Christopher Nolan 10 Common Elements In All Of His Films

Christopher Nolan: 10 Common Elements In All Of His Films

Christopher Nolan is one of the most defining directors of the 2000s, and his works share a set of amazing commonalities.

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Christopher Nolan is one of Hollywood’s most well respected directors working today. He has a long list of hits to his name, reinvented Batman on the big screen, and created a film so accurate that it is used within universities when studying the vastness of space and the cosmos.

By now, audiences know what to expect from a Christopher Nolan film to the point where some are already guessing what his next feature – Tenet – is all about. While all of his movies are very different from one another, they all feature a number of core elements that showcases they are from the production team. Whether it’s the use of practical effects, or perhaps even the cast members that are involved, there’s plenty of signs that fans can look out for.

10 He Likes To Use The Same Actors

Christopher Nolan likes to look for unlikely choices when casting his films. While he doesn’t shy away from big movie stars like Matthew McConaughey or Leonardo DiCaprio, he also likes to take risks on new talent like former One Direction member Harry Styles.

What’s more, many of his films actually share their cast. Tom Hardy has turned up in numerous Nolan movies, as has Michael Caine and of course, Cillian Murphy and Anne Hathaway. Nolan’s casts are always very distinctive.

9 His Movies Play With Cinematic Structure

Nolan loves playing around with the traditional film structures that audiences have come to expect. Memento really showcases this idea, with the film telling what could’ve been a straightforward thriller backwards. As a result, the movie casts doubt on the audiences’ initial impression of the story and its lead, amnesiac character.

Similarly, Dunkirk works at a different pace, with three separate stories taking place all at the same time but in different locations and perspectives. Each one of Nolan’s films defies basic movie structure in some way, although some are far more obvious than others.

8 Practical Effects Are A Must

Anyone that’s seen the production photos of the corridor scene from Inception will know that the famous director loves using practical effects. He certainly doesn’t shy away from CGI, but he primarily uses in camera stunts and other visual effects.

Sometimes, no cost is spared to make the location or events feel as real as possible. Dunkirk took this a step further with huge amounts of construction taking place in order to bring the beaches of Dunkirk back to a bygone era and the use of actual, wartime Spitfires.

7 The Visual Scale Is Always Big

Ever since he broke out of the indie scene, Nolan never really worked in a small scale. It could be said that his earlier films had grand ideas that were just limited by a low budget. As of recently, his films have evolved into blockbusters, but they still have small personal dramas and conflicts that define the characters.

While a grand scale is kind of expected with each new Nolan movie, just how big they look and feel always exceeds what audiences imagined after seeing a trailer or two. Nolan is reinventing the intelligent blockbuster, with spectacle alongside thought provoking scenes.

6 The Music Compliments The Action

Hans Zimmer and Christopher Nolan have formed a long term partnership that sees the composer working on most of Nolan’s films. His Batman themes were legendary, as is the soundtrack for Inception.

The scale of Nolan’s filmography is captured in the scores that Zimmer produces. For a movie like Dunkirk, the story and the music actually compliment each other, helping to build the ongoing tension that the director wanted.

5 The Scripts Are Both Technical & Substantive

Nolan’s scripts have a few common elements. While they usually play into this idea of time and structure discussed previously, they also include a number of personal moments.

Each character is as well developed as one found in a straightforward drama, despite the fact that on the surface these movies could be popcorn flicks or giant blockbusters. The scripts are technical, in depth, and full of narrative arcs worthy of the big screen.

4 The Consistently Thrilling Tone

Many of Nolan’s movies follow a similar tone. They rarely fit into one genre and are never straight up comedies or action movies. Most fall into the science-fiction category, but this isn’t consistent either since not all of his films explore such ideas (ex. Memento, Insomnia, etc.).

The main thing is that the tension within each piece makes every decision that the characters make feel deathly important. The tone is therefore one of both awe and of concern for the characters who are going through these conflicts.

3 Each Film Is Backed Up By In-Depth Research

Nolan’s movies are incredibly well researched. Whether he is looking into the comics to adapt a superhero, or perhaps going back to the conflicts of the Second World War, each of his films are incredibly accurate.

The space-faring Interstellar is a prime example of this, with scientists applauding the visual effects work that went into creating many of the space sequences for how accurate they actually are!

2 His Movies Are Specifically Designed For Theaters

The cinema is one of Nolan’s biggest loves and each of his films is designed with a cinema audience in mind. Part of the reason Tenet has been delayed so many times is that, for Nolan, the movie deserves a proper audience in a big screen.

The action sequences, sound editing and even the technical equipment used, such as IMAX cameras, are all designed to make the movie extremely impactful in the cinema.

1 The Lack Of Sequels Is Deliberate

All of Nolan’s films are designed to not have sequels. Of course, there’s an exception to this rule with the Dark Knight trilogy, but all of the director’s original content are usually standalone stories.

This is in part so that the film can be the best it can be without looking to find additional story in succeeding films, but also so that Nolan can move on to different projects that excite him.

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/christopher-nolan-common-elements-tropes-films-tenet-inception/

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