What makes a film worth watching? The answer will vary on who you ask.
Disregarding favourite genres, directors or actors, here are the elements I think truly stand out in a good film.
1. Colour:
This is possibly my favourite element of film.
Colour grading is used to set the mood, convey emotion, warn the audience or distinguish parts of the storyline, and can be a really powerful tool.
I was first introduced to this phenomenon through the film ‘Thirteen’. My favourite for a long time, the use of colour in this film lets the audience know what’s happening. The desaturated colouring represents innocence at the beginning of this film, which quickly turns to yellowy orange as the main character begins to use drugs.
This colouring acts as a warning to viewers. Turning to green next, this colour change represents the corruption of this character. Finally, the film ends in blue to convey powerful emotion and isolation. Some other films that stand out to me in terms of colour are ‘Spring Breakers’, ‘Sin City’ and ‘Buffalo 66’.
2. Music:
Whether it’s the soundtrack or score music can make or break a movie.
Bryan Adams’ work on ‘Spirit’ (yes, the one about the cartoon horse) is possibly my favourite original soundtrack of any film I’ve seen. Composed by Hans Zimmer, this film has an exceptionally good score for a children’s DreamWorks cartoon. If you aren’t familiar, I would suggest a listen.
Some of my other favourite soundtracks include ‘Street Dance’, ‘The Phantom of the Opera’ and ‘Grease’.
3. Landscape:
Although setting seems like an obvious one, it’s a big one.
I always fall victim to a wide landscape shot and beautiful surroundings. The views of Yorkshire featured in ‘The Secret Garden’ (1993) are endearing to both children and adults alike. This film is aesthetically pleasing from start to finish, with its prominent feature of nature shots setting it apart.
Similarly, ‘Pride and Prejudice’ (2005) was also shot across England and features breathtaking wide shots of the English countryside.
‘The Florida Project’, although not as visually romantic and delicate, also provides outstanding wide shots with beautiful use of colour and setting to set the atmosphere.
4. Narration:
Personally, I am a big fan of unreliable narration. Unlike the elements of film discussed above, this is not as much of a “no-brainer” and is not vital to produce a good quality film.
However, films that do feature an unreliable narrator can often be more complex and in turn, compelling. ‘Black Swan’, ‘Fight Club’ and ‘Joker’ are three prime examples of this style of storytelling.
This technique focuses the viewer as you’re constantly trying to process what is actually going on. Bonus points if the narrator goes down the path of insanity and obsession (this isn’t rare).
These are four of my favourites in film accompanied by some of my favourite examples. If you’re looking for a film to sit down and really think about, I would suggest any of the above.