Point Of View (POV)

Of the four elements we have to include in our cinematography work, point of view, aka POV, is my personal favourite of the selection. The concept of point of view, is to have the camera act as the individuals eyes. This gives the viewer both a personal view from the character and allows them to step into the characters shows.

I personally am a big fan of first person films, more commonly known as 'found footage' films. However, I only like these types of films if they are done correctly. For example, I love the film 'Cloverfield'. Though it has a mixed reaction critically, I believe it to be a strong point of the first person genre as it gives out a realistic feel of how people would record such an event. The fact that one of the popular criticisms is that you don't get a clear view of the monster until near the end, baffled me  somewhat, due to the fact that if I personally was trying to capture footage of a deadly monster that trys to destroy the city, I would hardly be thinking of getting that perfect shot. A decent example of this is when they are walking down the street, and the army suddenly appears to confront the monster. The group then takes refuge in the subway system, and on the way down the camera turns, and we just get a glimpse of the monster. (see image) This is only for a second, but is enough to establish how big the monster is, and gives a more real feel as the character 'Hud' is not interested in getting the money shot, but more about escaping danger (see the link, the monster appears from 1:22-1:24)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6esR4uGEFCc - Cloverfield monster flash

monster flash

The only time you do see the monster clearly, (minus a couple of flashes early on),  is she the character holding the camera freezes, and points it directly at the monster for a full twenty two seconds (see link below 00:50-01:12). This I believe is the weakest point of the film, as my overwhelming urge would be to run in that situation. This furthers my point that the shakiness of the camera is a good thing in the film, as it reflects what the average human would do in this situation.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocb7pXndlug - Cloverfield hud meets monster

Only clear view of the monster

However, POV isn't all about the found footage format. Sometimes in movies their are only one or two shots taken from the POV stand point. These shots can belt to establish a lot in the overall piece. One such example comes from one of my most admired cinematographers/ directors of photography Bill Butler. This certain POV shot comes from Steven Speilberg's 'Jaws'. This scene is in the opening few minutes where 'Chrissie' decides to go skinny dipping. Whilst in the water, we get an underwater shot which comes from the sharks point of view (see link below 1:28-1:35).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrEvK-tv5OI - Jaws POV shot underwater

POV shot

This shot in combination with the foreboding music, establishes that 'Chrissie' is in mortal danger, and that the shark is looking for prey. The slow movement getting closer builds up the tension within the viewer, wanting Chrissie to swim away to no avail. We do not see the shark, and the way Mr Butler has done this, is both a simple yet creative way to let the audience know whats coming without revealing to much. This sort of subtlety is used a few times throughout the film, constantly teasing the viewer about the threat underwater, without revealing its physical form.

Another effective use of POV shot, comes from a cinematographer called Ben Davis (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1023204/?ref_=ttfc_fc_cr19). He has been the cinematographer / director of photography on a few films I enjoy, all of which have the fantasy/comic book feel (Stardust, Guardians of the Galaxy). However the film i am referencing here is 'Kick Ass'. Their is a heavy use of first person over the course of 48 seconds with intercutting (see link below 1:52-2:40). In this scene 'Hit Girl' has taken out the lights in a warehouse where gang members are holding her father and Kick Ass hostage. The first person starts when she puts on night vision goggles, and what follows is a first person shooteresque scene (see images) in which she takes out many thugs. Halfway through a fire is lit, which ends the first person aspect.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pbuEujuirY - Hit girl rescue scene

Establishing POV

First Person Shooter Esque

This whole first person sequence is built perfectly as we are seeing the preciseness of Hit Girls skills and also the fact that it opens after a section of near silence, makes it both exciting and enjoyable to view. The action packed music fits this sequence perfectly, and the camera movements in this first person are smooth and give it that feel of being in the persons shoes. By extension it makes these shot feel like a first person shooter game, and does well to address the audience as those who read comics, are also likely to play video games, which in effect creates a link between the two worlds.

In conclusion, I feel that first person is essential for getting into a characters shoes directly, and those from the characters eyes bring out a connection between the viewers and the character. I have taken this on board and tried to incorperate it in the group project (see images).

Stalker looks

POV