CPR Proposal- Visual Realisation Final

VISUAL REALISATION

The piece will be a noir style action drama that will be filmed in a low-key black and white visual style with a strong red as an additional colour throughout the film used for the colour of Eddie’s tie and the blood at the end. This will be the same shade of red for both parts. I aim to use these colours to emphasise the noir aspect of the film creating a neo-noir feel, much like graphic novel adaptation Sin City (Miller, 2005) or The Spirit (Miller, 2008). The red will be rendered in just the blood and Eddie’s tie as I feel this will make it a touch more visually appealing but entertaining for the audience. When rendering out the colour I will include a gritty spotlight feel to each shot making the contrast between dark and light so extreme that the shot’s look slightly fuzzy but still clear and sharp.

As this is 1952 New York, the noir period, black and white suits what I aim for. However this is an action drama as well therefore there will be quick cuts between Eddie and the villain running in fluid tracking shots gliding with the movement of the two characters to the side of them as they run along the rooftops. Their movement will be fluid as well, a neo-noir style such as the running shots in The Spirit (Miller, 2008). Villain is an action film therefore the shots will be quick cut to evoke tension. The villain will have his face obscured by his black balaclava and will wear low key black clothing; black trousers, black shoes, black 50’s style coat over a black suit. He also carries a light grey coloured crosshatch sack full of bank notes that overflow as he runs. Eddie is a typical plain clothed detective you would expect to see in a 50’s noir film; 50’s grey trench coat, 50’s suit underneath but with a strong red tie, 50’s grey trousers and a detective hat with a black ribbon around it.

The scene is desolate 50’s New York rooftops, a maze of obstacles and mist that obscure a straight shot of the villain; mist rises out of the ventilation shafts adding to the night air creating almost silhouette figures of the two characters. The rooftops are high up and have dangerous gaps between them, one specifically where Eddie almost doesn’t make it before he tries firing at the villain but misses. This shot would be done from a bird’s eye view as he jumps to show the height he is jumping from.

Lighting will be low-key; a Venetian blind spotlight effect that has extreme dark/light contrasts on Eddie as he chases the villain. This will be especially evident when he leaps over the ledge and rolls then shoots at the villain. He will stop in a ‘Close Up/Mid Shot’ to show this effect and the lighting will be fairly exposed; aimed just on his face and a letterbox effect on his eyes. This will be transposed onto the villain in the same shot as he reveals himself at the end to juxtapose the two faces as to emphasise the twist even more for the audience. The rest of the scene will be very low key and combined with the mist will create almost silhouettes of the characters.