In this task, I will be evaluating two scenes from a contemporary film and a historical film. I will analyse the scenes from the perspective of the social, political, environmental and ethical contexts of the time and also will be offering a critique and analysis of the scene itself from the point of view of a filmmaker.
PSYCHO:
The Plot
Psycho’s vital and very important scene is the murder of Marion whilst she is in the shower (known as the shower scene). In this scene there are 77 camera angles and most of the shots were extreme close ups and close ups to show exactly what is going on and the actors facial expressions. It is a 1960’s thriller movie that has been voted to be one of the top 15 scariest movies, it is Alfred Hitchcock’s best work and involves one of films vilest killers called Norman Bates and now a lot of serial killers are based upon him.
Mise En Scene
Everything is shown entirely white which represents purity as soon as Marion enters the bathroom, however Marion is not pure so it could portray that she is taking a shower in order to wash all her sins away. There are a lot of different shots and camera angles in that scene which shows that something could happen. Bright light is used in this scene with no music at the start which makes it seem like like it is a normal scene with not much going on as music usually adds tension and makes it more dramatic. As Marion turns the water on and takes her shower, there is a close up shot of the water raining down on her with just the sound of the water which adds tension to the scene. A few seconds into that scene, you can see a figure through the shower curtain slowly walking into the bathroom towards Marion. As soon as the attacker opens the shower curtain and holds up a knife, there is loud scary music which adds tension and lets us know that something bad is going to happen. There is an extreme close up shot of her mouth wide open screaming for help with fear as the attacker stabs her to death, the music is a big part of this shot as it makes it even more dramatic.
When the attacker leaves the music gets quieter and shows a close up shot of Marion holding her arm out trying to hold on to the shower curtain which eventually falls to the ground with her. The music stops and the water continues to run which makes the audience feel uncanny, a close up shot of the bath tub with blood and water going down the drain. There is an extreme close up shot of her eye which zooms out into her whole face with no movement, this lets us know that she is dead. This scene ends when the camera is focused on her face and slowly moves towards the door with the sound of water still running and it ends there. The setting was the shower and the props was mainly the shower curtain which was see-through to show when the attacker walks in.
Social, Ethical and Political Environment
Throughout the film, it is very straight to the point so you can understand exactly what is going on with no confusion and the cuts are very quick too. The reason to why or how you can tell it is historical is because it is in black and white and was made back in 1960. The social environment would be middle or upper class as Marion is able to live somewhere and can afford it, also she is very elegant and presentable. The Ethical environment/content, Marion doesn’t seem like a violent girl as she was trying to defend herself by stopping the attacker, however he is very aggressive and is not well-behaved. The political environment, it symbolises society as a higher/lower class and shows the reality back in time and how they used to live. The climax is when Marion suddenly gets murdered in the shower, it can make the audience feel some sort of sympathy, love or hate towards the characters.
Analysis Of Scene From A Filmmakers Point Of View:
Hitchcock has a very different and unique style when it comes to film and how he manipulates the audience, he says that he likes to give the audience a variety of types of views yet still let us know how the characters are feeling and their emotions. He also tends to use several different shots such as medium close ups, close ups to extreme close shots which were also used before and after the murder scene. He does this to make the scene dramatic, effective and lets the audience know exactly what is happening with not just the types of shots, also with the choice of music, lighting, props, in other words the mise en scene. He made it clear that by making the film so realistic and entertaining, it will make us look and things differently and helps us picture reality as if it is actually happening to us.
Case studies of practitioners:
- https://www.123helpme.com/view.asp?id=142362
- https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/the-shower-scene-why-45seconds-of-hitchcocks-psycho-still-haunt-us-a7967676.html
Harvard referencing:
- Angie Errigo 24 Aug (2016) https://www.empireonline.com/movies/empire-essay-psycho/review/
- Adam Nutburn 10th March (2018) https://www.thesun.co.uk/tvandshowbiz/5768373/psycho-shower-scene-janet-leighs-marion-crane-about/
FORREST GUMP:
The Plot:
This movie is an American comedy-drama in 1994. It is about a man that faces a lot of hardship throughout his life, however he does not let it get to him and ruin his day. Being shot, not able to walk properly as he has braces on his leg and having a low average IQ, he still has faith that good things will come his way and he follows his dreams. Thanks to his supportive mother he tends to lead anything but a controlled life. Whether contributing as a college football star, or fighting in Vietnam or captaining a shrimp boat, Forrest Gump inspires people with his childlike positiveness. But the one person he cares about most may be the most difficult to save, his childhood love, the sweet but troubled Jenny.
Mise-en-scene
In the running scene, as Forrest is running through town we hear a news report from the television, it is used as a prop which continuously informs us on what is going on with the time setting of this movie. It is known as a historic context which the audience will be aware of and recognise it. As this scene develops, we start to see a change in Forrest’s outfit, they are now quite worn out and rough which shows how his once well-dressed self is gone. The lighting throughout this whole scene is bright and is always in day-light to show how Forrest is running everyday non-stop. There are a lot of long shots to show exactly what is going on in the scene and what he is doing, there is a close up shot of him explaining his story to the woman sitting next to him as the scene goes on, this could be to show us his and the woman’s facial expressions so we can see how they are both feeling. There are lots of different settings in this scene to show us where Forrest is running and the different locations he has been to.
Social, Ethical and Political Environment
His social environment I would say is not as good in the beginning as he did get bullied which could have affected him in a very bad way. Due to the viewpoints that occurred in society towards disadvantaged people, Forrest had to learn to run as his friend Jenny told him to do, anytime he was being bullied or harassed by evil classmates. I think the most important ethical issue in this movie is doing what they think is right and what they believe is right. For example Forrest did not need to go back to the jungle to save anyone, he was only thinking of Bubba however when he was walking in he saw other people that he could save. He could have continued to search for Bubba but he did what he believed was right which is trying to save everyone else.
Case studies of practitioners
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forrest_Gump
- https://louiskemler.wordpress.com/2014/10/28/forrest-gump-mise-en-scene-lighting/
Harvard referencing
- “Forrest Gump (1994)”. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved December 17, 2018.
- Forrest Gump-(Seeing is Believing: The Visual Effects of Forrest Gump-Vietnam) (DVD). Paramount Pictures. August 28, 2001.
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