Possible Case Studies

Taken (2008)
Written by: Luc Besson, Robert Mark Kamen

Directed by: Pierre Morel

Starring: Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace

Taken is a film about an ex security guard embarking upon a mission to find his abducted teenage daughter. Many aspects of the film could be seen to be of the action genre, however, it's continuous suspense and drama, for me, make it the ultimate thriller.

The above shot shows the father holding a gun to a man who he believes to be part of the reason for his daughters disappearance. However, the shot does not focus on the two men and even the gun is out of focus. The focus is instead solely on the reaction of the man's wife and the. I feel this shot is very powerful and effective and gives the impression that a gun is a generic part of life in today's fractured society. There is a direct association between the gun and the woman's face. She shows, trauma and horror in her emotions which directly connotes to what people often associate with weapons, We are therefore told that something horrific is occurring. We do not necessarily need the gun to be in the shot for us to realise that an awful thing is happening but this furthers our knowledge as an audience member. The fact that we do not see the two men the confrontation actually involves emphasises how effective the woman's reaction to the situation is.

Here is an image of what the scene would have looked like, had the director chosen to focus on the two men. Although terror is still portrayed through this image because of the fact that a gun is in the shot, it is no where near as powerful as the earlier shot, which gives us much more understanding of how traumatic the experience is for everyone.

This shot shows the father holding a man hostage who could potentially lead him to his missing daughter. There is a clever use of levels in this shot - Liam Neeson is standing up and is leaning over the helpless man to show his power and authority over him. It displays and emphasises his authority throughout the entire film and perhaps foreshadows that because of his power, he is likely to find his daughter, which he eventually does.

The lighting is also key in this shot. Most of the room is dark, including the man in the chair. This symbolises 'the unknown' and presents us as an audience with an enigma. We are perhaps shown how not only the man in the chair is unknown, but also  that the harsh reality of the situation is that Neeson does not know where his daughter is. The only part of the shot that is under light is Liam Neeson's arm and the picture of his daughter. Because of the lighting we are immediately drawn to this, giving us the impression that this is all that matters, and to her father, this is the case. Therefore, perhaps the director is purposely trying to make us associate with the father and see everything from his point of view, causing us to sympathise. This clever use of light is used in most thrillers and is essential in allowing the audience to relate to characters as well as gaining an understanding of what message the director intended to portray.

I feel this would be a good film for me to base my case study on because it is a film I love and I am passionate about the subject involved. This would allow me to look deeper in to each and every shot to determine the true meaning.

The Departed (2006)
Directed by: Martin Scorcese
Written by: William Monahan
Starring: Leonardo Dicaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Ray Winstone

The Departed is a Martin Scorcese action/crime thriller about two men from opposite sides of the law who are undercover within the Massachusetts State Police and the Irish mafia. Eventually, once discoveries are made and moles are revealed, violence and bloodshed boil.

The shot above shows Billy (DiCaprio) behind bars in a prison. Although at first glimpse the shot does not seem like much and does not show any influence to the film as a whole, once a further understanding of the film is gained, it will become clear that this shot is used specifically for dramatic irony. Billy has been arrested for his role in the mafia although he is in fact an undercover policeman. He does not show that he is scared or anxious as a newly arrested prisoner usually would, but instead anger because he knows he should not be there. The 'bar effect' used here perhaps shows how Billy is metaphorically 'broken' or 'disorientated'. The bright lighting that is imposed upon him cleverly directs him away from the rest of the prisoners in the cell behind him who's surroundings are somewhat darker, to portray him in a positive and innocent light which emphasises the fact that he is not actually one of them. The shot highlights a key theme of the film, crime, and could also be seen to foreshadow later events in the film - it is perhaps giving the audience clues as to what may potentially happen. A similar shot is used in other thrillers - for example 'Essex Boys' and 'Jackie Brown'. The shots in these films also use the 'bar effect' and both are used specifically to convey similar themes. (see below)

This shot also proves incredibly significant in telling us the message of the film. We see here Billy the undercover cop being severely harmed by two of the mafia, even though they believe him to be one of them. There is a clever use of levels, much like the shot I used earlier from the film 'Taken'. Seeing the two men standing high above Billy portrays them as the dominant characters in control, perhaps expressing the message that the law does not always run the world. The bright light in the scene is juxtaposed with the shocking violence taking place. The shot steers away from typical thriller conventions - a shot with this content would often contain a dim ambient light to display the negative occurrences. The fact that this generic thriller technique is not used here, emphasises the ruthlessness of the mafia in this film.

This film surrounds themes used many times before throughout the thriller genre. I feel it would be interesting to look at how the message of this theme has progressed from earlier film interpretations such as 'The Third Man' and 'Once Upon a Time in America'. As well as this, I feel there are many generic thriller techniques used by Scorcese to address this theme that I could easily identify and analyse efficiently.

