Similar Products- Misery Characters

Paul Sheldon

Paul is a writer, this being revealed to the audience early on in the narrative. This gives the audience an immediate picture of the type of man he is likely to be- most likely intelligent and well read, perhaps complex and interesting. He is successful- this is shown through Annie’s deifying of him, and we learn that his success is due to a novel series based on the character ‘Misery Chastain’. However, he is not a particularly arrogant or self-concerned man, which invites the audience to like and sympathise with him. Furthermore, we learn that he has finished a manuscript for a new novel, moving away from the Misery Chastain serial. This would suggest to the audience that he is looking for a change in his life, which adds to his frustration of being trapped and disabled. He is also obviously passionate and cares for his art, shown through the manuscript burning scene.

In appearance, he is middle aged, average build with short brown/grey hair. He is relatively well turned out, wearing clothes to suggest he has some wealth. However he wears a patients robe throughout the majority of his screen time, adding to the sense of humiliation, hopelessness and loss of identity he suffers whilst under Annie’s ‘care’. He is obviously ageing which may account for his desire to change direction in his writing.

In terms of his intrinsic ideas, values, morals and ethics, he is obviously not a bad man, and is presented as the protagonist, whereas Annie seems intrinsically bad, and is the clear antagonist. However, he is pushed to murder, resulting in Annie’s death in the climactic penultimate scene. Furthermore, this is not an accidental death, nor a reaction to an immediate threat- it may have been self-defence- he had been disabled by Annie, falsely imprisoned, and was in fear of torture and death, but he calculated her murder and tried several times to kill her before he managed it. This brings his morals into question.

Annie Wilkes

Annie is an ex nurse, whose character is revealed to the audience from Paul’s point of view, a device used by Goldman and Reiner to help us empathise with Paul more, create tension and suspense on screen and shape our views of Annie throughout.

In terms of appearance, she is overweight, slightly younger than Paul, with signs of neglect of her own appearance. She is temperamental, unpredictable and as we eventually learn; a psychopathic killer. She is not unintelligent, picking up on details, such as the penguin turned the wrong way when Paul leaves his room- however, she is childlike in her naivety and worship of Paul. She obviously has several mental disorders including psychopathy, almost certain depression, perhaps manic, relational disorder, perhaps a slight obsessive compulsive disorder and most probably paranoid personality disorder.

 Annie is a loner, living in a remote house in a desolate landscape. She initially seems caring and kind, taking in Paul when he was in danger and giving him a bed, food etc. Some on-screen signals are given however, to suggest that something more sinister is going on. Soon after he is taken in, she learns of Paul killing off Misery- a character she resonates with and clings onto- in his latest book. Here we see the first depiction of her psychopathy and insanity, she forces Paul to burn his latest manuscript and write a new one. Now the audience is aware of her true nature, building suspense and tension- the tension in ‘Misery’ relies on Annie’s temperament- we do not know what she is going to do next. Slowly she is revealed more and more- breaking Paul’s legs to disable him further and stop him from getting better and in the fourth plot point or turn, we learn of her past through a scrap book of newspaper articles which tell Paul (and so the audience) that she was acquitted in court of murder, specifically infanticide. This revelation’s purpose is of course to show Annie’s inner nature as evil and provoke hatred and repulsion towards Annie from the audience. It allows the audience to find pleasure in Annie’s eventual death and previous attempts by Paul.

It is the revelations of her apparent evil that suggests that the audience are not supposed to sympathise or empathise with her. This links back to the question of whether the ‘outside world abandoned her’- it is true she is has severe mental disorders and would profit from a great deal of psychiatric help. However as an audience we are not supposed to feel sorry or wish Annie’s fate was different- Goldman ruled this out by including Annie’s history as a baby-killer.

Similar Products- Protagonist Vs. Antagonist- Memento

Memento

Memento, written and directed by Christopher Nolan, is a good example of a thriller. It is driven by an insurance investigator turned detective as he battles with anterograde amnesia, similar, but not the same as amnesia, as he attempts to find the killer of his wife. With chase scenes, fight scenes, action driven dialogue and a daring narrative structure; scenes told in reverse chronological order to mirror the uncertainty and irregularity of his mental disorder, it retains many conventions of the thriller genre- more specifically, the psycho-thriller sub genre. However, the ‘protagonist’ and ‘antagonist’ figures in the movie are unclear and blurred throughout, and even more so when the ‘twist’ of the film is revealed at the end of the film/beginning of the story.

Definitions of Protagonist and Antagonist

Protagonist

"The main character in a drama or other literary work."

Antagonist

"One who opposes and contends against another; an adversary / The principal character in opposition to the protagonist or hero of a narrative or drama."

