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Essay Cinematography in Schindler's List

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The paper I decided to do was on “Schindler’s List”. I have seen this movie four times and yet had not really noticed the many ways in which the director, Steven Spielberg, used the camera to emphasis a “million words”. It was interesting, when watching this film from this stand point, how I was able to see the importance of the way the director uses sounds and color to make some much significant points of a film.
I decided to emphasis the way certain close ups and facial expressions were used to show very significant emotions of the characters in the film. In these particular scenes, no words had to be used. The camera focuses on the character involved in the scene and one can tell exactly what is going on in the mind of the character. …show more content…

The relieved boy runs off. The next scene is a powerful scene. The camera does a close up of Goeth looking into a mirror. He is adjusting his hair. He seems to slip into a dream world. He envisions himself the powerful emperor that Schindler describes. He whispers “ I pardon you”. The camera then focuses on Goeth eyes. Without saying anything, the viewer knows that Goeth is far too gone. He doesn’t have the power described by Schindler. He is a mad man.
Another scene with Goeth that uses camera scene only and silence to depict so much is the scene where all the Jewish is in the hot trains. Schindler feels compassion toward these suffering people. He asks that some hoses be provided in order to cool the passengers. The SS guards think, because of their own perversions, that Schindler is trying to be cruel. They think he is trying to give the Jewish false hope. Schindler laughs a long with them. He then asks that his very long hoses be brought so that they will reach the end of the train cars. The next scene shows Schindler spraying the cars at the end of the line. The camera shows a close up of Amon Goeth. Goeth’s expression, without any words, shows a man that is very confused. You can tell that Goeth now sees that Schindler is not being cruel. He sees a man that is powerful, compassionate and a member of the Nazi party. Goeth’s expression seems to ask how???
I think the director was attempting to show that perhaps there was more to this monster, but

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