Comments on: The Death of the Dutch Angle

By: coorsmackio

coorsmackio — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 21:29:14 +0000

I think the technical term for this is a “canted” shot or angle

By: Gautam

Gautam — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 11:45:52 +0000

Steve- Thanks for your comment. I’ve been eagerly awaiting the release of ‘Doubt’ in my country. I’ve also noticed a lot of Dutch angles in ‘Slumdog Millionaire’, Anthony Dod Mantle (who also shot the wonderful 28 Days Later) has great skill in its usage.

By: Stevie.Modern

Stevie.Modern — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 08:22:02 +0000

‘Doubt’ incorporates extensive use of the Deutsche angle- usually at inanimate objects- a telephone when it rings etc. I think it is used well in ‘Doubt’ because the theme is about how much you trust the small evidences of your senses. Paranoia sets in. Together with the atmosphere of gloomy weather and wind, I cant help but defend the Dutch Angle’s sensitive use in this film. Great article here though; its abuse in comic film (Raimi excepted) has gotten out of hand.

By: Emily

Emily — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 07:36:38 +0000

Nice article.

By: Eli

Eli — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 20:46:02 +0000

Danny Boyle uses it almost all of his movies. Slumdog Millionaire. Btw, watch his other movies. You should feel ashamed of yourself for having not seen his other movies.

By: Gautam

Gautam — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 18:11:57 +0000

Gordon, thank you so much for sharing that! I will have an eye-out for both the films.

By: Gordon Morrice

Gordon Morrice — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 17:38:23 +0000

Sidney Furie’s, THE IPCRESS FILE (1965) is strewn with Dutch tits that I greatly appreciate. Low, angles, high angles, shooting through parking meters – that movie is a veritable guide book to unorthodox coverage techniques!

There’s a great Dutch in John Frankenheimer’s, THE TRAIN (1964). When Colonel von Waldheim (Paul Scofield) starts to break down, Frankenheimer has the camera whip round 180 degrees and into a Dutch tilt. The Dutch is a technique often overused but this is one time where is works brilliantly to help convey a change in psychology in a character. Great film.

By: Gautam

Gautam — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 13:30:13 +0000

Thank you for your comment Hans, don’t get me wrong- I like the Dutch Angle too (perhaps I was a little too harsh in my article). You must watch Terry Gilliam’s “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas” to see how poetically it can sometimes translate images into IF it is handled by the right people.

By: Hans

Hans — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 05:18:14 +0000

I’m going to have to admit that I’m a dutch angle fan. When used correctly it can look amazing and really convey a sense of unease. Take Nosferatu, or more recently, 24 days later I think it was called. There is a dutch angle near the start of the movie. I felt it conveyed a sense of real unease over a deserted London.

By: Dean

Dean — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 01:22:01 +0000

Interesting description. I have seen this technique used in enough films, and used well, that most times I saw it used, I never noticed until after reading this article. Considering the techniques used in film today that I wish we only saw in history essays (shaky-cam and shots zoomed too close to make out what the hell is going on being top of the list), I think the Dutch angle deserves more respect.