Reflective Analysis

For my coursework, I decided to make a screenplay within the comedy/ drama genre targeted at 18-40 years olds, which contains satire and social commentary about large corporations in today's capitalist world and also the media. My script is about a real event which happened last year, where Martin Shkreli head of Turing Pharmaceuticals increased the price of one of his drugs by 5,556% with no alternative drugs available on the market. I wanted to do this because this new sicken me and it has an interesting premise for a comedy given how ridiculous this is.   My screenplay is taken from the beginning of the film to show the evolution of the characters and how Martin in particular learns from his past actions after seeing first hand how it affects people.

I was very inspired by Terrance Winter's screenplay for 'The Wolf of Wall Street', particularly at how he makes this horrible and despicable character in Jordan Belfort (the film's main and title character) likable and relatable. He does this by making him funny but also human, eventually having a fall from the top and learning from his actions, I wanted to do this for my screenplay because our two leads in Martin Shkreli and Jordan Belfort are very similar, they are both greedy businessman who only care about profits and not the people they are badly affecting, therefore I used techniques which Winter used in his screenplay in my own to draw the parallels. I was also inspired by Winter's screenplay because he makes Jordan Belfort talk directly into the camera multiple times, breaking the 4th wall in doing so. I wanted to us this in my screenplay because its a great way of giving the audience information without it coming against as exposition but it's a good way of getting into the character's head of what they are thinking about the situation they are in. Finally, I liked how Winter described the mise-en-scene in each scene in 'The Wolf of Wall Street', he described how the setting looked and how each of the characters are dressed, but I liked how he would give specific examples of products in the screenplay, for example ‘Jordan gets out of a '85 Datsun'. I liked and used this in my own screenplay because it creates a more vivid image for the reader and also establishes the time period, although as my takes place only last year (2015) this isn't important to me as it was to 'The Wolf of Wall Street' as this takes place over 3 different time periods, most taking place in the 1980's.

Looking back and reflecting on my screenplay, I could have  edited down the boardroom scene as this is the longest scene in the screenplay with the most dialogue also. I wanted this is scene long with quite a bit of dialog because this is the scene with the most satire and comedy in but also because we have 2 conflicting ideologies attacking each other over a point which they disagree on, which should make for a compelling scene and the 2 differences in ideologies is a recurring motif in dramas. However, I could have edited this scene down because it is long meaning we could lose people's interest in the film due to being bored by an overlong scene, which would be even worse for us as this is the only the start of the screenplay/ film. Furthermore to make my screenplay even better, I could have reduced the dialog in the boardroom to ensure that people's interest remained throughout the whole scene which may not have been the case if I kept it's long running time. Another improvement I could have made to my screenplay is my description of the settings the characters are in. Throughout my script I focused a lot on the characters and their actions in response to their surroundings (particularly the boardroom and Africa scenes) however I feel as though I could've created a much clearer idea of their surroundings which would allow the reader to truly 'feel' the setting. However, I do feel as though I used particular aspects of the misè-en-scene within my script to create symbolism and connection to my intended genre, and I did describe the settings the characters are in at the start of each scene, which certainly creates an image for the reader. One example of symbolism I used in the screenplay was with James in the boardroom scene, as I wrote that the only light in the room was coming from behind him. The symbolism I intended for this is that he is the only on in that room who isn't a dark and sinster character, that he is literally the only one in the light and that hes morals and ideology is the correct one and not Martin's despite the whole room worshiping and agreeing with him. 

Another success I had with this screenplay was making Martin Shkreli somewhat likable, at least as likable considering his actions which are inexcusable and morally wrong.  I made him likable by making him funny, charming and charismatic when speaking, but also making an argument that what he did was correct and put an argument forward for it, although I personally disagree with it. I needed to make him likable or else the audience wouldn't care what what Martin said or did meaning they wouldnt be completely invested in the film. Another success I had with my screenplay is my description of key props in the screenplay. For example, I give specific examples of what Martin Schalki is wearing in the film's opening scene, an example being 'There’s a close up of his 18k yellow gold Rolex Oyster watch, which has been freshly polished today to look even more grander'. I did this to create a more vivid image for the reader but also to comment on how materialist rich powerful people are by them wearing expensive, luxurious clothes, and therefore have a juxtaposition when describing the poorer people in the screenplay later on who don't have this luxury. In fact, the film's opening scene is to introduce Martin to the audience and immediately show them how  narcissistic and materialistic he is, a key idea I was trying to make about Martin and his other rich colleagues. Overall I feel my screenplay would have benefited from an extended development of the wider narrative through the expansion of the dialogue and scenes. Despite this I feel that my screenplay is compelling and satisfies the requirements of my target audience and of the genre as well as telling a good story. 

To what extent could Leonardo DiCaprio be termed a method actor?

To what extent could Leonardo DiCaprio be termed a method actor?

