Analyse​ how film techniques were used to present an idea in the text. – Annabel Carter

INTRODUCTION:

“Greed is a bottomless pit which exhausts the person in an endless effort to satisfy the need without ever reaching satisfaction.”- Eric Fromm.

Statement of intent:

The intention of this essay is to analyze three film techniques of digestive sound, low angle and high angles which convey an idea of greed, this essay is to be based around the 1996 film Fargo, directed by the Coen Brothers.

Introduction: The film Fargo created and directed by the Coen Brothers shows a wide range of film techniques used to present and construct the reoccurring theme of greed. Greed has been the main focus of a selfish yet excessive desire for more that is needed or deserved, in this case, the theme of greed is intended around Money. Digestive sound defines a characters distinctive accent which helps portray their motive throughout the film, A Low camera angle is used to create the perception of a character’s power and wealth all which has been done in the intentions of greed and a high camera angle has been used to deemphasize a subject which has little to less importance within the scene.

Paragraph 1.: S: Throughout the film Fargo, Digestive sound is used as a film technique to show how accents have conveyed a theme of greed and the effects this may have on the person.

E: The digestive sound throughout films establish the idea of greed created by the directors and audience shown by the characters own accents and the way they may speak. This reveals more than just where they are living within the film but instead establishes a motive or impact this character has had on the act of greed. Throughout Fargo, there is a distinct range of ethnicity in the characters accents which distinguishes whos voice holds great power from fortune to those who do not. Within the film characters with strong accents that tended to slur there speech became largely impacted by the thought of money, essentially running out of satisfactory this leads them into doing unthinkable acts of greed. X: An example of how accents reveal the recurring theme of greed is Jerry Lundergaurd who has been introduced towards the audience with a strong Midwestern accent. Within the Beginning of the film and transitioning towards the end, we see slight changes towards his speech including voice cracks, uncertainty in his accent and the use of exclamations, expressing hesitation or a pause. This emphasizes the concept that the motive of greed will take you so far until your time runs out which is shown through Jerry’s accent reducing to as much of one as a cowards. The first scene of the film shows Jerry, Carl, and Grear negotiating the money side of things, Jerry quotes “Well, that’s… That’s… I’m not gonna inta, inta… see, I just need money. Now, her dads real well off” The pauses within his speech and the uncertainty in his voice shows Jerry’s hesitancy in his giving up his reasons behind his so desperately needed money. A strong component of greed is portrayed by the constant fear of a person and a sense of insecurity throughout. An example of characters in Fargo that were not chasing the path of greed had softer yet passive accents and did not overshadow the thought of money and fortune. Police officer Marge Gunderson quotes “there’s more to life than a little money, you know. Don’t you know that? And here ya are, and its a beautiful day. Well, I just don’t understand it.”, Although strong in Minnesota accent she presents herself restrained, speaking in a soft manner to show her thoughts on the crimes committed by the heavy influence of greediness. Y: The Coen Brothers did this purposefully in efforts to show that even within the beginning of the film the idea of greed is shown as this character’s weakness. Digestive sound has been used as a film technique to show how accents have conveyed a theme of greed throughout the film. This has been the director’s focus to create a theme of greed as a motive influencing the role of each character in the film and to show the audience what unthinkable crimes can be committed in order to satisfy the wants of yourself and others. Although presented with a strong, heavy accent, a simple voice crack or uncertainty in their speech gives away to the viewer which characters have been seeing the aftermath of greed, intended by the directors.

Paragraph 2.: S: A low angle camera shot is used throughout the film Fargo to create the perception of a characters wealth and power through there intentions of greed.

