The Woman In Black Deconstruction

 Thriller, Horror, Drama

Sound and Mise en Scene

The sequence opens with the diegetic noise of a steam train playing during the titles, which then transitions into the shot of an actual steam train speeding along a track. A string instrument plays, creating an atmospheric mood that carries on under the on-screen diegetic sound of talking and rumbling of the train. A sharp breathing sound provides a transition for the scenes and the string instrument begins to sound louder.

The use of a steam train along with the old fashioned clothing immediately allows the audience to recognise that the film is set in a different time period.

A non-diegetic sinister base sound begins, linking to the thriller and horror genres of the movie, creating an uneasy atmosphere for the audience. There are silences so the audience are able to focus their full attention on chilling noises such as the squeaky door, a classic horror feature.

The introduction of the gloomy, unkept, abandoned and castle-like house instantly hints to the audience that spooky events are going to occur, linking to the genres. The completely grey-scaled inside with old fashioned chandeliers, candles, old paintings, a dusty grand staircase and cobwebs over old portraits add to the eerie feel.

Throughout the house, which is surrounded by grey, dreary marshlands (secluded) is old-fashioned and dusty, yet has personal touches so it is obvious that someone had once lived there.

 A continuous non-diegetic eerie note begins to build, creating tension and suspense, linking to the thriller genre.

The eerie note along with the on-screen diegetic sound of ticking continues to a build up where the eye of a mysterious figure can be seen through one of the gaps, at which there is a non-diegetic loud clanking sound as the face appears.

The non-diegetic sound starts building up and becomes more urgent, building suspense. Flashback transitions linked with the sound of a sharp breath, with the diegetic sounds within the scene still being heard over the top of it.

The use of thunder, lightening and rain (along with the diegetic sound of it) adds much more darkness to the mood and becomes more sinister to the audience. The characters then begin to look more distorted due to lack of light and the fact they are drenched, making the audience feel more distressed.

The use of a small village gives a homely feel, but it is clear that the people are not safe and there is no real help. A woman shaking as she pours a drink, with the diegetic sound of the glass clinking, clearly seems to be frightened by something, and this gets the audience feeling shaken.

The use of photographs with the faces scratched out proves distressing for the audience, but also shows that research is being done into the creepy events occurring and a conclusion may be come to.

The use of children is disturbing for the audience, who will automatically feel a certain amount of sympathy for them as they are younger. The use of children's toys also, such as the clapping monkey (that makes an on-screen diegetic sound of clapping when playing) is also terrifying yet a common horror feature.

   

The blood-like message on the wall of 'you could have saved him' adds a chilling effect.

Symbols such as the cross in the marshland brings in religious elements.

The non-diegetic noise drones out till a sudden diegetic scream as a ghostly figure appears at the darkened window, making the audience jump, which links perfectly to the thriller genre. The sequence ends with a non-diegetic rumble.

Silent Hill Deconstruction

In this scene the mise en scene is particulary important because it is so different and effective at making a fantasy horror world.  The location is in an old, dirty street which is run down and covered in ash.  The ash symbolises how the town is still burning which links to the ideas of hell.  In the background there is a pire of sticks which resembles when witches were burnt at the stake.  The gives a very dangerous and cruel feel to the place and convinces the reader that this is a bad place to be. 

The juxtaposition between the woman the young girl shows how different this world is from the real one.  The girl is dressed in normal, practical jeans, body warmer and hoodie.  The hoodie is pink which portrays her as quite girly and therefor vunerable in this dangerous place.  In contrast the woman fits in with the location as she is also covered in ash.  She is also wearing a dark and dirty shawl which covers her body so she blends in with the background. 

The use of a church in the scene is very commonally used in supernatural horror as religion is a very effective juxtaposition to the world of hell.  It is almost anti-christ to have such an holy building in a world which resembles hell. 

