents issues that cause reactions for their own sake.


Custom writing service can write essays on Dissertation on style and meaning in films of Tarantino


C H A P T E R O N E


THE WORLD TARANTINO LIVES IN PLOT, STORY AND STYLE


Popular cinema of the nineties saw some radical and interesting experiments with predictable notions of narrative, time and logic. What first became apparent when watching any of the Tarantino films being looked at in this dissertation is the stress placed on the chosen plot, story and style in each one. This chapter shall look into the formal aspects of how Tarantino expanded upon the ideas of this postmodern era, ‘the director is seen to redeem and recast the pulp of postmodernism by embedding in the texts, narratives of re-invention and re-birth.' Tarantino is definitely regarded as a director with something to say. He is very cinematically literate and familiar to the limits of screen tension. He is so certain of how far to stretch a sequence's credibility without losing the audience that he can keep violence funny, produce honour amongst criminals and turn the bad guys into the good guys thus resulting the ability to get rid of a good character all together. I believe that he is not a visual cinematic genius, yet he does keep the viewer on their toes because of the way he places the camera or the way he moves it. Film analysis centred on the director has been around since the beginnings of the auteur theory in the fifties. The main focus on this theory is on ‘visual style on the way in which films are composed and constructed for the viewer' As I will discuss further in this chapter, since it seems to be nearly impossible to name a genre for Tarantino's films, the director's name is being used to indicate a certain style in cinema, a genre of his own even, ‘Tarantino-esque.' It is obvious indeed that Tarantino's style has a certain flavour to it; a common cinematic style, common story elements and perhaps an image that is characteristic to his films. It is within this section of the assignment that I will discuss the aspects of Tarantino's work that could perhaps make him one of the greatest contributors to contemporary cinema.


Toying with Chronology and Narrative Structure


A striking and popularly noticed feature within the films of this highly acclaimed director is his chosen method of narrative structure, the chronology of the film's story from start to finish. Within the postmodern world the approach towards narrative is well known. Foucault, who believed that a narrative with a beginning middle and an end was no longer satisfactory, made an analysis of narrative structures, ‘Narrative, which posits an enabling beginning point and a vindicating goal, is no longer adequate for plotting the human trajectory in society. There is nothing to look forward to we are stuck within our circle' I believe that Tarantino thought along these lines too. The rotating mini narratives that he adopts do not have this basic set of implications. Pulp Fiction is his finest example of this as it has a very clear circular path, the film does not ‘conform to mainstream narrative structure, and it is only comprehensible because we as viewers hold on to an understanding of narrative and formal conventions through our experience of the mainstream.' It is rebellious in the way that it manipulates all usual plot structures by twisting time to satisfy its own organization. The segmented structure is Tarantino's way of playing with the audience's perceptions. Due to the large amount of entertaining content throughout the film, the audience is forced to piece together the segments in order to form one complete story. It is constructed in such a non-linear way that you could see it a dozen times and not be able to remember what comes next. It doubles back on itself telling several interlocking stories about characters that inhabit a world of crime. Placing the scenes out of chronological order is a very postmodern idea, it could be said that the end product also creates an alarm in the audience because the totally irrational happens and the audience is left to deal with that, ‘Postmodern society is characterized by instantaneity which makes it difficult for individuals to set events in their context; it is if everything is here and now.' In the one scene John Travolta's character, Vincent Vega is shot and in the very next scene that same person is alive again, not because he is reincarnated but because the scene where he was shot took place later in time but was put first in the film.


Due to Tarantino's constant rejection of linear narrative and closure, the foreshadowing of the narrative results in an unconventional way also. The effect is more of a post shadowing. The best example of this is with the character Vincent Vega. If the scenes were put in chronological order the audience would see Vincent go into the bathroom with a book and then reemerging from the bathroom a few minutes later with the same book pointing a gun at someone. Then later on in the film the audience would again see Vincent emerge from the bathroom only this time Butch would be pointing a gun at Vincent. However, due to these scenes being out of order, the audience sees Vincent get killed by Butch first and then a scene later of Vincent emerging from that bathroom holding his book and gun. ‘By coming at the film's conclusion these portions receive an emphasis they would not have if they had remained in their chronological story order.'


The emptiness of life seems to be mirrored in the non-linear structure of the film, in the impossibility of narrative unity. By leaving everything unexplained Tarantino carries out his intention one of undermining the typical closure that illustrates most of those from Classical Hollywood. His narratives are filled with an unremitting and malicious force that reduces freedom and frightens our imagination by subjecting it to the aesthetics of evil. However, Pulp Fiction's open ended ness may be an advantage as it does not leave us with us with sheer chance, though stories cross and coincidences occur what we make of these is the central question of the film.


Tarantino is clearly influenced by Stanley Kubrick from his classic B movie, The Killing as in this film too; the idea of a progressive narrative is also reworked and undermined to allow for a more objective telling of the adventure within the film. In general, the effect of Tarantino's strange chronology seems similar to browsing a pulp novel that one already knows, only reading the good parts and missing out the rest which might be the intention of a very good film maker. The circularity found in Pulp Fiction (the film ends with a continuation of its very first scene) is purely structural. The story itself however, has hardly any circular sections to it as most of the threads of the story end with the main characters getting killed or leaving Los Angeles. The film keeps referring back to itself, presenting chains of cause-and effects in a muddled and seemingly unfounded order, yet the plot is based on a logically consistent order.


Pulp Fiction's plot purposely leaves out particular aspects of the story (as a whole), so that we are left guessing at parts of it. The non-chronological assembly of the plot disrupts many of the stories otherwise believable cause-and-effect chains, and places the film's closing scene somewhere in the middle of the narrative. However, it is not the action or the plot, which forms the tension and strange appeal that this film has, but the characters in the film it is not what circumstances the characters get into that matters, but how they respond to them. The film's overall configuration, which jumps backwards and forwards in time has a clear vocal structure to it. It is as if the film's contents were being told by somebody in a verbal form perhaps Tarantino, with all the consistencies and lack of chronology that seem typical of multipart stories.


