Film Art Event: "The King's Speech"

Describe and interpret the Establishing Shot of the film you viewed at the Nickelodeon. How did this set the stage for your experience with the film?


The film's opening establishing shot was of a microphone at all different angles, and then it switch to many people preparing for what I thought out to be the speech broadcast.  The film then switched to the main character himself and showed him looking nervously at his speech while his wife comforted him.  The establishing shot then ended with the main character being prompted that it was time.  From this establishing shot, I perceived that the main character was preparing for a major speech and that it seemed as though he had never given one before.  The preparations being made by the other actors were all for the one speech that the main character was about to give.  As soon as one of the characters said that it was time, I knew that the main character was not ready to handle public speaking and that that the speech may not turn out well.  The establishing shot introduced us to the main character, "King George" A.K.A "Bertie", and his wife, "Elizabeth".  It also introduced us to some of the King's mentors that guide him through out the speech process. 


Describe any interesting camera angles that were seen in the film.


Throughout the film I noticed that when switching the scenes the camera would create another establishing shot by giving the audience a zoomed out view of the scene's stage and then zooming in on the characters so that it gives the audience a feel for where the scene is taking place.  They did this type of camera angle a lot, especially when Bertie and Lionel were practicing in the church, the camera zoomed out and gave the audience a view of the beautiful church and its art and then zoomed in on Bertie and Lionel's conversation.  The director seemed to start out new scenes with a shot of something artsy and interesting for the audience's eyes.


Describe and interpret the story line of the film. What scenes moved you, drew you in, made you feel uncomfortable, etc? Did you view any Mise-en-Scene or staging in the film?


"The King's Speech" is about the Duke of York, "Bertie", being the son of King George and how he developed a speech impediment from the events of his early life.  He now faces the hardship of giving live speeches to his country while trying to overcome his speech impediment.  His stutter causes him a great deal of stress and his wife, Elizabeth, hires many doctors to help him.  None of the doctors that Elizabeth hire work and as Bertie was about to give up, Elizabeth saw an ad in the newspaper about Lionel Logue, a speech therapist.  During Bertie's first session with Logue, it did not feel like the usual speech therapy session, Logue did the best that he could to make Bertie feel comfortable and used a different technique than what the previous doctor that we saw use before.  I knew from this scene that Bertie would develop a different kind of trust for Logue.  The scenes that made me feel uncomfortable were the scenes when Bertie had to give his speeches, it made me feel embarrassed for him and was hard to watch.  Another scene that made me feel uncomfortable was when Bertie's older brother turned on him and started to make him feel worthless and Bertie could not fight back and it made me feel sad for him.  The scene that drew me into the movie was when the movie flashed through Logue's and Bertie's therapy sessions and we got to see Bertie's progress being made. My favorite scene of the movie was when Bertie finally delivered a speech with out stuttering.  I could feel a sense of accomplishment for Bertie as well as the friendship aspect of Logue's and Bertie's relationship.


Analyze the roles of the actors. Were they convincing in their depiction of the character they played? Why or why not?


I thought that every actor in the movie hit their role perfectly, especially Bertie played by Colin Firth.  Firth did a great job in targeting Bertie's lack of confidence and played a character with a speech impediment very well.  Lionel Logue was played by Geoffrey Rush and Rush did a great job as a supporting actor.  He had a great serious side mixed in with a sense of humor.  He threw in funny jokes while keeping a straight face, he did a great job of taking a serious situation and turning it into a friendly comical one.  Bertie's wife was played by Helena Bonham Carter.  Carter played a great supporting wife to Bertie and she acted with a lot of passion and did a great job at playing a queen.  She played a nice soft side around her husband and then when she was around other people she used the perfect manners of how a queen should act.


How did the music orsoundtrack of the film influence your interpretation and experience of the film?


The music during this film had a very classical theme.  You could always hear an orchestra playing in the background which gave me the feeling of old times as well as set the stage for the specific time period that this movie takes place.  During an intense moment in the film, the orchestra would speed up their play and when their was a sad part of the movie the orchestra music seemed more mellow.  During the exciting parts of the movie the music was more upbeat and the orchestra used the high pitched instruments.


Describe the genre of the film.


The genre of "The King's Speech" is a historical drama. The events during this time period were depicted accurately and the stage that the movie was played on made the audience feel like they were actually in the old times. 


Describe, analyze and interpret the context of the film. What message or meaning did you derive from the film?


This film presents a historical yet inspirational context about the King of England overcoming his speech impediment and coming out with a remarkable speech that was beautifully presented to his country about going into World War II.  This movie also presents how important it is to maintain a friendship.  Bertie's speech therapist not only help him overcome his stutter but also became his best friend too.  Logue helped Bertie out in a way only friends can do.

