Days of Heaven

Cinematography

• How mobile is the camera? Does it move toward the characters within a scene, or does it remain relatively static, allowing the actors to move instead within a steady frame?
  The camera isn't often mobile and usually stay in one place without too much rotation per shot allowing the actors to do the movement. 
  
• How does the camera treat the different characters? Does the camera view the character from below (low-angle shot) or from above (high-angle shot)?
  The camera uses different views in order to show class in the movie. To show someone of a high class the camera will have a high angle shot to make them appear bigger on film while lower class (workers) were shot with a low angle shot to make them seem smaller in comparison. 
  
• What purpose does the camera angle serve? For example, what cue might a camera angle offer you about how the director wants you to view a particular character?
  The point a camera angle serves is to show emotion within a scene or usually a character. The emotion that is shown is determined by the view the camera angle gives you for example, if the camera is doing a high angle shot it might show some sort of heroism from that character. 
  
• What do the camera angles tell you about the relationships between characters?
  The camera angle can tell you a relationship between characters by 
  
• Do the angles from which characters are shot change over the course of a scene, or a sequence, or the film as a whole? How does such a change influence your view of a character?
  The angles from which character are shot change over the film as a whole, this influences us to see the character in a different light if they are a growing character experiencing a change in values. 
  
• How frequently are close-ups used? Why? What is the effect of the close-up?
  Close ups were used frequently in the film to show an emotion or thought behind a character. The effect of a close up is to help show deeper emotions like pain, happiness, and anger. The close up also helps you focus in more on the importance of a line a character is saying or a conversation taking place. 

Mise en Scène

• What kinds of lighting does the director employ? What kind of mood does the lighting style create?
  The director only shot at magic hour (4-6) for a majority in the film. The mood this lightening creates is peaceful, blissful, and congenial. When the director shot at other times like night or morning, it was to symbolize a loss of peace or that something bad was to happen. 
  
• What does that lighting convey about the character and her/his potential actions within the film?
  The potential actions of a character are conveyed by that lightening in the film because you were able to tell, that when the glow faded and was replaced with a duller light or darkness that things were starting to get complicated and problems were starting to arise.

Music & Sound

• How does the degree of familiarity with the music influence your understanding of the plot or the characters?
  The degree of familiarity with the music influences the understanding of the plot and the characters because when a certain style of song would play you knew something good was going to happen, but if the music intensified, you were able to predict something bad was coming.  
  
• What cues does the music give you about what to expect?
  The cues the music gives about what to expect are based on the tone and the emotion behind the music. As we hear the music get sadder, we know sorrow is coming, As we hear the music pick up in intensity and tempo, we know some sort of intensity is in store for us. 
  

Editing

• How does the director choose to tell her/his story? Does s/he cut quickly from shot to shot, or let shots run longer and compose them into more leisurely sequences?
  The director choose to tell their story by letting shots run longer and compose them into more leisurely sequences rather then cutting from shot to shot. This way, the film is more visually appealing and congenial for the viewer. 
  
• What purpose do point-of-view shots serve? How do point-of-view shots affect our experience as spectators?
  The purpose that point-of-view shots serve to us as a way of seeing into the character's life so we see why they act a certain way and gives us a more well rounded opinion about whats happening. Point-of-view shots affect sectors because it shows you more information on a person and a situation causing the viewer to have a better stand on how they feel about the situation. 
  

Identification
(to identify: suggests a psychological empathy with the feelings or experiences of another person; to associate or affiliate (oneself) closely with a person or group)

• With whom do we identify when we watch a film?
  We identify with the protagonist in a film because they are usually the "good guy/average Joe". In the movie "Days of Heaven" we identify with the little girl who is also the narration. She is not necessarily the main character but the innocence and thoughts of a child are recognizable to all. 
  
• What techniques does the director deploy to guarantee that identification?
  The director uses the girl as a narration for the story to show us her ideas and opinions on whats going on around her in order to guarantee identification because a child is a universal symbol that we can all relate with and trust to be innocent.  

Closure

• Does the film reach a satisfying end?
  The movie does reach a satisfying end in which there are no untold secrets and all issues within the movie are solved for the better. 
  
• Does the film reach an ending you have anticipated/wanted?
  The film reached an ending i wanted to happen in which at the end the situation was mostly resolved which gave the movie a crisp clean ending that all could be satisfied with.