‘A closer look may show that unusual artwork has its own rules, creating an unorthodox formal system, which we can learn to recognize and respond to. Eventually, the new systems offered by such unusual works might themselves furnish conventions and thus create new expectations'


Cinematic Style


There is definitely a distinct cinematic style visible in Pulp Fiction and his earlier film Reservoir Dogs that could belong to Tarantino. I would argue that his style leans much more towards the realist than the expressionist traditions in filmmaking. To keep his audience calm and relaxed, there is much use of lengthy static camera shots. Instead of cutting from one character to another during a discussion, which tends to create tension, Tarantino has the camera just sitting and remaining totally static for long amounts of time. We see this at the start of Pulp Fiction where Jules and Vincent are riding in a car on their way to carry out a job for their boss. This scene could be particularly tense except through Tarantino's use of direction we see the two actors to be at their coolest that they can be. In order to develop this effect, Tarantino uses just two different camera shots in the car. One of these looks directly at the face of Jules and the other is a view of the two gangsters from just inside the passenger window the latter helping us as the viewer to feel comfortable with the two characters as it makes one feel like they are moving with them in the car. The long static ness of this shot is calming. Often in many cinema conversations we as the viewer follow the camera switching from one character to the next, yet Tarantino prevents this within his second shot as he gives the viewer the choice of which character they want to look at thus resulting in a sense of security for the viewer as they can be in control.


However, I believe that often these long static shots can be seen to be uninteresting. For example, when we are first introduced to Butch talking to Marsellus Wallace, Tarantino chooses to place the camera on Bruce Willis' face and leave it there for over a minute. It is clear that Tarantino does this to serve a purpose. Conventionally, shots that stay on a character's face are meant to get the viewer to focus on that character and to think about what they might be feeling or thinking. Here the audience will immediately note that Bruce Willis, a customarily type cast heroic actor, being told what to do this would interest the viewer as Tarantino leaves the camera on him so that the viewers are forced to consider how powerful the boss is and how weak a character Butch is. This could be seen as a rare technique in the filming of today as often we see many contemporary films being excessively produced and cut Tarantino seems to allude to many things of films past, this being just one of them.


It is very noticeable, however when the director returns to using conventional shots of looking at the person who is speaking and then cutting back and forth between the two. This is because Tarantino believes that the viewer should not always want us to feel that every one of his characters is cool at all times. An example of this is the opening scene of the two amateur thieves having a conversation and because it is fast moving, the cuts that follow are also very fast. Immediately, this gives the audience an agitated view of these characters. Tarantino's aim was that through out the film whenever we watch a scene with these two in, we are not to see them as laid back thus we do not feel that they are as calm as central characters, Jules and Vincent.


Reservoir Dogs is far more subtle and classical when regarding its style. Although the sequence of events within the film might be complex in their structure, the editing is sharp and simply to the point. We see his use of camera work similar to that in Pulp Fiction moving only when necessary, for example in the opening scene, the restaurant table where all the characters sit, is circled by the camera in order to establish them as a team. The panic of the thieves is then shown by a rapid tracking shot along a street. Tarantino uses his camera shots to great advantage they create a great sense of mood for the viewer. This is greatly noted in the scenes within the warehouse, the compositions of the shot are normally more static partly resulting in the anxious, claustrophobic mood of the characters' forthcoming wait and entrapment and partly to focus the viewer's attention mainly on the actors.


Considerations of Genre


‘Writer/director Tarantino has merged film noir with the gangster tale and pulled them both into the nineties.'


When looking at the works of Tarantino, especially Pulp Fiction, I feel that they are strongly, intuitively genre-based, yet the hybrid forms of genre interwoven make the films difficult to classify as belonging to any one genre. It could be said that films within a genre often lose their vitality as the conventions become predictable and the fundamental myth can become boring. I feel that Tarantino has borrowed a traditional allegory from the gangster genre, and then by subverting it he subsequently sets up a new, unconventional myth in its place. A film that goes beyond the established confines of the gangster genre is Tarantino's end result. The major innovations he includes in Pulp Fiction make it hard to place the film within mainstream cinema. I agree with John Cawelti when he says, ‘it is difficult to know what to call this type of film.' There are definite acknowledgments to the rules of the gangster genre, yet it is merely a springboard for the director. Tarantino introduces enigmatic characters and complex absurdities, which combine to effectively remove his film from the ‘conventions of a traditional popular genre'. His gangsters do not behave in a traditional manner so the myth associated with the gangster genre is thus undermined. Tarantino now has a clear path to set up his own version, thus resulting in entertaining the viewer by causing reactions. It could be said that this is the start of a re-energized genre.


Mise en Scene


‘His mise-en-scene seems to take place in no particular era or every particular era.'


All of Tarantino's works are set in big cities, most often Los Angeles. The mise en scene is significant as the characters and narrative would make little sense in other settings. Props are seen to be utterly realistic, as the films really do not need anything over exaggerated to make them realistic. This distinguishes Tarantino's films quite clearly from other Hollywood "gangster" or "cop" movies as often we see a large range of usually very destructive weapons playing a significant role in defining the distinction between the good character and the bad. Tarantino directs the scene where Butch chooses a weapon to help defend Marsellus with the intention of making the audience laugh; he has a choice between a hammer, a chainsaw, eventually choosing the Japanese sword. It is the absurdity of what he chooses that occupies the viewer's attention, not the forthcoming result of its action. There are a few scenes where props are of major importance often being shown in major close-ups. This is clear in the scene where Vincent saves Mia from a heroin overdose the adrenaline shot needle's tip is in extreme close-up.