Speaker: The Stanislavski System is an intense character development process that strives to make a performance "real" and not artificial. In order to achieve this realism, the system is used according to Stanislavski 'to bring an actor's experiences into the role and to expand an actor's imagination' (Item 11). Therefore the two conditions which need to be applied to say that an actor is using the Stanislavski method acting technique are:
1. Whether they are bring some of their personal experiences into the role
2. Whether their imagination can be expanded whilst playing the role
I will be using this to explain why I think Leonardo DiCaprio does use the Stanislavski's method acting formula in some of his films. Here's an example of the work which he produces using his method acting technique, in 'The Wolf of Wall Street' as Jordan Belfort. 

Projector: Lemmon Drug Phase Scene in 'The Wolf Of Wall Street' (Item 2)

Speaker: I think this scene perfectly captures how into character Leonardo DiCaprio was whilst shooting this film. Firstly, that really is him falling down the stairs, he decided not to use a stunt double for this scene, despite everyone telling him to use one (Item 6). This is because he wanted to make his performance as authentic and accurate as possible, and said in an interview with ExtraTV 'when you play a character like this you have to go all out' (Item 16). In addition to this, DiCaprio completely improvised this scene on the today they shoot this scene (Item 20). According to this article, 'DiCaprio came up with the idea of opening the car with his foot but strained his back during filming, meaning he could only perform the action once'. This applies that not only is DiCaprio able to act and think like this character, but he can also have a producer's mindset and come up with ideas for his character in the film. This is probably because of the environment Martin Scorsese, the films director, created on the films set, which DiCaprio described as 'we had ideas where scenes wanted to go but it was incredibly loose , there would be scenes that were a page long and we would be improvising for hours and hours... anything can happen on that day and it did' (Source 21). 

Projector: Inspiration Speech Scene in 'The Wolf of Wall Street' (Item 2)

If we analyse DiCaprio's performance in this scene we can see how he has visually transformed himself into this character. Firstly, he has put a New York accent on instead of his LA accent and dying his hair black instead of his blonde hair to look more like the character he is playing, Jordan Belfort. In addition to this, DiCaprio is saying this speech with so much passion and commitment which shows how into his character, which would have been hard for DiCaprio as he described Jordan as the character as 'a vaccum of consumption with no moral compass', something he isn't which made the character 'fun to play'. DiCaprio didn't just read the book the film was based on (which goes by the same title, written by Jordan Belfort), he also talked 'extensively to Jordan Belfort himself' (Items 5 and 6), the character he was playing in the film. He wanted to make sure he knew everything about the character and how he acted to make sure his performance was accurate and approved by the person he was playing. Another method acting technique DiCaprio used for 'The Wolf of Wall Street' was he talked to doctors about about how the brain acts under this drug and how people act when they are under them, as he would have to act this out in the film (Item 5). Once again, DiCaprio did this incredibly detailed research to make sure his performance was accurate and he made sure he acted like you should when you take the drugs he takes in the film, as a pose to acting inaccurately when taking them drugs, which would have made his performance exaggerated and not accurate/ realistic. 

Projector: The Mad Max scene in 'The Wolf Of Wall Street' (Item 2)

This is an example of a scene which would have been improvised by DiCaprio and the other actors on set, only loosely following the film's screenplay. However, with all of this being said, can Stanislavski method acting technique be applied to Leonardo DiCaprio for his performance in 'The Wolf Of Wall Street'? The two conditions which need to be applied to say that an actor is using the Stanislavski method acting technique are:
1. Whether they are bring some of their personal experiences into the role
2. Whether their imagination can be expanded whilst playing the role 
I personally believe that the method acting process can be applied to Leonardo DiCaprio in 'The Wolf of Wall Street' because these techniques (talking extensively to Belfort, doing his own stunts etc) and the improvisation he did on set all helped him get into character and therefore expanded his imagination when he played Jordan Belfort, this being the first rule of method acting which he has clearly achieved. However, I believe that DiCaprio did bring some of his own experiences into this role, namely all the excessive drinking and partying the character does in this film. This is because DiCaprio personally has been known to throw massive parties and drink excessive amounts during said parties, particularly his 40th birthday party (Item 18), and therefore I believe that he added these personal experiences when playing Jordan Belfort, as both of these parallel each other in that they both throw massive parties and drink excessive amounts during said parties. As a result, because of all the techniques he used to broaden his imagination whilst playing Jordan Belfort and the fact that he used personal experiences when playing the character as well, I believe the term 'method actor' can be applied completely to Leonardo DiCaprio in 'The Wolf of Wall Street'. However, can this also be applied to his performance as Calvin Candie in 'Django Unchained'. 

Projector: The dinner scene in 'Django Unchained' (Item 1)
I think this scene shows just how much Leonardo DiCaprio was in character whilst playing Calvin Candie in 'Django Unchained'. In this scene, DiCaprio accidentally cut his hand on a broken wine glass which was on the table when he slammed his hand down. However, DiCaprio was so in character that he kept going, never breaking character and he even improvised with the blood, rubbing it on Kerry Washington's face to make him even more terrifying in the scene.This take is the one which made it into the final cut of the film, meaning all of his co-stars reactions are genuine rather than acting and after the take he immediately required snitches  as the cut was that deep (all from Item 4). Its clear just from this take that DiCaprio has 'broadened his imagination as the character', a quote from Stanislavski describing one of the elements needed to fit his definition of method acting (Item 11). 

