The Theory of Films

Directors are very important as they oversee the film-making process and they make all of the final decisions as to how things should be done, and how their film should be presented. Some directors like to put their own personal stamp onto the films that they make, such as using similar colours or the same actors in many of their works. This is known as the auteur theory.

Alfred Hitchcock is known for his auteur style that involves using camera angles to replicate a person's gaze. In subsequence, the audience become watchers. Additionally in some of his films, such as Rear Window, Rope and Lifeboat, the action is restricted to a single setting to create tension. This limits characters escape routes and it means that all of the drama occurs within a smaller space. Hitchcock films have also been known to take regular people into risky, unusual scenarios. For example, in Psycho, an average woman gets stabbed to death in the shower of the motel in which she seeks refuge while driving to California after stealing money from her job in order to be able to afford to marry her boyfriend. Another of his films that does this is North By Northwest, which features a regular man being abducted in a hotel bar after falling prey to a case of mistaken identity. He gets framed for a murder that he didn't commit when he catches a body falling towards him after the victim was stabbed in the back, Hitchcock's leading male grabs and removes the knife from the corpse and the case of mistaken identity commences. The majority of his films feature a blonde leading female too, it was said that Hitchcock found blondes to be more attractive, and felt that his audience would feel the same way. By having actresses that are deemed attractive the director would hope that a larger male audience would be drawn into the film, subsequently making it more successful. The director also makes split-second appearances in all of his works. These cameo appearances appeal to fans of his work, the audience enjoy trying to spot Hitchcock's moments on screen, and they may be more inclined to watch his films more than once in order to try and locate him. It also shows how successful Hitchcock was as a director, that he felt able to make such cameo appearances in his own films. Another one of Hitchcock's signature marks is the use of darkness to foreshadow danger. He does this through the use of dark clothing, shadows and smoke. Over time, the audience will begin to associate these things with doom, though it's uncertain as to when a dramatic and potentially life-threatening scene will occur. This keeps the audience in a state of paranoia, as well as building up tension and suspense. While Hitchcock didn't use the same actors as frequently as other auteur directors might, Grace Kelly did feature in three of his works with significant roles: Rear Window (portraying the protagonist's girlfriend, Lisa Fremont), Dial M for Murder (playing the role of Margot Mary Wendice, wife of the lead protagonist), and in To Catch A Thief (as Frances Stevens, daughter of a wealthy widow). Hitchcock uses colour in his films to represent emotions and hint at deeper meanings. This is particularly apparent in his 1958 psychological thriller, Vertigo. The lead protagonist, Scottie, is a retired police detective who left the force following the death of a fellow policeman during a rooftop chase, caused by his fear of heights. The scene following his death is tinted gloomy blue, connoting a deep-felt sadness. The protagonist feels guilty as the policeman that died did so in an attempt to save Scottie, who was hanging from the building. As the plot progresses the colour red is constantly surrounding him, from the chairs he sits in to what he wears and where he goes. Red is an attention catching colour that can be used to represent intense emotions. It can often represent danger and power, which is a fascinating choice for a man who becomes clinically depressed. His ex-fiancée and friend, Midge Wood, is surrounded by the colour yellow. Every item of furniture that she touches or moves is yellow, and she even has the walls of her home painted in that hue. Yellow is most commonly associated with happiness and optimism, suggesting that this character is a source of positivity for the protagonist. His college acquaintance's wife, Madeleine, whom Scottie is hired to follow and watch due to her husband's fear that she's in danger, is associated with the colour green. Green is very often used to represent both growth and healing, which is somewhat ironic given that the character does the complete opposite of this. Haunted by her great grandmother who committed suicide, Madeleine dresses like her and, eventually, takes her own life. When Scottie first starts to follow her, she can be seen in a restaurant. She stands out from everyone else there, however, due to her green dress. The red walls of the restaurant create a strong contrast to her green dress when the audience gets to see a close up of her, and the fact that she is shown to send out so strongly foreshadows that the leading protagonist will become fixated on her. As the story progresses, Scottie falls in love with Madeleine. This character is also seen driving a green car and surrounded by green-tinted sunlight. By having significant characters associated with colour, it makes them easier to pick out and creates an association throughout the duration of the film. Because of this, it can also be made apparent when other characters are being thought about, even if they aren't in the scene, due to the use of coloured props. In a scene where Scottie saves Madeleine after she attempts suicide, supposedly possessed by her great grandmother who died of suicide, the red Golden Gate Bridge is clear in the shot, and the water of the bay is tinged green. Hitchcock's use of colour is apparent through the entirety of the film, and I as a viewer find that it's both interesting and effective in drawing the viewers in. The fact that the iconic red bridge - a landmark in California - is shown is ironic seeing as the lead character has a crippling fear of heights, and the fact that the water is green is clever as Madeleine wants to submerge herself in the colour she's associated with in order to drown.

