Messages and Values - Tricky Questions in Section C: American Film - Comparative Study

Regardless of the wording of the question for Section C: American Film - Comparative Study, I want you to be able to discuss the differences between Ocean's Eleven and Reservoir Dogs in terms of narrative structure and the use of genre conventions. Often the questions explicitly use the terms narrative and/or genre and, if this is the case, your answer will be relatively straightforward. Often, however, you will need to turn the question around slightly so that you can still write the essay you have prepared - this, unfortunately, is slightly less straightforward. The last thing I want you to do, if this is the case, is panic - if you carefully read my suggestions below you will still be able to write the essay on narrative and genre BUT you must address the specifics of the question, head on, in your introduction.

One style of question that you may feel is initially difficult to tackle, is one that asks about the similarities and differences in the films you have studied in terms of the times in which they were made. Often students will study two films that have been made many years apart, and this will clearly have a bearing on the differences between those two films. As you are aware, only nine years separates the productions of Reservoir Dogs (1992) and Ocean's Eleven (2001), and the times in which the films were made has little bearing on the differences between the films. You should state exactly this in your introduction, before outlining that the differences between the films are the ways the directors conform to/depart from the expected narrative structure and the ways that they use/discard expected narrative conventions - as a result of the films' differing institutional contexts. This will allow you to write the essay you want BUT you must say in your introduction that the differences ARE NOT as a result of the times in which the films were made.

Another popular type of question in this section appears, on the face of it, to be trickier to turn around - again, DON'T PANIC - read the suggestions below carefully and practice at least one of these styles of question before the real exam. This type of question will ask you to discuss the similarities and differences in the films in terms of the MESSAGES AND VALUES that the films promote. 

Messages are deliberately placed communications in a film that are intended to be read, or de-coded, by an audience and which should then affect the spectator's individual understanding of the film. A message may be explicitly expressed (made obvious by one of the characters spelling it out) or may be implicitly expressed (less obvious) and in need of interpretation. Explicit messages are normally straightforward with little opportunity for misinterpretation. Implicit messages are more complex and their understanding is reliant not only on how they have been 'coded' into the film, but also on the spectator's own experiences and belief system. Values are an expression of what an individual or a society considers important, in terms of social behaviour, laws, attitudes and beliefs. Your argument may be that any similarities and differences between Reservoir Dogs and Ocean's Eleven ARE NOT as a result of the messages and values that the films promote, BUT instead as a result of the institutional contexts of the films - that is, as a result of one being a low-budget independent film and the other being a big-budget, star-driven Hollywood blockbuster. You should outline that neither film really promotes clear messages and values. Ocean's Eleven is a mainstream Hollywood film and it is valid to argue that these kinds of movies rarely promote distinct messages and values. The majority of Hollywood films are designed as escapist entertainment rather than as movies that are designed to inform or educate. At a push, you could argue that Ocean's Eleven appears to promote the idea that it is okay to be a criminal and steal, as long as you are stealing from an even bigger crook - however, it is unlikely that the director Steven Soderbergh intended audiences to read this message into the movie. Often independent movies promote more distinctive messages and values to their audiences, drawing attention to wider social issues through the narratives of the films. It is unlikely, however, that Quentin Tarantino's intention with Reservoir Dogs was to highlight to the audience that violence will lead to a violent end, or that crime doesn't pay. It is perfectly valid to argue that a similarity between both films is that neither really promotes any clear and distinct messages and values - before emphasising that the real differences in the films comes from their respective manipulation of narrative structure and genre conventions. In an introduction to this essay you should outline what I have said above, before writing an essay that focuses on narrative and genre.

Below are a couple of questions that fall into this trickier category - please attempt them, so that you have had practice of turning the questions around ahead of the exam. This is a much better option than simply keeping your fingers crossed that a tricky question doesn't come up!

"How far are the similarities and differences in your chosen films as a result of the times in which they were made?"

"How far do the films that you have studied for this topic present similar messages and values?"