Projector: The first time Django and Calvin Candie meet in 'Django Unchained' (Item 1)

To prepare for this character, DiCaprio isolated and shut himself away from his loved ones whilst shooting this film, opted instead to perfect his acting for the character because he had never played this type of character before, a character he describes as 'the most narcissistic, self-indulged racist characters I have ever read in my entire life' (Item 23 NBC). This is something he also used for 'Shutter Island' and repeated it for this film (Item 14). So, techniques like this one and managing to stay fully in character whilst injuring yourself during a take prove that DiCaprio broaden his imagination whilst in character and he was always in character on set, however he never managed to bring any of his personal experiences to the character because he despised the character. In an interview for Django Unchained he also said that Calvin Candie 'represents the moral decay of the South during that time period' and 'was like a Louis 14th type character, the worse of the worse' (Item 7). As a result, DiCaprio couldn't put anything personal experiences into the character of Calvin Candie because he personally despised and hated the character and he had to go all out with the character despite hating him or else he would be 'sugarcoating plantation owners during that time period' according to him in an interview with SAGFoundation (Item 6). Therefore, the term method actor can't be applied completely to DiCaprio in 'Django Unchained' like it can be in 'The Wolf of Wall Street' for him because he didn't put anything personal/ any personal experiences into his character in 'Django Unchained' like he did in 'The Wolf of Wall Street' meaning the term 'method actor' can't be applied completely to him for this film, but can it be applied to him for his role in the Martin Scorsese directed 'The Aviator'? 

Projector: The hand washing scene from 'The Aviator' (Item 3)
This scene shows just one of the many things DiCaprio had to master in this film- Howard Hughes' OCD. DiCaprio mastered Hughes OCD so well that he actually gained OCD himself whilst on set, which shows that he was always in character when playing Howard Hughes, an important aspect of method acting (Item 15). One method acting technique DiCaprio used to make his performance as Howard Hughes as accurate as possible was he listened to lots of audio recordings from the real Howard Hughes with his acting coach Larry Moss so he could perfectly master 'Hughes' curious voice patterns'  to quote Larry Moss(Item 5). In addition to this, DiCaprio said he watched 'classic' films to help him prepare for 'The Aviator' and to play Howard Hughes (Item 8). DiCaprio stated that he was 'blown away by the vulnerability of James Dean, also a method actor, in “East of Eden” and “stunned” by the power of Montgomery Clift' and that performance helped him when preparing for 'The Aviator'. 

Projector: The theatre scene in 'The Aviator' (Item 3)

I think this scene shows the depth to which DiCaprio will go for any film, as here he has grown his hair and fingernails out and he is still mastering Hughes accent, never breaking out of character. DiCaprio didn't just use techniques to broaden his imagination while playing Hughes,  the term 'method actor' can be completely applied to DiCaprio in this film is because he put a lot of his own personal experience/ parts of himself into the character, as Hughes and DiCaprio have similarities. These similarities include that they are both box office/ movie stars and that they are both worth a lot of money. DiCaprio is and Hughes was box office/ movie stars, with 10 of DiCaprio's 22 films earning over $100 million at the box office (Item 9)and Hughes directed big budget films, with his most famous, 'Hell's Angels' earning $8 million at the box office in 1930, which is around $114 million when adjusted with inflation (Item 10). Furthermore, they are both worth a lot, with Hughes worth $1.6 billion back then, which is roughly over $6 billion today (Item 19) and DiCaprio has an estimated worth of $245 million (Item 13). As a result, because DiCaprio and Hughes share these 2 characteristics (box office stars and worth a lot of money), I believe would have used his own personal experiences with these characteristics when playing Hughes for 'The Aviator', meaning DiCaprio put some of his own personal experiences in playing Howard Hughes. This means then the term 'method actor' can be applied completely to DiCaprio in 'The Aviator' as he used method acting techniques to get into character and he put some of his own personal experiences into playing this character. 

In conclusion, I think it's fair to say that the term 'method actor' can be applied to Leonardo DiCaprio, especially for the roles I have discussed in this presentation. It's a technique he uses for most of his films so he can perfect his character and to make his performance as accurate and realistic as possible when playing a real life person. It seems DiCaprio however has gone even further for his method acting in his latest film 'The Revenant' as he has slept in dead animals, eat raw livers and went in and out of freezing cold rivers, opting against body doubles once again (Item 17). With this final bit of evidence, I think it's clearly evident that Leonardo DiCaprio can be termed as a method actor and he uses Stanislavski method acting process to help him make his performance genuine and real, not artificial and fake opting to use some of his own personal experiences into his performances to make that happen.   

How does mise-en-scene and sound in City Of God generate meaning and response?

