Textual Analysis of a clip from The Shining

The scene in which Danny is chased by his Father

The beginning until 1.25 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgxAkocAPmg

In this clip from The Shining, all four aspects of film are used to create an introductory atmosphere to the film.

The scene opens with a tracking shot of a car. The shot follows the car along windy roads into the mountains. The track shot represents voyeurism and a central theme in the film is being watched; it also defines the power in the relationship between the audience and the characters, at the moment we feel as if we are in control due to the high angle looking down. This creates tension because the audience are confused as to what role the man in the car plays in the film.

The high angle track shot also creates fear and anticipation because it seems as if we are being led to something but we have no idea what. Occasional close ups of the car lead the audience to become familiar with the driver and his character. There are hardly any other cars in the shots, but the cars that are shown are going in the opposite direction. This produces a feeling of vulnerability for the subject because he is alienated form everyone else. This also reinforces the idea of him not being in control and therefore increases his inferiority and the audience’s superiority.

The MES of the vast landscape alienates the subject even further because he appears to be driving into a wilderness of some sort. Long shadows are created by the natural low-key lighting, and the reflection in the water represents a dual reality. The audience begin to wonder what is real and what is not.  The windy road is a metaphor for the cycle of death and rebirth leading the audience to become wary because we can not see what is lying further ahead.

There are many binary oppositions represented through the MES, nature versus culture leads to the idea of real and imaginary being questioned. The audience can not tell the difference between the known and the unknown; however they retain a sense of superiority over the subject’s inferiority due to the high angle camera shots.

The pace of editing is very slow, and fades are used which could relate to a non-chronological passing of time. This again refers back to the binary oppositions of real vs. unreal and the known vs. unknown. The slow pace of editing also links to non-action and lulls the audience into a false sense of security. The audience are pushed deeper into a false sense of security by the music. A non-diegetic soundtrack consisting of eerie music plays but the tone is soft and so the audience do not think that any danger is coming.

However, the music slowly increases in tempo and begins to take on a siren-like voice. This noise has a slow tempo but is alluring and could represent the subject being called to. He has come too far to be able to pull out; he is being pursued by a supernatural entity from which he can not escape. This music is also luring the audience into the film so that they can not escape. The POV shots that approach the car reinforce a sense of voyeurism and become metaphors for the supernatural knowing that the subject has arrived; it is too late for him to turn back now.

Powerpoint Presentation on Genre Conventions

Genre conventions

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Textual Analysis of a clip from Rear Window

The scene in which the murderer realises he is being watched http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Ez6dw3ywcc

In this clip from Rear Window, voyeurism and tension are represented. However, this is done through lulling the audience into a false sense of security.

The clip opens with a high-angle long shot of a woman walking into an apartment. It is a voyeuristic shot because it is as if someone is looking through a telescope. Most of the scene is voyeuristic because it involves three people watching the movements of the man in the apartment opposite. Therefore, there is constantly a sense of worry about being found out. This is represented through the MES because the characters have worried looks on their faces. Tension is created through camera shots because the camerawork is kinetic, along with a fast pace of editing building a heightened state of concern for the woman in the apartment.

Voyeurism is created through the camera shots because we as an audience see what is happening as if we are looking through a telescope. Voyeurism is created through the editing because there are lots of cutaway shots, and also through the sound with hushed tones being used in the dialogue. A false sense of security is created (traditional in a horror or thriller film) because the non-diegetic music is soft and so we think that there is no danger present. We also only hear faint sounds of fighting which alludes to the sense of the audience knowing that the two protagonists are too far away to help.

This leads to the audience feeling helpless because there seems to be no way out for the woman, until the police arrive. At this point the whole scene shifts: the camera angle changes perspective from low-angle camera shots looking up at the protagonists to high-angle shots looking down at them instead. This could be due to them not willing to do enough to rescue the woman from the evil clutches of the murderer (a sense of disapproval).

