Genre Research: Angel Has Fallen

According to Rotten Tomatoes, "When there is an assassination attempt on U.S. President Allan Trumbull (Morgan Freeman), his trusted confidant, Secret Service Agent Mike Banning (Gerard Butler), is wrongfully accused and taken into custody. After escaping from capture, he becomes a man on the run and must evade his own agency and outsmart the FBI in order to find the real threat to the President. Desperate to uncover the truth, Banning turns to unlikely allies to help clear his name, keep his family from harm and save the country from imminent danger." Throughout the movie various camera angles and movements are utilized to create an action packed movie. For example, various two-three shots are used to create a sense of how under powered the protagonist is against the antagonist. As another example, many establishing shots are used to establish the setting of each of the scenes. In the beginning of the movie, a establishing shot of the compound Mike Banning is training at appears. Later on in the movie an aerial establishing shot is used to show the hospital in which the president is recovering. Another important aspect of the movie is the mis-en-scene, such as the costumes, lighting, actors, makeup, props, and settings. The costumes in the movie are mostly formal, such as suits and ties, to represent the Secret Service and the president. The lightning in the movie can be murky at times while at other times bright to signify the public spaces the protagonists are in. The makeup remains fairly neutral as the movie is trying to represent current day society. Also, the actors are meant to represent the president, the presidents staff, as well as the Secret Service. As such, the actors are in general good health and fit. Finally the props and settings are meant to resemble current day society. The setting is typically urban cities, with the occasion of wilderness and the main characters use props such as assault riffles, pistols, knifes, trucks, cars, helicopters, etc. Furthermore, another important aspect of this film and thriller genre is the sound used. This movie makes use of loud sound effects such as gun fire, explosions, or a helicopter moving. The dialogue also contributes to the plot development of the story by introducing more details regarding Mike Banning's involvement in the assassination and setup. Finally, the editing contributes to the action packed scenes throughout the movie. For instance, a shot-reverse-shot is used to create suspense as the antagonists movie towards the hospital where the president is being treated at. The camera shifts from the antagonists cars, to the hospital, and back to the cars.

In summary, the movie "Angel has Fallen," follows the conventions and codes of the thriller genre. The movie makes use of action packed scenes, multiple points of views, a large group of antagonists compared to the single protagonist, and loud sound effects (ex. gunfire). These elements all help to contribute to the movies fast pace and action packed plot. This fast pace combined with the action packed scenes keep audiences interested. Angel has Fallen makes use of many elements of thrillers that appeal to me such as the suspenseful plot structure, loud sound effects, and multiple points of view. However, there are some elements of the movie that I do not like. Some additional editing could be added to give the scenes more dramatic effect and I would have loved to see more tracking shots to build suspense. Overall, Angel has Fallen is an amazing movie and factors such as the sound effects will be useful in constructing my Final Task.