Mise en scène: Lighting

In this post, I will be discussing the effect lighting has on a particular scene and genre. I have six images to help me identify the type of lighting, why it is used and the effect it has on the audience.

American Pie (1999) left-to-right (Eugene Levy and Jason Biggs)

The first image shows two men sitting at a table with a bowl in the middle and this suggests a family dinner setting because of the older man and the younger man. The two men are father and son because of the way they are dressed. The lighting used for this shot is high key lighting because it brings realism to dining room. It reminds the audience that the setting is during the day as well as it helps to highlight the tense family atmosphere because of the family atmosphere.

Charlie's Angels (2000) left-to-right (Drew Barrymore, Cameron Diaz and Lucy Liu)

This shot shows three women in chains, wearing blue suits meaning that these three are escaped prisoners in a grass area. The shot uses high key lighting to show the audience that the three women escaped during the day time and it also shows a contrast between blue and green. The high key lighting also brings out the detail in characters and shows a difference in character making it easy for the audience to identify who is who.

Donnie Darko (2001) left-to-right (Jake Gyllenhaal, Jena Malone and Frank)

This shot shows three people looking directly at a screen although Malone is asleep and Gyllenhaal looks tired. Frank however looks terrifying as the light is shone at him to bring out the terrifying features like the teeth and the metallic like rabbit mask. The shot uses low key lighting to create a shadow in the background however it uses an element of high key lighting to shine at the faces of the three characters.

The Man Who Wasn't There (2001) Billy Bob Thornton

The shot portrays a man looking up yet there is a spotlight that shines at half way at the man. The shot uses low key lighting because it creates various shadows and silhouettes to create a suspenseful atmosphere. The spotlight shines on the man, making him a key focus of the shot and also the way he looks up suggests something odd.

Donnie Darko (2001) left-to-right (Alex Greenwald and Jake Gyllenhaal)

This shot shows Greenwald holding a knife to Gyllenhaal in a tiled room. This room uses high key lighting with a shade of green to give an almost sickly effect to the shot. The brightness of the room makes the emotions on the characters faces clearer. Not only that but the lighting also focuses on the two characters in the shot and this shows the audience that this is a tense fast-paced action sequence.

The Man Who Wasn't There (2001) Billy Bob Thornton

This shot shows a man hiding in the shadows and spying on a person in the bath, most likely a woman because the water hides almost everything and this was how women sat in bathtubs to protect their modesty. The shot uses low key lighting to hide the mans face and it creates a sense of mystery and suspense because it shows the open door of the woman in the bath and this suggests that the man might do something to catch in her in a vulnerable position and thus it creates a scary jump scare.

Homework Task: Mise en scène

In this post, I will be describing the Mise en scène in a magazine cover and a film still shot. I will describe the costume, lights, actors/performance, make-up, props and settings.

Issue September 2012, Bazaar Cover, Keira Knightley

The Bazaar magazine features actress Keira Knightley (Pirates of the Caribbean, Love Actually) and was released in September 2012. The clothes that Knightley is wearing, is a big thick fur-like coat. The colours are dull browns and this suggests that the setting is cold. In addition the background matches the coat so the colour scheme is monochrome almost yet the biggest difference is the purple rose, masthead and lipstick. Keira Knightley is wearing purple lipstick because it makes her skin stand out, as well as matching with the rose. Purple connotes to darkness, strength, power and royalty. The rose is often connoted to beauty and love but in this particular magazine, it relates to beauty because Bazaar is a fashion magazine. The lighting seems to shine on Keira Knightley because it makes her the key focus of the magazine as well as making her face brighten up. The facial expression Knightley makes is serious and sophisticated which is what Bazaar is quite often known for: Being a sophisticated stylish fashion magazine.

Inglourious Basterds (2009), left-to-right (Michael Fassbender and August Diehl)

Inglourious Basterds is a 2009 Quentin Tarantino/Eli Roth film which stars Brad Pitt, Christoph Waltz Diane Kruger, B.J. Novak and Eli Roth. The story follows Lieutenant Aldo Raine (Pitt) as he leads a group Jew Soldiers, including the Bear Jew (Roth) and the Little Man (Novak), to take down the Third German Reich using the help German Actress Bridget Von Hammersmark.

The clothes that the people are wearing are military war clothes and this suggests the film has a war background. To go into closer detail, the film is set in World War 2 because of the Nazi Swastika armband on Diehl. The two characters are in a rub because of the alcohol on the table as well as the bar counter in the background. The lighting is slightly dimmed in the background because the background is unimportant however there is a bright light that focuses on the table which brings us to Fassbender and Diehl. Fassbender and Diehl are sitting opposite each other and have a strong face of disgust to one another which suggests tension between the two characters. Since Diehl has the Nazi Swastika, it could further allude to tension between the enemies of World War 2: Britain (Fassbender) and Germany (Diehl.) Both have slick back hair because World War 2 time was a time of war which had its soldiers looking smart and efficient. The props are alcohol bottles and it helps to explain the setting of a pub.

