Inglorious Basterds Editing Techniques Analysis
History of Editing
1895 sparked the turning point of cinema through the creation of the "Cinematographe" by the Lumiere Brothers. This piece of equipment shaped film forever as it served as a motion picture film camera, a film projector and a printer. Although the original idea for this was created by French inventor Leon Bouly, due to lack of funding he sold the rights to the Lumiere Brothers.
The problem with the Cinematographe is that the entire film had to be shot within one take. Early film-makers were afraid to edit shots together as they assumed the result would confuse audiences as they would be taken from one location or storyline to another.
Eventually (and thankfully) film-makers overcame their initial fear of audience confusion and soon discovered that jump cuts added to the reality and the element of story telling. For example, in a book, a character could have a flashback or the story could have two parallel running story lines, therefore the power of the jump cut simply makes the images in the readers heads visual.
At 12 minutes long, The Great Train Robbery (1903) is considered a cinematic milestone and was noted for it's "ground breaking" use of cross cutting in the editing process, showing multiple story lines running parallel to each other (a technique which had never before been used in cinema). The technique consists of the camera cutting away from one scene of action to another, suggesting that these two scenes are happening simultaneously.
Other transitions include dissolve (a gradual transition of one image to another through the overlapping of two shots), fade (in or out, which is the transition to/from a blank image) and wipe (one shot replacing the previous by travelling from one side of the frame to another). Wipe transitions are not commonly used in films as they do not convey a natural feel, yet one exception is Star Wars, a very successful film franchise which often uses this type of unusual transitioning technique.
Visual Analysis
A continuity system exists in film making consisting of rules that help prevent audience confusion and aid in the understanding of the situation occurring on screen/relationship between the shots. This system allows the viewers to easily follow the action and keeps the fluidity of the film, keeping it as realistic as possible.
The first rule of the continuity system is the establishing shot. An establishing shot is usually the first shot at the beginning of a new scene, either when the location has changed from the one prior, or the beginning of the film. This shot was created for the audience to associate the location in the shot to action in the next. The clip from the video below entitled 'Inglorious Basterds Hans Landa opening scene' doesn't actually follow this common convention, in fact beginning straightaway with a shot of the Hans Landa and the farmer talking at the table. The first and only establishing shot during this clip is an eyeline match from Hans Landa at 3:42. Landa is aiming his gun towards the fleeing woman, and the camera quickly switches to a shot of what he can see. This cleverly considered "eyeline match" also serves as an establishing shot of the field, as in the next shot the scene changes to show the woman running through the field shown in the prior shot.
Another highly significant element of continuity is the 180 degree rule. This is a cinematography guideline that ensures the audience can keep up with the positioning of characters often during conversation. This rule states that the (usually) two characters must maintain the same relationship to one another during the ongoing scene. The picture below shows the invisible axis between the characters and the 180 degree arc where cameras must be placed.
The problem with the Cinematographe is that the entire film had to be shot within one take. Early film-makers were afraid to edit shots together as they assumed the result would confuse audiences as they would be taken from one location or storyline to another.
Eventually (and thankfully) film-makers overcame their initial fear of audience confusion and soon discovered that jump cuts added to the reality and the element of story telling. For example, in a book, a character could have a flashback or the story could have two parallel running story lines, therefore the power of the jump cut simply makes the images in the readers heads visual.
At 12 minutes long, The Great Train Robbery (1903) is considered a cinematic milestone and was noted for it's "ground breaking" use of cross cutting in the editing process, showing multiple story lines running parallel to each other (a technique which had never before been used in cinema). The technique consists of the camera cutting away from one scene of action to another, suggesting that these two scenes are happening simultaneously.
Other transitions include dissolve (a gradual transition of one image to another through the overlapping of two shots), fade (in or out, which is the transition to/from a blank image) and wipe (one shot replacing the previous by travelling from one side of the frame to another). Wipe transitions are not commonly used in films as they do not convey a natural feel, yet one exception is Star Wars, a very successful film franchise which often uses this type of unusual transitioning technique.