Source: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/

A protagonist is often described as a ‘hero’. Of course a protagonist can be a hero, but the two are not directly linked, as the term ‘hero’ refers to character and perception whereas ‘protagonist’ refers to narrative and the idea that character is a device for narrative movement, similar to Propp’s Seven Spheres of Action or Henry James’s famous words: “What is character but the determination of incident? What is incident but the illustration of character?” A protagonist is a narrative term meaning a character that moves-the-narrative-along, being the main character, so to speak.

In Memento Leonard is a perfect example of a protagonist and hero. He is young, good looking, active, physically able, clever, determined, and throughout the majority of the film he appears morally straight. He has a clear goal, and sticks to achieving his aim- thus moving the narrative along constantly. He is the focal character and the driving force behind the plot, as most of the things that happen, happen because of him and his actions.

Defining the antagonist is a bit more difficult. The villain is simple; the villain throughout is the uncertain ‘John G’, real name, perhaps (the reality is ambiguous) Teddy. He is set up as the villain from the very first scene, when Leonard and he argue and Leonard shoots him. We know the end, so there should be no mysteries- but in this lies the brilliance of the use of the non-linear narrative- at the end we find that he man he shoots at the beginning (or end) is probably innocent and so not the villain at all.

However, due to his innocence he can still be seen as an antagonist- because he knows the truth- that ‘John G’ is already dead, he tries to stop Leonard from fulfilling his aim of finding the killer- an aim that drives the narrative. The ambiguous nature of protagonists and antagonists allows us to take a separate view- it is the omniscience of Terry that allows him to be seen as a protagonist- his attempts to stop Leonard could be taken as an attempt to move the narrative off in a different direction, rather than stop it.

However, either way the real antagonist is Leonard’s mental illness, as it is attempting to stop him from achieving his aim. It is perhaps an unconventional view of antagonists, but it can be seen so.

Similar Products- Character Analysis, Anton Chigurh

Anton Chigurh, played by Javier Bardem in the film adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s ‘No Country for Old Men’ is a psychopathic hit man who is trying to recover $2 million from a disastrous drug deal. He is the villainous protagonist of the film, who has a clear goal, and will do anything to achieve it. We know almost nothing about his past, which creates a closed off and mysterious character. However, like all good protagonists, he has a certain level of charisma and charm to allow the reader to like and follow the character, despite his clear lack of morals, ethics and conscience.

Throughout the film, he uses a coin-flip to determine whether to kill his victims, portraying his ruthlessness and villainy. This device throughout the film adds tension and suspense, especially if the character on whose life the coin rests is a likeable and apparently innocent character, as in the excerpt above with the life of the shop owner. In the scene above, he is seemingly calm, collected and in control. This is a much used character trait of on screen psychopaths, to appear indifferent to heinous acts such as murder, creating a chilling and tense atmosphere on screen. The closed off, menacing way Bardem plays Chigurh throughout is suspenseful, as it gives the audience no clue as to what he is going to do next. An example of this is in the shootout in the motel, where he kills an unarmed, surrendered man after he has apparently spared his life. The clip is below.

In this clip, as I mentioned before, we see Anton kill a defenceless man behind a curtain. However, despite the fact that he does kill the begging man, the closing of the curtain provides a point of interest. It could be argued that Anton is perhaps displaying a shred of humanity in not watching the man die. The curtain could be acting as a physical barrier to his conscience, helping him distance himself from the heartlessness of what he is doing.

The film follows Anton throughout the majority of its running time. We learn his mannerisms, the way he speaks to people, of his remorselessness and cruelty, but little about him as a person. This is probably done to present him as a cold, shut off individual who is incapable of normal human emotion, and therefore doesn’t warrant sympathy. It is typical of filmmakers to show perhaps the childhood, or to show villains as human beings to draw sympathy and even empathy from the audience. However, this is not done or attempted in ‘No Country for Old Men’- Anton does not deserve sympathy, he is a heartless killer. Of course, as a protagonist it is still possible for the audience to like Anton, for his calm demeanour, wit, manner and composure.

Similar Products- Why does Inception belong in the 'Thriller' genre?

To qualify under the genre of ‘thriller’, a film generally has to contain a few key notions; a defined protagonist and antagonist- the struggle between the two creating obstacles for the protagonist, usually in a life or death situation in a fast paced, suspenseful and tense narrative. The purpose of a thriller is to stimulate and excite audience response, with filmmakers using various techniques to do so, including sound, mise-en-scene, character, camera angles and movement, dialogue and lighting.