E: Low angles throughout the film Fargo make the audience feel that this specific character in the frame has significant power almost overshadowing everything else in its path. Through the film, a handful of characters are shown with this camera technique of a low angle making the person look bigger on the screen to what they may be like in real life, All these characters share a common ground, they are continuously being troubled by the influence of greed. By shooting at a low angle of a character it can make the viewer feel weaker, insecure or overwhelmed in relation to the size of them on screen, this Isolates the character to the surrounding environment, blocking off any unnecessary backdrops which help the main characters stay in complete focus and context. The viewer may feel they are “Looking up” at the subject perhaps out of total respect or hatred. This shows the importance of the character and the power of greed while also being disorientating which conveys the theme as greed can be disorientating at times of trouble towards the character and audience. X: An example of greed being portrayed by a low angle is the scene where Carl shoots Wade, Carl is shown at a low angle making him appear bigger and stronger to show he has the greater power and “Authority” over Wade. This low angle also shows the greed he possesses growing from his only motive throughout the film, money. Willing to kill a human if it means he gets what he wants, Carl takes the ultimate sacrifice for his desire for greed. Y: The director’s main purpose within Fargo was to show how a low angle can dramatically change our perception of a character influenced by the idea of greed. Outside of the film, this technique highlighted an important topic in a real-world context, that becoming addicted to the thought of money and fortune can lead a person to unthinkable measures, sacrificing family or friends to achieve something bound to be invaluable in the long run. Another film which shows a particular low angle to signify greed is “Batman dark night”. A particular character within the film that is shown at this angle is the Joker, The first scene the joker is shown is at a particularly low angle, this is because the audience can see the joker has a significant amount of power and a heavy influence on greed, he overshadows every other subject within the scene and is taking up most of the frame within the shot. Transitioning towards the end of the film the character of Batman is shown at a low angle after he has just defeated the Joker. This emphasizes the thought that the Jokers desire for money has been overthrown and vanquished by Batman’s persistent outlook on life, Whom which was not affected by his own negative intentions.

Paragraph 3.: S: High angles are used throughout Fargo to deemphasize a character or subject that’s intentions are not affected by greed, causing them to be perceived as a person with little to less importance within the particular scene.

E: A high angle is used to make the character appear smaller in the shot than usual which conveys a total sense of inferiority throughout the film. The viewer may perceive the character as less significant towards another subject including the audience itself, in this case, you are the giant and are figuratively “Looking down on them” throughout the film. This high camera angle amplifies the idea that the character within the shot is vulnerable at the time and beat down of nearly nothing to where they were before. X: A significant part of the film is when Jerry Lundergaurds wife Jean Lundergaurd is shot at a high angle after being robbed and beaten from the intruders, this signifies she has been injured and all feeling of total control has been taken away from her at this moment in time. She lays there on the floor lifeless as the characters and audience overshadow her from a higher angle above the stairs. Greed is shown through this particular scene by showing the characters of Grear and Carl who are launching an attack on Jean bigger and taller, By using a low angle to show superiority over the women the high angle that Jean is shot at has a much larger effect towards the viewer, as this presents the idea that those characters who attend to there selfish desires of money having more authority and power over the characters that are not affected by greed, in this case, Jean which has been shown through a high angle. Y: The director’s purpose in using the technique of a high angle is a clever way to show the idea of greed from an audience’s point of view, the audience may feel they have stepped into the shoes of somebody that desires money and fortune and can see the effects of how this overall idea is portrayed by the film technique of a high angle. This technique raises important questions on why the characters that are perceived as good within the film are shot at the angle which portrays unimportance and weakness, maybe because they do indeed portray these characteristics or is it a purposeful technique used by the directors to show development in a charcters personallity and descisions. A television show which shows a particular character affected by somebody else’s intention of greed is Spongebob from “Spongebob square pants”, Mr. Krab is obsessed with the thought of money and wealth and is shown to do almost anything for a little money. In a particular scene of the show, Mr. Krabs loses a penny from his earnings causing him to steal from Spongebobs paycheck. Mr. Krabs greed provoked him to crime amongst SpongeBob while SpongeBob was at the receiving end of Mr. Krabs actions doing nothing wrong. This is just an example of how humans can negatively affect someone else’s lives by there own selfish desires.

Conclusion:

“Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful”, Warren Buffett. The film Fargo written and directed by the Coen Brothers uses the three film techniques of Digestive sound, Low angle, and high angles to present an idea of greed within the film. By analysing these three film techniques we were able to interpret the form of greed and how the director’s purpose influenced each scene within the Film. In paragraph 1, Digestive sound was used to show how accents conveyed greed and the aftermath of it. Throughout paragraph 2, Low angles were used to create a perception on a characters wealth and power through there intentions of greed, And in paragraph 3, high angles were used to deemphasize a character or subject that’s intentions have not been affected by greed causing them to be perceived as weak and vulnerable.