Another famous auteur director is Quentin Tarantino, who created the well-known American martial arts film Kill Bill. His trademark style is using non-linear storylines, satire and violence that's made to look artistic. Kill Bill is a story of revenge, following the narrative of The Bride, who is a former assassin for the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad. By making the leading female character a quintessential badass, a great sense of female empowerment is created, which the director would hope would draw in a larger female audience. Throughout the film, we see The Bride - also known as Black Mamba - tackling tasks, such as teaching herself how to walk again after being comatose for four years after her old assassination squad attempted to murder her whilst she was pregnant with her unborn child. Another of Tarantino's films to feature a non-linear storyline is Reservoir Dogs. It follows the plot of a jewellery store heist that goes horribly wrong, and it shows what happened before and after the failed crime. It also features violence, which is one of Tarantino's key themes for his works, and despite the controversy this caused it was still named the "Greatest Independent Film of all Time" by Empire - the popular monthly film magazine. This auteur director also created the popular crime film Pulp Fiction, which also runs out of chronological order - subsequently following Tarantino's signature style. It combines humour with violence, and was nominated for seven Academy Awards (Oscars). Featuring three main stories that are related to each other despite following the narrative of three different characters, this film fits in well with the director's auteur style. In this film, we see actors who have also featured in some of his other works. For example, Uma Thurman plays the role of Mia Wallace, wife of Marsellus Wallace - a violent crime boss who has employed two of the other leading characters. She also plays the leading female role in Kill Bill, The Bride, and is sometimes referred to as Tarantino's muse. In Kill Bill, the colour yellow features frequently. The Bride wears a yellow outfit when she goes to duel with O-Ren and her associates in a restaurant in Tokyo. The film's promotional poster is mainly coloured in yellow as well. This colour is usually used to connote happiness and youth, thus becoming a strong contrast to the content of the film. However, it can also hint at madness, and in nature it can indicate that something may be poisonous. Personally, I feel as though the colour red, or perhaps even grey, would have been a better option in order to fit in with the content a little better. Red commonly connotes danger and anger - a perfect choice seeing as the leading character is angry and seeking revenge for her own attempted murder and alleged loss of her unborn baby - and grey is a symbol of detachment and a lack of emotion. Grey would be an interesting choice as The Bride seems to be detached from her morals, killing any opponent who stands in her way in the name of revenge, though when her motives are considered it is possible to see how this former assassin justifies her own violent actions. The fact that grey can be used as a way to display a lack of emotion would be captivating to a visual audience considering that the character is one who is emotionally driven.

When comparing the work of these two auteur directors, it is possible to pick out the key differences in their styles. For example, Alfred Hitchcock's films run in a linear format and information is gained in real time, whereas Quentin Tarantino uses non-linear storylines in which details are discovered via flashbacks and different points of view. Sometimes having a film filled with flashbacks can be confusing to the audience as there is more content to follow, but it is also a good way of explaining - visually - why a character acts the way that they do and how they became entangled in their current position. On the other hand, having a linear structure to the storyline can build up suspense as the audience is learning what is going on at the same time as the protagonist. This can evoke a sense of helplessness as there is nothing that can be done but to sit and watch the action unfold. This is a psychological technique that helps to give Hitchcock's films a certain edge. The success of an auteur director can be measured by how easily recognisable their work is, and I feel as though both of the directors have formed well-established styles that set them apart from other directors in the industry. The auteur theory is interesting in the sense that it allows directors to take a slightly more artistic, deliberate approach to the way that they create their films. This means that their work can include more symbolism than films that don't have auteur directors, and sometimes more work is put into the mise-en-scene in order to properly promote the director's individual style. It's unusual for the director to be what causes people to want to see a film in this competitive industry. However, that is often the case when the auteur style is used. Usually the cast are the main factor in drawing in an audience, or even the use of advertisement across a variety of media platforms, so I feel as though the auteur theory is all the more unique as a result of this.