‘Inception’, Nolan’s 9 year project, originally intended as a horror film includes all of these aspects that create a thriller film. It also, like nearly every other modern thriller film, hits other film genres, making it a psychological, sci-fi, action thriller. Although these other genre conventions form much of the narrative, Nolan’s intentions of creating suspense, tension and excitement for the audience classifies it clearly as a thriller.

Firstly, in terms of the protagonist vs. antagonist; Dom Cobb is the defined protagonist, the actions of whom shape the majority of the narrative. His aim is ‘Inception’, the narrative structuring itself around this eventual goal. This is, of course, conventional of thrillers in that although Cobb has a team, the film’s focus is him, and so the events of the film are often determined by or affect him. This solitude is reinforced by his shady character and unclear past, forming the subplot involving his deranged dead wife and inability to find inner peace.

The antagonist is somewhat confused, however, this being the mind of their victim, Robert Fischer. This would seem unconventional, as the antagonist is not clear and defined, but the due to the narrative, the internal of their victim’s mind puts up physical barriers to stop Cobb and his team from invading his mind. These defences act almost as an organised army, fighting for the same cause, which Cobb’s team need to beat to achieve their aim. They are presented in the form of a hostile organisation, with armed assassins and bodyguards forming barriers for the protagonists. This notion is not unconventional, as seen in nearly all of the ‘James Bond’ films, ‘Die Hard’ films, the ‘Rambo’ franchise, ‘Taken’ and ‘Salt’.

Looking at the narrative; structurally, it is generic to thriller films. It uses twists and changes throughout to create the illusion of spontaneity and suspense, but in fact it follows a fairly simple action-thriller structure. It begins with a fight scene, which leads to the setting of the mission, followed by training and assembling of Cobb’s team. First challenge with twist, second challenge, third challenge + final fight scene and end with cliff-hanger.

The main difference in the set-up of Inception and the generic action-thriller is that most of the action takes place in a dream, allowing more surreal and so unconventional (as many thrillers use realism to create tension) images to screen. This situation falls more under the sci-fi genre and psychological subgenre of thriller, but is allowed to due to the broadness of the ‘thriller’ genre, with its many subgenres and variations.

Despite the defined narrative structure, the settings, twists and surrealism present a non-linear, confused and twisting plot line. This is conventional- and almost essential of thriller films, as it prevents the audience from guessing what is going to happen in the film, thus creating suspense and audience interest. ‘Inception’ asks a lot of questions near the beginning of the film, such as into Cobb’s past, why he is like he is, the relationship between him and his team members, the connection between the old man he meets in the opening scene and his fate, all of which are not answered until later scenes. Along with these narrative questions, the ultimate question that surfaces is ‘will the team succeed?’- this constant question asking with delayed answering time acts as narrative hooks to entice and excite the viewer. This technique is typical of thriller films to keep the audience guessing and keep them entertained- this classic thriller technique is evidence for ‘Inception’ being a thriller.

On a more basic level, in terms of mise-en-scene, ‘Inception’ contains all the elements that make an action/espionage/mystery/crime thriller, including guns, with full gun fights, close combat fight scenes, car chases, high octane fight and dialogue scenes, training and planning scenes, simple chase scenes, city settings and domestic settings. Perhaps more unconventional to a classic thriller which feeds of realism, in true sci-fi thriller style, ‘Inception’ sports zero gravity fight scenes, the destruction of cities, ulterior worlds, dream invasion machines and city building from mind and memory. These elements of the mise-en-scene coupled with a string-heavy-fast-paced-tension-building soundtrack, merging a classical score with a more modern, electrical and synthesized number.

To conclude, ‘Inception’ falls under the thriller genre due to the conventions of thriller it hits, whilst pushing the boundaries of the genre- this, itself, becoming a convention. ‘Inception’ has a fast paced, non-linear, twisted and convoluted narrative, whilst retaining and using a clear and defined action-thriller narrative structure. Mise-en-scene and score wise, ‘Inception’ is a thriller, and the clear, defined protagonist with full subplot and mysterious past results in a conventional thriller. There are some aspects of the film that may go beyond ‘thriller’ in the most generic and traditional sense, such as dream invasion, however, due to the broadness of the all-encompassing genre, the way these more sci-fi elements are put across make it a thriller. It could be argued that ‘Inception’ is categorised as a thriller because of the blanketing nature of the thriller genre. All in all, a thriller film demands a fast, twisting plot, with suspenseful and tense scenes, usually in a life-or-death situation involving a protagonist and antagonist. This ‘Inception’ does, and so this is why it can be categorised as a thriller.

Similar Products- A Brief Timeline of the Thriller Genre

Beginnings

‘Thriller’ as a film genre originated, like nearly every film genre, from Literature.

