1. “Salvatore” – Maarten Groen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sT03qnlQ7Vo
Salvatore isa filmbyMaarten Groen,the filmfollows‘Salvatore’ whoisretiredlivinginaDutch
nursinghome,verylittle isgivenawayinthe filmalthoughthere isamysteriousaurasurrounding
Salvatore andhisdark past,‘Salvatore’inItaliantranslatestosaviourwhichfromthe title alonecan
spark the interest of the audience.The film’sdialogueisarange of languagesfromDutch,Italianand
English.Thisfilm’smaingoal istotell astory and to keepthe audience interesteditdoesthisvery
well byrevealingverylittle aboutthe maincharacterLuciano,hisintentions,his secretsandhispast.
I feel the filmwascreatedtoshowGroen’screativenessandintelligent storytelling,he hasdone very
well toshowoff these skillsbymakingthisfilm. Thisfilm’stargetaudience canbe verybroad
howeverIfeel itisfora more mature audience,there isnovisible age ratingbutIwouldassume it
has beengiven18 age rating due tographic scenesdepictingSalvatore choppingupabodyand
burningitin an acidbath as well asbad language.There isn’treallyaspecificgenderGroenwas
aimingtoreach but bythe choice of actors where theyhave male actorsfor the majorityof the film
and at the endtheyuse an attractive actressto implythatthe change of carers was reallyworthit,I
feel thatthisshowsthata straightmale audience couldbe intendedhoweverfansof the
horror/thrillergenre willlikelybe interestedinthisfilm. Youcansee how the directorappealedto
fansof the genre with certainscenes,forexamplethere isascene where the moodof the film
changesmoodswhere we see the manbegintoplanthe murderof the hisnurse,there isa black
and white filteraccompaniedwithamore eerie classical backingtrackwhere Groenhasdone very
well tobuildthe tensionforthe film thisbuildupiswhat all horror/thrillerlookforinfilmsaswell as
the intense storyline whichthisfilmhas.
There islittle informationonhow‘Salvatore’was filmed,andthe technologyused otherthanthe 7
people involvedinthe makingof the filmincludingGroen andtwoothersfromthe companies:
Captcha and Kapsalon.The filmisonDPPLR(https://dpplr.nl/) whichis acreative production
companybasedinAmsterdamtheyare one of the top productioncompaniesinThe Netherlands.
The filmwasalsoselectedforthe GoldenCalf competitioninthe DutchFilmFestival2017. However,
I foundthe filmonYouTube ona channel call ALTER whichhasover1 millionsubscribers,they
showcase differenthorrorfilmsexploringthe humanconditionthroughwarpedanduncanny
perspectives.
There isa verydark andeerie style tothisfilmwhere whenwe see ashotof Salvatore onhisown
there isa much darkerlightand tone withthe operasoundtrackwhichbecomesmore dramaticas
the filmgoesonhisdarker thoughtsbegintocome back. The directoristryingto expressSalvatore’s
dark mindthroughthe cinematographyandeditingandhow he’srepentingforhispastlife.
The filmisa thrillersome commoncodesandconventionsinthe genre are: Low keylighting,tense
music,blackand white shots,shadows,andamontage of shots.All these canbe seeninSalvatore in
towscenesinparticular:one of the scenesisjustbefore the murderwhere we see himtestthe
drug/poisononhisfishwhere the filmcutstoblackand white inaverydark room witha tense
operatrack, thisfitsperfectlywiththe thrillergenre.Alternativelythereisascene where he cutsthe
bodyup, thisisa montage of Salvatore placingthe limbsinanacidbath andthere isalso nodiegetic
onlythe loud,tense trackof operasimilartothe past tracks buta lotmore dramatic to make the
audience anxious.