The opening of 'City Of God' generates meaning and response straight away in it's opening shot. The opening shot is a close up of a knife being sharpen, which immediately implies that living in Brazil is dangerous and you are living on a knife's edge. The editing also reflects what it is like to live in Brazil in this time period, because there are quick cuts, this means that Brazil is fast, lively and eventful, there's always something going on. Later on in the scene, with a series of quick cuts, we see a chicken try to escape from the 'hoodlums', which is a metaphor for every character in the film because they are all trying to escape from the favela, however like the chicken, they can't escape from the favela and the crimes which happen there. In addition to this, because the chicken is a metaphor, it shows the characters have an animistic side to them, largely because they are all trapped in the favelas and can't escape it. It's also interesting that in the film's opening scene, we are identifying  with the chicken then the film's main characters. There is then a 360 degree shot which shows Rocket in between the hoodlums and the police. This shot shows the clear conflict of not just the film, but also what real people have to live with in the favellas and that's the conflict between the police and the hoodlums. It's also like the film is visually showing us that Rocket has a choice to make, he can either choose the police and fight against crime or choose the hoodlum and commit crimes. There's then a straight cut during the 360 degree shot to Rocket when he was younger in the sixties and this single cut tells us a lot about the sixties compared the seventies. In the mise-en-scene, we can see that the sixties is a lot brighter which implies that it was better to live during that time period than the seventies, this is probably due to the lack of hoodlums and drugs at this moment in time. There is also a voice over narration from Rocket, which is done so we get more information about the favella and it's current state from someone who currently lives there and has experience of it during the last 2 decades. Furthermore, in the mise-en-scene, there is a lot more space behind Rocket, especially compared to earlier on in the scene when there was houses stacked upon each other and hardly any room to move in. Contextually, this is because the population of people living in the favellas from the sixties to the seventies increased massively, and as a result they had to build lots more houses to accommodate for these people, when in reality they haven't got much space to really build them houses. The editing in the sixties also tells us that living during the sixties was a lot calmer and more peaceful for the favella citizens, this is because the editing during this scene in the sixties is a lot slower with longer takes, which is a complete juxtaposition compared to the seventies which had quicker cuts and therefore slower takes. Lastly, in the sixties, Rocket doesn't have his camera on him but in the seventies he does. This generates meaning because Rocket's choice of weapon is his camera, as a pose to most others in the favellas which is a gun. The similarities between the 2 are that both of these tools shot, the camera shots pictures whereas the gun shots bullets. Therefore, by Rocket not having the camera in the sixties, this would imply that there isn't much violence in the favellas at this current moment in time, due to Rocket not having his weapon on him in this shot.

The importance of mise-en-scene and sound in La Haine

What's the importance of mise-en-scene and/or sound in creating meaning and generating response in the films you have studied? (La Haine)


Mise-en-scene and sound are two of the biggest ways in which la Haine creates both meaning and generating response. For example, the scene in which the DJ mixes the two songs, NWA's Fuck tha Police and Edith Piaf's Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien respectively, uses both sound and miss-en-scene to generate meaning and audience response. The scene opens with a med-long shot of Hubert in his bedroom and it is dominated by American culture, as in the mise-en-scene you can see posters of Muhammand Ali and the 1968 Olympics black power salute by the athletes. The meaning of this is that Hubert, like the rest of France, is dominated by American culture, instead of having posters of French boxers and athletes, he has posters of American boxers and athletes because the American culture simply dominates the French culture. Furthermore, I personally think Hubert could represent equality in the French motto- which is equality, liberty and Brotherhood, as we can see a poster of the 1968 Olympics black power salute by the athletes, which clearly shows that Hubert believes in equality and doesn't believe in discrimination against anyone. My argument is made stronger later on when Hubert talks about equality to Vinz on rooftop near the Effiel Tower, he even mentioned the French motto to Vinz, making my argument stronger and more conclusive. There's then a med shot of Hubert in the window which shows that he is trapped and he can't escape the projects. Hubert is also wearing an Everlast shirt, an American clothing line, which is further evidence that the American culture dominates the French culture. There's then a shot from Hubert's POV which pans around the people from the projects. It's in the shot, through the mise-en-scene, which we really start to see how diverse and multi-cultural the projects are in France. Not just how diverse they are in race but also in age as there are children in the same playground as adults. The camera then pans up to a DJ putting his speakers out of his window and I believe it's here where we truly start to realise how much American culture has dominated French culture because this shot looks like it's in America, not Paris. This can be seen through the mise-en-scene of the children wearing tracksuits, Vinz smoking weed and then having a DJ playing music out of his window. After a shots of the DJ getting ready to play his mix, we get a long panning shot which pans all over the projects and shows how large the projects are in scale and it's here where sound becomes important in generating meaning and response. This is because the DJ mixes 2 songs together and them songs are NWA's Fuck tha Police and Edith Piaf's Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien respectively. This further explains to us the audience how much the French culture is dominated by the American culture. This is because Edith Piaf's Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien is the only real bit of French culture is the whole film and even then it's dominated by an American song NWA's Fuck tha Police, so whatever French culture is left in France still gets included with/dominated by a bit of American culture. Therefore, this scene, through the use of mise-en-scene and sound, really does show us how much American culture is dominated by French culture. 

