A Comparison And Contrast of Two Notable Works By Cinematographer Harris Savides

As a Cinematographer/Editor/Producer, I enjoy when I’m asked to give my analysis of the work of an awesome acclaimed Cinematographer. I’ve always adored the sui generis or unprecedented work of the late, Harris Savides. 

My daughter, Cadence was born in May of 2012 so when Harris passed away in October 2012 (age 55)— it truly stuck with me. He is severely missed and his legacy will continue to live on in those of us he inspired with his visual balladry.

Okay, here’s my Comparison/Contrast Analysis of “The Game” And “The Bling Ring”: Cinematography By Harris Savides.

“Figuring out the object of the game is the object of the game.” That’s what Michael Douglas’ character Nicholas Van Orton is told by the mysterious older gentleman talking to him through his television screen.

In the film “The Game” the cinematography visually assists us in the journey of “figuring out the object of the game” right alongside Michael Douglas’ character. Director David Fincher stated, “Audiences are smart. They like to try to guess what will happen next. I wanted to keep them guessing.”

Cinematographer Harris Savides’ camera placement, lens and color palette choices truly achieved the suspense and intrigue David wanted to accomplish. On his camera placement, he captures his director’s vision to a T.

He and Fincher felt that close up and point of view shots would give away much of what they were trying to accomplish so they went with a film that showcased many wide and medium wide shots. This enabled them to camouflage their next move and reveal it when they were ready. This train of thought to me is genius.

In contrast to “The Game”, “The Bling Ring” (based on true events) exposes to the audience the ride they are about to be taken on— right from the start. At all times, the camera focuses pointedly on the main characters, cuts to social media screenshots and enjoys giving the audience “peeks” of the celebrities the film showcases.

All of this is overt and in your face, whereas both the action and camera placement in “The Game” is covert.

Another contrast between both films is the color palette in conjunction with the style of the films. “The Game”, described by Fincher as a paranoid thriller uses stylishly matte/muted looking colors. These colors are often used to visually describe a “beige suburban/white collar world.” However, Sofia Coppola's “The Bling Ring”, aptly named— is styled with flashy and blingy color palettes for most of the film.

However, in comparison, both films can undoubtedly be categorized as cautionary tales. The overarching theme in both films to me is, “In trying to control everything you can lose it all.”

Other themes I observed that were explored in both of the films:

“I once was blind now I see.”

“I was asleep, now am awakened.”

“Complacency equals death equals rebirth.”

“The “love” of money is the root of all evil.”.

Additionally, both films featured a femme fatale that succeeded in doing what femme fatale (female seductress) or Ohm fatale’s (male seducer) do best.

“The Game” featured both a Femme (Christine) and an Ohm (Conrad). The Bling Ring featured a Femme (Rebecca). The “job” of this character is to cause a “figurative” death of the old way the main character is living their life—thus causing a “rebirth” of the character and their way of thinking/living.

Visually in both films, Harris Savides captured this beautifully. His new way of thinking about how to capture both films in a nouveau way— using wide/medium shots to disguise character/plot motivations (The Game) and using social media screenshots (The Bling Ring) were unprecedented by the time the film was finally released in 2013-- after his passing.

The Bling Ring (2013) was Director, Sophia Coppola’s first time using a digital Red camera. She stated that Savides was “such a great artist, she trusted his vision”.

Moreover, I find it ironic that both films are basically about voyeurism and an invasion of privacy. As one who personally loves being behind a camera, I finding it interesting that a Cinematographer’s job is technically doing those two things—except with permission or for public interest.

Well, Savides does a fantastic job with the permission he was given and I must say I enjoyed myself, while analyzing two of his pieces of work.

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