Textual analysis

Textual analysis – Project Arbiter

The short film that I am analysing is called Project Arbiter, which is directed by Michael Chance. It is an action film which I found on YouTube. This film is typical of an action film in the way that the main character had to overcome a series of challenges and having to take on life threatening situations. It was made for fans of the action genre film and is targeted at not only these people but others who like watching films which are full of action and where the hero always has to overcome larger difficulties.

It is typical of the genre that you might commonly associate with a feature length film as it still follows many of the typical action film characteristics which a normal feature film would have just a bit more condensed with less characters and less time to include any narrative enigmas. However it still includes the whole main character struggling against overwhelming odds and just about coming out on top sort of thing that you come to expect from a normal action thriller film.

This short film is about a soldier who finds out about a deadly virus that the Nazis have created to try and win them the war. However this soldier then wears this mechanical suit which he has to use to stop the Nazis from spreading this virus. This film follows a linear narrative as it goes from the beginning to the middle and then the end with no flashbacks or a person narrating over the whole film. There is an initial equilibrium when the soldier and his colleague are in the plane discussing the objective of the mission. But then it’s time for the soldier to jump out of the plane and face the enemy and that’s when the action begins. There is also resolution with the main character knowing exactly what he has to achieve and is intent on completing his mission and destroying the Nazis plans of spreading this deadly virus.

The cameramen have used a variety of different in this short film with many point of view shots for the main character to show what he is seeing from inside his metal helmet. An extreme close up is also seen when the two Nazis are talking at the beginning of the film and shows just their eyes. They also use a shot reverse shot at the beginning when the main character and his colleague are talking on the plane. A long shot is used when you first see the Nazi villa so that the audience can see the location around it and where the first fighting scene is going to be held. When you first see the sickly woman in the Nazis villa there is also a medium close up so that you can see some of the effects of the virus while also seeing the woman’s face and how much she is struggling with the virus. In terms of editing the editor has used slow motion when the German tank fires at the soldier and narrowingly misses this was used to show the audience how close the shell was to hitting the soldier and adds suspense to the scene. They also use zoom when the Nazi officer is using binoculars and focusing in on the German division this allows the audience to get more of a feel of how far away the officer is. This film also uses plenty of quick fast cuts at times to make the film get more of a dramatic feeling by switching between the different characters in quick succession. However at times cuts are a bit slow allowing a flow of continuity to allow for easier following for the audience. This film uses both diagetic and non diagetic sound with diagetic sound for all the characters in this film when they are talking however non diagetic sound for all the music. The music in this film changes constantly with more dark and eerie music being used at the beginning with the two Nazis at the beginning talking about an evil scheme which is why the music sounds quite dark. You also notice how at one point there is now sound at all this is used for suspense at keeping the audience aware that something is about to happen. The costumes in this film all make sense with the Germans all wearing Nazi uniforms showing their allegiance to the Third Reich. With the American soldier wearing a big armoured suit which can turn invisible supposedly showing some sort of super soldier leading the mission. The villa that is also used is draped in Nazi flags and set in the middle of nowhere to keep the secret lab of the Nazis a secret.

The film seems to have decent CGI with the plane in the sky and the setting of the villa. This along with the matching Nazi uniforms and number of decent actors suggests that this film may have had a decent budget.

In conclusion this short film is a simple action thriller with many good shots which is set at the usual action thriller fans and anyone who wants a simple watch and watching the good guys always come out on top no matter the situation.