The Italian Job- 1969 original film vs 2003 remake
The Italian job was originally released in 1969, as a British made film directed by Peter Collinson. The movie was the 14th most popular in the UK box office, making $3 million in the UK Box office, and a world wide gross- $51,590 million. It received a Golden Globe for best English language foreign film, however wasn't successful in America. The 2003 American remake however, directed by F. Gary Gray was more of a success, with gross $106 million in the USA alone, making $176.1 million in the world wide Box Office. The movies differ slightly in narrative, but more importantly, there are significant changes and adaptations to the mise-en-scene, sound quality and visuals of the movies.
In the 1969 version, the movie begins with an introduction of scenery and setting, showing the Italian snow covered alps, trees and a fairly empty road in which the first character is introduced, as he drives throughout the whole intro. Throughout watching this, I noticed the saturation of the colours were at a high level, and the overall camera quality was very standard, however considerable for its time. The original movie used the same camera throughout, using a Panavision lens, therefore the quality of the visuals remained consistent throughout. Along with the standard visuals, the quality of the sound, specifically during dialogue, was of poor standard in terms of today.
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The Sound Mix used throughout the film was Mono sound. In terms of sound in general, there was use of non diegetic and diegetic sound, specifically in the intro, as there was the sound of old music playing, as well as the sound of the revving of the engine. During the intro, the opening credits were playing, with the use of basic text to suit the time, reminiscent of the font of 1969 car logos such as ford and Chevrolet. The editing of the opening credits were simple with no special effects. This goes for most of the movie, as there was prominent use of simple cuts to switch scenes. In the beginning of the movie, the “villains” are clearly dressed in all black, connoting danger, evil and malice, making it easy for the audience to distinguish they are the villains. The use of mise-en-scene is used effectively, specifically when switching locations, as the movie was filmed in England, Ireland and Italy. This is evidenced near the beginning, when a red letter box is shown in the scene, allowing the audience to understand that the setting has moved from Italy to London.
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he remake has evident differences to the original, in terms of the aspects highlighted previously. In the 2003 version, the movie straight away gets into the opening credits, with editing to provide snapshots of the opening location, which in this case was Venice. The font used in this version was much more modern, and edited in a more advanced manner. The non-diegetic sound of the music playing whilst these credits are being shown, are much more upbeat and modern, and have similarities to those played in action movies and superhero movies today. The visuals of the movie are much clearer and are to a higher standard, as the movie was filmed with a variety of different cameras and different lenses. Waterproof cameras were also used to film underwater scenes. Along with the visual quality, the sound quality was also much improved, and instead of Mono Sound, the 2003 remake used a DTS Dolby Sound Mix.
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In terms of mise-en-scene, attractions and famous buildings were shown, in order for the audience to recognize the setting. For example, the famous Italian canals and gondolas were shown, to inform the audience that the location was Venice. In addition, long shots were shown in order to set the scene, and allow the audience to observe the surroundings. Just as the original film did, the remake also used both non-diegetic and dialogue sound, as shown where music can be heard, as well as dialogue and the sound of the boats. In the 2003 version, cuts and editing were much more advanced, which is illustrated in one part of the movie where the director changes scenes by panning into the ceiling, and in the next scene panning out of the floor, which were then edited together to create an illusion that the camera went through the ceiling. The original movie mostly stuck to jump cuts. |
Lastly, the original movie had clear codes and conventions, as shown with the villains dressed in black, as in the late 60’s, audiences would be more passive, only interested in watching the movie, and have no desire to think for themselves or create their own theories. However, the remake was built more for an active audience, as the movie has more unexpected turns and surprises for the audience. This is evidenced near the beginning, where one of the main characters is killed. All characters in the scene were dressed in dark clothing, including the “heroes” or “good guys”. This made it unexpected for the audience to think a killing would occur between them, and made the audience think for themselves who the “villains” were, as there was a lack of connotation for the audience to base their presumptions on.