I thought that sound was used very effectivly in this scene.  Underneath the dialogue there is quiet, soft, non-diegetic piano music.  This creates an eerie, fantasy atmosphere which is in parralell to the scene.  As the conversation goes on the girl gets more agitated, the music builds up with more bass tones being brought in to raise the mood and tension.  The diegetic sound of a siren is then brought in which is a very ominous sound as the audience will already associate this sound with danger and trouble.  Diegetic sounds of blackbirds cawing is symbolic of death so the combination of this and the siren creates a sound which is parralell to the dangerous location.



In this scene the mise en scene creates a frightening atomosphere as it plays on a wide spread fear of hospitals.  The creatures in the scene are dressed in nurse's outifts splattered with blood and dirt and are carrying weapons so the audience already know that they are bad creatures set out to kill. The boy is strapped down to an operating table so the tension is increased as he tries to get himself free, this is playing on another usual fear of captivation. 

Again the girl in the scene is used to create a juxtaposition between the real and fantasy worlds.  She is wearing pink and is clean, whereas the boy is wearing all dark colours to fit in with his world. 

The use of sound in this scene is very important as it is a vital part of the audience knowing when the boy is in danger.  Whenever you heard him move, the chains clink.  This then triggers the creatures to move with a disgusting squelching of flesh. This, along with their harsh and inhumane body movements confirms the fact that they are not human and are horrfic creatures from another world.  As the scene goes on the non-diegetic background sound increases in volume; strating off as a soft, eerie wind like noise, steadily adding layers such as high pitched sirens and eventually loud, deep drums.  This helps to build the tension and feeling of danger in the room. 



Dear John Deconstruction

 

Dear John

A "Dear John letter" is a letter written to a husband or boyfriend by his spouse or significant other, telling them that  their relationship is over, usually because the author has found another love, so the audience will be expecting a breakup at some point.

 Typography

• There is not a space between the two words which could also symbolize John and Savannah’s love and togetherness
• The contrasting of colours in the title is symbolic to the differing backgrounds and characteristics of the main characters, Savannah, who seems to be clear to read from the very beginning (white) and John, who reveals clues about his past as the movie goes on so the audience may not have as much of an understanding about him until the end (peach/yellow)
• The simply font represent the characters, who are quite ordinary

How it conforms to the common conventions of Romance


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGGmTl1E7B8

In this section of the film, John is presented as heroic as well as strong (being a good swimmer). This is appropriate for its genre of romance as in many romance films, there is rivalry between two characters, the one who is seen to have the upper hand or an advantage is generally the one who ends up getting the girl.



Sound

When there is a sense of happiness as Savannah talks about falling in love with John in the voice-over  the non-diegetic sound is of soft wind and piano music. However, when we see John leaving, there is a sense of sadness and the string instrument is replaced with a flute-like sound. The panning shot also shows the change in time.

Throughout the film, there isn't any sounds of low pitched or heavy instruments (such as drums), which is appropriate for the genre as it helps the audience to be emotive towards the characters.

Also, the diegetic sounds of insects in the countryside highlight the peacefulness of the location. This is helpful in painting the romantic ambiance as the scenery and bare area go well with the high key lighting in order to create the light atmosphere.

This long shot shows the emptiness of the countryside which could be to emphasize that John and Savannah are in their own world and that when they are together, they are worry-free.

Mise en Scene (Spot the Difference)

Throughout the film, Savannah is repeatedly dressed in white, which could be to present her innocent as well as to make her likable to the audience. She also gets on well with children which further emphasizes this idea as well as her often having her hair tied back.

Innocence is a common theme in Romance films as the audience may find it harder to feel sympathetic towards a rebellious character.

 

John's dark clothing is also in juxtaposition to Savannah clothing. However it could be argued that when Savannah also wears the blue hoody, it is to represent their compatibility or their coming-together.

The camera focus changes to a close up shot of  John’s ring which puts emphasis on  his commitment as a soldier. It could also be argued that his relationship with Savannah couldn't last long as he was already committed to something else.

