Film Language; North by North West
Analysing the Trailer
Why will this appeal to
the audience?
The trailer of ‘North by
North West’ appeals to the audience by its exciting snack peaks of the movie.
It gives away only the synopsis of what the whole story tells. The trailer
tells us about how the characters meet but doesn’t explain to the audience the
details to the point where the trailer would become a spoiler. The trailer also
gives us credits for the actors and the man himself Alfred Hitchcock. The
public at the time would have known of the movie and the director’s name would
have interested the viewer. The fast moving pace of the trailer would keep the
viewer watching because people at the time had never seen a film like this be a
big hit. The brief overview that is given is enough to persuade the view to see
the film. To conclude the trailer, a small preview of Eva Marie Saint on Mount
Rushmore hanging by her hands, this leaves a ‘cliff-hanger’ on the end of the
trailer.
• “Thrillers are characterized by fast pacing, frequent
action,”
Find examples of this in ‘North by North West’
Most thrillers in the modern
day are put into a category that they should have a fast pacing, action filled
movie. However, ‘North by North West’ at the time, was said to be this ‘fast
pacing’ thriller that everyone wanted to see. We can see examples of this in
the film. Scenes such as the crop dusting scene; where there is next to no sound
of any kind but the crop duster in the sky. Yet, this scene is famous for the
fact that a build up is made for the audience to react to even when there is no
music to push this atmosphere.
Another scene that has ‘frequent
action’ is the end scene at Mount Rushmore where the two main actors are set in
a ‘cliff-hanger’ for a lengthy period of time. This gives the audience and ‘on
the edge of your seat’ experience. This is because when one character is being
attacked, there is a tense atmosphere. They would then defeat the ‘villain’ and
this would give relief to the audience but is quickly built up when the other characters
are seen to be in a different fight. The ‘fast pacing action’ is very much
present in this last, but vital scene.
• “Resourceful heroes who must thwart the plans of more
powerful and better equipped villains.”Is
this true of ‘North by North West’?
Yes,
this is shown in the scene where Eva Marie Saint shoots Cary Grant at Mount
Rushmore. The audience are fooled by the ‘stunt killing’ and believe that this naive
but secretive character had actually shot the main character. We quickly find
out that the gun was not real and we somehow feel more into the movie knowing
things that the actors don’t. This is called dramatic irony.
Find
examples of this in ‘North by North West’
In
‘North by North West’ we see a lot of suspense and cliff-hangers as these are
all essentials’ in a thriller movie. However, in some scenes we see more of
this used than in others. I previously spoke about the Mount Rushmore ‘cliff-hanger’
scene which could be used as an example, but another scene is called ‘The
Auction’. In this scene we see Cary Grant going after Eva Marie Saint as she
leaves subtle clues about where she is and where she is going. The scene starts
with James Mason, playing another main character, holding Eva’s neck from
behind at a medium shot. This camera angle could mean that the actress is in
many different situations that the audience couldn’t guess correctly from the
information given by the angle. As the camera moves out we see that he is not
putting her in any stress but is simply resting on her, this may bring suspense
to the audience.
Mid-way
through the scene, Cary Grant makes a huge fight scene in the middle of the
auction room to gain attention of the others around him. This is also dramatic
irony but is also could be a red herring to the audience as they are unsure
about why he is making such a scene.
The
Crop Duster Scene
During
the ‘Crop Duster’ scene, Cary Grant is meant to meet another of the main characters
and ends up getting chased by a crop duster which is trying to kill him. Hitchcock
believed the stress on the visual makes cinema accessible in different
languages, so this scene had no sound. The idea that Hitchcock had of the movie
being able to be understood in any language had a lot to do with the way he
used sound and dialogue. Hitchcock
wanted the audience to really connect with the movie and feel the same as the character
did at the very moment that they saw their reactions. This scene is a famous
one of all thrillers, but it is iconic as an action scene because it has non-stop
movement. The camera angles constantly change and this gives a last effect of
movement on the audience.
• “A thriller is a villain driven plot, whereby he
presents obstacles the hero must overcome.”
Is
this true of ‘North by North West’?
Yes,
this is because in the film the villains plot was to obtain the films that had
been made so precious. This system of portraying a driven villain followed by a
determine hero is by using a MacGuffin. A MacGuffin is something in the film
that the audience cares about and the audience does not. In ‘North by North
West’ , the MacGuffin would be the film
in the cameras that are kept so precious. This is because the villains are so
mind set on keeping them safe when the audience doesn’t care about them at all.
The MacGuffin has no interest to the audience but gives the hero / villain more
to care about in the movie. The MacGuffin is that
the major players in the story are (at least initially) willing to do and
sacrifice almost anything to obtain it, regardless of what the MacGuffin
actually is. It also helps with the storyline, common examples of this are
power, money, survival, relevant possessions or victory.
• Hitchcock said thrillers allow the audience, "to
put their toe in the cold water of fear to see what it's like”
Has
he succeeded in this film? Where? When?
Yes, Hitchcock has succeeded as his film allows
everyone to interact with the film. His use of sound and the idea that he has
of the film being able to be understood in any language helps the film succeed.
Hitchcock allows the film to really connect with its audience through the use
of the plot, hidden secrets and, quite literally, the cliff-hanger ending.
