Clayton George Wickham - final thesis

Recommendations

Info

Abstract With twelve films released over the last thirty years, the Friday the 13 th series has proved a popular mainstay of the slasher sub-genre of horror, in spite of negative critical reception and minimal academic engagement. The academic discourses that do address the series often frame their arguments based on socio-political function, socioeconomic platforms, psychoanalytic traditions, and cultural relevance. While there is some work that attempts to understand the generic positioning and function of the Friday the 13 th films, little work has engaged with the film texts in order to understand and explain the form and structure of each instalment in the series. This <strong>thesis</strong> not only aims to explore and describe the aesthetic form of the slasher sub-genre of horror, but also to argue the central significance of perspective on the aesthetic effect of the slasher. Perspective, a term that builds upon theories of point of view and subjectivity, permeates the formal design of the slasher film. Therefore, this relationship will be the driving focus of the analysis undertaken with regards to the Friday the 13 th films, which will include chapters focusing on specific uses of the camera, sound, editing, and sequences creating a narrative understanding of preceding films in the series. Following this analysis, the aesthetic development of the Friday the 13 th series will be contextualised within contemporary generic trends, demonstrating to what extent this franchise is representative of the slasher, and where it proves anomalous or progressive. This will not only demonstrate the role the Friday the 13 th films play within the slasher, but also how the slasher has aesthetically evolved over more than three decades. Ultimately, the relevance of this analysis and formal historicizing will be suggestive of the wider context of film studies and cinema as a whole.
ii Table of Contents Acknowledgements....................................................................................................iv The Friday the 13 th Films..........................................................................................vi Introduction..............................................................................................................vii Argument Aesthetics and Formalism- A Methodology The Friday the 13 th Franchise Structure x xi xix xxii Introduction Part 2: The Historical Context of the Friday the 13 th Franchise....................................................................................xxviii Friday the 13 th in Context xxviii Chapter 1: Perspective.............................................................................................1 ‘Perspective’ Defined 5 Uses of Perspective Without and Within Horror 9 Perspective in Horror to Perspective in the Slasher 14 How is Perspective Created? 18 Chapter 2: The Eye/Camera Defined and Established.........................................23 Eye/Camera Definitions and Critical Understanding: 23 Early Cinema and the Evolution of the Eye/Camera: 38 The Development of the Eye/Camera in the Slasher Film: 45 Victim-Camera and Peeping Tom’s Eye/Camera / Victim-Camera Integration: 64 Chapter 3: The Eye/Camera in the Friday the 13 th Series...................................74 Adapting and Utilising the Eye/Camera in Friday the 13 th 74
Page 1: Bearing Witness to a Whole Bunch of
Page 5 and 6: iv Acknowledgements Without the fol
Page 7 and 8: vi The Friday the 13 th Film Series
Page 9 and 10: viii the assumption that the text d
Page 11 and 12: x Argument Friday the 13 th is an e
Page 13 and 14: xii 3 - The Friday the 13 th series
Page 15 and 16: xiv process which includes a craft
Page 17 and 18: xvi influence other film texts, but
Page 19 and 20: xviii not only address the film tex
Page 21 and 22: xx time between the latter films is
Page 23 and 24: xxii between people who then attemp
Page 25 and 26: xxiv The first device to be discuss
Page 27 and 28: xxvi shifts between characters with
Page 29 and 30: Introduction Part 2: The Historical
Page 31 and 32: xxx Massacre (1974; dir. Hooper) al
Page 33 and 34: xxxii the increased investments in
Page 35 and 36: xxxiv Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986; di
Page 37 and 38: xxxvi added novelty of displacing J
Page 39 and 40: xxxviii the Friday the 13 th franch
Page 41 and 42: xl points of contact with Jason Goe
Page 43 and 44: xlii vengeance. The sequel, release
Page 45 and 46: xliv Scream, which overtly addresse
Page 47 and 48: xlvi updated generic formula to it.
Page 49 and 50: xlviii (2009; dir. Zombie), and the
