Media

1. The film thriller film I have chosen to analyse is ‘Cape Fear’, as it has dramatic
mise en scene that impacts the audience.
The scene arises with a panning shot of pictures on a wall of people that seem to
have power/influence on the world, along with a soundtrack that sounds
empowering and army like. This could be seen as inspiration for the character we
meet. As we explore the locationwe see a row of books on a shelf, revealing that
the character who lives there is intelligent. As we meet the main male character
we see a shot of him doing a pull up, with a cross on his back. At first the
connotations of intelligence can be seen as he has aspirations, keeps himself fit,
reads books and also is religious – however as the shot expands we see the
locationhe is at.
As a guard opens a gate and says ‘The moment you have been waiting for’ – it
reveals he is in prison. He quickly puts his shirt on and walks out with no
belongings as the soundtrack quietens. This could leavce the audience confused
as they don’t know why someone who seemed like a good citizen to start would
be in prison. We are shown panning shots around the prison to reveal many other
men lingering around their cells. This contrasts the main male character to them,
as rather than waiting around the first character we are introduced to keeps
himself fit and active – adding to his innocent character.
A shot of the guards opening the gates and him walking towards the camera is
dramatic for the audience as it amplifies his independence. He leaves all his
belongings saying he has read all of his books, which proves he was in prison for a
long time. This could lead to the assumption that he did a bad crime in order to be
in prison for a long time, but the juxtaposition between a criminal and what this
character initially appears like could leave the audience questioning. The
soundtrack begins to increase in volume again to emphasize drama, and just
before he walks into the camera we see lightning strike in the cloudy sky behind
him. This could suggest a storm coming as he has left prison, and possibly
revenge.
This is a effective opening to a thriller/drama film as it leaves the audience
questioning why he was initially in prison when is character seems to have typical
connotations of an innocent man. The director has played on the stereotypes of a
good character to hook the audience.
Alex Groom