2. Mise en Scene
Most importantlyinthe beginning scene of the filmthere isafigure of Jesusonthe cross and
Salvatore cannotlookproperlywhileprayingforall sinners.One of the nextshotsisof hisfishtank
whichwill laterbe importantinthe filmsoGroenwanteda shotof itfairlyearlyintothe film.We
thensee himlighta candle withaframedimage of a womanwhich we can assume iseitherhis
motheror a womanhe loveswhomayhave passed,alsonextthe picture there isaglassof wine
whichnotonlycan suggestthathe has turnedto drinkinginhisolderage butalsois verysignificant
laterinthe film.Shortlyafterwe see the nurse removethe needle fromthe recordplayerwherewe
clearlysee thatSalvatore enjoyshismusicwhichcouldsignifythe nurse notlettinghimenjoy
himself.The filmthencutstoa scene inthe bathwhere ismultiple thingstonotice,suchasthe
glimpse of across necklace aroundSalvatore’snecktoagainshow hisfaithandreligion,asubtle nod
to the companyDPPLR withtheirsignature logoonthe nurse’sshirtandfinallythe headphonesto
signifythe nursesignorance andlackof respectwhile working. We thensee asimilarshotof the fish
tank butit isimportantto notice the fishare not movingwhere the nurse hadpreviouslyturnedoff
the tank to charge his phone,there isalsoashot of himplacingthe framedpicture of the woman
face down – showingthe audience thathe doesnotwantherto watch. There isthena shot of him
pullingoutahiddensuitcase withasecretcompartmentcontainingbottlesof wine whichitwas
earlymentionedwere notallowed,thiscouldsymbolisehow he didnotwanthislovedonestosee
hisforbiddensecrets.Once the nurse arrives, he forcesaglassof wine uponhimwiththe
drug/poisonalreadyapplied, he thenpullsoutwhatlookstobe a garrotte wire whichare thinwires
commonlyusedforasphyxiationandusedinSpanishcapital punishment.The nextshotof Salvatore
he is wearingabutcher’sapron,a cloth to coverhismouthand nose andis carryinga mix of acids
thissuggestshe isdisposingthe bodywhichhe thenproceedstowithabutcher’scleaverthe
preparationsuggestshe haslikelydone thisall before andmakesthe audience questionhispast
althoughitwas establishedhe hasdarksecrets. Duringthisscene we see bloodsplashedoverthe
wallsandfloorwhere before itwascleanthiscould symbolise how Salvatorewascleanandhas
become dirtyagainwhere he hasjustkilledaman. Thenin the final scene we see the new nurse
come in andopen the curtains andletthe lightintothe dark room whichcouldshow he ishappy
again,it isalsoimportantto notice thatthe new nurse lookssimilartothe womaninthe framed
picture whichmakesthe audience questionthe storyandwantmore thisisveryimpressive from
Groento keepthe audience interestedevenafterthe filmhasfinished.
Cinematography
The firstshot showsan oldman lightingacigarin a dark room, on hisownand he lookslike he’svery
wornout, thissetsthe tone for the filmandthe as importantas the firstfew shotsare thisisenough
to presentthe character.The secondshot isan overthe shoulderof the new character where there
isa figure of Jesusonthe cross overhisrightshoulder,he thenlooksawaywhile beginninghis
prayerwhichmakesthe audience uncertainof the character. There are multiple shotsthroughoutof
the maincharacter in silence itisgoodthatthe cinematographerhasincludedthesebecause
althoughthere islittle happeningitshowsthe audience he isthinkingandbythe actingwe can
determine whatthe characteristhinkingabout.We gettwo veryimportantshotsat the start of the
filmwithtwosignificantobjects,one beingaframedpicture of a womanandthe otheristhe fish
tank,it isimportantthese shotswere includedearlyinthe filmsothe audience canrecognise they
have some significance andmakesthe viewerinterested.Once the nurse entersduringanoverthe
shouldershot,we cansee the discomfortonthe maincharacters face,accompaniedbya change in
lightingandnolongerhavinga backingtrack.There is thena close upof the nurse lingeringover
3. Salvatore makingarrogantcommentsandtryingto make himfeel small,fromthisshotanddialogue
it encouragesthe audience toalsobelieve thatthe nurse isa bad personandveryrude towardsthe
elderlyman. The nurse walksoff whilerunningabath forLuciano andwe hear himmentioncharging
hisphone,there isthena shotof the tank beingturnedoff andthe lightsgoingoff.There isthena
scene of himstaringat the fishtank,whichcutsto the an extreme close upof the dead andthena
close upof the oldman staringat the fishfall tothe bottomof the tank,we can see the angerinhis
face. We see a close upof Luciano’sface andit looksalmostasif he iswaitingforthe nurse and is
eagerto see the nurse,itisimportantto include thisshotbecause ithelpsthe audience notice the