The non-diegetic music in the clip reinforces the false sense of security because it builds on the audience’s emotions of the happy music to match the mystery getting solved. However, the audience does not count on the owner of the apartment to come back. It is here when tension begins to build, also demonstrated by reaction shots of the man in the wheelchair as he constantly rubs his face wanting to help but not being able to. The music is asynchronous until it begins to grow sombre as the fighting continues. Here it becomes synchronous because it not only matches what is happening in the scene, but also matches the audience’s feelings.

Low-key lighting is used in the clip to give an enigmatic feeling, it also helps the theme of voyeurism because the shadows which are created are mysterious and help to create a sense of foreboding. Near the end of the clip, the main female points to her finger multiple times bringing attention to the wedding ring. This is significant to the scene but it is at this point that the murderer realises he is being watched. He sees her actions and then a voyeuristic mid-shot (through the telescope) of him shows the audience his reaction. There are many reaction shots in the clip, along with a fast pace of editing. There are a lot of reaction shots because a lot is happening opposite which the man in the wheelchair must react to. All reaction shots are close-ups which involves the audience more because we feel closer to the action occurring in the clip.

Textual Analysis of a clip from The Ring

The scene in which  Rachel watches the video

23.42 to 26.38 http://www.alluc.org/movies/watch-ring-2002-the-online/109400.html 

In this clip of The Ring, through montage and fast editing a sense of unawareness is created, leading to the horror genre being represented.

There is an establishing shot of the picture taking up the entire screen. This is lowered and we see a cabin. The MES contributes to a horror film because we see mid-shots of a lone cabin, and the weather is miserable which could be use of pathetic fallacy. There are many examples of symbolism of death in the scene due to the colour red being used. The interior of the cabin is decorated with red and black furniture making the whole scene scary because bright colours usually allude to a sense of happiness but in this scene it is quite the opposite. This same feeling is represented through ominous, low-key lighting which creates shadows and through the MES of the curtains being drawn suggesting that this video should not be viewed by the public: it is off limits.

A mid-shot of a tree, centrally-framed, is sometimes displayed as one of the images in series of montage shots. This is another symbol for death because the red leaves symbolise blood and therefore death. The tree being in centre-frame is significant because it suggests that it is the most important image and represents the main theme in the film: death. Later in the clip, a long shot of the same tree is shown. Again, the colour red symbolises death but the distance gained could represent how the woman in the clip has moved away from life (tree with leaves) and towards death. In the video, a mid-shot of a burning tree represents the death of nature, and could foreshadow what is going to happen to the viewer.

The sound in the scene matches the eeriness of this horror film because it becomes quieter as the scene goes on. This is to draw the audience into the scene, but then slowly quietens to heighten the sense of loneliness. Non-diegetic music in horror films usually lulls the viewer into a false sense of security; it does that here because we believe we aren’t alone when the music is playing but as t quietens, we realise that the woman is alone in this shack and she has no-one to call on if something happens to her.

The music that plays in the tape is a series of asynchronous sounds which confuse the audience because we do not know how we should be feeling or what is going to happen next. One of the sounds is shrill noises which are effective because they are enigmatic and scare the audience. We know that this video should not be watched but we can not stop. This links to what we see on the screen: a montage of different clips. The most constant image is of a woman who combs her hair and goes on to jump off a cliff in the course of the video.

The rest of the montage consists of various images which do not make sense to the viewer. This is done so that, again, the audience do not know what to feel. The TV screen that the video is playing on, takes up the entire camera shot. However, we often see reaction shots of the woman looking horrified. Reaction shots are shown to remind the audience of the woman’s presence in the scene and to show us what she thinks about the tape.

There is no dialogue in the clip, and therefore there are no shot reverse shots in the clip. After the video ends, the telephone rings. The ringing of the telephone is abrupt because there is no sound after the video ends. We see a high angle POV shot of the telephone which zooms in as the phone rings. This is done to bring the audience into the scene because we think that the telephone call story could be a myth. The diegetic sound of the “seven days” is said in a creepy voice which reinforces the idea of this being a horror film. The video is a montage of images therefore the pace of the clip is fast, however, there is a slow pace of editing at the beginning of the clip because the audience is being eased into the scene.