Juxaposition

The juxtaposition of their body language, as well as their over-the-shoulder shot emphasizes how close John and Savannah are. The opposite medium shot doesn't show the two engaging or having any interests in engaging with each other.

 

Artificial Vs. Natural Lighting

In the film when John visits Savannah again after she gets married to Tim, the set is Low-Key lighting however, at first, when they are having dinner, there are a several examples of artificial lighting (lamps).

After John confronts Savannah about her sudden marriage and they begin to reminisce about their lives as a couple, the sit near the window where the moons natural light is present.

The back lighting creates a silhouette however the audience is still well aware that it is Savannah. This is to emphasize their several encounters. 

The top lighting in this reaction shot could be to clearly show her reaction to Mr Reed’s death. Savannah’s wedding ring is included in this shot which also emphasizes how long its been since the two have seen each other as well as much things have changed since she last saw John.

There is also the common convention of romance films having a ‘happy ever after’ which can be inferred from the last scene. Unlike the beginning of the film, John is the one who is  wearing the lighter colored clothing whilst Savannah wears black which suggests that they both have changed. (which we know as John is no longer in the army and Savannah is no longer married to Tim). The shot also continues to have high key lighting as well as is being a mid shot, which is reoccurring throughout the film.

Pros of doing this genre of film:

•Loads of High-Key lighting-can be shot during the day.

•Non-diegetic sounds will be easier to make.

•Not as many sub-genres so its common conventions will be easier to add.

Cons of doing this genre:

•Hard to get the plot across without having any speech (which makes the opening scene look amateur/fake)

•Suitable location may be harder to find.

 

Evaluation of Planning

Evaluation of Editing 

It was our first lesson editing our short stories in which we had already filmed (on a flip camera) and created a storyboard for. We loaded our various video clips into IMovie on a Mac computer and were told to trim each clip to the length wanted. To do this you simply click and drag the mouse over the section of the clip you do not want, and press delete. After doing this we dragged the clips into the top left-hand side of IMovie, ensuring the clips were in correct order and flowed accordingly e.g the match on action scene (actor walking through the door) had to look continuous and realistic. There were quite a few jump cuts between different scenes that we had filmed, this did not have a certain purpose or a desired effect so we could have included different transitions between scenes to make it more interesting and effective. 

Next we added opening titles and finishing credits. We were able to select the desired designs such as colour and font. We put the title ‘The Thing Is...’ with a flash effect to draw attention. We had some trouble with the credits as we found the names were going too fast for the audience to have been able to read them properly. We tried extending the clip time but this only added to the amount of black at the end of all the names. To fix this we created a separate finishing credits clip of the same design and copied half the names from the other clip, which worked out better.

We were also able to change the speeds of the clips, making them faster or slower (slow/fast motion) to the correct speed of our choice. We made the final clip slow motion as it allowed a clearer and more exaggerated view of the male actors emotions for the audience. 

Lastly we were able to add sound effects. The first sound effect that we added was the sound of a heart-beat over the part of the sequence in which we wanted to create and build the most tension. We layered the heartbeat with a fairly distressing tone to this, so the audience were aware that something not so good was probably about to happen. We also added the music to the ending credits and first few clips to add detail for the audience and also to muffle any background sounds accidentally picked up during filming (although the actors could still clearly be heard as we changed the volume level of the added sounds.)

   

Paranormal Activity- Construction and Conventions

Paranormal Activity Deconstruction with Supernatural

Horror Conventions 

The typography is kept the same throughout the film. It
is an official looking typewriter font which ties in with the documentary-like theme the film is going for.  The use of dates and place names is quite common in horror films as it increases the realism.  The more realist the film, the more it will generally scare the audience as they feel it could now happen to them.

A major convention of supernatural horror is the use of hand held cameras to show POV shots. This film conforms to this as the whole film is a "home movie".  This technique is used to increase the horror value of the film as the audience watch through a person's eyes which makes it scarier.  