The final scene is another good scene which generates response and meaning through it's use of mise-en-scene. There is a 3 shot of the 3 leads together, Saiid in the middle as he has been throughout the film and in the background is a picture of Charles Baudelaire, who was a French poet and he famously said 'the world only goes around through misunderstanding'. Firstly, it's interesting that a French poet would be on a wall in the projects as most of them are uneducated and some even to read and write. Secondly, 'the world' is a recurring motif in the film as it shows up in the mise-en-scene throughout the film. This is because the film is trying to say that this quote by Charles Baudelaire is true and this film is evidence of that. Later on in the scene, alarms and sirens can be heard and this is another recurring motif throughout the film. This is done however to show that in the projects, there is always danger and risk for the people who live and this is way they ultimately are always and cannot escape the projects. 

Leonardo DiCaprio- Method Acting

1. Django Unchained (2009, Directed by Quentin Tarantino)
While filming Django Unchained, Leonardo Dicaprio was so immersed in the role of Calvin Candie,when he cut his hand (which later required stitches) during a take, he stayed fully in character and even improvised with the blood on his hand, rubbing it on Kerry Washington's face. This take made it into the final cut of the film, therefore the reactions from the actors are genuine and their concern for him was real and genuine, which I will apply to my argument. He probably wouldn't have been able to do this if he didn't method act to become so much into his character, which makes Django Unchained a good source to prove point that DiCaprio is a method actor. 


2. The Wolf of Wall Street (2014, Directed by Martin Scoresse)
Dicaprio also used a lot of method acting techniques so he could become Jordan Belfort in Martin Scoresse's film 'The Wolf Of Wall Street'. I have chosen this film because when preparing for the quaalude scenes in 'The Wolf Of Wall Street', DiCaprio talked to Jordan Belfort (the character he is playing in the film) and doctors about how the brain acts under this drug and how people act when they are under it, as he would have to act it out in the film. He also performed the stunts himself, instead of having a stunt double which was advised, because he wanted to make his performance genuine and accurate which wouldn't have been achieved with a stunt double. 


3. The Aviator (2004, Directed by Martin Scoresse)
The Aviator is another film where DiCaprio used method acting techniques to get into the character of Howard Hughes. To help make DiCaprio's version of Howard Hughes in 'The Aviator' more accurate and realistic, he listened to lots of audio recordings of Hughes so he could master Hughes' 'curious voice patterns'. This something which most actors wouldn't do, as they would see it as unnecessary, but for DiCaprio did it to get into the mind of Howard Hughes more and to make his performance accurate to the real person. Leonardo said he watched 'classic' films to help him prepare for 'The Aviator'. DiCaprio stated that he was 'blown away by the vulnerability of James Dean in “East of Eden” and “stunned” by the power of Montgomery Clift' and that performance helped him when preparing for 'The Aviator'. 


4. Business Insider's article on actor's who refuse to break character
http://www.businessinsider.com/actors-who-refuse-to-break-character-2013-2?op=1&IR=T
This article explains an incident on the set of Django Unchained where Leonardo DiCaprio, playing Calvin Candie, cut his hand (which later required stitches) during a take, however he stayed fully in character and even improvised with the blood on his hand, rubbing it on Kerry Washington's face. This take made it into the final cut of the film, therefore the reactions from the actors are genuine and their concern for him was real and genuine. This source is useful because it tells us how Dicapio is a method actor and always stays in character and this is information I previously did not know about. However, it could be applied to my argument, although it could have talked about how he is a method actor in his other films like 'Wolf Of Wall Street' and 'Shutter Island'.  

5. Daily Actor's interview with Leonardo DiCaprio's acting coach, Larry Moss
http://www.dailyactor.com/2014/09/leonardo-dicaprios-acting-coach-larry-moss-on-dicaprios-performances-in-the-aviator-and-the-wolf-of-wall-street/
This article explains the preparation DiCaprio does in order to get into his roles, in this case the preparation he did for 'The Aviator' and 'The Wolf Of Wolf Street'. To help make Dicaprio's version of Howard Hughes in 'The Aviator' more accurate and realistic, he listened to lots of audio recordings of Hughes so he could master Hughes' 'curious voice patterns'. To prepare for the quaalude scenes in 'The Wolf Of Wall Street', Dicaprio talked to Jordan Belfort (the character he is playing in the film) and doctors about how the brain acts under this drug and how people act when they are under it, as he would have to act it out in the film. This is source is very useful because it shows us how DiCaprio is a method actor in 2 films and in both he used different techniques, which gives me more to write about. 


6. SAG's Interview with Leonardo DiCaprio 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61oxkOk4jy0
In this interview, Dicaprio explains that he had to wear a neck brace for the quaalude scene in Wolf of Wall Street, as he decided to perform the stunts himself instead of using a stunt double which was advised on set. Scorsese didn't meet Belfort as he wanted to make his own film whereas Dicaprio met him before shooting the film and even called him on set to make the performance accurate and realistic. This source is useful because it gives me 2 ways which Leonardo is a method actor, which gives me 2 more points to argue for DiCaprio being a method actor, yet it could be more useful if it gave me more techniques which he has used in his other films to further illustrate the point.  

7. Interview with Leonardo DiCaprio about Django Unchained for MediaJOR
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELNUeD5PDfI
This is an interview with Leonardo DiCaprio when he was promoting Django Unchained and in the interview he mainly talks about the character he played in the film, Calvin Candie. I will be using this interview for quotes from DiCaprio about his character as he personally hated the character which means he would have put any of his personal thoughts/ experiences into the character, which is an element of method acting. As a result, this will help me argue that DiCaprio didn't fully method act in Django Unchained because he didn't put any personal experiences or thoughts into his character.

