Supercut of Point of View Shots Used in Coen Bros. Movies

View fullsize

Filmmaker Jacob T. Swinney has released a video essay that explores POV shots used by Joel and Ethan Coen in their films. These shots give help their films that distinctive style that we all love about their movies. They are two of the greateststorytellers of our era. They constantly make one great film after another, so it is cool to see a fan make a video like this that highlights one of their many styles.

“With a filmography that covers everything from westerns and gangster flicks to comedies and film noir, it can be rather difficult to pinpoint what exactly contributes to the style of Joel and Ethan Coen. While there are reoccurring themes and ideas that surface throughout the filmmakers' work, a consistent visual aesthetic is not easily recognized. What makes a Coen Brothers film look like a Coen Brothers film? One stylistic element that seems to be rather prominent in all their films is the POV shot. The Coens tend to utilize the POV shot to better submerse us in a scene, but the shot is often used to simply give us a unique perspective that can only be created through cinema. Here is a look at the Coens' use of the POV shot throughout their career. MUSIC: 'The Man in Me' by Bob Dylan.”

With a filmography that covers everything from westerns and gangster flicks to comedies and film noir, it can be rather difficult to pinpoint what exactly contributes to the style of Joel and Ethan Coen. While there are reoccurring themes and ideas that surface throughout the filmmakers' work, a consistent visual aesthetic is not easily recognized. What makes a Coen Brothers film look like a Coen Brothers film? One stylistic element that seems to be rather prominent in all their films is the POV shot. The Coens tend to utilize the POV shot to better submerse us in a scene, but the shot is often used to simply give us a unique perspective that can only be created through cinema. Here is a look at the Coens' use of the POV shot throughout their career. MUSIC: "The Man in Me" by Bob Dylan Films used: Blood Simple (1984) Raising Arizona (1987) Miller's Crossing (1990) Barton Fink (1991) The Hudsucker Proxy (1994) Fargo (1996) The Big Lebowski (1998) O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000) The Man Who Wasn't There (2001) Intolerable Cruelty (2003) The Ladykillers (2004) No Country for Old Men (2007) Burn After Reading (2008) A Serious Man (2009) True Grit (2010) Inside Llewyn Davis (2013) Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.