Film/Book Analysis – Page 5

Jack Lemmon was one of the finest actors of his generation, one who got better and better with age. Here, he stands next to his old colleague, Walter Matthau, in the 1968 film, Odd Couple, directed by Gene Saks.

Today it’s common for animators to do a lot of video reference, in particular, the recording of their own, often ham, performances. Video capture is great, but if that is gonna to be a large part of your repertoire as a professional, then you better take some acting classes. But it takes years to learn to be a good actor (assuming you even have the aptitude for it in the first place), and many more months to “create” each individual character. Animators seldom get the kind of ramp up time to understand the history and nuances that define their characters, since they often have to ‘play’ so many different ones in any given production. Another, additional, and perhaps more accessible option, is to study the acting of real live actors, both on stage and in film. It’s a marvelously efficient and effective way of studying the trade, especially when it comes to formulating a “visual” performance — one in which we, as animation artists, build and construct as an optical and emotional illusion.

Jack Lemmon is one of those actors well worth studying. In almost any role he plays, he just grabs the screen with his marvelous physical mannerisms, humble charisma and deep vulnerability. He was always believable whether in comedic or dramatic roles. I don’t ever recall him giving a poor performance.

Jack Lemmon seen here in The China Syndrome, directed by James Bridges and co-starring Jane Fonda and Michael Douglas. This sharp thriller, about a safety cover-up at a nuclear power plant, is filled with rich and engaging performances, including that by Lemmon who would go on to the win the 1979 Cannes Best Actor award for his performance.

“I won’t quit until I get run over by a truck, a producer or a critic.” – Jack Lemmon

The hard-working and long-time actor was also the first of his guild to win both the Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor at the Academy Awards, long before the likes of other great actors (such as Robert DeNiro, Gene Hackman, Meryl Streep and Kate Winslet) would do the same. He re-played Henry Fonda’s role in the TV remake of 12 Angry Men to absolute perfection and even lent his voice in a small cameo on The Simpsons.

Jack Lemmon plays Frank Armand from Fox’s hit TV series, The Simpsons, in the episode, The Twisted World of Marge Simpson.

Acclaimed for his many different roles throughout his long career, Lemmon is often cited for his majestic turn for comedy in films like Some Like It Hot, and much later Grumpy Old Men, where he starred again next to Walter Matthau, his co-star from the Odd Couple.

https://youtu.be/eT3OLoQcu5A

Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis pretend to be women in order make a run from the mob in Billy Wilder’s Some Like it Hot, co-starring Marilyn Monroe.

My own favorite moments of his come from the film, The Apartment, where he shared the screen opposite a very young and lovely Shirley MacLaine. Here, he plays C.C. Baxter, a character so wonderfully naive, but at the same time so completely likable and relatable. In many ways he reminds me of the modern day Tom Hanks — another actor whom you can’t help but root for. Both of these artists are so likable that you forget they are also masters of their craft.

https://youtu.be/paYdOu-mmbg

Jack Lemmon plays the affable C.C. Baxter, from Billy Wilder’s 1960 classic, The Apartment. Watch how Lemmon beautifully constructs the naivety of his character through action and non-action, as he works to impress Shirley MacLaine, who’s in an opposite state of mind.

Great actors use their voices, faces and physical expressions in ways that give pure authenticity to the roles they’re playing. Lemmon, was a master at using all his gifts. There’s beautiful rhythm in how he moves his characters both physically and emotionally — gliding effortlessly from one action and emotion to the next, like music from Miles Davis. Every bodily gesture and every nuance in his face helps to build the scenes and characters he plays. The formulation and timing of his art, couldn’t be better.

https://youtu.be/4WVNrUUWhPY

Jack Lemmon (seen here with Kevin Spacey) plays Shelly Levene in James Foley’s adaptation of David Mamet’s Pulitzer Prize winning play, Glengarry Glen Ross. Despite the cold cut nature of the characters and the industry on display, Lemmon’s performance pulls you in with deep empathy in perfect portrayal of a man motivated by desperation.

So, if you’ve got a nice free evening, or a lazy afternoon that beckons you to lay prone on the couch, pull up an old Jack Lemmon movie (he made over sixty of them). Witness a master at the craft of acting, and have a good time doing it.

“If you really do want to be an actor who can satisfy himself and his audience, you need to be vulnerable. You must reach the emotional and intellectual level of ability where you can go out stark naked, emotionally, in front of an audience.” — Jack Lemmon

Dreamworks Pictures’ 1998 classical animation debut, Prince of Egypt, was one of the first to feature near epic scale and grandeur in animated pictures.

We continue our discussion of Joseph Mascelli’s Five C’s of Cinematography, completing the series with our focus on composition. (To begin at the start of the series with Part 1, visit here).

5. COMPOSITION

A movie loaded with gorgeous cinematic images, David Lean’s Lawrence of Arabia is the high water mark of great film photography.

Composition in film is highly under appreciated. Due to its fixed proportions (which has changed from the traditional 4:3 framing prior to the 1980’s to the now extreme wide framing of 2.85:1), film composition, relative to the other arts always seemed limited. However, I believe it’s because of its limited horizontal frame, that we see some of the most creative and breathtaking compositions in film.

The advantage of motion and the compounding impact of successive images, film composition can inform, calm, excite and even frighten the viewer.

Mia Farrow in a harrowing moment in Roman Polanski’s Rosemary’s baby, a film with a host of sensational camera compositions that help make this film highly suspenseful.

Understanding composition means understanding what Mascelli’s calls compositional language – lines, forms, masses and movements.

Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece, North By Northwest. The marvelous use of line and depth create distant space and carries the eye deep into the picture.

He also goes on to discuss the importance of balance and gravity in composition.

Another image from North By Northwest depicting mass and gravity. The base of the massive heads and the placement of the main characters, give weight and meaning to the environment and the story.

A formally balanced picture suggests peace, quiet and equality, while an informal one features asymmetry, weighting and dominance in one area of the screen. Informal balance can create great interest and dynamism as seen in many outer-space science fiction epics.

This shot from the climatic battle in George Lucas’ Return of the Jedi, shows not only excellent use of off-kilter balance, but also line, form, mass and movement to create tension and dynamic action.

The use of gravity also influences balance. Animators would do well to heed these words:

“Human senses rebel at compositions that defy the laws of gravity.

In the remainder of the chapter, he goes on to discuss the integration of camera angles, image size, perspective and image placement all of which help the artist to get the most effective results.

Here, the master of the spaghetti western, Sergio Leone, employs physical elements (such as the collar, hat and hands) to triangulate your attention into the eyes and soul of Charles Bronson’s character in the 1968 film, Once Upon A Time In The West.

He concludes the chapter on composition and the book saying:

“… the viewer must be affected both pictorially and psychologically, to convey the script’s intent to arouse his emotions. Never allow more than one center of interest on the screen at one time unless a disturbed or scattered effect is desired.

Consider the viewer’s eye scan from shot to shot. Work for visual variety, by changing compositional elements often. Eliminate grills, gimmicks and complex arrangements. Make ‘keep it simple’ the working slogan for interesting compositions.”

A shot from Akira Kurasawa’s 1961 comedy-action samurai flick, Yojimbo. The sideways cross composition makes for a very interesting and gorgeously powerful image.

This concludes our series on the Five C’s of Cinematography. This is the landmark book on camera work and any artist, both novice and professional, would do well to read or re-read it.

Follow up on another great book on cinematography, John Alton’s Painting with Light.