The epic poem ‘The Odyssey’ is considered one of the first Thrillers due to the obstacles placed before Odysseus and the fast paced, sometimes suspenseful and non-linear narrative.

Modern thrillers in Literature include the Da Vinci Code, Rebus novels, The Day of the Jackal etc…

Early Cinema

Early films now considered ‘Film Noir’ have been retrospectively rebranded Thrillers, such as ‘What Women Suffer’ (1911), ‘Safety Last’ (1923) and ‘Laura’ (1944) for complex narrative structures, suspenseful action scenes and defined character roles

However, ‘thriller’ as a film genre was not taken into consciousness until later in the Century

Hitchcock

Alfred Hitchcock or ‘the master of suspense’ is often seen as a pioneer of modern thriller

Thriller films of his creation include: Psycho (1960), Strangers on a Train (1951) and Vertigo (1958)

Hitchcock was known for using framing and editing in a unique way to convey suspense, thus, amongst other pioneering filmmaking techniques, securing his place as one of the best film directors of all time, and more importantly the father of modern thriller

1970s

The 1970s saw a boom in thriller films after Hitchcock’s success in the 50s and 60s. The filmmaking techniques Hitchcock had pioneered were being brough into mainstream and commercial cinema.

To name a few…

•       1971- ‘Dirty Harry’- Don Siegel

•       1972- ‘Pulp’- Mike Hodges

•       1973- ‘The Day of the Jackal’- Fred Zinnemann

•       1975-  ‘Jaws’- Stephen Spielberg

  1980s

The 1980s are seen as less of a ‘thriller’ period, but in fact, this was the decade in which ‘thriller’ truly branched out into the sub-genres known today, with films such as ‘Cujo’ (1983)  falling into the Horror-Thriller sub genre, and ‘Die Hard’(1988) the Action-Thriller category

The 80s also saw a boom in James Bond movies, with 5 released in the decade

  1990s

The 90s saw such institutionalised classic thrillers as ‘Silence of the Lambs’ by Jonathan Demme, ‘Reservoir Dogs’ by Quentin Tarantino, ‘Se7en’ by David Fincher and ‘The Sixth Sense’ by M Night Shyamalan.

Other notable thrillers included ‘Misery’, ‘Sleeping with the Enemy’, ‘The Usual Suspects’ and ‘Jurassic Park’

The use of special effects became more prevalent and advanced throughout the period

  2000s

The noughties have seen a huge amount of thriller films produced.

The ‘thriller’ genre has become associated with and almost synonymous with blockbusters.

The use of special effects have been further engrained in thriller movies, with filmmakers often now relying on CGI to drive the plot (i.e. Michael Bay)

Notable recent thrillers include ‘Inception’ and ‘The Dark Knight’ by Christopher Nolan, ‘Taken’ by Pierre Morel, ‘V for Vendetta’ by James McTeigue and ‘Black Swan’ by Daren Aronofsky

Evaluation of Life After Jim

I think the combination of my finished film and film poster is very effective. The poster is simple and asks many questions- it sets the tone for the film and raises some of the main themes: loss, marriage, an empty/circular lifestyle (empty symbolised by empty space, circular obviously by the ring). The wooden surface and warm lighting is an indication of domesticity and suggests genre.
From my audience I have learnt that I may need to simplify some of the concepts in my films considering the audience and the time I have to develop such conceits. In my main task I intend to make it as conventional and simple as possible. The majority of audience feedback is good and professional filmmakers have described it as “genuinely moving” and “affecting”. However, some found it difficult to connect with the character and so feel sorry for her, which was kind of the point. So I need to try and incorporate more ‘hooks’ to draw in the audience and perhaps more obvious symbols/signifiers to explain how the audience should be feeling, rather than leaving it ambiguous/trying to make it universal.

I have developed my technical skills (point of focus, editing, the usual natural development), and I have furthered my education in character development, plot points, screen writing and evoking emotion which I have been doing anyway by reading screenplay theory. Or rather, I tried to put what I have recently learned into practice. I think I need to work harder on accentuating certain aspects of my writing that may perhaps be a little difficult to grasp but are important on shedding light on themes and narrative structure.

For example, the audience was supposed to understand that she had been depressed when Jim was still alive, but never acknowledged it. This was explained through the first part of the dialogue: “Jim would always know how to cheer me up when I was feeling like this […] Of course it wouldn’t make me as happy as he always was, but the fact that he was there made me feel a little bit better” She felt as she does on the day of the film when Jim was still alive- but he could make her feel a little bit better. Such is the nature of depression- it is not possible to make people with depression better simply by being happy around them or ‘cheering them up’ but Jim’s death threw Caroline into depression like she had never known. But as she is clinging onto a past life, she sees it in the same way. I think ideas like this have to be explained a bit more clearly to the audience so that people don’t think she should have ‘got over it’ or ‘cheer up’. The point is that she can’t because of her mental illness.