Use of Dialogue


One of these aspects is his choice of style and exploitation of interesting yet meaningless dialogue. In many films, the dialogue is designed to cue the next dramatic twist in a plot or to further the narrative, yet for Tarantino it seems to suggest that action itself is of secondary importance the character's dialogues, responses and attitudes seem to be the centre of the attention within his films. He takes the flowing street talk from his favorite authors of pulp novels and produces a vocabulary of naturalistic wording, which in turn is seen to often hide the amoral attitudes of the characters. This pattern is noted in many scenes, for example we never get to see the actual boxing fight in Pulp Fiction, but we receive information about it afterwards by listening to the taxi driver asking Butch some questions. Also, the shooting of Marvin could be seen to be so much more dramatic and gruesome, yet it takes place in the middle of a conversation between Jules and Vincent thus resulting us as the viewer to feel that it was just a small if unfortunate accident.


In many scenes as well, it is the faces and emotions of characters that are fore grounded rather than the action itself. We see this when Butch returns to free Marsellus from the rapists it is this scene that illustrates my argument as it is the attitude and emotions of Butch that are placed in the main focal point of the viewer's attention. The deadly stab made by a large samurai sword is backgrounded. I feel that Tarantino is keen to present tense moments and show how the characters in the film respond to them. This can be seen in Reservoir Dogs also. In the closing scene during a three-way gunfight, we see the characters being placed by the director into emotionally intense situations and then calmly waiting to see what will result from the situation. The main point seems to be how people behave in weird situations that they are placed in. Tarantino's main aim seems to lie in portraying not so much the action itself, but the actions of people in and to intense, strange and dangerous situations.


Characterization


Tarantino shows a passion for discreet gestures, character's reactions to unusual and intense situations and as already discussed, dialogue. It is obvious to see the care this director took in the smaller and non-action scenes. The depth of many of the character performances is so huge that we notice a lot of the time the intensity between all the actors.


‘He reveals their complexities and depth by not showing them when they are at work, but concentrating more on what they do before and after they work. For example, Travolta is fantastic in showing us that as a hit man Vincent Vega is not just a killer, but a thinker and a skeptic with vulnerability.'


I would argue that this quote taken from a movie review is only partly right. I feel Tarantino does concentrate on his characters rather than the action, yet we never see into their private lives and the relationships between the characters are often superficial. It could be said that his characters lack the blatant cinematic qualities that the average bad guy possesses in mainstream Hollywood. They do not posses the stylistic elements that help us to realize at once that this character we are watching is the bad guy. As we can see in Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs, they are not films where badness is signified through make up and lighting effects. What Tarantino wants us as the viewer to see is that the characters are believable, they behave and talk in normal ways and do not use more violence than is deemed necessary in their own way of thinking. All Tarantino's films are centred round crime and criminals focusing on the characters that get involved. It can be seen that they are most always from the lower and lower middle classes. As an alternative for portraying crime, drugs and violence in a critical light (the good guys win in the end over the bad guys typical to the mainstream and dominant ideologies) I feel that Tarantino leaves all of the hypothetical values of upper class US society aside. We see the characters and events not in a classical Hollywood way, which typecasts such characters and their actions in a way that I feel comes from a separate interest with crime and violence and originates from supposed ideals of the upper class.


Violence as Entertainment?


‘Tarantino's scripts are punctuated by violence without exception, his drama is hallmarked by instigating, catalyzing and redeeming acts of brutality.'


Violence seems not to be a big deal for Tarantino's characters. It lacks the usual undertones of violence in a film. For the director it is seen to be a justifiable tool to use in a culture where the law does not play a part and where it is impossible to have fights settled by systems of authority that one does not fit into. The attitudes of Tarantino's characters towards violence make quite an impact. However, it is Tarantino's attitude himself, which is so unusual and non-mainstream. He does not use it to create an impressive show to attract audiences but as an accepted part of the films' system of references. The scenes of shocking magnitude do not go unnoticed however Tarantino has the ability to find humour and illogicality in even the most horrifying situation. His most violent or shocking scenes seem to draw the viewer in until they suddenly realize what exactly they are laughing at. The accidental shooting of Marvin prompts laughter in the audience but then suddenly they are confronted with the reality of what has just occurred. When asked in an interview about his juxtaposition of humour and violence, Tarantino answered ‘I love it. I think its like a Reese's Cup, two great tastes that taste great together.' Although his films are alleged as being very violent, there is actually very little shown in either Reservoir Dogs or Pulp Fiction. It is more implied than actually seen and it is the viewer's imaginations which leave them believing that the films have been much more violent than they actually are. However, this violence that is not actually shown generally has much more realism and effect than cartoon violence for instance. No glamour is seen, for example, we can only feel agony for Mr. Orange lying in a pool of blood after being shot. ‘People go on about Tim Roth bleeding to death in Reservoir Dogs, but that's the reality. If someone is shot in the stomach, that's how they die.' This does not make one consider a life of crime. A lot of suffering is shown resulting in a disturbed feeling the violence is seen to be transgressive. In most mainstream films, a character is most often killed and that is the last we see of them.


The infamous ear-amputation scene is ‘popular to consumers of violent movies'. The significance of analyzing it is to show its embodiment of the ‘issue of boundary testing' thus attracting a large amount of media attention the scene is a ‘cultural magnet for media headlines and promotional gimmicks'. This scene is often discussed in great lengths perhaps prompting it to exist independently from the rest of the narrative, it could be seen as a subject in its own right. The stylistic features involved aid the depiction of violence in this scene. The audio effect of the song ‘Stuck in the Middle with You' is both amusing, yet disconcerting. The music works against the violence as Michael Madsen dances around his victim. It is amusing to see such a violent character be so lighthearted about what he is about to do. The audience feel unease at enjoying the music as an act such as this continues. In contrast, the cry of the policeman is distressing as his pain is repressed due to his lack of ability to move and help himself. The audience will always be aware of this notorious scene, yet this does not mean that they only enjoy watching pure violence, they react to the situation of the scene as a whole. Through Tarantino's clever characterization, the viewers engage with the characters and then draw from them what they need in order to understand the violence. I believe that the violence within Tarantino's films is essential to their aesthetics, he meant for the audience to laugh. With intent Tarantino violates the conventions of an action/violence film, he recreates stylized moments of violence and embellishes them until they are almost surrealistic and I think this is why he gets away with testing those boundaries to the extent he does. The fact that the violence depicted in Tarantino's films has an excessive, unreal quality is precisely what gives the viewers the emotional distance they need to enjoy it.


