Deck 2: The significance of film form

Question 1

Which of the following is NOT an example of a manifestation of the formal principle of difference in a film?

A) One character is in a city, and another is in a natural setting.
B) Two characters clash with each other.
C) Characters wear similar costumes or hairstyles.
D) Music varies with changes in setting.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Which of the following is NOT a type of meaning that spectators might consider in a film?

A) referential meaning
B) declared meaning
C) explicit meaning
D) implicit meaning

Answer 2

B

Question 3

In the judgment of a film's quality, a "criterion" is

A) an expectation experienced by spectators before the film begins.
B) a standard that can be applied to many different films.
C) a critique of the overall artistic value of the film.
D) an objective evaluation by an experienced film critic.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

What is the term for the relationships among the parts of a film?

A) pattern
B) form
C) structure
D) plot

Question 5

Which of the following describes a stylistic pattern used in The Wizard of Oz?

A) A tornado leads to Dorothy's journey to Oz.
B) The characters in Oz resemble characters in Dorothy's life in Kansas.
C) Dorothy's adventures in Oz result from her desire to return to Kansas.
D) Colors are used to identify landmarks and locations within the story.

Question 6

Events that involve characters and that form a story in a film constitute the film's

A) narrative elements.
B) stylistic elements.
C) plot structure.
D) content.

Question 7

A written outline that details the major and minor parts of a film, marking the parts by numbers and letters, is a

A) script.
B) segmentation.
C) form plan.
D) blueprint.

Question 8

What is a "motif"?

A) an important element that is repeated throughout a film
B) a justification for an element appearing in a film
C) a reason for a character's actions
D) an element that creates conflict in a film

Question 9

Which of the following criteria for evaluating a film involves an assessment of how emotionally engaging the film is?

A) moral criteria
B) realistic criteria
C) intensity of effect
D) originality

Question 10

A delay in the fulfillment of an established expectation creates

A) frustration.
B) suspense.
C) confusion.
D) surprise.

Question 11

One convention of narrative form is that

A) the conclusion of a film resolves characters' problems.
B) characters sing and dance in the film.
C) the film features thrilling scenes, such as spectacular car chases.
D) background information about characters is introduced late in the film.

Question 12

What kinds of emotions are most likely produced by expectations that are fulfilled?

A) anxiety or sympathy
B) puzzlement or increased interest
C) sadness or joy
D) satisfaction or relief

Question 13

Which of the following is NOT a stylistic element of a film?

A) the way the camera moves
B) the use of music
C) the pattern of narrative events
D) the arrangement of color in a frame

Question 14

Which of the following conventions, common in current films, would have been considered unusual in the 1940s and 1950s?

A) a slow pace of events
B) singing and dancing
C) flashbacks to earlier events
D) the portrayal of activities that do not occur in everyday life

Question 15

Similarities between two or more distinct elements of a film are called

A) repetitions.
B) consistencies.
C) shared traits.
D) parallels.

Question 16

Which of the following works is NOT structured around a journey?

A) The Wizard of Oz
B) Collateral
C) The Lord of the Rings
D) The Odyssey

Question 17

Such elements as traditions, dominant styles, or popular forms that are common to several different artworks are called

A) traits.
B) genres.
C) conventions.
D) formulas.

Question 18

Comparing the beginning with the ending of a film helps spectators to understand

A) the film's overall pattern.
B) parallel elements in the film.
C) motifs in the film.
D) the film's overall message.

Question 19

Surprise generally results from

A) an expectation that is fulfilled late in a film.
B) a predictable pattern in the film's form.
C) the buildup of suspense.
D) an expectation that turns out to be incorrect.

Question 20

A film is said to be complex if

A) spectators have difficulty following the story line.
B) it involves numerous characters.
C) it invites spectators to think more deeply about their own real-life situations.
D) it creates multiple relations among many different formal elements.

Question 21

Personal taste and evaluative judgment are virtually the same.

Question 22

Prior experience has little effect on spectators' expectations as they view a film.

Question 23

Emotions represented in a film are usually experienced by the audience as well.

Question 24

A film's "development" is based on repetition as well as

A) progression.
B) the film's ending.
C) motifs.
D) themes.

Question 25

Emotions experienced by spectators result from spectators' perceptions of

A) how other spectators interpret the film.
B) the film's use of conventions.
C) formal patterns in the film.
D) how closely the film's events resemble those of real life.

Question 26

Referential meaning is meaning that is openly asserted in a film.

Question 27

Comedy often depends on creating surprise or cheating spectators' expectations.

Question 28

A film without gaps in its overall form has

A) intensity.
B) unity.
C) organization.
D) development.

Question 29

"Meaning" refers to what a film says or suggests.

Question 30

Curiosity is a pattern of expectation that results when artistic cues cause spectators to think about events that came before a certain point in the film.

Question 31

Symptomatic meanings result from

A) the characteristics of a particular society at a particular time.
B) spectators' ability to relate to characters in the film.
C) problems that the characters in a film try to overcome.
D) flaws exhibited by the characters in a film.

Question 32

In film evaluation, moral criteria are used to judge certain aspects of a film outside their context in the film.

Question 33

A unified film may leave some questions unanswered or contain some unintegrated elements.

Question 34

Genres are unaffected by conventions.

Question 35

Each major character in The Wizard of Oz fulfills a single significant function.

Question 36

Implicit meanings are sometimes called

A) concrete elements.
B) themes.
C) interpretations.
D) subtexts.

Question 37

Variation is a fundamental principle of film form.

Question 38

The Wizard of Oz has a large-scale ABA form.

Question 39

Filmmakers generally strive to create artworks that invite a single interpretation-the one that the filmmaker intends.

Question 40

Social "ideology" is the set of values characteristic of a whole society.

Question 41

How can film form create new emotional reactions in the audience instead of simply triggering practiced ones? Give an example of how the Wizard of Oz uses form to override spectators' everyday emotional responses.

Question 42

Drawing your examples from the opening sequences of [title of film shown in class], write a brief essay describing how this sequence generates expectations about the film's development.Use concrete examples to illustrate your points.

Question 43

What can we discover about a film's "architecture" from analyzing its plot segmentation?

Question 44

Explain two factors that help create unity in a film.Give some specific examples, drawing on Film Art, the lecture, or [title of film shown in class].

Question 45

Evaluation of films is done on the basis of objective criteria.What are some of these criteria, and how could they be applied in evaluating [title of film or films shown in class]?