For the main task, therefore, I need to focus more on deciding a definite reaction/emotion/feeling from the audience and making that work. This will involve probably dumbing down themes and plots, but it’s a Thriller so that will come fairly naturally anyway. It’s perhaps about thinking ‘how can I make the audience understand what’s going on in my head and what do I want them to take away from it?’ and then writing the screenplay and deciding how I’m going to shoot it accordingly. I’m not sure what I’m going to do for my thriller but it will probably focus on a male main character and I plan to show some kind of breakdown/defamation before a resolution. Three part narrative structure, two defined plot points taking me from set-up (whereby the man will be set-up as a likeable character) to conflict (where it will breakdown and he will be victimised/defamed/outcast something like that) to resolution (where he will either die or resolve it himself). I will probably try to give a happy ending, as I haven’t really done so in my work so far. So maybe he shouldn’t die if I’ve set him up to be a likeable character…

Production- The finished 'Life After Jim'

Pre-Production- Representation of Character

I haven’t answered questions that are not relevant/don’t make sense in the context of them being asked and I have compounded questions when they need to be. 
 
What is being represented?
The things that are being represented in Life After Jim are: the feelings of loss, despair and depression that come with losing a loved one. I wanted to represent the perpetual circles that come with serious depression, and the notion that people in so much pain can never really move on from it. I wanted to portray a constant internal battle between Caroline’s want to move on with her life, but her inability to do so due to her ties with the past, ending up leaving her in the same place as she was before. She talks herself into thinking she is happy where she is, when she knows deep down she will fall back into depression once more.

The following questions are answered throughout this explanation of the film: How is it represented? Using what codes? Within what genre? How is the representation made to seem 'true', 'commonsense' or 'natural'?

Throughout the voiceover there is an obvious sense of Caroline battling with herself, and talking herself into happiness. There is a clear cycle in what she says and the way she says it. At the beginning she sounds tired and lethargic. The dialogue and pacing is slow, culminating in a very real imagining of Jim’s death, shown through sound, with a zoom into her eye and a car crash sound effect. A black screen follows to symbolise the quietness after Jim’s death, and the shift in mood.

When the image fades back on screen it is a flashback, with a close up of Caroline’s face, expressionless, as she explains this is a flashback to when she found out about Jim’s death. We already know she was told by a policeman and he died in a car crash. She sounds sad, nostalgic, pained, upset, distraught- this is her lowest moment in the film for her mental state.

She then pulls herself out of it, finding comfort in her everyday life, as she makes a cup of tea. She remembers how long ago it was since he died and it makes her sadder. Then she remembers how her daughter and her husband took her back to her hometown the other day, which makes her feel happier. We cut back to present day, where she looks through old photo albums, smiling. She is happier stuck in the past, evidently. This is the turning point in her falling back into old routine- where she begins to realise (or believe) she is happier as she is.

She then starts to talk about the house, and how sometimes it makes her feel good because of Jim, and how sometimes it makes her feel bad because of Jim. This directly presents the conflict to the audience- it shows the audience that her mood is sometimes up, sometimes down- but the important thing to notice is that she feels good when she thinks about the past- “It feels like he is still here, with me”. She has realised she feels better stuck in the past- as she is, and when she says “And I intend to live my life, for the both of us”, she means as the way they were- she has not had a ‘realisation’ or began a new life. She has chosen to remain how she is, which is shown through dialogue- what she is saying, sound- the music which was playing when she was feeling happier, has ended, and through shots- visually, we alternate between her in Ireland (symbolising freedom, a new start ((as mentioned in dialogue earlier)) and moving forward with her life) and her at home (symbolising immobility, depression, a circular lifestyle), ending on exactly the same shot as the first shot.

 This clearly shows a circle in which she has travelled due to her serious depression of which she has never acknowledged or comes to terms with. The ending is a quiet understated representation of a woman who has not let go of the past, due to her own choices. She is happy for the moment, but she knows in her heart that she is not, and will fall back into despair in a very short space of time. She needs to break the cycle but does not want to. This complex psychological trauma is represented through almost every aspect of filmmaking.

The genre is realism drama, and so the idea is to make it as realistic as possible. This is done through dialogue, mise-en-scene and ideas raised in the production.