Popular Culture


Popular culture is drawn on deeply in Tarantino's films. It could be said that there is no point to this commentary on popular culture, yet Thomas Hibbs states that, ‘in the absence of the old distinction between high and low art, sophistication now involves witty commentary on pop culture'. Tarantino's characters coolness is defined by their mastery of modern civilization. Within their lengthy discussions, we see the characters to never miss a trick when picking up on these references that others make. The continual references to cult heroes, famous people, films, music etc. sets up a direct line of contact and involvement with the viewer, which exists above the storylines. We discover a lot about American culture, the most irrelevant detail can sometimes be the most educational. As an audience we learn about Elvis, for example, as Tarantino had a great enthusiasm for him and his music, ‘the man who undoubtedly sits at the top of the American pop culture tree has made a significant impact on Tarantino's acting and writing'.16 References such as this encourage us as an audience to think about the director and his films in the same way that we find so addictive. We feel recognition from this meaningless dialogue - it is a welcoming feeling. However, I believe that occasionally the continuous long-winded chats about this pop culture are inclined to slow the narrative down. It rarely serves any real significance in terms of plot or characterization. It could be said that Tarantino uses this to show off his knowledge of certain peculiarities in order just to please the audience. Through his characters he shows that such knowledge is cool because it is both true to life and apparently effortless. This could be seen as intense spectatorship as he rewards his loyal viewers, his cult following with in-jokes that he knows only the ones, as ‘hip' as he is will understand. His films can be seen as puzzles, which in turn draw the viewer in giving us a sense of playing a game. Each reference to popular culture acts as a piece with which we are supposed to place together to form a coherent film. Often it takes more than one viewing of a film to be able to do this. Tarantino designs his films to fit suitably into popular culture, while constantly referring to other items of the same popular culture.


Redemption and a Fascination for Loyalty


The idea of redemption runs strongly through Tarantino's works. Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction have a very different sub-text, the first showing its characters preoccupied only with the settling of scores. This revenge is definitely apparent in Pulp Fiction, yet Tarantino does not place his characters in a world of unethical disorder he is merely fascinated with the ideas of reliability and selflessness, ‘the film is more obviously concerned with the journeys its characters make to earn or learn redemption.' An example of such a moment is the character of Bruce Willis making the choice to save another from death, even if it means putting his life on the line, ‘an appreciative Marsellus learns the value of mercy and Butch leaves the scene of the crime on a chopper called Grace.'15 Also in another moment, Jules undergoes a change he is spiritually reborn as the many bullets miss him in a shoot out. The form and content of Pulp Fiction does tend to come from within a violent subculture, yet its story contains loyalty and altruism. This is unlike the closing of Reservoir Dogs as retribution breeds ignorance and is therefore self-destructive in the end. Jules walks away from the closing scene of Pulp Fiction a new man having discovered the importance of morality. However, some of the information vital to the moral ending of the story has been left out of the plot and therefore the film itself.17


It is from this idea of redemption and loyalty amongst characters, that I am lead to think that there is more to the films of Tarantino than just a discussion of style thus prompting my discussion for the following chapter. Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction can be read as morality plays about masculinity the main characters are all enmeshed in the problems of loyalty and honour amongst their peers. It is within the next chapter that I will discuss issues that have prompted much social criticism.


C H A P T E R T W O


TARANTINO'S APPROACH TO GENDER AND RACE


Tarantino has the real nilhilism of our times down. He represents the ultimate in white cool a hard-core cynical vision that would have everyone see racism, sexism, homophobia but behave as though none of that shit really matters, or if it does it means nothing because none of its gonna change.


After discussing Tarantino's formal qualities in Chapter One, I wanted to further my investigation through this next chapter by finding out to what extent Tarantino is actually talking about society outside the world of cinema. His films seem to connect with broader social discourses and debates, in particular notions of gender and race. Both Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs provide a raw and rather disturbing portrayal of the way men respond and react to their worlds and the issue of race that surrounds them. However, I would argue that this chosen approach is due to Tarantino wanting simply a reaction from his audience, usually one of abhorrence, instead of presenting an issue that causes a reaction for its own sake. I believe that he does not use these debatable subjects for social critiques, but merely for effect - this director was not concerned in using his films to provoke discussion about important topics such as gender and race. However, as a result of this approach to entertainment, Tarantino has quite obviously attracted a wide collection of social critiques on his works. It is within this chapter that I will look over these issues to see if this really is the true of Tarantino. Is he merely setting out to entertain his audience through his provocative approach to filmmaking or does this man feel it necessary to include strong underlying political concerns within his texts so that he could claim great critical attention?


Perceived Male Stereotypes


‘Tarantino seems more comfortable establishing complex relationships between males characters, then he does between males and females.'


