I have been watching a variety of films (and a lot of Breaking Bad) and shorter sequences, paying special attention to the mise-en-scène. The course notes
suggest that “every item on screen has been considered and placed, every area
of space has been adjusted to give the best composition.” I am not convinced that this is always 100%
true as I am sure there are scenarios where a director or DoP just go on hunch
or are restricted by time, money and the physical environment so I am not going
to get too obsessed about the meaning of everything.
Mise-en-scène generally seems to be
considered in the general areas of setting, costumes and makeup, lighting, and
staging. Overall this amounts to how a
movie comes across visually.
I have put together a Pinterest board of
some striking examples of m-e-n – I have included work by directors who have a
very distinctive style such as Wes Anderson, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, and Almodovar
but also some general examples of effective mise-en-scène.
I also came across this during my searches
but I am not sure how accurate it is:
Interesting idea though.
Notes from a couple of recently-watched
movies
Possession (1981, dir Andrzej Zulawski)
- Use of electric knife and meat
grinder as props to add tension (and gore)
- Placement of actors in café
when they meet to discuss the future – sitting at different tables, angled away
from each other
- Indications of
distraction/insanity – putting laundry into the fridge
- Symbolism – milk bottles and
eggs get broken while Anna has a seizure (and miscarriage?) in the subway
- Placement of the camera in the
centre of the overacted fights creates very uncomfortable viewing – sense of
not being able to escape
- Lots of phone calls – shows
problems of communication and how isolated the characters are, emotional
detachment
- Mark looks at the Berlin Wall
frequently – Cold War/links with the fractured marriage?
- Scenes in the apartment are
very claustrophobic (especially the kitchen) and cold décor; often messy floors
showing disintegration of normality into chaos
- Shallow depth of field to
stress how the characters are not on the same plane, often framed in doorways
- Use of flat white walls as
background to show the characters are trapped
- Motif of gripping naked torso
(Mark with Bob, Mark with Anna, Anna with Mark) – shows possession?
- Anna wearing same dress
throughout the movie?
- Why is the phone orange?
Synecdoche, New York (2008, dir Charlie
Kaufman)
- Opening scene – lots of mirrors
as we learn about Caden’s self-obsession and concerns with his health and mortality
- Home with Adele and Olive is
very claustrophobic, dirty and ramshackled
- Atmosphere in the car scene
after Caden has had his head stitched, very dark with dapples of light from the
streetlamps adds to sense of discomfort and the disconnects within the family
- Clues about the passage of time
are given through clocks, calendars, newspapers, the radio and TV
- Medical consultants all seem dodgy, down in basements
- Psychologist/counsellor goes up very tall ladder to get her book for him
- Adele’s paintings get smaller
and smaller as the movie progresses while the physical scale of Caden’s work
becomes massive
- Large gap between Caden and
Adele at the counseling session – seated on a green sofa with Adele collapsed
to one side as if the marriage is destroying her
- References to
disease/conditions (eg Capgras syndrome via the name next to the apartment buzzer and Cotard disorder)
Scene Analysis
My chosen scene for analysis as part of
this project is the beginning of the train robbery sequence in the The Assassination
of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007 dir Andrew Dominik). http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0443680/
The film story covers the months leading to
the disintegration of the James gang as Jesse James (played by Brad Pitt) becomes
increasingly isolated and paranoid. This
particular scene is one of the most haunting moments in the film (helped by the
Nick Cave/Warren Ellis score), designed to show powerfully how such crimes were
executed.
Shot 1: The gang is waiting in the woods
with just oil lamps casting yellowy lights on their faces. The dominant in this
shot is Frank James (Sam Shephard), establishing him as a key presence.
Shot 2: Possibly the focus of the gaze of
the men in Shot 1 is a member of the gang singing as the light from the lamps
flickers.
Shot 3: A close up of a pocket watch being
checked in the bright lamp light and then closed in a hand (presumably Jesse’s).
Shot 4: Entering the right side of the
frame, Jesse takes a lamp up to the edge of the train track in profile and
kicks at the wooden sleeper before stepping into the middle of the track and
crouching down with his back to the camera looking down towards the lights of
the other men.
Shot 5: The camera is now in front of him
as he settles his cheek on the track. This shot is almost completely black
except for some soft light on his face, the white of his shirt beneath his
jacket and, to balance the triangle, light on the stones to the left of the
frame. The camera pans in close to build
the tension as Jesse ‘listens’ for the train and then stops abruptly as Jesse
jumps up out of the frame.
Shot 6: We are back with the men as Jesse
shouts that the train is “right on schedule” with an OTS view.
Shot 7: Back to Frank, still leaning
against the tree, in dramatic shadow, looking controlled and authoritative.
Shot 8: View from behind Frank as he orders
the men to snuff the lanterns before turning his head to the right for us to
see him pull his black mask up.
Shot 9: Jess is centre of the frame facing
the camera with a lamp over his arm while he pulls his mask up – his eyes
staring intensely towards the direction of the train.
Shot 10: We see Jesse put his boot up on
the track, feet slightly angled towards the train, with light coming from above
and to the right.