8. Variety's article on Dicaprio's acting style
http://variety.com/2014/film/news/leonardo-dicaprio-tackles-roles-that-push-the-envelope-1201096254/
In this article, Leonardo states he watched 'classic' films to help him prepare for 'The Aviator'. Dicaprio stated that he was 'blown away by the vulnerability of James Dean in “East of Eden” and “stunned” by the power of Montgomery Clift' and that performance helped him when preparing for 'The Aviator'. He added 'it was that knowledge and respect he credits with guiding him away from traditional leading man roles and to pursue work that has compelled him'. Like the previous source, this source isn't very useful because it only tells me one technique which Dicaprio has used to help his method acting, however I am still using this source because the point is an important and valid point which furthers my argument on why DiCaprio is a method actor. 

9. Leonardo DiCaprio's Box Office
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/people/chart/?id=leonardodicaprio.htm
This is a page showing how much all the films DiCaprio has starred in have made at the box office. I will be using this information to explain a parallel which DiCaprio and Howard Hughes, a character he plays have, which is they are both box office stars, as their films made a lot of money at the box office. This will further my argument that DiCaprio is a method actor because the parallels he has with Hughes mean that he would have put his own personal experiences into the character, an element of method acting.  

10. Wikipedia Page on Hell's Angels
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hell%27s_Angels_(film)
This is a page showing how much Hell's Angels, a film Howard Hughes directed and produced, made at the box office, as well as other information about the film. I will be using this information to explain a parallel which DiCaprio and Howard Hughes, a character he plays have, which is they are both box office stars, as their films made a lot of money at the box office. This will further my argument that DiCaprio is a method actor because the parallels he has with Hughes mean that he would have put his own personal experiences into the character, an element of method acting.  

11. Method Acting Reconsidered by David Krasner (200)
This is a book which explains what method acting is and how has changed and been reconsidered over the years since it first was discussed by Stanislaviski. Similarly to Acting: A Handbook Of The Stanislavski Method, I will use this book for quotes about method acting and certain method acting techniques in order for me to judge whether Leonardo Dicaprio is a method acting. Once again, this book doesn't discuss whether Dicaprio is a method acting, yet this source is useful because I can use the method acting techniques the book suggests in order for me to judge if DiCaprio is a method actor. 

12. Scorsese by Jim Sangster (2001)
Although this book is about Scorsese, it discusses the production of 'Gangs Of New York', a film which DiCaprio stars in and the book discusses his method acting for this film, which involved him going through 9 months of intensive street-fighting training. This book is useful to me because I can use this quote from the book and it will help further my argument that DiCaprio is a method actor. 

13. Leonardo DiCaprio's Net Worth
http://www.therichest.com/celebnetworth/celeb/actors/leonardo-dicaprio-net-worth/
This is a page which gives an estimated net worth for Leonardo DiCaprio, as well as other celebrities.  I am using this information to explain a parallel between Howard Hughes and DiCaprio himself, which is they both have a large net worth. Furthermore, I will be using this information to argue that DiCaprio is a method actor because he has parallels with the character he is playing, and therefore he would have put some of his own personal experiences into the character as they have similarities which would make DiCaprio a method actor.   

15. Leonardo DiCaprio on 'The Jay Leno Show', 2004
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYvfDLZ2KTY
In this interview, DiCaprio discusses the great lengths he went to in 'The Aviator' to nail Howard Hughes' OCD, which lead him to actually gaining OCD himself while on the set. This source is useful because it shows the extent to which Dicpario was in character whilst filming 'The Avaitor' and how that performance actually had an impact on his life, therefore I can use this point to help argue my opinion that DiCaprio is a method actor.

16. Leonardo DiCaprio Interview for ExtraTV
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLSN51bKPdc 
Leonardo DiCaprio speaks in this interview about how he didn't use any body doubles in 'The Wolf Of Wall Street' saying 'when you play a character like this you have to go all out'. I will use this source because this a method acting technique as it would have helped him to get into character more and shows how he wanted to make his performance as realistic as possible. This source could have been better however because he doesn't talk about other techniques he used to help him get into character, the point it makes is a valid point which furthers my argument. 

17. An article about DiCaprio's method acting in 'The Revenant' 
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/leonardo-dicaprio-the-revenant-animal-carcasses-raw-bison_56280485e4b0bce34703e7d5
This article explains the method acting DiCaprio did for his latest film 'The Revenant', which included him sleeping in dead animals, eating raw livers and going in and out of freezing cold rivers. This source is very useful to me because it gives me lots of different techniques DiCaprio used for this film to get into character, which will help me answer my question which is DiCaprio a method actor, and these examples will help me argue that he is a method actor. 

18. An article on DiCaprio's 40 birthday party
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2832049/Leonardo-DiCaprio-parties-slew-beauties-celeb-buds-40th-birthday-bash-LA.html
This article explains what happened during Leonardo DiCaprio's 40th birthday party. I will be using this article to help explain that DiCaprio used these personal experiences of partying to help him play Jordan Belfort in 'The Wolf of Wall Street', which makes him a method actor. Therefore, this source is helpful because it's useful evidence that DiCaprio parties similar to what Belfort did and therefore this helps explain my argument. 

