Ohne Titel

Introduction

• -State genre
• -State characteristic
• -Define characteristic
• -State what the essay will discuss and relate back to question

First two lines for Introduction

• The Disaster film genre reflects the fears of society which threaten the existence of humanity. These films have an impending or ongoing disaster which varies from contagious lethal viruses to the collision of comets from outer space and the outrageous climate change.

Characteristics

• - Distrust of Authority
• - Special Effects
• - Science and Technology

Distrust of Authority

• Definition:
• This is when people in society lose true in those in positions of power because of their lack of care for everyday civilians or because they are only looking out for themselves.
• Examples from films:
• 'Outbreak' - the fictional virus known as Motaba is kept as a biological weapon by the U.S Army.
• - the village where the virus was found was bombed only minutes after victims were promised salvation and help.
• -Virus spreads throughout Cedar Creek and army decide to bomb the town instead of continuing to search for a cure.
• 'Deep Impact' - government holds information about the comet from the public after a year of knowing.
• - government have a plan to send a team into space to try and detonate the bomb however some of those in power don't believe that they can do it.
• - the government can only save a million people in special caves

Effect and director's purpose

• -Highlights real world distrust e.g. police shootings which occur in America therefore having a greater impact on the audience's emotions e.g. frustrated and angry.
• -creates doubt and vulnerability in the minds of audiences. This increases the awareness that in a disaster, power or status may or may not get you saved.
• -Adds to the dramatic nature of disaster films meaning they can reach an epic scale. Epic films = blockbusters = box offices success.
• - we would like to see a positive outcome of people and a solution to the present problem. Feel secure.
• - humans enjoy seeing how we might react to the problems which occur (transgressive pleasure)
• -Distrust creates tension and conflict within the narrative - if those in power always did the right thing the disaster wouldn't escalate so severely and the film would have much less impact.
• - play with the audiences emotions as it makes them question real life and whether those in power should really be trusted.
• -reinforces society fears of those in authority and question if their aims are morally correct.
• -viewers may find identification with certain characters and therefore feel more empathetic and more engaged as they place themselves in that scenario. When the audience can identify themselves with the protagonist or any character they want to see them come out on top and gain viewing pleasure.
• -helps viewers to understand that it is every man for themselves and that it is survival of the fittest.

Implications

• - impacts the audience on a personal and cinematic level.
• - come to an understanding that it is everyman for themselves in these sort of events
• - creates doubt and vulnerability
• - under the circumstances power or status may or may not get you saved.
• - makes the audience question those in power
• - highlights real world distrust
• - character identification - gain viewing pleasure from seeing them come out on top = box office success
• - when people enjoy the film they may promote to others
• - people watch these films as a form of escapism or for transgressive pleasure
• -after viewing the monstrosities which occur viewers feel better about themselves as they recognise that their lives are not as bad as those in the film.
• - viewers walk out of the cinema feeling more confident and knowledgeable as they would know what to do in that scenario. Viewers feel better about themselves and find enjoyment.
• - adds to the dramatic nature of the disaster genre

Special Effects

• Definition: The development of CGI and special effects throughout the years has improved greatly and without these developments these films wouldn't be as convincing and plausible. The use of special effects and computer generated images has contributed to keeping the viewers engaged with the film which leads to having box office success.
• Examples:
• 'World War Z' - able to use CGI to create fast moving zombies which amaze and keep the viewers engaged.
• - use a relatively effective amount of both special and practical effects.
• - the plane scene where the main character jerry throws a grenade inside a plane full of zombie passengers is a practical effect with a touch of special effects. When the zombies were being sucked out of the plane this was also a practical effect with the green screen the only special effects added to this scene for the background and minor details like colour.
• 'The Day After Tomorrow' - the wave is coming through the city the girl is still able to retrieve the object from the car and beat the wave to safety.

Developments of Special Effects

• - World War Z differentiates from early 80s disaster films as it is based on a larger global scale.
• - Early 80s disaster films were based on small scaled disasters like a sinking ship.
• - with the development of CGI and special effects directors and producers are more flexible when creating disaster on a larger scale.

Box office earnings and Ratings

• - 'The Day after Tomorrow' - 544.3 million
• - 'World War Z' - 540 million
• - As the first of its kind 'The Day after Tomorrow' earns more money from viewers as they have potentially never seen this type of disaster take place.
• - The Day after Tomorrow has a 45% rating which reflects that the film itself wasn't that great.