Tarantino's approach to gender is often seen as transgressive in his regard for masculinity. There are a lot of male on male relationships within his circle of characters. Through this analysis of Tarantino's approach to his men, I will argue that he just wants his audience to watch and listen, to be entertained by their actions, yet through this he manages to attract more critical attention than he ever imagined. It seems evident that there is a reflexive form of machismo in his first two films the prime weapon is a gun and the standard operating procedure is force perhaps portraying these films as the definitive tough-guy movies of which are very male centred. Within Reservoir Dogs the use of nonspecific names using a designation of a colour for the characters initially seems appealing, but when taking a deeper look at it, it could be said that the imaginative use of this device is to make each man a representative of a type rather than being a real person. The men are cinematic creations, stereotypes from other film genres, yet they talk like real people like people we know. The pointless conversations that the men have at the start of the film can on the surface seem entertaining and humorous ‘eight men sit round a dinner banquette talking heartedly about the trivial and the mundane,' but once again by looking at this further I would argue that Tarantino is just making a comment on the pointlessness of many conversations that men hold together. It becomes apparent that discussions of emotions among these men never really occur, they just talk a lot about irrelevant details connected to everyday life, for example the ethics of tipping waitresses and Madonna. They never give anything away; the audience certainly find it hard to grasp any emotional elements from the men. I believe from this brief analysis that Tarantino did set out to entertain his viewers through, for example his use of popular culture references and his stylized violence and special effects as discussed in chapter one, yet Tarantino unintentionally has produced issues that people feel the need to discuss critically. Through a more detailed analysis of the films I will attempt to confirm this.


Reservoir Dogs is a film that ‘conflates masculinity, violence and the underclass.' It is noticeable as the drama unfolds that each survivor represents a different stereotype of masculinity. The mise en scene of the warehouse provides the scene for the meeting point for all the gang members to return to after completing the heist. It is large and empty and has a secluded feeling about it. From this we are invited as a viewer to see men's worlds as bleak, unfriendly and distressing. A suggestion of a dysfunctional environment is made about where the men are hiding out it is cold, detached and hostile. As a viewer we automatically are shocked at the sight of the wounded and bleeding Mr. Orange. He lies on the dirty floor of this uninhabited building that is hard and uncomfortable. Tarantino works hard to cover up this feeling that we may have for this man by playing in the background seventies music from the radio. The irony of this is alarming, as the director overlays the severity of the physical environment by incorporating seventies rock music, a form known for its upbeat mood and enjoyable listening capacity. During the violent torture scene discussed in chapter one, the well-known track ‘Stuck in The Middle with You' by the Stealers Wheel is played suggesting that men engage popular culture as a solution or an escape from the real world. For men, the music is suggested as an element to help avoid the truth instead of realizing it.


The thieves within this film could be seen to be representations of the stereotypical modern man who will not talk about anything to do with their personal life. They will never allow their personality to be susceptible and certainly do not allow other men into their emotional world. The image that the men strive for is that of an expert in what they do. They want to be good at their job, get it done with no mistakes and then most importantly walk away with the benefits. We see this obsession in the two characters of Mr. White (Harvey Keitel) and Mr. Pink (Steve Buscemi). They both claim that, although the heist has gone drastically wrong, they still undoubtedly have the experience of a skilled bank robber a professional. As all the plans fall apart around their feet, they are surrounded by blood and suffering, yet they both scream at each other about what is left to do. As a result of this Tarantino is presenting a macho world that is collapsing, a new entertaining form of a gangster movie, yet once again providing an abundance of material for a social critique on men.


The character of Mr. Pink represents a very negative male stereotype, ‘he is the physical embodiment of rodent.' He is arrogant and is openly proud of supposedly killing Mr. Blonde for his dishonourable behaviour. He is a man full of audacity that is immediately squashed when he sees that this man still lives. At the first sign of an argument his aggression results in him holding up his gun as a first reaction, he is a needy man that needs to be protected behind something. Narrow-minded and holding strong opinions, Pink eventually shows a deep insecurity and fear as he backs away with his tail between his legs showing the weakness in his character. Mr. Blonde also represents a negative male stereotype in the form of a monster, as he simply cannot possess any feelings as we learn in the torture scene. Interestingly, Tarantino lets the audience in closer to this particular character as we learn his real name, Vic Vega and a little of his past, that he was on the team as a reward for serving a jail sentence to protect the boss of the heist. We are to see that this character is not the average filmic psycho killer; he is a man who gets through his life with the use of violence and control and is obliged to nobody. I would argue that the reasons Tarantino lets us in on this character's details and not the others is so that we are left feeling more uncomfortable about him, as a viewer we squirm in our seats when he is on screen not knowing what he will do next a reaction that the director strives for in his films. He is not simply a type like his colleagues whom we feel nothing for due to only knowing them in the present situation of the action. Extra knowledge of Blonde's character gives us a stronger understanding why he carries out such brutal attacks as we have learnt he is has been capable of such crime before.


The stereotypical male way of pretending to be something you are not is indicated by Tim Roth's character, Mr. Orange who has a falsity surrounding his whole identity. He is representative of a man that lives a lie and who develops entertaining stories to strengthen his deceptiveness and gain acceptance with other men. Mostly always alone, we see this character very clearly die alone too. Before the policeman goes undercover with this gang of thieves he reassures himself that they have no clue of his real identity. In order for his own survival he has to start believing his own falsehood.


It is interesting to see Tarantino connecting the moral goodness of Mr. Orange's character with Mr. White who seems to provide the film with its honourable centre. They strike up an unstoppable bond from the beginning sharing a careful understanding resulting in the more adult character of Mr. White acting like a father figure to Mr. Orange, ‘his character incarnates a certain paternal authority of experience.' There is a hint of an internal buddy movie subplot with these two characters, yet Tarantino can never say it. This would take away the element of cool that surrounds the men. Advice on how to control the public before committing a crime is passed down to the younger man. White then shows unusual boldness from a known criminal by pulling Orange out of danger on the streets and into somewhere secure. In his reasoning to Pink, although White is cruelly realistic about his reasons for not leaving him outside a hospital, he is still able to offer genuine care and support for the suffering policeman. This allegiance stems from this stereotypical male paternal instinct he has felt towards Mr. Orange. However, throughout the film everyone is unaware of Orange's real identity this provides a source of real pathos as the only real encouraging relationship in the film is based on dishonesty. All the way through the film the audience watches Keitel's character get close to another man, we discover White has told Orange where he is from which breaks a rule set down by the boss of this mob. The only reward we see for this loyalty is in the closing scene when Orange lets him know the painful truth of his identity. Mr. White is a symbol of the outcome of letting others get too close.