What is fore grounded and what is back grounded? Are there any notable absences?
Fore grounded is her conflict, despair, sadness, endless situation. Back grounded is the underlying issues that she either can’t or will not see- her depression, her inability to break the cycle, the fact that she is talking herself into happiness when she really needs medical help- there is almost an irony in the disjuncture in what she thinks is going on and what really is going on. As an intelligent audience, we can step back, and look at her from a third person point-of-view, but she is unable to do so. Those are the notable absences.

At whom is this representation targeted? How do you know?
The representation isn’t really targeted at anyone, it’s not a self help guide. The film is targeted at people from all walks of life who can relate or sympathise/empathise with Caroline’s situation.  

What does the representation mean to you? What does the representation mean to others? How do you account for the differences?
To me the representation is just an example of the situations of thousands of people everyday who are trying to recover from lost loved ones, and those who are unaware of the very serious mental illness that is depression, especially post-natal depression, with bereavement complications. What needs to be understood is that Caroline had depression before Jim’s death, but Jim made her feel better.

This is explained in the very first scene where she says “Jim would always know how to cheer me up, when I was feeling like this [...] Of course it wouldn’t make me as happy as he always was, but the fact that he was there made me feel a little bit better”. Depression is not an illness that can be overcome simply by cheery loved ones, but they can certainly make you feel better. When Jim died, in the words of Caroline- “it felt as if all the hope and goodness had been drained from the world”- she had lost her only lifeline and the culmination of grief and depression has made it impossible for her to move on.

I have no idea what the representation of Caroline and the themes throughout ‘Life After Jim’ will mean to others. I would hope that they would get an emotional response from it- sadness, mainly, and also be able to empathise with the character. I would account for differences that may occur through perhaps my own fault, for not giving enough clues as to certain aspects of representation I wished to include. Also, depression is an extremely difficult illness for people to understand; unless they have experienced it first hand or seen it in a close relation- even then it is impossible to fully understand it. I have tried to present it as accurately as possible, through observation and research, but it is not always possible for others see. That may account for some misunderstandings in view of representation and the film as a whole.

How do people make sense of it? According to what codes?
People can make sense of it by listening to what she is saying and watching what is on screen- the dialogue and shots are almost directly linked in some way or another. The main concepts are fairly simple to grasp, but it may take a little bit of digging and thought to get them out. All of the codes/clues/signifiers are in there. The dialogue is thought through and linked- things she says earlier in the film are presented later through dialogue or shots and certain things are revealed through camera work that are not done so through dialogue. As I mentioned earlier, depression is an incredibly difficult thing to understand and sometimes it is hard for people to make sense of it at all.

With what alternative representations could it be compared? How does it differ?
I guess it could be compared to films such as The Death of Mr Lazarescu, whereby the theme of death is converted into dark comedy, or A Single Man, where George takes positive action in breaking the routine and deciding to commit suicide. Life After Jim does not present this representation of character as it is not a comedy and making fun/light of death and Caroline is unable to break the cycle due to underlying health issues.

A reflexive consideration - Why is the concept of representation problematic?
This doesn’t really relate to Life After Jim but I’ll try and answer nevertheless. In terms of reflexivity- or meta-fiction as in literature, representation of real groups or people in society can sometimes be problematic as we can see those characters represented, not as characters, but as real people. This is can be the intention in realism dramas, but they are characters nevertheless. Furthermore, in monologues, the creator is pretty much breaking the fourth wall- although it is never acknowledged; the character is speaking directly to the audience, even if it is, in fact, to themselves.

Production- Poster

I created this poster by taking a picture of a ring on a table and then putting some writing on it on Preview for Mac. The ring is a male wedding ring which signifies context, theme and setting. The title gives some indication as to what the film is about, and also gives an idea as to content- the empty space around it, of course, symbolic of Caroline’s life after Jim. The by-line/slogan gives further clues as to content and theme, and sets the tone as serious, simple and wistful. All of the credits are anagrams of my name.

Pre-Production- Shot List

Shot List- Life After Jim

1.  INT.CAROLINE’S HOUSE- LIVING ROOM- DAY

- Straight on Close up of Caroline’s face, light flooding in from the right

- Close up of picture frame on side of her and JIM

- Close up of a cigarette, burning in her hand.