The setting for many supernatural horrors are normal, everyday places that could be anywhere in the world.  This film is nothing different as the location is an average suburban house.  This again increases the realism which makes the film scarier as it could happen to anyone.

This is a clip which has examples of the off-screen diegetic sounds and objects which move by themselves.  In most supernatural horror films its what you don't see that scares you the most, so a lot of off-screen diegetic sounds are used to create an fear of the unknown. There is also lots of times where objects move, seemingly, by themselves.  This makes the audience presume it is something they cannot see which is causing the movement.  Paranormal activity features many examples of both of these qualities.

 Another main convention of supernatural horror is possession.  As demons feature a lot in this genre, possession is almost inevitable.  Many films use possession because it creates a vessel for the evil entity to take form in, instead of taking the risk of making an unrealistic looking demon creature.

   The use of shadows and unidentifiable shadows is a very effective way of scaring the audience without creating a gruesome looking creature with special effects.  Many horrors use vague depictions of evil instead of physical ones so the film keeps its credibility, especially if it takes a documentary form.  

Mostly in supernatural horror, violence is not as predominant for the majority of the film, particularly in comparison to slasher.  They prefer to scare the audience by using the fear of the unknown, although there is usually a violent or gruesome death scene.  In this case one of the main characters is killed by the other whilst possessed.  You do not witness the killing but a body is thrown at the camera and there a huge blood stain on the killers top which implies extreme 

violence.

At the beginning and end of the film, information is put on the screen which adds to the form of the documentary and tries to convince the audience that this film is in fact real.  Many horrors use this technique to scare the audience into thinking all this is real and could easily happen to them.

Common conventions of Supernatural Horrors

• Ghosts, demons or other supernatural occurrences

• Normal suburban family- Use of children

• Combines element of religion

• Possessions and the Devil

• Realism- Everyday life Moving objects Red-herrings

• Contain more gruesome and vivid violence than normal supernatural

• Unexplainable at the start

• Build up until we find out everything

• Some things are never resolved e.g see the demon again at the end, the body was never found etc 

• Suspense- Creates feelings of dread

• Death and fear are key elements

• Fear of the unknown

• Off-screen diegetic sound e.g knocking noises upstairs

Insidious

Family unit looking out for each other.
Parents seem to carry main burden of what is happening (in this film the mother) as it is their ‘duty’ to keep the family safe and sound.

Acts of aggression and violence (not direct murder such as stabbing) e.g strangling, throwing, biting, scratching. 

Demon or devil involved, whom are usually revealed in the climax.
Always possession of some form, e.g child or object.

Chandeliers and rooms shaking.
Lights flickering and furniture and objects moving by themselves.

Not completely resolved at the end, (old witch grabs leading females shoulder.)
Leaves audience open to imagine alternative ending, (mind can be more disturbing than anything that can be visually created.)

Off screen, diegetic noises from other parts of the house.
Character takes a long time to investigate- builds up tension and allows chances for red-herrings.

To do with dreams, invisible friends and other things of a child like nature, (normally children end up possessed.)
Children used- represents innocence and creates sympathy. 

Attic setting, classic creepy convention.
Dark, shadows allow for fear of the unknown.

Night time when most ‘paranormal action’ happens.
Relationship tested, family unit will not come out the same. 
Sexual nature within the scene.

Typical, modern, suburban family home in a friendly neighbourhood.
Very realistic, makes it more scary.

Psychic or medium of some sort who is able to uncover some answers and provide the characters (and audience) with information.

Trying to find activity within the house e.g leaving video cameras to capture movement and noise.
‘Ghost hunter’ style characters, using technology to try and find out what is going on.

Moments of realisation for characters as to the fact that something supernatural is happening.
Never leave or manage to escape it, (in this film the supernatural disturbances follow them to the next house.)