It is clear that Tarantino wants to mess with the male stereotype in order to entertain the audience in an unusual way. After watching The Godfather directed by Francis Ford Coppola, it is noticeable immediately that this film is about organized crime. I would argue that Tarantino presents a study in films about organized crime. Coppola captures the audience within his story and only at the end of the film does the viewer return to the real world. Tarantino on the other hand takes his male characters and just puts them in a gangster role. With the gangster personas ascertained, he then exploits the viewers' expectations by placing this male stereotype in non-traditional scenarios. It is all just a performance for this director. He uses his male characters to role-play being ‘cool' instead of being authentic like Coppola's Don Corleone. The director's second directorial production can also be seen as a series of character outlines about men and their relationships with one another. Within the three-fold narrative of Pulp Fiction, the most striking example is the story involving Bruce Willis's character, Butch. It seems strange that someone would go back after narrowly escaping themselves to save their hated enemy, yet ‘faced with a moral choice, Butch chooses to save the man who moments earlier tried to kill him.' The thought of a man raping another man, whoever they might be, fills Butch with the desire to return to that dangerous place and save this man from a humiliating rape scenario. The character knows that he will once more be putting his live at risk by returning, but saving another man's male pride seems the most moral thing for him to do. Butch is far from the ideal male hero or the good guy that has been seen before in more conventional films. At first he tries to drive over Marcellus as he is a bully and an idiot, but as with all other characters in pulp Fiction, he is on the wrong side on the side of the bad guys. However, through Tarantino's choice of portrayal of these chosen masculinities, we as the audience are on the same side too. We are forced to sympathize with Butch and most of the other characters as well due to the line between good and bad guys being blurred and our more usual identifications are disrupted.


We see Tarantino push his idea of machismo to its limits when he shows his male characters' intolerant stance towards homosexuality. Jules presents an infuriated response to his partner Vincent during a debate about whether either of them would massage a man's foot like they would to a woman. Homosexual relationships are not put across in a positive light. I would argue that Tarantino prefers to portray the most sophisticated and realistic relationships between heterosexual men who share silent ties and careful loyalties. Tarantino's male characters can easily tolerate disloyal and selfish behaviour within a relationship as long as a woman or a homosexual does not threaten it.


‘I like the idea of following a female lead character. I think I have an extremely unfair rap from people who say, ‘Ah, but can he write women?''


This evidence thus suggests that Tarantino shares very little with his female characters. It is clear to an audience as discussed above that the male stereotype is stylish and complex, yet highly attuned to their surroundings. The women on the other hand are often portrayed as simple-minded and trivial. To receive any grounding of their characteristics, the viewer has to look into their relationships with the men in order to get any definition of their personality. However, it is in Tarantino's third directorial piece that we are caught in an unexpected situation. The film Jackie Brown is still a film about men and their relationships, yet we notice that they are defined and interceded through female personalities, ‘there are two strong, well-drawn characters.' The director attempts a film with a female point of view and I would argue that this results from a reaction against the people who have labeled him as a macho director. The narrative is motivated by the clever ideas of the central female character - she is determined to get the better off the villainous Ordell who is cold-blooded and easily capable of murdering her for her actions if all was to go wrong. Loneliness seems to surround Jackie Brown; her independence becomes obvious from watching her in many scenes alone. Nevertheless it is implied that she is not lonely for male friendship. The potential romance between her and Max is never quite reached as Tarantino is keen to keep his female character independent. We see her as possessing a kind personality unlike many of the director's past central characters. As she enlists the help of the infatuated bail agent in an illegal scheme against both the police and the villainous Ordell, she does not become selfish or shrewish. Instead, the director's female character is more like an archetypal male hero who is allowed an intricacy of character adequate to allow good and bad to co-exist without fear of cinematic vengeance as a result she does not come to her death at the end of the plot.


This director likes all his central characters to walk away at the end whether they are male or not as it entertains the audience - they are left wondering about what the future will hold for all his characters. This film can be seen as recognizable as one of Tarantino's as all his gangsters give up in one way or another at the close of the narrative. Tarantino is keen to portray Brown as a survivor. Brown knows the kind of poverty she is heading for as a middle aged, single black woman with few salable skills. The director opens and closes this movie with a long shot of her alone and moving symbolizing the extent to which this is Brown's story alone. The film explores the image of black women who are good people, but who turn to crime in order to help fund the life they desire. Through this observation of Tarantino's approach to gender, we can note that his fame is due to his willingness to substitute an aesthetic realism for a political and moral one. As much as the director might try to merely entertain, it is the surfacing of his own politics and values conveyed through his storytelling that stand out as serious points for critical discussion.


The ‘N' Word


‘I just don't feel the whole white guilt and pussyfooting around race issues. I'm completely above all that.'


The overt issue of racism is clear amongst not only Tarantino's directorial works but also his screenplays too. The racist language is the most obvious element here. Verbal assaults and racist insults are plentiful in his works. Reservoir Dogs has been claimed to be the ‘new acceptable white male art form' but within this representation of a new cinematic tradition, the quality of the language seems to be regarded as very disturbing. There is a supposed humourous quality that surrounds the language the naturalistic and racist form seems largely to be aimed at white audiences, ‘You've given white boys the kind of movies black kids get.' The repeated use of the word ‘nigger' stays clearly in a viewer's mind. It could be argued that the word is seen as the most volatile word in the English language. Tarantino believed that ‘no one word should deserve such power in our culture.' It was intended in his films that the frequent use of the word ‘nigger' would considerably smooth out its racial overtones. It could be said that Tarantino shows a naivety to the history that stems behind the word. The remark is powerful for a number of multifaceted reasons, an example being that the use of the word by different groups of whites and blacks has different undertones. Tarantino parades the term with no care before audiences for whom the suggesting power of the term is far from unlimited. However, as ‘black street culture and its vocabulary are at the heart of the mainstream, if black people insist on using the word in public, then there is no justifiable reason why people from other races should not be able to do the same.'