Page 51 and 52: l sequences of Saw, where Adam and
Page 53 and 54:
1 Chapter 1: Perspective Imagine th
Page 55 and 56:
3 of Eyes Wide Shut, it does not ad
Page 57 and 58:
5 The Hidden Fortress (1958; DVD re
Page 59 and 60:
7 dizziness, of madness, of suspens
Page 61 and 62:
9 the landscape becomes more colour
Page 63 and 64:
11 response from a spectator - fear
Page 65 and 66:
13 Haunted (2011), in which the nar
Page 67 and 68:
15 depending on who is experiencing
Page 69 and 70:
17 Driver, all of the graphic viole
Page 71 and 72:
19 films can be used. The Slumber P
Page 73 and 74:
21 sense of swift unexpected moveme
Page 75 and 76:
23 Chapter 2: The Eye/Camera Define
Page 77 and 78:
25 Overall, the eye/camera contains
Page 79 and 80:
27 As voyeurism is itself the pleas
Page 81 and 82:
29 task of exploring and revealing
Page 83 and 84:
31 through use of the eye/camera, w
Page 85 and 86:
33 satisfactorily address the aesth
Page 87 and 88:
35 negativity becomes more complica
Page 89 and 90:
37 ...this horror formula is best i
Page 91 and 92:
39 particularly concerning editing.
Page 93 and 94:
41 viewer into the first person, I
Page 95 and 96:
43 In films such as The Wolf Man (1
Page 97 and 98:
45 shot. This use of perspective is
Page 99 and 100:
47 stylistically straightforward ap
Page 101 and 102:
49 language) is inescapably literal
Page 103 and 104:
51 to give precise spatial relation
Page 105 and 106:
53 escape the threat. Occasionally
Page 107 and 108:
55 knife. We (the viewer/the child/
Page 109 and 110:
57 perspective established in the f
Page 111 and 112:
59 Aside from the case of A Nightma
Page 113 and 114:
61 giallo-influenced slasher films
Page 115 and 116:
63 the people watching the monitor
Page 117 and 118:
65 captured is that of a turtle kil
Page 119 and 120:
67 Kingdom, largely because of the
Page 121 and 122:
69 recognised as a risk-all masterp
Page 123 and 124:
71 being watched. The perpetrator-c
Page 125 and 126:
73 takes, and the large number of e
Page 127 and 128:
75 I loved the original Halloween.
Page 129 and 130:
77 eye/camera, to create a final su
Page 131 and 132:
79 Cunningham: “Working on a limi
Page 133 and 134:
81 directly involves the viewer wit
Page 135 and 136:
83 Direct Eye/Camera Although Cunni
Page 137 and 138:
85 Vice President of distribution a
Page 139 and 140:
87 the viewer and a mouse walking o
Page 141 and 142:
89 shot functions to clearly establ
Page 143 and 144:
91 As she does so, we see her eye/c
Page 145 and 146:
93 narrative structure of the film
Page 147 and 148:
95 driver’s seat. The spectator s
Page 149 and 150:
97 cognitive thought, and moves out
Page 151 and 152:
99 A shot is shown of Jason’s hoc
Page 153 and 154:
101 eye/camera shots and objective
Page 155 and 156:
103 death sequence in Friday the 13
Page 157 and 158:
105 frequency, it can be deduced th
Page 159 and 160:
107 shots, the viewer witnesses a s
Page 161 and 162:
109 camera. We then see through the
Page 163 and 164:
111 Developing Effects of the Eye/C
Page 165 and 166:
113 perspective experience, and ult
Page 167 and 168:
115 tendency of a previous group of
Page 169 and 170:
117 eye/camera, however, is only on
Page 171 and 172:
119 and pushed beyond the limits of
Page 173 and 174:
121 diegetic in nature, with an uns
Page 175 and 176:
123 demonstrate that not only does
Page 177 and 178:
125 clearly onto the perceptual scr
Page 179 and 180:
127 this use of sound design in a m
Page 181 and 182:
129 front of her body without touch
Page 183 and 184:
131 flows onto his throat and chest
Page 185 and 186:
133 downward grazing the hanging li
Page 187 and 188:
135 to Alice’s perspective during
Page 189 and 190:
137 The sounds indicating the stabb
Page 191 and 192:
139 Friday the 13 th Part 2 only co
Page 193 and 194:
141 one simple way to give an impre
Page 195 and 196:
143 explicitly showing it. The firs
Page 197 and 198:
145 moving from the left of the fra
Page 199 and 200:
147 Wade following him as he backs
Page 201 and 202:
149 for about four seconds, before
Page 203 and 204:
151 toward open windows and doors,
Page 205 and 206:
153 shard of broken mirror above hi
Page 207 and 208:
155 demonstrate an advance in depic
Page 209 and 210:
157 disappears below the frame, a j
Page 211 and 212:
159 accompanied by a swish sound of
Page 213 and 214:
161 Robin’s death sequence contai
Page 215 and 216:
163 While this chapter has placed f
Page 217 and 218:
165 sequences from the perspective
Page 219 and 220:
167 steeped within genre theory. Ho
Page 221 and 222:
169 ‘sequel’ - or, if you like,
Page 223 and 224:
171 Nerve was not just a prototype
Page 225 and 226:
173 some of the same characters (in
Page 227 and 228:
175 previously introduced to Alice
Page 229 and 230:
177 another, with a certain amount
Page 231 and 232:
179 narrative, although it is appar
Page 233 and 234:
181 returning the screen to black.
Page 235 and 236:
183 shooting new footage that can b
Page 237 and 238:
185 teenager in the area, and every
Page 239 and 240:
187 The only elements of the inform
Page 241 and 242:
189 After this, while a familiarity
Page 243 and 244:
191 inside the eye hole can be seen
Page 245 and 246:
193 attain a familiarity with the F
Page 247 and 248:
195 is a cut to the logo on the out
Page 249 and 250:
197 seeing Jason’s corpse will no
Page 251 and 252:
199 hacking at Jason with a machete
Page 253 and 254:
201 Despite the indication provided
Page 255 and 256:
203 The word ‘remake’ is, howev
Page 257 and 258:
205 share more in common with those
Page 259 and 260:
207 cinematic experiences. This ind
Page 261 and 262:
209 specific response in the viewer
Page 263 and 264:
211 Beginning also represent the po
Page 265 and 266:
213 Secondly, this tendency to resp
Page 267 and 268:
215 is a series of patterns, lines
Page 269 and 270:
217 book. Bordwell, however, takes
Page 271 and 272:
219 at least as important as style,
Page 273 and 274:
221 friction between Žižek and th
Page 275 and 276:
223 opposition to the method, writi
Page 277 and 278:
225 seventies films respond to the
Page 279 and 280:
227 In his book Authorship and the
Page 281 and 282:
229 implications for the way mainst
Page 283 and 284:
231 Appendix 1 Plot Summaries for t
Page 285 and 286:
233 what happens to Alice at the en
Page 287 and 288:
235 Friday the 13 th Part VII: The
Page 289 and 290:
237 Jason X (2001; dir. Isaac) Igno
Page 291 and 292:
239 was kidnapped and being kept pr
Page 293 and 294:
241 Marcie Cunningham: Girlfriend
Page 295 and 296:
243 Terry: Attractive and sporty f
Page 297 and 298:
245 Loco: Shorter male gang member
Page 299 and 300:
247 Terri: One of the two identica
Page 301 and 302:
249 Pam Roberts: The “Final Girl
Page 303 and 304:
251 Jason Lives! Friday the 13 th P
Page 305 and 306:
253 Friday the 13 th Part VII: The
Page 307 and 308:
255 Friday the 13 th Part VIII: Jas
Page 309 and 310:
257 Jason Goes to Hell: The Final F
Page 311 and 312:
259 danger, goes to great lengths t
Page 313 and 314:
261 He is potentially killed when h
Page 315 and 316:
263 Freddy vs. Jason Bill Freeburg
Page 317 and 318:
265 Friday the 13 th (2009) Amanda
Page 319 and 320:
267 Works Cited - Text and Online A
Page 321 and 322:
269 Booth, S. (1990) “The Functio
Page 323 and 324:
271 Bradley, D. (1996) Sacred Monst
Page 325 and 326:
273 Christie, I. (1994) Arrows of D
Page 327 and 328:
275 Dika, V. (1990) Games of Terror
Page 329 and 330:
277 Frampton, D. (2006) Filmosophy,
Page 331 and 332:
279 Harman, J. (1960) “Unhealthy
Page 333 and 334:
281 James, H. (1898) The Turn of th
Page 335 and 336:
283 Kolker, R. (2006) Film, Form an
Page 337 and 338:
285 McLarty, L. (1998) “‘I’ll
Page 339 and 340:
287 Neale, S. (2000) Genre and Holl
Page 341 and 342:
289 Prince, S. (ed.) (2004) The Hor
Page 343 and 344:
291 Schrader, P. (1979) “Paul Sch
Page 345 and 346:
293 Time Out London- Film Reviews-
Page 347 and 348:
295 Variety Staff (1980) “Friday
Page 349 and 350:
297 Wierzbicki, J. (2011) “Lost i
Page 351 and 352:
299 Žižek, S. (2013) “Zero Dark
Page 353 and 354:
301 Works Cited - Films Ali. Dir. M
Page 355 and 356:
303 Corporation / Davis Entertainme
Page 357 and 358:
305 Bride of Chucky. Dir. Ronny Yu,
Page 359 and 360:
307 Chinatown. Dir. Roman Polanski,
Page 361 and 362:
309 Deep Red (Profondo Rosso). Dir.
Page 363 and 364:
311 Evil Dead, The. Dir. Sam Raimi,
Page 365 and 366:
313 Cunningham Films / WTC Producti
Page 367 and 368:
315 Friday The 13 th Part VIII: Jas
Page 369 and 370:
317 Halloween H20: 20 Years Later.
Page 371 and 372:
319 Main Cast: Michael Rooker (Henr
Page 373 and 374:
321 House. Dir. Steve Miner, Prod.
Page 375 and 376:
323 Jason X. Dir. James Isaac, Prod
Page 377 and 378:
325 Man Who Knew Too Much, The. Dir
Page 379 and 380:
327 Langenkamp (Herself/Nancy Thomp
Page 381 and 382:
329 Notorious. Dir. Alfred Hitchcoc
Page 383 and 384:
331 Predator 2. Dir. Stephen Hopkin
Page 385 and 386:
333 / LivePlanet, 2001, USA. Main C
Page 387 and 388:
335 Scream 2. Dir. Wes Craven, Prod
Page 389 and 390:
337 Sunset Boulevard. Dir. Billy Wi
Page 391 and 392:
339 Pictures / Return Productions /
Page 393 and 394:
341 Stark/Trevor Stark), Hart Bochn
Page 395:
343 Consortium, 2001, UK / Canada.
show all

Clayton George Wickham - final thesis

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?