Essex Boys

Title: Essex Boys
Director: Terry Winsor
Released: 2000

This opening shot determines location and surroundings. The ambient lighting is extremely dark, connoting a negative society. The long shot here enables to further identify environment and setting, in this case it is his garage. The wide shot of the garage emphasises shows how the character is alone and therefore presents the theme of isolation in both this shot and the film as a whole. The garage might be seen as a chlaustrophobic space creating the violent assumption of no escape. The technique is used in many other films such as in the toilets in 'Witness' and the shower in 'Psycho'.

The feeling of chlaustrophobia is reinforced here with the use of a close-up shot, as well as the shot being inside of a car. Billy's anxiety and panic is therefore further emphasised. His clothing is important in this shot. He is wearing a scruffy sweatshirt which highlights his normality as a character. The clear showing of his wristwatch highlights how time is an important factor in the film and suggest his urgency; time is a key theme of many thriller films and is especially important in films such as 'Heavenly creatures' and 'The Third Man'. The constant reminder of time in films not only suggests urgency from the characters point of view but also gives the audience the impression that they also should feel urgent and somewhat on edge - adding suspense to the experience of the film (an important and essential effect in thrillers).

This shot is juxtaposed with the previous in several ways. This character, Jason, stands tall as opposed to Billy in the previous shot who was 'scrunched up' in a car. Even the fact that he is outside of the car shows the contrast between the two characters. Jason appears free whereas Billy seems trapped. The clothing is also again essential in determining the status and authority of the two men. Jason is wearing a smart jacket and shirt which automatically gives the impression that he has superiority over his friend. This comparison of two male, dominant characters can be associated with the one we see in 'Jackie Brown' by Quentin Tarantino where Ordell and Louis are constantly compared to one another through several different conventions of the thriller genre.

This image is not very colourful - almost in black and white. This symbolises and correlates with the general feeling/mood in the film; it is mostly dark and miserable. The long shot of the tunnel and the vanishing point created resembles the barrel of a gun. This connotes violence and crime, which is a key theme in this play. It also forebodes negative ideas. We are lead to believe that if the men continue through this tunnel, they may suffer the consequence which could even be as serious as death.

This close-up shot allows us to identify with Billy's character. He looks slightly anxious, perhaps because he is worried where this journey might take him. There is a reflection of the lights from the top of the tunnel on to the windscreen of the car and the camera cuts to this. This shot gives the effect of prison bars over Billy's face. Dramatic irony is displayed here because it is foreshadowing the fact that perhaps Billy could soon be imprisoned, just as his friend Jason has been before. A similar technique is used by Quentin Tarantino in his film, 'Jackie Brown'. In this film, rails by a sidewalk are used within a pan shot to create a similar effect. See this shot here http://charlieclarkemedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/01/jackie-brown.html

Once Upon A Time In America

Title: Once upon a time in America
Director: Sergio Leone
Year: 1984


Trailer

This shot is important in displaying the mood of both the woman and the scene as a whole. The hint of a pearl necklace that the woman is wearing merged together with the dim light that acts as the background for the scene, connotes a sad feel. Pearls are often used to symbolise tears and therefore a sad mood is purposely generated for this mis-en-scene. Because everywhere else in this shot is dark, emphasis is on the necklace in order for the representation to be obvious.

This is a very good shot and proves extremely effective because we can tell from this still shot alone that the men at the top of the picture have murdered the woman at the bottom. It gives us an idea of the type of film we are about to watch.

The ambient lighting surrounding the men seems somewhat dim compared to that of the woman who lay dead on the bed. This use of contrasting lighting effects is often used, especially in thrillers, to display innocence of a certain character and in this case could symbolise that the woman was innocent and did not deserve to suffer the painful death at the hands of these evil men. The trilby hats worn by the men are a classic stereotype of the Jewish mafia/ghetto gang from New York that the film surrounds. The hats main purpose is to perhaps disguise identity - creating an enigma of the characters resulting in a rising suspense as the film progresses. A key feature used in many thriller films, notably; 'The Third Man'.


This upside down, low angle, tilt shot creates a disorientated feel and symbolises the disorientated/fractured society of the film. The shot's low angle perspective displays the superiority of the man in the shot. The use of the prop of a gun in this shot that is held by the man displays his complete control and is a clear connotation of a recurring theme throughout the film, violence. Again, a trilby hat is worn creating an enigma; however in this case the shot is from beneath the hat and so perhaps indicates to us that the identity of these men is being revealed and justice could soon be the result.

The use of close-ups in thrillers is often essential in creating the shock factor any film from this genre should contain. The focus laying entirely on the victim of extreme torture in this shot, explains to us how it is not always necessary for every detail to be on screen in order to show what is going on. In this case, the shot lacks a perpetrator of a crime but it is fairly obvious that a terrible thing has occurred. This technique also creates an enigma; a key technique used by Leone on several occasions in this film. When analysing this image I struck a resemblance to the opening shot of Kill Bill. In this close-up shot, Uma Thurman is covered in blood, suggesting a crime has just taken place. However, Bill (the man behind these injuries) never appears on screen. See this shot here http://charlieclarkemedia.blogspot.co.uk/2011/10/kill-bill-1.html