How do props create meaning and understanding in Watchmen?

Watchmen (2009) is a dark superhero film directed by Zack Snyder. It stars Jackie Earle Haley and Patrick Wilson.

This film has a number of props which are significant to the narrative and to the characters but one prop trumps the rest. The smiley face badge that The Comedian wears is arguably the most important prop in the whole movie.

This contextual prop is The Comedian’s possession and trademark as he is known to be a joker but this also can be viewed as ironic because the character is very dark and hid it behind jokes.

We see blood drip onto the badge indicating how The Comedian died while still lying that everything is “just a joke.” The blood stain implies how darkness can corrupt even the best of people and it obviously got to The Comedian in the end.

The small and seemingly insignificant badge is found on the pavement by Rorschach an acquaintance of Edward Blake (AKA the Comedian). This reflects the fact that his death may have been small and insignificant to the world but the Watchmen and all the people close to him this all pinpoints how awful and wrong his death was. All his colleagues focus on making him and this badge very important to the narrative of the film.

The badge is also seen as a variation of a belt during a scene which involves sexual assault. This can also reflect back to the point of irony within the image of the smiley face.

How does costume and make-up create meaning and understanding in Young Frankenstein?

Young Frankenstein is a 1974 dark comedy movie starring Gene Wilder and Marty Feldman. It was directed by Mel Brooks.

The costume within the film plays an important part as it conducts what we perceive about Frederick Frankenstein.

The film starts off with Victor Frankenstein’s grandson, Frederick, teaching a biology class in what seems to be a medical school or some sort of university. He is seen wearing a 3-piece suit in dark colours with a bright white lab coat which could indicate the darkness within him that he’s trying to conceal. The suit and lab coat could also imply how he is well educated and how he is an educated man. He’s also well groomed which implies that he is rather wealthy and is quite well off.

It is quite a contrast when later on (during the re-animation of the creature scene) he has a light amount of eye liner on which makes his eyes look crazy and uncivilised. His hair becomes scruffy indicating his decent into madness and insanity. He again has his lab coat to show that he’s good at his field of expertise in biology but (again) he has the black underneath to show the darkness of his activities. (He is re-animating dead body parts!)

The costume, overall, subtly indicates to the audience the mental state of Wilder’s character. When he is calm and sane – he is well groomed. When he’s going slightly mad – he’s messy with his appearance. His clothes also reflect his educated background.