Shot 11: Back up to Jesse’s face looking
ahead and then turning to the right and down to look at the track.
Shot 12: Similar to shot 10 but now the
stones tumble away from the track slightly and the camera moves in a little to
build the expectation of the train.
Shot 13: A close up of Jesse’s face looking
just to the left of the camera which then moves in close – building the idea of
the train being lured in to his trap.
Shot 14. An OTS - Jesse is to the far left
of the frame looking in to the blackness.
The camera then moves past Jesse and there is a full nine seconds of
complete darkness.
Shot 15: We finally see the light on the
front of the train illuminating the track, which curves round from just left of
centre.
Shot 16: White light behind tree trunks
with the light moving from left to right.
Shot 17: The camera is now on the other
side with the light behind the trees going from right to left.
Shot 18: The hooded gang members are lit up
as they wait in the woods.
Shot 19: A close up of a man in a creepy
white hood.
Shot 20: Frank watches as the train lights
and the trees create shadows which ripple across him.
Shot 21: Front view of the train, coming
straight towards the camera. As it
almost hits us, we start moving with the train, being taken along on the
journey, right in the centre of the action.
Shot 22: A long shot of Jesse in silhouette
walking back to the barrier that has been constructed across the track, holding
a lantern. He puts this down as he gets into position.
Shot 23: Close up of the screeching and
sparking wheels of the train as it tries to stop before hitting the ambush
obstruction.
Shot 24: View of the men behind the sparks
of the braking train moving through the woods in the same direction as the
train – left to right. They are hard to
make out, barely in focus, creating even more of an anonymous, nightmarish feel
from our viewpoint on the train.
Shot 25: Another close up of the wheels.
Shot 26: Jesse stands on the barrier as the
train approaches, unflinching, even as he is completely engulfed in steam and
smoke.
Setting
Commentary about the scene from Roger
Deakins, director of photography: “We
shot that in Edmonton in this preserved town where they had a little loop
railway and a small train. Andrew [Dominik, the director] actually wanted to ship
in a much bigger train, but the cost was prohibitive. We kept trying to
reassure him that we could do things photographically that would give the train
more of a presence. Andrew kept calling it ‘Thomas the Tank Engine,’ and when
you saw it in broad daylight, it did look pretty puny!”
The set looks very authentic and the verticals
of the tree trunks have been used to great dramatic effect. Even the stones on
the track play a part – adding texture and providing some grounding Jesse in
the dark but also indicating the vibration on the track as the train starts to
approach.
Costumes and makeup
There are some nice touches here with sight
of the pocket watch and Jesse’s boot on the track. The dark clothes add to the menacing
appearance of the gang members – especially Frank and Jesse – but the white
hoods are also extremely eerie, reminiscent of the Ku Klux Klan. The first time
we see them is as the light from the train shines through the wood and the
calmness of the men as they watch the train go past builds tension superbly.
Lighting
This is absolutely key to sequence. The
director wanted this to be incredibly dark and Deakins used a technique called ‘bleach
bypass’ to deepen the blacks further. Initially faux oil lamps are used, with
flickering to add authenticity. The actors are mostly in shadows to add to the
nightmarish feel, heavy contrast adds to the evil – there is no attempt to use
fill lights or a three point approach. We
are also treated to nine seconds of complete darkness after following the sight
line over Jesse’s shoulder. Then the entire scene is gradually revealed by a 5k
par lamp on the front of the train, to great dramatic effect. There were also
some lights along the side of the train to light up the sparks and the smoke,
which goes completely to white at the end of the scene.
Staging
Brad Pitt is away from his men, showing his
isolation. He is centred in some of the shots to stress the power of his almost
superhuman (and obviously gorgeous) presence. He is shown to be fearless, with
his cheek on the tracks and then unflinching as the train screeches right up to
him and envelops his figure in steam and smoke.
The open form and room to move in these shots shows he is in complete
control of his surroundings and the situation.
We are faced with Jesse at every angle – at once complicit and detached.
Roger Deakins: “The camera was rigged on a
flat bed rail car and we just let the train hit it. We used a very low tech
solution to lessen any jarring or recoil, which was simply a block of foam. We
also had a silver reflector mounted on the flat bed so as to get some gleam in
the metal of the train which would otherwise been black and lifeless.”
Summary
I think the mise-en-scène has worked
superbly to build tension in this scene and convey the dark menace of the James
gang. The deep shadows and stark lights
from the train, revealing the waiting presence of the outlaws, is the stuff of
nightmares, making for an incredibly dramatic and memorable scene.
Checklist for mise-en-scène analysis
Great ideas borrowed from here:
- What is the dominant? Where is our eye
attracted? Why?
- Lighting? High key or low key?
- Camera proxemics? FS/MS/CU?
- Camera angle? High, low or eye level?
- Dominant colour? Why? Symbolism?
- Costumes? Props?
- Lens? WA/Telephoto?
- Composition? Density?
- Form open or closed?
- Framing? Room to move? Tight or loose?
- Depth of field? Focus on BG or FG? Comment on MG?
- Character placement?
- Staging positions?
- Character proxemics?
- Always ask WHY?
