A Knight’s Tale
In the beginning of the first two minutes there is a blank screen and only the sound of non-diegetic medieval music playing, hinting that it is a period film around the middle ages. The music has an energetic and excitable feel to it, which tells us that it is going to be a film to do with action and it will be based around the period of the medieval times. There are also title slides to give the viewers information without the use of a voiceover or having to have it explained in the movie. The setting is a jousting arena with crowds cheering, horses and knights fighting; this shows us how dangerous the sport is and an idea that jousting has a significant role in the movie. The lighting of this setting is bright and colourful and this gives the impression that even though there is fighting it is a light-hearted film that is more aimed at having a comedic atmosphere rather than a serious one. The camera angle used in this scene is a mid-shot as you have a knight in the shot when he’s racing toward the other knight, yet you can also see the set around him so that you know where he is, this is useful as you then understand the film more and you are more able to imagine what it was like in those days
When the second screen of information fades away, there is a close up of a man in armour. As this follows straight after the jousting match we have just witnessed, it give us the impression that it is the same man that we have just seen fall. After that it cuts into a close up of a man in rags, this suggests he is a main character and that we need to remember his face. The rags that he wears give us information that he is of a low class and is very low in money; this is a big contrast to the last scene with all the men in knight armour, suggesting that they are rich and of a much higher status than the man in rags. The actor that plays the man in rags has a strong body and long hair, the long hair gives us a feel of a more primitive person that doesn’t have the equipment to cut his hair, and his masculine body shows us that he is strong and physically capable of doing hard tasks that require strength, like jousting for example. The only sound in this shot is the background sounds of trees rustling and bird song, this tell us that he is outside and there is nothing else going on around him that is of importance. Soon after this another man comes on and so the close up turns into a two shot. That other person has some little bits of cloth stuck up his nose this is a way of telling the viewers that the place where that are at has a potent smell and the cloth acts as a nose plug, this also shows that in those days they are very much less equipped compared to our day and age as they do not have proper thing to mask the smell.
It then goes into a group shot, with the two men, the knight and the knight’s horse; this gives us an idea of all the characters and the relationship between them. It is also an establishing shot as we can see the trees and foliage behind them, showing us that they are away from the town and alone outside.
The men in old rags are supposedly peasants and to play that part they had to change their accents to make their role more believable to the viewers. The accents are not what you would expect of a person of a high status as they spoke in quite a sluggish manner whereas you would be expect a rich person to be speaking in a way that enunciates.
The opening is of the title of the company that had made it. The colours are bright and attractive so that people will notice it.
This film narrates the opening scene with the use of added information on that screen, the screen is required to stay up there for a few seconds so that everyone has time to read them and get a better idea of what is happening in the film. These slides were used in-between the shots, this made the transition of the these shots a lot smoother, especially as they faded in and out.
This is a two shot of the knights having a jousting match, they are both at the edges of the camera, this makes it look like that have distance between them and that they do not have an amicable relationship between the two of them. It is an establishing shot as well, the crowds in the background and the dust coming from the ground help set the scene of an intense middle ages battle. At this moment in time the non-diegetic music it really intense to keep the people interested and so they know it is a dramatic part of the movie. The diegetic sound is of the crowd cheering and shouting, this is to help set the scene more.
Then as the music stops the scene changes to a close up of the man in armour, we can tell this is the same man in armour as his jousting stick is in the background, however as it is in a shallow focus our eyes are more drawn to him.
This two shot suggest a close relationship between the two people as they are close together in the shot. The angle is lower than the two men, making this a low angle shot, this gives the feeling that they are looking down on something and it also makes them seem bigger than they actually are.
As there are three people in this shot, it becomes a three shot, even though you can only see a bit of the man in armour. It also has the rule of thirds going on, it has been split up into three sections; the man with blond hair, the man beginning to crouch down with the knight and the horse on the right. It is also an establishing shot as you are able to see the field in the near distance.
This shot is a POV shot of the man with blond hair, looking down on the other man, this shows that he is a main character and we should try to relate to him more and see though his eyes.
This has got me thinking about whether we need title slides or could use them to establishkey facts to the audience. We don't need them as detailed as this, but maybe giving a date and time or a location, almost with a spy genre feel, as this gives the impression that time is important and there is a need for secrecy.
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