Point Of View Shots - Why use them?

A large section of the film has been Point of View, to quite a good effect, but this has gotten me thinking, why and how does a director use point of view?


One recent, but brilliant film that used point of view for a positive effect was the almost Mockumentary 'Diary Of The Dead'. In the film, the viewpoint is often from behind a physical camera, as the protagonist is a young filmmaker at university who then records his entire trip on camera - at regular points uploading the footage to youtube. Cleverly, George A Romero combines multiple physical camera footage in the diegetic world to create tension and suspense. One such point is where the Protagonist and his friends/ fellow travallers are being transported to a garage. The camera begins as usual with POVs showing the discussion with fellow survivors before switching to the in garage security cameras that show the vehicle being driven in.
Even besides switching the camera angle, the act of placing a diegetic camcorder in the scene means that at points it has to be placed on the side whilst the characters either have discussions and do certain actions. It adds to the characters personalities when you see how they handle the camera. For example the film making obsessed protagonist will keep the camera running - even if he and his girlfriend are argueing almost out of shot. On the opposite scale of things, when his girlfriend uses another camcorder or takes his, she often turns it off at points that her character is sensitive to. Additionally her mannerism behind the camera is often sarcastic and does not take the filming seriously. Using diegetic cameras to film with can give a better insight into characters feelings and has often been linked with the Horror Genre (Blair Witch Project, Cloverfeild).

Non diegetic POV's are often used only in short bursts, just to give the personal viewpoint of a character, normally regarding certain objects or people for a dramatic effect. This is what I have done for my OTS to create tension. It wouldnt be entirely filmed in POV.