- Black Screen, SUPER: Life After Jim

- Mid shot of her sitting, narration begins “it’s on days like these […] it’s quiet”

- Bridge shot of her eyes glancing sideways

- Wide angle of her alone in her seat “it’s at times like these […] sleep”

- Close up again of her putting her head in her hands, “Jim would always know [..] like this”

- Wide shot of the room, Jim walks in, faded, like a ghost, and stares at her “I can see him now […] saying]

- As they both speak, CAROLINE stands up, and begins to walk towards Jim

- Wide angle of her, standing on her own, and she says ‘of course […] better’

- Side on of her sitting back down

- Close up of her taking a drag on her cigarette “I think that’s […] arriving”

2. INT- DOORWAY- DAY

- Close up from a side angle of CAROLINE’S face as she stands in the doorway, emotionless. “When they said the words […] no prospect of”

3.  INT- KITCHEN- DAY

- Medium side on of CAROLINE making a cup of tea

- Close up of her taking a sip

- Turns around, cup of tea in her hand, sitting against the work top, looking around

- CUT TO: side on of her at the table, drinking and looking at some photos. Series of shots of her looking at the photos from different angles from “our daughter […] at some point”

4. INT- CAROLINE’S LIVING ROOM- DAY

- Medium/low angle of CAROLINE walking back into the room, staring around “Everything about this house reminds me of him […] never coming back”

- Medium as she sits down “But whenever […] I’m not dead yet”

FTB

[After note] I made some changes to the original shot list due to various restrictions e.g. I cut the cigarette primarily because my actress didn’t want to smoke in the house. Secondly, I decided the cigarette was unnecessary. Also the shot of her in Ireland was added in after the first edit on  the advice of a professional director and writer.

Pre-production- Production/Shooting Schedule

Production/Shooting Schedule for Sunday 2^nd October, 2011

Location

Ruth’s House, Orton Malbourne

Order of events

Arrive at 11oclock am- Set up, rehearsals, briefing for 40 minutes. Aim to start filming at 11:40

11:40- 1- Aim to finish filming within this time, allow time for re-shoots, etc.

1-1:40- This should be enough time to record voiceover. Allow till 2 just in case.

Things to bring:

-          Camera

-          Tripod

-          Tripod clip

-          Sound recording equipment: mixer, microphones, XLR to XLR wire, two mini jack stereo to one mini jack lead, kettle lead

-          Laptop and charger

-          Lighting equipment

Contact

Tom- 0779292***

Ruth (and so Patricia)- 07742902***

Shooting schedule

Try to shoot shots in purely chronological order- there is no reason not to. The shot list details the order.

Pre-production- Script- Preliminary Task- 'Life After Jim'

 Life After Jim

By

Tom Leatherbarrow

1. INT.CAROLINE’S HOUSE- LIVING ROOM- DAY

Opens with a close up of CAROLINE’S face. She is staring blankly ahead, obviously deep in thought. The only sound is of the diegetic house silence. Cuts to a close up of a picture frame of her and JIM. Cuts to a close up of a cigarette in an ashtray. Cuts to black with same diegetic sound. SUPER: LIFE AFTER JIM. Cuts back to mid shot of CAROLINE sitting on the chair

CAROLINE V/O

It’s on days like these that I miss him the most. When the house is empty and it’s quiet.

Cuts to a wider angle to show her loneliness

It’s at these times that a tiredness seeps over me, a weariness that has nothing to do with sleep.

Back to a close up of her with her head in her hands

Jim would always know how to cheer me up when I was feeling like this. I can see him now, walking into the room, smiling, the way he would, and saying ‘cheer up, deary, you’re not dead yet.’

As she says ‘walking into the room’ Jim walks in, slightly faded, like a ghost. As she recalls his words, his voice sounds alongside hers.

Of course, it wouldn’t make me as happy as he always was. But the fact that he was there made me feel that little bit better.

I think that’s what affected me the most about when he died. It felt as if all the hope and goodness had been drained from the world. I remember the policemen arriving at my door.

2. INT- DOORWAY- DAY

CAROLINE is standing at the door, light on her face. The camera is positioned at her side in a close up. She is expressionless, unmoving. Music comes in

When they said the words, I didn’t feel it. I caught only glimpses of what they were saying. It was as if I had been stripped of all of Jim’s words of comfort, hope and kindness and a bleak, nothingness was left. I just stared, stared into a future that I could see no prospect of.

3. INT- KITCHEN- DAY

CAROLINE is making a cup of tea. She sounds weary 

 But life goes on- it was 10 years since his death last week. Scary how time flies... it feels like only yesterday that he was here- just walking about the house, cooking or cracking jokes. In another sense, these past 10 years have been the longest of my life.

CAROLINE is sitting at the table, with a cup of tea, looking at photos of her and JIM when they were younger

Our daughter and her husband took me back to where I grew up, and where me and Jim met. I didn’t realise how much I missed the grassy expanses of the Irish countryside. I felt a peace that I haven’t felt for a long time, living here. I suppose I always thought we’d move back to Ireland eventually, but when he died I didn’t feel like going anywhere. I couldn’t face a fresh start without him. Maybe I will move back there at some point.

