What makes a great film?

Running Bing

I think about this question a lot. Sometimes I see a classic movie and think it is brilliant but wonder to myself if everyone thought it was crap and I watched it expecting a sh1t film would I still like it?


I think of some of the films I think are great and there seems to be very few constants between them!

So what for you makes a great film?


The closest thing I could come up with is a great film is a film that creates ambiguity and makes us question how we view the world and ourselevs while still remaining watchable and entertaining.

Gaz

Basically i want it to do what it suppose to ...

If its a comedy - make me laugh
If its a horror - scare the bejubus out of me
If its a thriller - thrill me
If its a porno - er ... well you get the idea

Wacker

That is a huge question, with multiple different answers. One could write almost indefinately about the nuances of fine acting, cinematography, pacing, editing, action, etc. However, one constant is that a film is likely to be better if the film-maker who treats his audience with respect and gives them room to figure things out for themselves. A couple of examples of this:

Heat. My all time favourite piece of acting is when Neil McAuley (De Niro) is driving to the airport, and he has decided against settling his score with Waingro. This decision is clearly a difficult one for him to make, and he is visibly struggling with it while driving. Without saying one word, you can see him change his mind. A lesser film maker (and indeed a lesser actor) would have used a line or two of expository (s that a word?) dialogue to get the same point across.

The Godfather. The ultimate in film-making. The sheer level of detail in this film is breath-taking, allowing the viewer to pick up new things every time they rewatch it. A few things in particular:

The way Michael's hands don't shake at all outside the hospital, compared to Enzo's, who can't light his cigarette. A telling hint to the nature of his true character. The way the three favours that Vito does during Connie's wedding are repaid over the course of the film The way Coppolla never makes it clear how Vito figured it was Barzini rather than Tattallia that set him up. It is up to the viewer to figure it out. The way no subtitles are shown during the convesation between Michael and Solozzo in the restaurant. I suppose the intention was to make the viewer concentrate on Pacino's acting rather than his words.

I'll probably come back to this thread again later, but work must be done.

unreggd

If its based on a successful game, for god sake stick to the source material!!!!!!!!


[Resi RIP...... ]

Nolanger

but it can't be funded by the Irish Film Board.

Karl Hungus

A great film maker.

The Bollox

making a film is not like baking a cake. there isn't a formula that everyone can follow to make the perfect cake, just like there is no formula to make the perfect film.

BabyBing wrote:

I think about this question a lot. Sometimes I see a classic movie and think it is brilliant but wonder to myself if everyone thought it was crap and I watched it expecting a sh1t film would I still like it?

I watched 2001 expected a shít, over promoted film(there is a better word but I can't think of it) and I ended up loving it to pieces. it really is down to the film and not your initial perception

deman

Nolanger wrote:

but it can't be funded by the Irish Film Board.

Why not? Reasons please. You can't make a short statement like that and not back it up :mad: Are you saying a good film needs expensive SFX to make it interesting? I beg to differ. A good film is a film you can watch again and again and find something new in it each time. Take Memento for example. Great acting, no massively expensive names, no real special effects, just a great story with addictive viewing. When the film ends, you feel, "I really need to watch that again!" Take 12 Angry Men, ok, Henry Fonda is there but there are only 11 other actors in the whole film, is set in (more or less) one room and only took 2 weeks to complete.

ghouldaddy07

Robocop and loose Women.

Ghost Train

i think a great film needs to get emotionally involved and the more the movie can take you away from real life and into whats happening on screen the better

Karl Hungus

Oh, and on this point...

Babybing wrote:

Sometimes I see a classic movie and think it is brilliant but wonder to myself if everyone thought it was crap and I watched it expecting a sh1t film would I still like it?

I actually think the opposite is true. I've often watched films I expected were crap, and been very pleasantly suprised, and I often read opinions from people when they've expected a film to be amazing, but were sorely dissapointed by it.

warthog_76

for me it has to make me want to rush out and tell others about what a great movie it was

Pigman II

I remember someone once saying something along the lines of a great/classic film has seven great moments in it and no bad moments. I'd agree with that.

Black Swan

Babybing wrote:

So what for you makes a great film?

Suspension of disbelief (it becomes real for you).