Explain
how two Micro-Elements of film construct meaning and provoke response in a film
extract from 'The Watchmen'
This essay will be
analysing how elements of 'mise-en-scene' and 'editing' create meaning to an
audience focusing on a particular scene from a film.
The scene in question
is the opening scene from 'The Watchmen' and takes place from 02:30 to 04:42 in
the film.
The setting in which
the scene takes place is a large penthouse apartment high up in the city,
notably the height conveys that the apartment is detatched from the ‘normality’
of the city; leaving the audience aware of the isolation of the location. The
fact it is a ‘penthouse’ conveys a sense of luxury, allowing the audience to
connote that the character in the scene holds significant wealth. The apartment
is exceptionally dark, to the point that almost everything appears either blue
or grey. The only sources of light are a small television set and the street
lighting from the city which can be seen through the glass windows, the
lighting created is incredibly soft and almost unnoticeable. The lack of warm lighting and colours in comparison to
a typical superhero movie invokes a sombre, serious atmosphere, connoting that
there something extremely negative expected in the scene.
The apartment is large
and only contains a minimal amount of furniture, the furniture contains glass
elements with the intention of making the location appear more spacious so
coupled with the small amount of furniture it gives the apartment an empty feel,
signifying to the audience that the occupant is quite isolated, which is
important for helping to invoke a feeling of helplessness during the attack
that takes place.
At 03:00 the door to
the apartment is kicked in revealing an intruder whose identity is unknown at
this stage. The sequence was shown in slow motion, emphasising the suddenness
of the incident. Visible splinters are shown from the impact on the door. The
fact that splinters from the door are visible would show the force the intruder
was using, making the audience aware this intruder is capable of extreme
violence. The slow motion also conveys the sheer speed of the incident, almost
as if it would be too quick to fully comprehend in real time, invoking fear in
the audience. The editing emphasises the force of the attack, connoting to the
audience that this is no mere petty criminal but a much more dangerous person.
This inference by the audience makes them aware that this is a very significant
moment and creates a feeling of dread and/or tension among the audience.
At 03:05 the intruder
is shown, he is wearing all black clothing with only the lower half of his face
exposed. The colour black emphasises that the intruder is menacing is
significant in creating a sense of dread in the audience. The costume is best
described as a way to keep anonymity for the wearer. There is no lighting on
the exposed part of the face so to the audience there is no way of discerning
his identity. The combination of full black clothing and lack of lighting used
by the director is very effective at creating a feeling of mystery for the
audience. By going to lengths to disguise the intruder from the audience means
that the viewer can connote that his identity is important, which adds a large
degree of suspense/tension for the audience.
At 03:07 the occupant
of the apartment, named 'The Comedian' is seen facing towards the intruder
using a close-up shot, the notable thing is his calm expression, this allows
the audience to denote that The Comedian knows the identity of the intruder,
and holds significance in the film. The Comedian looks almost unmoved despite
the incident taking place. The suggestion from this is that The Comedian was
expecting this to happen, for the audience this creates a climactic feeling,
connoting that the incident had been in the making for a while, despite not
knowing the reasoning behind the attack. This creates an adrenaline-like
feeling for the audience.
From 03:31 to 04:10
The Comedian and the intruder engage in a physical exchange. Throughout this
sequence a variety of different editing methods are used. On several occasions
overlapping editing is used through slow motion, this editing method was chosen
in order to attract the audience’s attention to the certain details on The
Comedian face. This is significant in conveying the pain The Comedian is
experiencing and invoking fear in the audience. In other segments of the
sequence there are rhythmic considerations in which there are a lot of fast
cuts, synonymous with typical action edits, where the sequence is cut to
different angles and perspectives on a secondly basis. The use of both these
types of edits in the same sequence is typical of the director Zack Snyder and
this juxtaposition conveys a sense that the action is happening at a rapid pace
to the audience which is important to invoke a feeling of excitement.
The use of props is
very significant in presenting meaning to the
audience during this scene. The earliest example is at 03:12 when the camera
zooms in on a silenced firearm on top of a hustler magazine in slow motion. The
slow motion is used to give the audience more time to fully see the objects
which is important in order for the viewers to infer meaning of the film. The
props themselves raise questions, the presence of an adult magazine suggests to
the audience that the Comedian isn't simply an ‘innocent old man’ being
attacked, but perhaps isn't "a good guy.” This view is only solidified by
the firearm on top of it. The fact The Comedian has a pistol, already equipped
with a silencer, at an arms length away conveys to the audience that he is also
a dangerous man, capable of violence. To the audience this may cause confusion
as it very untypical of superhero action films to have scenes in which two
seemingly "bad guys" are actually fighting each other, but this
inference is done in order to provoke more excitement for the audience.
However, the most
significant prop is a small button on The Comedians robe of a yellow smiley
face. This is ironic considering the tone of the scene, this demonstration of
irony almost satirises the scene/violence, invoking excitement in the audience
and potentially intriguing them. This prop is important in creating meaning in
several ways. The first occasion it attracts focus is at 04:47 when The Comedian
is bleeding and a drop of blood falls onto the button. In this sequence the
camera, in slow motion, tracks the drop of blood running on the button in a
single shot. This sequence stands out for two key reasons; Firstly, the button
is the only example of bright colour during the entire scene and this
juxtaposition between the button and the rest of the scene means that the
audience can connote that this button has significant value to the film. The
effect of this is to create a cryptic feeling. Overlapping editing was used
again, this is yet another juxtaposition that further solidifies the
possibility this was done to bring the button to attention so the audience
would be conveyed a cryptic, mysterious feeling.
The last part of the
scene occurs between 05:04 and 05:19. This sequence shows The Comedian being
thrown out of the window to his death. For the full 15 seconds it is fully slow
motion/overlapping editing and done with a single shot. What the audience can
connote from this is that this sequence signifies the end of the fight/scene
and the probability of The Comedians death. During this the camera shows the
comedian falling to the ground but before impact can be seen, the yellow button
that was attached to his robe is seen also falling and in fact blocks the
camera view of impact and replacing it with the blood stained button. This
conveys several things to the audience, the sight of The Comedians button is a
definite symbol that shows he is dead, without the camera needing to show it.
The audience also has further evidence for their previous connotation that this
button holds some degree of importance and solidifies the inference of mystery
created in this scene.
This essay has focused on how both ‘Editing’
and ‘Mise-en-Scene’ are used to create meaning and provoke reactions from the
audience. The two micro-elements not only set up the rest of the film, but set
it apart from the synonymous superhero genre. The Juxtaposition
between The Watchmen and other superhero films is demonstrated in this scene
through the lack of significant colour and the irony of The Comedians button.
The use of the button during such a disturbing scene creates a sinister irony,
almost satirising the violence of superhero films, setting itself apart in the
genre. The audience uses this to modify their expectations of the film. The
undertones of violence and death, coupled with said juxtaposition between the
elements helps to present characteristics of horror, which in turn emphasise
the unique alignment of The Watchmen in the superhero genre.
This scene has shown the extent to which these
micro-elements can be used, from the use of a yellow button to the rhythmic
considerations of editing, ‘The Watchmen’ has used ‘Mise-en-Scene’ and
‘Editing’ successfully to affect the audience and create meaning in scenes and
the significance of these affects in the overall impression of the film
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