4. INT- CAROLINE’S LIVING ROOM- DAY

CAROLINE walks back into the living room, shot from a medium low angle. She stares around the room, longingly

Everything about this house reminds me of him- which sometimes feels like a blessing, because it feels like he is still here, with me. But sometimes it’s a curse. It reminds me that life is passing me by, and I have no choice but to watch. He is never coming back.

She sits down. Her voice is tinged with acceptance, the she has reached her loop, and has fallen back into old ways. She is still sad, but feels more content- a full circle. 

But whenever that crushing realisation hits me, I try to think of him and how he would want me to be. He was always so full of life, and I intend to live out my life for the both of us. After all, I’m not dead yet.

                                                     FADE OUT

Pre-production- Plot Development- Preliminary Task

Plot

The short begins with Caroline sitting in her chair, as she does every morning. She is obviously in a depressive state, shown through her expression and the voiceover- “It’s on days like these when I miss him the most, when the house is empty and it’s quiet”- the reason for her depression is revealed. Her mood varies throughout the plot, her voice, the look of the pictures and tone all representative of this.

The plot follows her as she recalls when Jim died, has a flashback, makes a cup of tea, has a flashback of being in Ireland, looks through photo albums, before going back to her chair. Throughout, the voice over gives away why she is in the situation she is in, alludes to depression that even she is unaware of, and presents her constant inner battle between action and inaction, resulting in the latter.

Caroline is both a protagonist and antagonist, depending on her state of mind. Protagonist and antagonist are, of course, old Greek characters and so do not really fit into any modern Media Theory. The closest, however is Goffman’s Character Theory, with Caroline as the protagonist and deuteragonist (derived, of course, from  Aeschylus’s plays with the introduction of a second character). 

Pre-production- Similar Characteristics- Preliminary Task

Characters Caroline is similar to…

Sara Goldfarb- Requiem for a Dream

Caroline is similar to Sara in her housebound manner, age and loss of her husband. They are both lonely and wish for a better life, but they differ in that Sara tries to do something about it, whereas Caroline does not, and is stuck in a loop of indecision.

Mr Lazarescu- The Death of Mr Lazarescu

Mr Lazarescu and Caroline differ in obvious senses- gender, age, nationality, but are similar in their living patterns and inability to see that they are ill. Mr Lazarescu is mortally ill and Caroline’s depression stops her from having a life. They are the same thing.

Briony Tallis as an old woman- Atonement

These two women are similar in their sense of loss, regret and nostalgia. Caroline does not have the same feelings of guilt and need for atonement as Briony does, but she still harbours a long seated regret for not cherishing her time with Jim when she had the chance.

George Falconer- A Single Man

Again, these two characters differ in many physical attributes and personality wise, but they are similar in their loss of their dearest love and inability to move on from it. Furthermore both their partners were called Jim and died in a car accident, but this is coincidental.

Pre-production- Character Profile, Caroline- PreliminaryTask

Caroline

Caroline is an Irish widow, originally from Navan, but moved to England in 1991 with her husband, Jim. Jim died in a car crash in 2001. They moved to England to be closer to their daughter and her husband. Her age is irrelevant to the plot- she is representative of any widow or person who has suffered loss. She is average/short, and shows signs of lost love in her appearance. She has never worked, and lives off Jim’s life insurance and pension fund.

She spends her days feeling lonely and lost. She has very few friends and the only person she really speaks to is her daughter, who tries to make as much time for her as she can, as she worries about her well being, but finds it difficult. They have a good relationship and were both very close to Jim.

Caroline lost faith when Jim died, after years of devoted religious worship. Both her and Jim were Roman Catholics. She visits Jim’s grave regularly, however which is buried in their local church, as that was his wish.

The many years she spent with Jim were happy- he was a good man, and she was utterly dependent on him in nearly every way. She is in constant battle with herself over the desire to let the past go and her inability to do so. She constantly falls back into old routine; desperately clinging onto the life she had with Jim- she has changed very little in the house since his death. However this reliance turns into misery, depression and lethargy, which comes in episodes before she feels okay again, wondering whether she should leave or start again. However, she falls back into comfort and the familiar as usual. We track her progress as she goes from misery and nostalgia to possible hope and back to nostalgia again.

She has suffered post-natal depression since the birth of their daughter, which accounts for a large amount of her depressive turmoil and inability to move on. She has never had medication, as she is not aware of her illness.

How and Why

I created Caroline primarily out of a wish to work with a different aged actor. I found inspiration in family members who have suffered loss and have suffered with depression. I wanted to create a film about the second half of life from a nostalgic, regretful viewpoint and so created a character to allow me to do so.  As the piece is a monologue I didn’t see things such as physical attributes or background as a primary focus for the character, but rather her internal turmoil and thought processes.