the first shot is of the police car driving down this road.
it's a pan shot of the car turning the corner.
you can see the location is remote and that there is no one there giving the audience the hint that there is something wrong.
all you can hear is the sound of the car and the radio in it talking about 'a missing girl' that they need to find.
this gives the audience a taste of the story because you know it will be about the missing girl.
the next important shot is the burning house.
an establishing shot is used to show the burning house and the damage the fire has caused.
the yellow flames taking over the house show the change from the white innocence of the house to the soon to be black suffering of the things and memories inside.
in this shot you can hear the wood burning and the flames taking everything in its way. you can hear the crackle as the fire gets to another part of the house.
you also hear eerie music which sounds soothing when taking out of the shot but when put with it make the audience feel more on edge toying with their emotions.
a graphic match is then used to show you the next part of the story.
this shot is of the mental hospital the runaway girl is going to be staying at.
it is an establishing shot to show the significance of it to the story.
as i said before it is the second part of the graphic match from the shot above.
in this shot you can hear the ambulance car driving but also non diegetic very low in pitch dreary music adding an almost suspended tone to the scene.
the white and brown of the building showing the innocence of the patients but by adding the brown roof also shows protection. obviously the film subverts the idea of the brown in the building being protection but at this point the audience does not know it.
10 fast paced jump cuts are then shown of her bruises cut and clues on her body.
the audience then realize that there is definitely something wrong with the girl because she has a number written on her hand and a number of different injuries.
every time a new shot is shown in the sequence the sound of a camera is being pressed is heard.
every time that sound is played and the new image is shown the screen goes white and fades to the next shot. except the shot is in black and white and then fade to normal colours. this happens very quickly giving the audience little time to concentrate on every shot of her.
Establishing shot at eye level of the pumpkin, makes you feel uncomfortable, feels like it moves in towards you
Creepy score used, that is non-digetic - also used throughout the scene
A piano is also present, mixed in with what sounds like a sped up clock, creating tension
Visual effects used to emphasise the flicker of the candle in the pumpkin and the light is bright for long periods of time
Orange text relates to the colour of the pumpkin
House
Establishing shot of house, zooms into the door and moves along and around the house, as if we are personally looking at it, from the killers POV
Crickets are heard, no voices, so possibly a remote area, which is a convention of a slasher film and typically found
Eye line match. look at the window and around the house, and then you see people inside
White house used that is very big and on its own, suggesting vulnerability, killers point of view and blurry when looking at two characters due to curtain being in the way
Guy on stairs
Low angle POV shot, the camera follows him as he ventures down the stairs, he is always kept in a medium shot, not considering him as a possible victim.
Hear digetic sound of him talking to the girl, and score goes higher and faster, making things more tense, knowing that he is not after the guy, but more after the girl
No editing used makes you feel much more involved and you are able to act as the murderer and makes you feel uncomfortable that you are put into this situation
The movement down of his t-shirt makes it clear that him and the girl had sex, thus making them the first to be killed, as in a typical slasher movie. Shirt is stripy, showing things won't go well
First stabbing
Now feel more involved and even more uncomfortable due to the use of a mask, narrow in on the subject. High angle POV when she is dead on the floor, shows the power and dominatiation over her life
When the girl is spotted, there is a change in the music, very high pitched, leading to a tense build up, and a drop in the notes making them low when killing is taking place, combining with the high pitched screams
Narrow view, not interrupted with editing as this will take away the persona feel of the scene
Se through the clown mask makes it much more effective, blood on her chest connotates death, and we see the killer look at the knife so can tell this was a stabbing, she is found naked, showing she had sex and adds to the fact if you have sex in a slasher, you're most likely to die first
The first scene I am going to deconstruct is the first part of the car chase under the tunnel and the lead up to it
Camera Angles
Establishing shots of a calm looking tunnel, you get no insight into what is happening within the tunnel so you assume nothing is going on
Many extreme close up shots of features such as the wheel of the car, his eye and you only notice that danger is occurring once you see the side of a gun
Over the shoulder shots are used incredibly well as if you are seeing the outside of a car over someones shoulder you are basically having a backseat view which makes you feel as if you are a part of the chase
The majority of the shots are close ups, mainly to show his calm and more aggressive attitude to the situation
Sound
The sound also makes you not think that there is something dangerous occurring within the tunnel as the music you hear is quite classical, non diagetic sound, however in the build up to the tunnel the violin you hear is more intense which builds up the tension until the roar of the aston martin engine engages, then you automatically realise it is a car chase.
Editing
Many jump cuts are used in the initial chase to show all the action that is happening, as you need to show all of the action happening and due to the fact that the cars are moving at high speed jump cuts are the best way to show the pace of the chase, also, in order to visualise the extent of the danger you need to see the chase from different angles, this is why they show many different shots of the same thing showing the intensity of the situation
When you are seeing the extreme close ups, they are put in the scene in time with the music, which means that you are only realising what is happening in time with the music.
Mise-en-scene
Barely illuminated tunnel next to river
shot in mid day
Packed road
Loads of trucks
Foreign police, Shot in italy
Large mountain side
The 2nd scene I am going to deconstruct is the quarry scene where the car chase continues
Camera Angles
Establishing shots are used a lot more as the director is trying to capture where the chase is taking place which shows more danger in the chase due to the steep hills, no roads etc, also the establishing shots allow us to take in the cars being used, James bond is in an Aston Martin DB9 which is a super car valued at around £100,000 while the man chasing is in an alfa romeo which would be valued around £30,000, the difference in cars being used automatically makes Bond seem more powerful and the establishing shots allow us to see this
Extreme close up shots once again show the intensity of the chase e.g. the quick gear changes
Editing
Jump cuts are once again used to portray all of the action used in a short space of time
Sound
The sound seems to build up all throughout the quarry scene until the car falls down the cliff, it then goes silent once again
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJubOZLpp4A&safe=active In action films there are a number of sub genres, however I will be focusing on the spy action sub genre. I will deconstruct the 2006 film 'Casino Royale' Good vs evil - (chase scene on cranes) 4:15
Camera angles
Close up shots to show facial expressions
Establishing shots of high cranes
Low angle shots in order to see the situation from a ground POV
High shots emphasising the sheer drop below
Editing
Eyeline match from the protagonist to the enemy, also used to see where to jump
Cutaways from main protagonist used to look at others, then we see the main protagonist again
Sound
Suspense and tension building non digetic soundtrack
Digetic sound of heavy breathing and panting, combined with the 'thud' from the jumps
Mise en scene
Sky in background
Clothes used blend in with the dry area and the other people within the area
Blue cranes are darker than that of the sky to stand out
Explosion - (final explosion) - 9:00
Camera angles
Close up of gun before explosion, also of others expressions and the gas can
Low angle shot of people flying through the air due to explosion (see picture)
Establishing shot shows the damage that has been caused
Editing
Eyeline match from Bond to the gas
Visual effects of fire and the explosion
Sound
Digetic sounds of:
Gun
Gas
Flames going up
Screams and yells
Paper falling to the ground
Building collapsing
Flickering of fire
Mise en scene
Lots of paper, emphasises damage
Collapse of buildings
Security do not stand out to Bond being the dominant
