How are the sequences from Pillow Talk and Fringe different? Discuss the differences in pace and style as well as the effect the editing has on meaning/the audience's reception of the extracts?

Firstly, Pillow Talk and Fringe were made in completely different time periods. Pillow Talk was made in 1958 whereas Fringe was first shown in 2008 and is still a running programme. So from this alone we can automatically conclude that there are going to be differences in pace, style and editing due to changes in technology. These changes in technology affect the audience and its expectations.

Both extracts have different styles of editing. Analysing Pillow Talk, i observed lots of simple two shots. I think that this is because directors weren't fully aware of the variety of camera angles and shots back then. The majority of shots seem to be identical, they mainly consist of two shots, over the shoulder shots, long shots, mid shot or close up.
This completely differs to Fringe, which features a variety of shots and angles within the change of scenes. Close ups, extreme close ups, jumps into long shots, establishing and tracking shots have been used in order to make the action more exciting and interesting for the audience. It is rare for for modern programmes to feature only simple camera movement as the advanced
technology allows you to do so much more when filming.

I noticed that in Pillow Talk used a variety of editing styles to change scenes such as split screens, fades, dissolves and jump cuts. In the late 50's these editing styles were seen to be very modern and technically advanced for the era. In shot 2 of the extract at around 23 seconds, there is a fade from Rock Hudson's character and a friend talking about Doris Day's character to Doris Day herself. This has been done to identify her as the subject of their conversation and identify her to the audience as an important character. In shot 4 at around 30 seconds, a long shot of Doris Day's character becomes a split screen with Rock Hudson's character on the other side. This has been done for comic effect and to engage and involve the audience with the film, they can see both sides of the conversation and the characters facial expressions but the characters themselves can't.

In comparison, the editing style of Fringe is very modern. The cuts, which on average feature around every four seconds in comparison to Pillow Talk's thirty seconds are; slick, frequent and barely perceptible. This creates a sharp, precise effect and holds the audiences attention as long timings between cuts as in Pillow talk would bore them. Fringe features edits such as music and voiceovers, elements which don't feature in Pillow Talk. Dramatic music has been used to add emphasis to the action. The majority of shots show the characters separately which gives a clear view of them to the audience. Fringe is a dark, serious drama. This is reflected in the costume and setting, characters wear dark suits and location shots are in offices or of government buildings.

Pillow Talk is easy for audiences to follow as the uncomplicated style of editing gives the audience a good understanding of the characters and setting as it flows naturally. There is a lot of diegetic sound in Pillow Talk, in every shot you can hear some background noise. For example, you hear a phone ringing, people talking and background music in the restaurant. This creates a more realistic feel as the characters have been placed in an ordinary social situation which audiences can recognise and relate to.

I think that the reason Pillow Talk and Fringe are so different is because they have different target audiences. Pillow Talk is a romantic comedy whereas Fringe can be placed into several genre groups such drama, thriller, mystery and sci-fi. This means producers will seek to appeal to their audiences with their editing, style and pace.