What filmmaking techniques does Celebrity use?

CineCode breaks down 4 techniques in Celebrity (1998): Black-and-White as Moral Urgency, Character Arc Inversion, Hollywood Self-Indictment and Status and Self-Worth Anxiety.

Who directed Celebrity?

Woody Allen directed Celebrity, released in 1998. CineCode also covers Take the Money and Run (1969), Bananas (1971), Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex *But Were Afraid to Ask (1972), Sleeper (1973), Love and Death (1975), Annie Hall (1977).

What films are similar to Celebrity?

Films that share techniques with Celebrity include The Godfather (1972), Schindler's List (1993), Sunset Boulevard (1950), Toy Story (1995).

Comedy · Drama

Celebrity

Woody Allen, 1998

After a divorce, two people chase their dreams in New York's world of fame. Lee is a struggling novelist turned entertainment journalist, and his ex-wife Robin rebuilds her life. It is worth watching for the way the film makes fame look glamorous in black and white and hollow in the story.

1 Cinematography 2 Narrative 1 Psychology

At a glance

Celebrity is a 1998 comedy and drama film directed by Woody Allen. This breakdown covers 4 techniques (1 cinematography, 2 narrative and 1 psychology), each with the scene where you can see it. If you like how it is made, The Godfather uses several of the same techniques.

Cinematography

Black-and-White as Moral Urgency

Choosing to shoot in black and white to take away the comfort and pleasure of color. The film feels more serious, and you watch as a witness.

How this film uses it

Sven Nykvist shot the film in black and white on location in New York. You can read the black and white as giving the film an old-fashioned seriousness. It also drains the shine from the celebrity world it satirizes.

Where to see it

The film premiere. Robin runs into Lee there at the end, in the same world he has been chasing.

Narrative

Character Arc Inversion

Taking a character to the opposite of where they started, such as from weak to strong or from decent to compromised. That reversal is what the film is about.

How this film uses it

Robin begins hurt and lost after the divorce. She gets a makeover, meets a TV producer and ends up happily married and pregnant. Lee starts out with the flashy life and ends up still unsure he is happy. They swap places.

Where to see it

Robin's makeover. She changes her look and her life, and decides to marry Tony Gardella.

Narrative

Hollywood Self-Indictment

Making a film that criticizes the film industry from the inside. It shows the cruelty under the glamour of stardom and how easily talent gets thrown away.

How this film uses it

The film is set in the world of film premieres, entertainment journalism and star chasing. Lee crashes his car into a store window while out with a supermodel. The glamour looks shallow and people treat each other as props. You can read it as Allen turning on the business around him.

Where to see it

The opening. A film crew on the street tries to capture a star walking from a limo.

Psychology

Status and Self-Worth Anxiety

Centering a character's fear of being unimportant, replaced or left behind. Their pursuit of rank, success or recognition shows how fragile their self-worth is.

How this film uses it

Lee gets close to the fame he wanted and still wants more. He flirts with an extra, Nola, and juggles an editor, Bonnie, with her. His ambitions slip away along with the manuscript Bonnie throws into the water. At the end he is still questioning whether he is happy.

Where to see it

The ferry. As Lee's juggling falls apart, Bonnie throws his only manuscript into the water.

Questions

Celebrity: quick answers

What filmmaking techniques does Celebrity use?: CineCode breaks down 4 techniques in Celebrity (1998): Black-and-White as Moral Urgency, Character Arc Inversion, Hollywood Self-Indictment and Status and Self-Worth Anxiety.
Who directed Celebrity?: Woody Allen directed Celebrity, released in 1998. CineCode also covers Take the Money and Run (1969), Bananas (1971), Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex *But Were Afraid to Ask (1972), Sleeper (1973), Love and Death (1975), Annie Hall (1977).
What films are similar to Celebrity?: Films that share techniques with Celebrity include The Godfather (1972), Schindler's List (1993), Sunset Boulevard (1950), Toy Story (1995).

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