Within his films that are largely white and male orientated, Tarantino does very little to enhance his supposed moral sensitivity to the implications of this racist language. Not only do we see racism within the language of the films but also in the representation of blacks themselves. An example of this can be seen in Pulp Fiction. The two black characters are portrayed as a drug dealer and gangster hit man. In developing these characters, the director provides subtle frustrations. The drug dealer, Marcellus is married to a white woman, however, I would argue that the issue of race at this point is placed on the back burner as the interracial marriage is never fully developed within the film. He then toys with the idea of punishing his villainous black character by placing him as a victim of homosexual rape by two white men. The scene is shocking in its dealing with gay bashing, yet no reference is made to its racist undertones of whites picking on a black man to get their pleasure. I would argue from this last point that racism is never placed at the forefront of Tarantino's movies because he has an unwillingness to tackle it as a political issue mainly because of his lack of knowledge for its details. He merely wants to provoke a reaction with its subject matter instead of producing moments that will historically stand as extreme racial examples in the future.


With regards to race, his black male characters are ‘just into a dick thing,' they get involved and do what is right in a white dominant world. Protest can be raised when regarding this issue as the audience notes that Jimmy's wife in Pulp Fiction is black, yet we never get to see her face. Bell Hook believes that this is the ‘fun thing'4 about Tarantino's movies as he makes ‘that shit look ridiculous so everybody is gonna get it and see how absurd it is.'4 I would agree with Hook as there is a definite entertaining element here, but as a result I believe that Tarantino picked up this discussion surrounding the colour of Jimmy's wife and returned with his following film. Tarantino cannot avoid social critique over the issue of race when it comes to his third directorial piece, Jackie Brown. This film comments on race relations (especially placing a black woman as the central character), as it is beholden to the history of the black media and the film genre of blaxploitation films. I believe that Tarantino cannot avoid connecting with broader social discourses and debates within this film, as it is one suited to the study of race as ‘there are inevitable associations of white with light and therefore safety, and black with dark and therefore danger and that this explains racism.'5 Black and white characters interact throughout the film, yet their difference is made clear. The white characters are sexually ineffectual and captivated by drugs, the black characters are seen to be violent. The difference between the colours of these people however, is shown through the director placing the white characters as enduring the hardships that come their way, whilst portraying the black characters as causing their own.


Connecting the issue of race with the already discussed issue of gender, we see Jackie being placed above all the other characters in terms of constructing an effective plan. Her clever ways stretch beyond the wit of Ray, the policeman and Ordell, the villain, ‘what is so neat about Jackie's character is that she isn't revealing at all.' She pro-actively builds a relationship with both of them for her own gain. As the narrative concludes, the female character symbolizes the only victorious one to walk away from the plan. Ordell, on the other hand represents the main black male character in the film that is far from successful at the end. It seems obvious that this character likes to surround himself with white people. Throughout the film, he spends time with Melanie and Louis, he dresses in very light clothes and lives in an apartment, which is decorated throughout in a light beige colour. As the narrative progresses, however, we see his character returning to his black identity an example of this is the dark clothing he chooses to wear before he murders someone. His character turns of all the lights in the small apartment placing it in darkness before attempting to kill Jackie. I would argue that Tarantino chose to present these subtleties around the character of Ordell in order to highlight his blackness further. It is interesting to see the character of Max adopting like Ordell, cross-colour relationships. Unlike the disrespect and cruelty that Melanie suffers from Ordell, Max and Jackie produce a relationship that is based on equality and respect for one another. Ordell and Max continue to mirror each other's images we see this in the black assistant Max hires; Ordell has Louis. There is a small subtlety of the issue of the soundtrack Ordell listens to Country music while Max grows a passion for soul music sung by a black group called the Delfonics. As the narrative closes, we learn that Jackie, although a hero, is unable to enjoy her position and despite the fact that she overcame both black and white characters, she is still left without a relationship with Max. The film shares with us that in despite of colour; any character can endure success or failure.


The presence of the racial issues that run through Tarantino's work is most valid for critical discussion as proved above, yet I would argue his inclusion of them could be due to the simple influence of blaxploitation films of the seventies that he gained while working as a film store clerk. It could be said that Tarantino pays respect to characters such as Jules and Jackie Brown who hold ‘roots in a genre that celebrated characters' blackness and portrayed them as powerful, influential figures.' Unintentionally, however, the director has created racist characters that will not be forgotten by critics in the future when it comes down to discussing racism as a political issue.


Tarantino simply wants his audiences to react to his work in as many different ways as possible. I would argue that he is aware of his approach to gender and race within his films, yet feels they are there merely there to entertain. To do this Tarantino simply messes with the stereotypes that exist in social discourses and debates. After watching The Godfather directed by Francis Ford Coppola, it is noticeable immediately that this film is about organized crime. I would argue that Tarantino presents a study in films about organized crime. Coppola captures the audience within his story and only at the end of the film does the viewer return to the real world. Tarantino on the other hand takes his male characters and just puts them in a gangster role. With the gangster personas ascertained, he then exploits the viewers' expectations by placing this male stereotype in non-traditional scenarios. It is all just performance as a means of entertainment for this director. He uses his male characters to role-play being ‘cool' instead of being authentic like Coppola's Don Corleone. I would argue that this element of ‘cool' applies to Tarantino's fascination with blackness and black culture in the same way. The performance seems to be the most important element for this director. Dargis remarks, ‘For Tarantino, race and masculinity are conspicuous, determining and never beside the point.' However, I believe this director uses these social issues merely for artful entertainment.


