Download The Final Essay

AP Literature: The Final Paper
Film Analysis
Due: _________ ________________
Your paper should be 1500-2000 words in MLA format. As always, the primary source and all
research must be cited. This is a formal essay, your final paper, so put it all together like the maestro
you are by keeping it scholarly and unblemished by careless errors. You must make the decisions about
how to organize it. You are the boss of the paper. Try to contain the plot summary- the introduction- to 12 paragraphs. Hit the high points and cut to the chase. The majority of your paper should focus on
analysis. WHAT, HOW, WHY. PROVE…PROVE…PROVE. Just like your literary analyses. Use
your terminology from the “Quick Guide to Film” study sheet and the accompanying sites. Thank you. I
have enjoyed our class, and I look forward to reading these papers.
Topic Choices:
1) Write a close analysis of a scene in a film of merit. You will treat the analysis of the scene with the
care and precision of a close reading of an excerpt form a work of literature.
a) Briefly introduce and summarize: How is the film groundbreaking for its time? Societal/
historical/ biographical context of its creation. BRIEFLY set the stage for the story- its basic
plotline.
b) Describe, analyze, and interpret the most important scene in the film (the one that you
think encapsulates the spirit of the work). For instance, the music, mis- en- scene the camera
work… What shots are used: long shot, close-up? Does the camera pan fast or slow? Left to
right or vice versa? This is the WHAT of your assessment. For each technique you describe,
focus on the composition and design by discussing HOW the techniques are used. Most
importantly, and just as you would attack a literary analysis, interpret the WHY for each
technique. How does the filming contribute to the purpose or effect of that scene?
c) Evaluate the merit of scene and the film itself and give your reasons for concluding that
this film is indeed a work of art and this scene lends itself to that conclusion- just as a chapter
may set the stage for literary greatness.
2) You may also focus on how one of the techniques on your Quick Guide sheet is implemented
throughout the film. For example, trace the musical scores, or camera angles, or lighting in a variety of
scenes and analyze how the techniques change throughout the film and why so
3) You may also write a contrast paper in point-by-point format contrasting the depiction of a novel or
play and its film version. Focus especially on the “Film as Literature” notes in your quick guide. How do
the decisions made by the director alter the depiction in the original work and to what effect? Must be
specific and use evidence for both the text and the film.
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