Film Analysis - Sherlock "The Woman"

https://youtu.be/93pLgcfTo5k

[REVISED] Frame Analysis Final Paragraph

[REVISED]

In this shot from Spielberg’s Jaws, the man in the boat is trying to swim away from the shark after his boat had been overturned. By using an extreme high-angled long shot, the filmmakers are able to convey a sense of fear, vulnerability, and tension in the audience, in addition to its dramatic effect. The extreme high angle shot reduces the importance of the main subject in the scene - the man, and makes him look vulnerable. Additionally, he is in the bottom of the frame, which further suggests subservience and powerlessness, as compared to the shark in the top of the frame, which implies power, dominance, and is seen as a threat. The dominant contrast of this shot is the orange-red boat, a warm colour. Our eyes are naturally drawn to the boat first, followed by the warm black of the man’s suit (and therefore the man), then the cool tones of the shark (the subsidiary contrast) and water. Furthermore, the bright orange-red colour of the boat seems to signify the man’s impending doom. This shot is in open form as the boat and shark are cut off, implying that outside of the frame the objects still exist. It is framed loosely and is densely textured in the bottom left of the frame. There is a lot of empty space in the waters, yet this scene gives the audience a feeling of entrapment due to the use of the extreme high-angled shot as well as the placement of the character. I also feel that since the waters are the shark's domain rather than humans', it is seen as a superior character, reinforcing the man's helplessness and fatality. The devouring of the man by the shark, however, is essential in the building of suspense for the audience to see if Brody’s son becomes victim as well.

[ORIGINAL]

In this shot from Spielberg’s Jaws, the man in the boat is trying to swim away from the shark after his boat had been overturned. By using an extreme high-angled long shot, the filmmakers are able to convey a sense of fear and tension in the audience. The extreme high angle shot reduces the importance of the main subject in the scene - the man, and makes him look vulnerable. In addition, he is in the bottom of the frame, which further suggests subservience and powerlessness, as compared to the shark in the top of the frame, which implies power, dominance, and is seen as a threat. The dominant contrast of this shot is the orange-red boat, a warm colour. Our eyes are naturally drawn to the boat first, followed by the warm black of the man’s suit (and therefore the man), then the cool tones of the shark (the subsidiary contrast) and water. Furthermore, the bright orange-red colour of the boat seems to signify the man’s impending doom. This shot is in open form as the boat and shark are cut off, implying that outside of the frame the objects still exist. It is framed loosely and is densely textured in the bottom left of the frame. There is a lot of empty space in the waters yet this scene gives the audience a feeling of entrapment due to the use of the extreme high-angled shot as well as the placement of the character. The devouring of the man by the shark, however, is essential in the building of suspense for the audience to see if Brody’s son becomes victim as well.

[REFLECTION]

I included a little more as to what effect this shot has on the scene, as well as adding some personal insight and thought on why the man in this shot is in his most defenseless state. I also feel that the paragraph is coherent as the elements of mise en scène are intertwined and are combined well with connectors.

The Conversations: Jaws

After watching the Spielberg-directed summer blockbuster Jaws (1975), we got the chance to read The Conversations: Jaws article, in which Jason Bellamy and Ed Howard discuss and analyse the film. I found the things they pointed out about the film intriguing, but what I found most interesting was when Bellamy mentioned that Spielberg intensifies situations such as the beach scene prior to Alex's death where "humor is just a few beats away: the gray hump headed toward the woman floating on her back turns out to be an old man in a gray swim cap; a screaming woman turns out to be wrestling with her boyfriend; and so on." By including these false alarms, it drives up the suspense for Brody as well as  the audience as they don't know when or if the shark is going to show up.

Furthermore, Spielberg also plays with the underlying theme of fear of the unknown. As Howard said, "Sometimes the tension builds only to be released, generating fear from the unseen shark and then refusing to resolve the tension, letting the fear of the unknown linger." The shark, in the first half of the film, is barely fully shown, which evokes anxiety and uncertainty about whether or not the shark is going to appear and do more harm or not.

Overall, I really enjoyed watching the film and analysing scenes using film techniques and elements. This article was also eye-opening in a delightfully engaging way.