C O N C L U S I O N


Over the course of this study, I have come to believe through my investigation of Tarantino's directorial style that he is most definitely an artful and clever entertainer, yet at the same time possesses qualities as an artist that are most engaging. Within Chapter One, I discovered through my analysis of his stylistic approach to making films that he is a man that does something in order to cause an effect within his audience - good or bad, he does not seem to mind. His different approach to film dialogue and his refusal for a conventional narrative style creates interest in the audience as it is something that has not often been seen before in the world of film, thus creating a piece of work with a postmodern flavour.


I addressed Tarantino's approach to gender and race within my second chapter. There has been much social criticism of his ideas surrounding these areas, but I would argue that as a director he holds a distinctive quality by being very much aware of such social discourses and debates. Nevertheless this awareness is not an element he wanted to install in his audience. In fact, he wanted the exact opposite. It was not his intention to make films about anything in particular, just merely to entertain his viewers through a celebration of the thrills and glamours of contemporary film. I do believe however, that as much as Tarantino would like to ignore the criticism from the world outside of cinema, there is definite evidence of him acting upon some of it. An example of this is after Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, Tarantino was criticized for his macho approach to filmmaking (as discussed in Chapter Two) so in return came back at this observation by placing a female as his central character in his third piece, Jackie Brown.


Tarantino shows us within his films that life can be compelling, enjoyable and utterly fulfilling. He includes elements that run close to life if an audience wants to draw a social message from them (it is within my second chapter that I have shown it to be possible) then all the more beneficial for Tarantino as a film director. Such social criticism can only heighten his media persona, creating great interest from an audience who will long to return and be entertained once more.


B I B L I O G R A P H Y


Books


· Andrew, Geoff, Stranger than Paradise Maverick Filmmakers in recent American cinema, (Prion), 18


· Austin, T, Hollywood, hype and audiences Selling and watching popular film in the 10's, (Manchester University Press), 00


· Barnes, A and Hearn, M, Tarantino A to Zed, (BT Batsford Ltd), 16


· Cartmell, D and Hunter, I and Kaye, H (ed), Pulping Fictions Consuming culture across the literature/media divide, (Pluto Press), 16


· Dawson, J, Tarantino Inside Story, (Cassell), 15


· Denzin, N, Images of Postmodern Society Social Theory and Contemporary Cinema, (Sage Publications), 11


· Dyer, R, The Matter of Images Essays on Representations, (Routledge), 1


· Friedman, L, Unspeakable Images Ethnicity and the American Cinema, (University of Illinois Press), 11


· Gilroy, P, The Black Atlantic Modernity and Double Consciousness, (Verso), 1


· Gledhill, C and Williams, L, Reinventing Film Studies, (Arnold Publishers), 000


· Hayward, S, Key concepts in cinema studies, (Routledge), 16.


· Hill, A, Shocking Entertainment Viewer response to Violent Movies, (John Libbey Media), 17


· Hill, J and Church Gibson, P (ed), Film Studies Critical Approaches, (Oxford), 000


· Hillier, J, American Independent Cinema A Sight and Sound Reader, (BFI), 001


· Hooks, B, Reel to Real Race Sex and Class at the Movies, (Routledge), 16


· Lacey, N, Narrative and Genre Key Concepts in Media Studies, (Macmillan Press), 000


· Mercer, K, Welcome to the Jungle New Positions in Black Cultural Studies, (Routledge), 14


· Peary, Gerald (ed), Quentin Tarantino Interviews (University Press of Mississippi), 18


· Rubin, Martin, Thrillers Genres in American Cinema, (Cambridge University Press), 1


· Tasker, Yvonne, Fifty Contemporary Film makers (Routledge) 00


· Woods, Paul (ed), Quentin Tarantino The Film Geeks File (Plexus), 000


· Woods, P, King Pulp The Wild World of Quentin Tarantino, (Plexus), 16


· Young, L, Fear of the Dark ‘Race', Gender and Sexuality in the Cinema, (Routledge), 16


Articles


· Empire (No.44 February 1) Lets Go to Work by Jeff Dawson


Quentin Tarantino talks about Reservoir Dogs and his reasons for choosing to write and direct a heist movie


· Sight and Sound (May 14) Quentin Tarantino on Pulp Fiction by Manhola Dargis


His thoughts and views about the success of his second production


· The Guardian (1 September 14) The Movie Junkie by Andrew Pulver


Assesses the reception given to Pulp Fiction at the Cannes Film Festival, concentrating on the film's non-linear narrative


· The Observer (Life) ( July 14) On The Run by Jim McClellan


Tarantino discusses the Reservoir Dogs torture scene, screen violence in general and Pulp Fiction in depth.


· The Sunday Times Magazine ( October 1) Quentin Tarantino by Richard Guilliatt.


The director discusses reactions to Reservoir Dogs, screen violence and the motivation behind True Romance.


· Time Out (1 September 14) Killing Joke by Geoff Andrew


Interview with Tarantino on Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction and his thoughts on moral violence.


Websites


· www.godamongdirectors.com


· www.tarantino.m4d.com


· www.geocities.com


· www.movies.yahoo.com


· www.filmsite.org


F I L M O G R A P H Y


· True Romance


· Natural Born Killers


· Reservoir Dogs


· Pulp Fiction


· Jackie Brown


· The Killing (non-linear approach to narrative)


· The Godfather (comparison in approach to gangster stereotypes)


Please note that this sample paper on Dissertation on style and meaning in films of Tarantino is for your review only. In order to eliminate any of the plagiarism issues, it is highly recommended that you do not use it for you own writing purposes. In case you experience difficulties with writing a well structured and accurately composed paper on Dissertation on style and meaning in films of Tarantino, we are here to assist you. Your persuasive essay on Dissertation on style and meaning in films of Tarantino will be written from scratch, so you do not have to worry about its originality.


Order your authentic assignment and you will be amazed at how easy it is to complete a quality custom paper within the shortest time possible!