2. Props
For crime films the props play a major part. Props are essential because it shows
the viewer what genre the film is. Most of the props that are involved in crime films
are violent. For example in films like Adulthood, Kidulthood and Menace II Society,
they use violent props like;
Weapons e.g. guns, knives
Drugs
Tools e.g. saw, hammer, screwdriver
Machete
Crow bar
Cars
Money
3. Costume
Similarly as the props, costumes play a huge part in crime
films. For example, the criminal will be covering their face
most of the time so this means that they would have more
of a darker outfit rather than bright. For a low
budget/hoodlum film they may choose for the criminal to
wear a hooded jacket or fleece set. Whereas, in high
budget films like Godfather, they may wish to dress the
criminal up as an intelligent person wearing a tuxedo or
being smartly dressed.
4. Editing
A variety of editing techniques are used in these types of films.
For example if there is a drug exchange a shot reverse shot
would be used by the director to show there is a relationship
between both actors and they are having a conversation. Another
edit that may be used is parallel edit; this is an essential edit
because this shows two different things that are happening at the
same time. In crime films this may be used to show a criminal in
action and in another scene the police going to the crime scene.
An action match may also be used in a scene where and actor is
walking to a place where something big is going to happen.
5. Camerawork
There is a range of camera shots used in crime films. First
of all an extreme close up may be used on the criminals
face which allows the viewers to see details of their face
e.g. scars bruises or injuries. A close up may be used on
the actors’ hands. This will show the viewers what is in the
actors’ possession. In addition there will be a birds eye
view high angle shot, which will show the viewer the
location. Another shot that could be used may be an
extreme long shot this shot allows the viewers to see the
setting and mise en scene.
6. Sound
There are a variety of sounds that are included in
crime films. For example there may be an upbeat
tune if there is a police chase in addition there
will be sounds such as sirens, when there are
polices in the scene also there will be gunshots
which will emphasize violence in the scene.