Assignment #5 Music

1. Describe Jazz music. Where did it come from, and what makes it particularly unique to Americans?
Jazz music was first widely seen in New Orleans but was also seen in other parts of America like St. Louis, Kansas City, and Chicago.  Jazz music is a combination of backgrounds from all races, mostly from American black folk music mixed with European instruments. Jazz is unique because it is a form of music that is based off of improve and a major theme of jazz is individualism.  Jazz artists start out their music with "I have something to say.." and then from there they play music that shows their individual personality and soul.

2. In Peter and the Wolf, what instruments play Peter, the duck, the wolf, the bird, Grandfather and the Hunters?

Peter: The strings instruments; Violin, Viola, Cello, Bass
The Duck: Oboe
The Wolf: French Horn
The Bird: Flute
Grandfather: Bassoon
The Hunters: Timpani

3. Discuss Classical music. Who are some of the composers that are considered classical musicians?
When I think of classical music, I think of my high school's orchestra, elementary music class, and the opera.  I think listening to classical music is a great way to relax while I am trying to study.  It is not distracting like other types of music but soothing and helps me concentrate.  I never listen to classical music by choice for fun, only sometimes when I am studying.  Classical music is simple and is well harmonized and started in the 19th century.  The instrument that compose classical music are ones in an orchestra, the strings instruments.  Classical musician writers are known as composers. Mozart, Bach, and Beethoven are considered some of the greatest classical composers of all time and made the classical era a golden age.  Beethoven is a particularly great composer, he composed nine symphonies and the one I can always remember is Beethoven's fifth symphony, which is considered his "greatest" symphony.

Assignment #4 Architecture

The Strom Fitness Center
One of my favorite pieces of architecture on the USC campus is the Strom Fitness Center.  I feel like there are a bunch of different themes that go into the design of this building, and it presents an aesthetic feeling to people that work out at the Strom as well as to the people that commute around it. The dome at the top of the building is what sticks out the most to one's eye.  The mix of rounded edges and square edges gives the building an international architectural style. The dome shape comes from the paleolithic constructions where the ceiling forms a semi-spherical shape. Another point to look at is the large white columns that surround the front of the building which give off the Greek revival architectural style.  The combination of the white trim and columns with the yellow exterior gives the building more of a peaceful Zen look. Another major architectural part to this building is the long curved walkway that connects the parking lot to the building.  This walkway gives the building a more modern theme.  I especially like to walk across this bridge at sunset because it has the best view.

Assignment #3 Aesthetics and Movies

1. Aesthetic Experience

Every morning I walk down my apartment stairs and walk through the two great big doors of Olympia Mills.  As I take my first steps outside I always get a refreshing feel of a new start.  I wake up for classes before most of the student population at 8 am and it is always so calm outside like an ocean without waves. I never know what the weather is going to be like. Some days I go outside and the sun's rays beam down onto my head and make me feel warm and makes my body feel like the energizer bunny. Other days I walk outside and it's raining and the rain makes me feel like the earth is getting as clean as a whistle while I'm getting soaked running to my car.  These are the days that feel long, lazy, and relaxing. When its cold outside I walk out and my nose turns as red as Rudolph the reindeer's nose and I get the chills all the way down my body.  Making those first few steps out the door in the morning is the start to my day, a new day. Every morning is different, and the feeling of having the whole day ahead of me is exhilarating.

Cold Morning

Warm Morning

Rainy Morning

2. Pavarotti's "Nessum Dorma"

At the beginning of the song the singer sounded like he was making a reflection of what was going on almost as if he were telling a story, he sang like he was very relaxed which made me feel relaxed and I started drawing a yellow background because yellow is mellow.  The singer then sang like he was on a mission and he became more upbeat and which made me draw a shooting star because I felt like he was trying to make a point of accomplishment.  Then as the song progressed you could tell that the singer's emotions were growing stronger and stronger almost sounded like he had a feeling of anger. It made me think about fire and I used orange to depict the color of fire.  The song gave the sense like the singer needed something and was not going to stop until he got it.

3. The Establishing Shot

The establishing shot gives the movie viewer the main storyline and provides some background of the movie's location, characters, and the atmosphere. The establishing shot gives the viewers a visual on what they should look forward to and movie directors often use this to show a change in location. Movie directors will zoom in on one point that shows the location and then zoom out and show what the characters are doing.  An establishing shot can also show a theme to the movie by using a concept, like opening up with someone cooking in a restaurant kitchen can lead the reader to assume that the storyline of the movie revolves around cooking. It is important for the movie directors to provide an establishing shot because it helps the viewers determine which movie sequence belongs to which location and it helps to clarify what is going on and the overall theme of the movie.