Witness
The film 'Witness, which was directed by Peter Wier in 1985 is about an Amish boy who witnesses a murder at a train station in Philadelphia. The first shot within the murder scene shows the small boy looking up at a large statue, The statue seems to be some form of war memorial and this is an important symbol because the Amish boy does not understand war and modern society. We also see his innocence when the camera angle is from the statue looking down at the boy, The way in which he looks up (with his large hat creating a Halo) shows that he is bewildered by the norms of this new society. The next scene shows the young boy and his mother sitting alone in the vast empty station. The small boy asks to go to the toilet and forgets his hat, his mother reminds him and puts it on his head. This to me sums up the Amish community and the child's personality, not only does it show that they are keeping themselves innocent so that they do not become part of the apparent evil of our communities. The boy is so innocent that when he enters the toilets not only does he smile at a strange man but also leaves the toilet door unlocked and slightly askew. This shows that he does not understand danger or in fact any for of evil. We see the small gap in the toilet door throughout the following scene as two men enter the toilets after him. The two men brutally attack the man and kill him.
This is a very sudden turn of events, this shows the boys sudden change of emotion, from being safe to in danger. One of the murderers is washing his hands when the small boy lets out a small noise (something between a grunt and a squeal). The imagery of a murderer casually washing his hands usually shows guilt, but in this situation the casual way in which he washes shows no guilt within the character. The Murderer (who has heard the noise) starts to kick in the doors. The boy changes his heart and locks the door, This shows that he now understands danger. when the man gets to the final door (in which the boy is situated) he cannot open it, as the man kicks the door the small boy climbs under the side of the cubicle and into the next basin. As he does this he drops his hat on the floor, when he picks it back up he does not place it on his head, this is because the halo which used to show is innocence no longer has an relevance to him.
Reflecting some understanding of the connotations of mise-en-scene. I'd suggest you embed a screen shot from this sequence and analyse lighting, location, camera angle, costume, positioning of character. This would allow you to focus on technical aspects of mise-en-scene and open up a discussion on how Peter Weir utilises generic conventions in the screen shot. This would also block your urge to describe action rather than to analyse key features of mise-en-scene.
ReplyDeleteTarget: Close analysis of a screen shot from a thriller film.
Too little evidence of research thus far Robin. You need to write up your analysis within a week of viewing and analysing clips in class. Your post indicates rather too big a distance between viewing and analysing in class and writing an essay from your notes.