Compare the opening scenes from two versions of great expectations. Which version do you think is most effective for the audience?
Consider; chapter 1 from the novel
Camera work
Dickens, one of the best novelists of all time wrote many books campaigning for social justice and work was filmed many times as he was a very famous actor. Making a film like this would require much thought and there are many problems a Director would face for example the setting of the movie and what people expect from characters like expressions and speech. That’s also true in films like Harry Potter, Lord of The Rings etc. where the Director has had to try and portray characters who are familiar to the people from the book in to the movie or maybe keep it simple or add touches of special effects.
The first Great Expectations I saw was in black and white and was made in 1946 at about Christmas time. Surprisingly colour was available at the time but the director, David Lean chose to work in black & white. B&W in films is hardly used now apart from times of flashback or to add some dramatic effect. The credits come at the beginning and it is accompanied by a mixture of dramatic and jolly orchestra music which maybe was to get the viewer into a good mood. Finally when the movie starts there is a voiceover by the adult Pip who is reading the opening sentences. After that a strong wind whips the pages and a scene comes to life, revealing a desolate marsh area with a silhouetted Pip running through it into the cemetery. There were a number of effects used such as creaks from trees and the howling wind nearby which sets the atmosphere to be quite gothic. Throughout this the camera shows the menacing gibbets, which are there as an effect to show the link with the convicts and the harshness of Victorian lives, and the foreboding sky, anticipating something might happen.