Visual Analysis
A continuity system exists in film making consisting of rules that help prevent audience confusion and aid in the understanding of the situation occurring on screen/relationship between the shots. This system allows the viewers to easily follow the action and keeps the fluidity of the film, keeping it as realistic as possible.
The first rule of the continuity system is the establishing shot. An establishing shot is usually the first shot at the beginning of a new scene, either when the location has changed from the one prior, or the beginning of the film. This shot was created for the audience to associate the location in the shot to action in the next. The clip from the video below entitled 'Inglorious Basterds Hans Landa opening scene' doesn't actually follow this common convention, in fact beginning straightaway with a shot of the Hans Landa and the farmer talking at the table. The first and only establishing shot during this clip is an eyeline match from Hans Landa at 3:42. Landa is aiming his gun towards the fleeing woman, and the camera quickly switches to a shot of what he can see. This cleverly considered "eyeline match" also serves as an establishing shot of the field, as in the next shot the scene changes to show the woman running through the field shown in the prior shot.
Another highly significant element of continuity is the 180 degree rule. This is a cinematography guideline that ensures the audience can keep up with the positioning of characters often during conversation. This rule states that the (usually) two characters must maintain the same relationship to one another during the ongoing scene. The picture below shows the invisible axis between the characters and the 180 degree arc where cameras must be placed.
The line allows for the audience to orient themselves within the action of the scene. If shot-reverse-shots during a conversation did not follow this rule, the audience would become disoriented and it would not be clear upon the placement of the speaking character. The way to prevent confusion is to ensure that the 'line' is not crossed when filming, so the cameras must all be set up and record from either side of the line, but never from both sides. As an example, if both characters were shot on the left side of the screen facing to the right, it would look as though they are both talking to someone different/off camera, whereas if one character is shot facing the right and one facing the left, it displays the natural positioning of conversation and presents the audience as onlookers, as the shot-reverse-shot sequences at 0:31 shows.
Editing is a vital part of audience involvement and enjoyment, with the pace and basic storyline connections all depending upon appropriate and suitable editing techniques. Viewers interest will only be sparked if the main protagonist is worth watching, and the post-editing can increase or decrease the interest massively. Some editing techniques that aid this are;
Shot variations - a literal variation of different shots in one scene. An example of this are the frequent close ups that are used throughout the dialogue between Hans Landa and the farmer (1:13). The close proximity of the shots in relation to their faces creates a tense and dramatic tone and grasps the audiences attention, creating sympathy towards the farmer.
Soundtrack - a certain type of soundtrack can immediately determine or alter the atmosphere of the scene. For example, until 1:44, this scene has consisted entirely of dialogue. At this point, a crescendo of sinister, non diegetic, high single minor key note played by string instruments gradually increases in volume (a classic film technique to induce tension and suspense.
Multiple points of view - the shot reverse shot sequence during the dialogue between Hans Landa and the farmer show the perceptive of each character and provide the audience some insight into how the characters are feeling.
Cutaways - no cutaway shots are used in the Inglorious Basterds opening scene, so I had to search for another example. I found the clip below titled 'cutaway shot' which is from the BBC television series 'Dr Who', in which the character Martha is talking to the Master. The shot cuts away from Martha, with her dialogue running over the background, to a shot of the timer, to enforce the sense of urgency upon the audience and to realise that time is running
out.
Jumpcuts - again, the scene from Inglorious Basterds does not contain any jump cuts (most likely to maintain a sense of reality and danger), but I did find an excellent example of a jump cut sequence in the clip below titled Jump Cut Example. This scene is from the 1986 film 'Little Shop of Horrors', and this type of editing has created a comedic atmosphere, as
the cuts are in time with the soundtrack. They aren't often used in any other genre of film as they detract from the 'reality' of the scene, naking the audience aware that they are watching a film.
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