19. Howard Hughes' WikiPedia Page
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Hughes
This page gives me lots of information about Howard Hughes, the character DiCaprio plays in 'The Aviator'. I am using this information to see if there is any parallels between Howard Hughes and DiCaprio himself, which there is as they both have a large net worth. Furthermore, I will be using this information to argue that DiCaprio is a method actor because he has parallels with the character he is playing, and therefore he would have put some of his own personal experiences into the character as they have similarities which would make DiCaprio a method actor.   

Rejections

Leonardo DiCaprio discussing 'The Wolf of Wall Street' on 'The Ellen Show' 2014
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QflekFEDv9Y
In this interview, Dicaprio only spoke about the making of The Wolf of Wall Street and Jonah Hill's improvisation during the making of the film. This is a shame as I needed information on his method acting and this interview never gave me any information on this. 


Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, Terance Winter and Martin Scorsese talk about 'The Wolf of Wall Street' for 'The Hollywood Reporter' 2014
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBDsoW1ClJM
In this interview, they spoke mainly about making The Wolf of Wall Street and how they received financing for the film. This is a shame as I needed information on his method acting and this interview never gave me any information on this. 

The Beach (2000, Danny Boyle)
I have rejected 'The Beach' because this is a film which DiCaprio did early on in his career and he didn't use any method acting to help him get into his character, probably as his character isn't as complex as other characters he has played later on in his career. As a result, this film doesn't help my argument that he is a method actor and as a result I have rejected this film.

Updated Case studies

Inception

(USA Blockbuster)

Plot
A thief who steals corporate secrets through use of dream-sharing technology is given the inverse task of planting an idea into the mind of a CEO.

Stars
Leonardo DiCaprio 
Tom Hardy
Joseph Gordon Levitt 
Ellen Page
Michael Caine 
Christopher Nolan (has his own fan base who watch his films)

Director
Christopher Nolan 

Screenplay
Christopher Nolan 

Budget
$160 Million

Box office
Domestic- $292,576,195
Foreign- $532,956,569

Worldwide- $825,532,764 

(Opening Domestic Weekend- $62,785,337)

Certificate
PG-13 

Reviews
8.8/10 IMDB
86% Rotten Tomatoes 
Won 4 Oscars (nominated for 8 Oscars)
Critics Consensus: Smart, innovative, and thrilling, Inception is that rare summer blockbuster that succeeds viscerally as well as intellectually. (From Rotten Tomatoes)

Release date
16th July 2010 (only competition was The Sorcerer's Apprentice that weekend)

Poster

Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hP9D6kZseM

Pervious Nolan Films
The Dark Knight- $1,084,000,000 (2008)
Batman Begins- $372,700,000 (2005)
Insomnia- $113,700,000 (2002)

Pervious DiCaprio Films
Titanic- $2,128,900,000 (1997)
Catch Me If You Can- $352,100,000 (2002)
The Departed- $289,800,000 (2006)

Both Nolan and DiCaprio are clearly box offices stars based on their pervious films. 

The Inbetweeners 2

(UK Independent)

Plot
Jay, Simon, Jay and Will go on holiday to Australia. Based on The Inbetweeners Series on Channel 4 and it's a sequel to the film 'The Inbetweeners Movie'.

Stars
Simon Bird
James Buckley
Joe Thomas
Blake Harrison

Director
Iain Morris and Damon Beesley 

Budget 
£3.5 Million 

Box office
£58 Million (£12.5 Million opening weekend in the UK)
The first Inbetweeners movie- £42 Million 

Certificate
15

Reviews
6.8 from IMDB
71% from Rotten Tomatoes 
4/5 from The Telegraph 
'It pushes the envelope a lot further than I expected and I'd highly recommend seeing the film in a packed cinema'- Matthew Toomey, ABC Brisbane 

Release Date
6th August 2014 (competed with Planes 2 and God's Pocket)

Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfJxwhzgvS4

Drive

Plot

A mysterious Hollywood stuntman, mechanic and getaway driver lands himself in trouble when he helps out his neighbour.

Stars

Ryan Gosling 

Carey Mulligan

Bryan Cranston 

Director

Nicholas Winding Refn

Screenplay

Hossein Amini (based on the book by James Sallis)

Budget

$15 Million

Box office

$76,175,166 (Opening weekend $11,340,461)

Competed with Lion King 3D and Contagion in it's opening weekend

Certificate

R- Meaning children couldn't see the film, which limited its target audience. Contained a lot of violence which again would have limited its target audience as some audience members wouldn't want to see the violent scenes therefore they wouldn't see the film. 