Mise en scène: Costume, actors, make-up, setting

Settings and props:

Pirates of the Caribbean

Pirates of the Caribbean shows the set to be in an open jungle or forest. This is to show the adventure side of Pirates of the Caribbean and it captures the true essence of what a pirate movie is like. The main central focus is Captain Jack Sparrow sitting on a skull riddled throne. Either side of Jack are two half naked men, covered in paint and dirt. This suggests that Jack Sparrow is a leader of a primitive tribe as he is sat on a elaborate chair which suggests a throne. The skulls represent the animosity of the tribe and Jack Sparrow has face paint to make him seem more tribal. The jungle is home to primitive tribes and Jack Sparrow stands out because he is fully dressed. The skulls fit in to the theme of pirates and death. This film links in with the genre of action and adventure because the film shows Jack Sparrow, experiencing something he never experienced before and it links with action because weapons are used in fighting like the spears the tribal guards are holding.

Facial Expressions/Hair and Make-up/Body Language:

Breakfast Club (1985)

Breakfast Club shows the set to be in a library as there is a shelf of books in the right of the image. This presents the image to the audience that the movie is about education and that you may learn something from the movie. The main central focus is on the two characters: Judd (left) and Anthony (right). It shows Judd as being rather angry with Anthony. Anthony is doing his work and it looks like a school library because of the globe in the corner. Judd looks threatening because of his open fingered gloves which motorcyclists often wear. Judd has a stern face which makes him threatening. Anthony is dressed in a green shirt and a red jacket and this makes him look like he is from middle class while Judd wears a plaid and denim jacket with a white undershirt. His hair is long and and almost messy which means that he is from a lower class to Anthony. Anthony looks rather nonchalant as he ignores Judd's distasteful stare. Judd is slouched and closed him which does not fit with his facial expression but it does suggest that he is closing in on Anthony rather threateningly. Anthony is perched upright and tall with posture. This links to the genre of comedy because it could make the audience laugh as Judd stares intensely at Anthony and the long tension allows for a comedic effect to happen.

Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

 The scene is from Close Encounters of the Third kind and the setting looks like a dining room because of the shelf of plates and jugs. This is effective because this shows that this is a normal family setting. it has Roy Neary (right) staring straight ahead with a rather sadistic look on his face. He has sideburns which was a fashion statement of men in the 1970-1980. Toby Neary (left) looks rather upset with his red eyes and flushed cheeks along with tears streaming down his face. Toby has shaggy hair expressing the youth and innocence of Toby Neary. Toby is also wearing white, which often has the connotation of innocence or purity while Roy has a blue shirt on which suggests depression and sadness. The background is a dull beige/brown colour meaning that the Neary family live a typical ordinary life. This could probably fit in to the genre of drama because drama is often about emotion and tension and this scene in particular shows a sense of tension between Toby and Roy which has caused Toby to shed tears.

A Few Good Men (1992)

This scene is from A Few Good Men (1992). The scene is set in a court room because it shows a group of people at the back watching three people in front of them. Kevin Bacon (left) is gesturing to Tom Cruise (right) like a lawyer and this shows that this seems to be an intensive scene and what will happen, causes tension. Tom Cruise has a sad face which could infer that he is being accused of something he is innocent of. Cruise's hands are interlocked with each other meaning that he is nervous or scared of what is to come. Kevin Bacon shows power as he stands tall and smart in his decorative uniform but Cruise has more power in status since he is wearing different uniform to other people. The uniform looks like that of a pilot or a navy officer while Kevin Bacon wears a brown uniform citing that he is a part of the military. A Few Good Men fits in the genre of drama as it shows this intense scene of Cruise's court case and it makes the audience on edge as to what will happen to Cruise.

3 Waves of Feminism Timeline

Women are notable in the media and have had many representations over the years.

1900 - 1920s: These years were crucial because quite a lot of social change came about from women. These decades were a time of womens' suffrage as they aimed to get all women the right to vote. The women were part of the Suffragettes who aimed to get the right to vote through violent means. The media depicted the Suffragettes as ugly and immoral. World War 1 broke out in 1914 and all the men signed up for war. There was no one to do the jobs so the women stepped up. The government were impressed with womens' work that they allowed women over 30 to vote in 1918. In 1928, women over 21 got the vote.

1940 - 1950s: World War 2 broke out 1939 and once again the men fought in the war while women worked their jobs. 'Rosie the Riveter' was an inspiration to women to go join the workforce and help the country to win. The 50s however changed for women because the expectation for women was that they would marry and become the perfect housewife. Just 1.2% of women went to university while most women went to school and straight to work before they then got married.

1960 - 1970s: The 1960s was the start of change as there was a boost in the number of jobs available to young, single women. Girls went on to higher education and in 1962 there were over 26,000 girls at university. Women were slowly starting to become free and laws were starting to form in favour of women. Women could divorce their husband. The 1970s gave even more freedom to women as there was a women strike for equality.

1980s: Women had a lot more freedom and were getting recognised as equals. It was okay for married women to go out and earn money and they were working with men to help create a greater society. Women could have positions above men and this was known as the second spread of feminism.

1990 - till date: More women were entering the workplace and the wage gap between both genders decreased rapidly. The media gave women a lot of empowerment and it was the norm for women to express themselves as they are. some women still strive for equality and most Western countries have given women and equal status while women in eastern countries have yet to gain the freedom and rights.