Narration

Narration is a voice over or commentary used to accompany a film. It helps to tell a story through a particular characters point of view or can inform the audience of an event. Narration is mainly used in comedies, dramas and romantic films, it is very rarely used in horror films.
Here are some examples of narration in certain genres:

Trainspotting - Drama/Black Comedy

Trainspotting is a film about a group of heroin addicts and their life in a run down Edinburgh. Ewan McGregor plays Mark "Rent Boy" Renton as one of the heroin addict and its this character that provides the narration throughout the film as it follows his and his friends lives. The use of narration in Trainspotting allows the audience to more clearly understand the thoughts of a heroin addict and also aids the story telling.


The Wolf of Wall Street - Comedy

In The Wolf of Wall Street Leonardo Dicaprio plays Jordon Belfort as the film recounts his years as a stockbroker in New York and his rise to riches. Narration is used in the film to help tell the story of Jordon Belfort's life and to try and give a more personal feel to the accounts given.







Layer Cake - Action

In Layer Cake Daniel Craig plays a successful cocaine dealer who gets two tough assignments on the eve of his retirement. Narration is used to show the feelings of Daniel Craig's character and how he wishes to get out of crime and lead a normal life. The narration helps to tell the audience information or feelings that may not be as easily conveyed through normal screenplay.



Zombieland - Comedy Horror

Zombieland follows geeky teenager Columbus, played by Jesse Eisenberg, as he travels and try's to survive through a zombie apocalypse. Narration comes from the main character Columbus and talks us through his weird and structured instructions to surviving a zombie apocalypse. It helps to tell the story and gives a weird and quirky way on looking at a zombie apocalypse that adds to the comedy element of the film.



Up in the Air - Romance

In Up in the Air George Clooney plays Ryan Bingham an isolated downsizer who falls in love with a fellow frequent flyer and how this makes him question his lifestyle that before he was so happy with. The narration in this film helps the audience to see Ryan Bingham's feelings as his views on life change with his newfound feelings.





A good voice able to convey emotion and passion is needed for some good narration. This is because often narration shows a characters feelings or view on a situation. A very good script and purpose is needed for every piece of narration to ensure that it has a good effect on the audience and actually aids the film.
Narration is something I will be using in my film opening because my film will be a drama film, a genre which commonly uses narration. Furthermore I believe it can be a more effective way to introduce a character than normal dialogue. Also my film is about a troubled teenager growing up in a rough society and I believe narration is very good way to convey personal opinion of tough and real life environments that people live and grow up in. I will need to make sure that the narration spoken is written to a high standard to make sure it is effective and also to make sure I get some one who can speak the narration in a way that will fit my film style.