Reviews

7.8 from IMDB

93% from Rotten Tomatoes 

78% from Metacritic 

'Drive is a masterpiece of surface over depth. Catnip for anyone who thinks cinema is for the eye rather than the brain or heart. A bromance between Refn and its star Ryan Gosling that borders on the homoerotic and is meant to send geezer viewers into crush mode, but not so much they’ll have to worry they’re actually, like, gay. It’d take a brave filmmaker to risk losing his core audience. Refn is many things, but he’s not brave' From The Telegraph 

Release Date

16th September 2011

Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBiOF3y1W0Y

The Artist

Plot

A silent movie star meets a young dancer, but the arrival of talking pictures sends their careers in opposite directions.

Stars

Jean Dujardin 

Berenice Bejo

Director

Michel Hazanavicius

Screenplay

Michel Hazanavicius

Budget

$15 Million

Box office

$133,432,856 (Domestic $44,671,682  Foreign $88,761,174)

Certificate

PG

Reviews

98% from Rotten Tomatoes

89% from Metacritric 

8/10 from IMDB

Nominated for 10 oscars, won 5 oscars including best picture

The film was filmed in black and white, which clearly wasn't a turn off for film audiences.

Case Studies

Inception

(USA Blockbuster)

Plot
A thief who steals corporate secrets through use of dream-sharing technology is given the inverse task of planting an idea into the mind of a CEO.

Stars
Leonardo DiCaprio 
Tom Hardy
Joseph Gordon Levitt 
Ellen Page
Michael Caine 
Christopher Nolan (has his own fan base who watch his films)

Director
Christopher Nolan 

Screenplay
Christopher Nolan 

Budget
$160 Million

Box office
Domestic- $292,576,195
Foreign- $532,956,569

Worldwide- $825,532,764 

(Opening Domestic Weekend- $62,785,337)

Certificate
PG-13 

Reviews
8.8/10 IMDB
86% Rotten Tomatoes 
Won 4 Oscars (nominated for 8 Oscars)
Critics Consensus: Smart, innovative, and thrilling, Inception is that rare summer blockbuster that succeeds viscerally as well as intellectually. (From Rotten Tomatoes)

Release date
16th July 2010 (only competition was The Sorcerer's Apprentice that weekend)

Poster

Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hP9D6kZseM

Pervious Nolan Films
The Dark Knight- $1,084,000,000 (2008)
Batman Begins- $372,700,000 (2005)
Insomnia- $113,700,000 (2002)

Pervious DiCaprio Films
Titanic- $2,128,900,000 (1997)
Catch Me If You Can- $352,100,000 (2002)
The Departed- $289,800,000 (2006)

Both Nolan and DiCaprio are clearly box offices stars based on their pervious films. 

The Inbetweeners 2

(UK Independent)

Plot
Jay, Simon, Jay and Will go on holiday to Australia. Based on The Inbetweeners Series on Channel 4 and it's a sequel to the film 'The Inbetweeners Movie'.

Stars
Simon Bird
James Buckley
Joe Thomas
Blake Harrison

Director
Iain Morris and Damon Beesley 

Budget 
£3.5 Million 

Box office
£58 Million (£12.5 Million opening weekend in the UK)
The first Inbetweeners movie- £42 Million 

Certificate
15

Reviews
6.8 from IMDB
71% from Rotten Tomatoes 
4/5 from The Telegraph 
'It pushes the envelope a lot further than I expected and I'd highly recommend seeing the film in a packed cinema'- Matthew Toomey, ABC Brisbane 

Release Date
6th August 2014 (competed with Planes 2 and God's Pocket)

Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfJxwhzgvS4

Drive

Plot

A mysterious Hollywood stuntman, mechanic and getaway driver lands himself in trouble when he helps out his neighbour.

Stars

Ryan Gosling 

Carey Mulligan

Bryan Cranston 

Director

Nicholas Winding Refn

Screenplay

Hossein Amini (based on the book by James Sallis)

Budget

$15 Million

Box office

$76,175,166 (Opening weekend $11,340,461)

Competed with Lion King 3D and Contagion in it's opening weekend

Certificate

R- Meaning children couldn't see the film, which limited its target audience. Contained a lot of violence which again would have limited its target audience as some audience members wouldn't want to see the violent scenes therefore they wouldn't see the film. 

Reviews

7.8 from IMDB

93% from Rotten Tomatoes 

78% from Metacritic 

'Drive is a masterpiece of surface over depth. Catnip for anyone who thinks cinema is for the eye rather than the brain or heart. A bromance between Refn and its star Ryan Gosling that borders on the homoerotic and is meant to send geezer viewers into crush mode, but not so much they’ll have to worry they’re actually, like, gay. It’d take a brave filmmaker to risk losing his core audience. Refn is many things, but he’s not brave' From The Telegraph 

Release Date

16th September 2011

Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBiOF3y1W0Y

The Artist

Plot

A silent movie star meets a young dancer, but the arrival of talking pictures sends their careers in opposite directions.

Stars

Jean Dujardin 

Berenice Bejo

Director

Michel Hazanavicius

Screenplay

Michel Hazanavicius

Budget

$15 Million

Box office

$133,432,856 (Domestic $44,671,682  Foreign $88,761,174)

Certificate

PG

Reviews

98% from Rotten Tomatoes

89% from Metacritric 

8/10 from IMDB

Nominated for 10 oscars, won 5 oscars including best picture

The film was filmed in black and white, which clearly wasn't a turn off for film audiences.