Topic > Comparative analysis of the films The Grand Budapest Hotel and Casablanca

In this essay I will discuss and compare two beautiful films which are The Grand Budapest Hotel and Casablanca. Even though the two films were made at different times, they are considered one of Hollywood's most iconic, enjoyable and classic films. This essay aims to compare the two films and find similarities in terms of cinematographic techniques, editing and narrative. These techniques helped create extraordinary atmospheres and fascinating love stories during times of war. It is believed that the producers of the film have used different techniques to create the classic atmosphere of Hollywood film which is believed to be the form of art and brilliance. The film Casablanca begins with the close-up cinematic technique. This technique aims to photograph the entire head of the person and focusing on the face, facial expressions and emotions of the person. Meanwhile this technique ignores the background because the producer or director wants to show the exact feelings and moods of the main characters. This technique is used in the scene that first introduces Rick's Café. Close-up shots are used to show all the people in the Café who came to Casablanca from all over the world: immigrants, different nations, smugglers, businessmen etc. Everyone is having fun, playing cards and drinking. We can see that they feel happy, cheerful despite the Second World War and the fact that they left their homes and past lives. In the scene we also introduced Rick who is the main character. By showing his emotions we can see that he is a confident man and a positive person, which helps us understand that he will be the main character of the film. On the contrary, The Grand Budapest Hotel introduces us to the main character Gustavo and his daily routine using an absolutely different technique. In the film, the symmetrical shot technique was used to show the daily life of the main character. Gustavo was positioned in the center of the frame as in photos or paintings. And the background details were placed symmetrically and interesting details were also shown in the background to create a whole image. This helps us understand the atmosphere surrounding the main characters. Gustavo is surrounded by perfect symmetry, beautiful decorations in his perfect life. Even though the two films used different cinematic techniques, they both managed to illustrate the atmosphere of those days and the casual lives of the main characters. In Casablanca the transition was made using the emotions of the surrounding people while in the Grand Budapest Hotel the producers used decorations, furniture and other objects to emphasize the characters of the people. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayAlso, I want to express my attention to other film techniques. In Casablanca we can see the use of many over the shoulder techniques. This technique helps tell the story and emotions of the dialogue by focusing on the people. In this shot the shoulder and head of the person from behind are in the frontal shot while the focus is on the person in the background facing the camera. I noticed these techniques many times in Casablanca, especially in dramatic and important scenes like when the main character shoots the Nazi policeman. This helps create something more realistic from the viewer's point of view and creates a real atmosphere of tension, drama and communication between the people in the film. However, the Grand Budapest used a different shooting technique, called the bird eye technique,which shows scenes from a bird's perspective. I think in 1941, when Casablanca was filmed, this technique was difficult to use. But I saw that in the shots there are some perspectives from above that show the city and the streets of Casablanca. These techniques are wonderful in terms of showing the dramatization effect and creating memorable scenes. I can conclude that Casablanca's techniques were intended to make the film more realistic for the viewer while The Grand Budapest Hotel was made to tell a story in the form of a beautiful story, image or stage show. The next important part of the film analysis is the editing, which gives the story its path and temper. Both films used a famous technique known as continuity editing. This technique helps create a continuous narrative by cutting scenes in a certain way. The purpose of continuity editing is to create smooth transitions between scenes so that viewers do not notice the changes and perceive the action as a long-term story. Even in Casablanca we can see many of these techniques used. For example, in the scene where Ricks Café was introduced we can see a simplification of the camera actions that takes us from the street outside to Rick signing the check. We can see the flow of situations flowing smoothly from one shot to the next. In this way the camera introduces us to the visitors of the bar and lets us know exactly which part of the bar we are looking at. Continuity appears constantly throughout the entire film. In all the scenes with the main characters Rick and Ilsa we can see that they always remain in the same positions. Rick is on the right side and Ilsa is on the left side. This helps to perceive the entire film as a true story and helps to see the true relationships of the couple. This also helps create the feel of the classy Hollywood style film. At the Grand Budapest Hotel continuity editing was also used throughout the entire film. This is why the similarity of The Grand Budapest Hotel with other old American films is felt. One of the main and longest scenes in the continuity montage is in Zero's storyline, when Gustavo trains and teaches him how to work at the hotel. Although this shows the actions taken during the month, these were shot according to a constant and coherent plot. This helps us see how Zero and Gustavo created the bond between each other and in which directions their relationships were developing. It helps to understand Zero's feelings and emotions and see the story from his point of view. Therefore, we can see that the films were also shot in different eras and both used the classic editing technique which gives a fascinating atmosphere and a more understandable illustration of the main actions behind the film. The story of Casablanca focuses on the main character Rick telling his life story and using omniscient narration. This technique tells the story and joke using third-person voice from Rick's point of view. In Casablanca I can hear that the man's voice is very passionate, bold and strong. This creates a certain rhythm and tone of the film. Since Rick is the main character of the story, Ilsa and her husband are only introduced halfway through the film. Furthermore, we can see that the whole narrative style uses the classical way of telling the story. There we can see that the authors used the cause and effect strategy in telling the story. The plot is primarily centered around the main characters and focuses on the actions and motivations of their relationships. Through this narrative we can see Rick's character development and his ongoing struggle between love and moral duty. The main conflict of.