change in Luciano’sbehaviour.We thengeta shotwhichlastsfrom 4:56 to 8:10 thislongshotwas a
verygoodideabecause the audience alreadyhave afeelingwhatisabouttohappen,thiscontinuous
shothelpsbuildtensioninthe scene withveryslow movementsof the camerathat follow the
characters,thislongshot endswitha close upwhere we see the nurse satdownexperiencingthe
sedative/drugtomake himfeel dizzyandnauseous,we thensee the murderhappenwiththissame
close upthisis to shockthe audience andthismakesthe violence veryexplicit.There isthena
montage of shotsdepictingLucianodisposingthe bodyinanacid bath,it isfull of close ups to again
shockthe audience byhavingall the explicitviolence andgore,the montage finisheswithaclose up
of the drainwhere we see the lastof the acid and bloodbeingwashedawayfromthe bath,the
scene thenfadestoblack.The final scene startsasa mediumshotwhichslowlypansleft,we see a
newfemale nurse enterandopenthe curtains,the lightinginthisscene changesdrasticallyitstarts
as a dark, gloomyscene andthere isveryhighexposure withthe lightthroughthe openingof the
curtainsto emphasise the light.We thengetaclose upof Lucianoand the lightonhis face,itshows
he has had hismoodliftedthe lightonhisface supportsthis,the final shotof the filmisa medium
shotof the newnurse stoodnextto the lightwhichgivesheraheavenlyauraandglow whichmay
suggestthatLuciano isimaginingthisscene whetherhe isdeadordreaming,atheoryisthat you can
distinguishthe differentscenesthatare real or notby analysingthe lightingwhere all the dark
sceneshe isalwaysalone andall lightersceneshave anothercharacterinvolvedthiscouldsuggest
he is a lonelyoldmanjustdreamingandthe filmcouldbe exploringalonelyoldman’smind,
howeverthe audiencecouldtake the filmliterallyandGroenhasmade no commentonhow the film
shouldbe taken.
Sound
There are a fewdistinctbackingtracksthroughoutthe film,the firsttrackbeginswiththe black
screenat the start, itis a slowtrack and fairlyquietvocals,itsetsacalm moodyetstill interesting
the viewer,we are unsure whetherthistrackisdiegeticornot.We thenhear Lucianospeakforthe
firsttime andthe firstthingthe audience willnotice ishe isspeakingaforeign language;he isvery
quietspeakinginalmostawhisperwhile praying. The nextscene we hearachange in the backing
track where itsoundsa lotmore diegeticandfeelslikeitisinthe scene now as the nurse comesand
turns itoff.The nurse’svoice isa lothigherinpitchand much louderthanour maincharacter,he
alsospeakingDutch.He thenlowers hisvoice tomake a commentaboutLuciano understanding
Dutch eventhoughhe acts like he doesn’t,thisshowsthe audiencehe isveryrude anddisrespectful
justby usingthistone of voice,aftermakingthiscommenthe thenraisesthe pitchof hisvoice while
tappingLucianoon the headsaying‘capisce?’whichinItalianmeans‘understand?’although
adaptedwithslangto be pronounceddifferentitwasa veryarrogant commentfromthe nurse.The
audience canalsonotice the disrespecttowardsLucianobyslamminghisrecordplayershutthisisa
verynoticeable sound.Thereisthenthe scene where the nurse bathesLucianoandthere isvery
little talkingandsoundsingeneral toemphasise how awkwarditmightbe forthe characters.We
thensee the nurse plug inhisheadphones, andyoucanhear the start of ‘Carelesswhisper’by
George Michael,thiscouldbe a subtle joke makingthe scene romanticbecause the songhasa lotof
4. romanticconnotations.However,we alsohearthe songgetlouderwhere the nurse is turningupthe
songwhichagain emphasisesthe nurse beingignorantanddisrespectful. We thenhearthe nurse
mentioncharginghisphone andunplugsthe fishtanktodo so,we hear the plugbeingremoved
accompaniedbyLuciano’scry forhelpwhenhe burns hisskin whichhasslightreverbtohelpit
soundmore dramatic,thiswill interestthe viewerandworrythemand mostimportantlykeepthem
hookedonthe film.Once Lucianoison hisown again, we beginto heara new track start thistime it
isslightlylouderandmore dramatic,thistellsthe audience thatsomethingisabouttohappen.We
thenheara small soundeffectasthe firstdeadfishhitsthe bottomof the tank to add a more
dramaticfeel toit followedbythe introductionof vocalsonthe track. Whenthe nurse entersagain
the track fadesto silence toshowthe change inmoodof the scene.The drug inthe wine hitsthe
nurse and we hearthingsthroughhisperspective where everythingisdistortedandthere isanew
track playingwhichdistortsthe otheraudioevenmore andthere isnow ringingInhisears,when
Lucianothenbeginstosuffocate the nurse there isa chordin the song as the rope tightens,the track
thenturnscalm whichisverycontradictoryto the visuals.The filmthenmovestothe scenesof the
disposal of the bodyaccompaniedbya track whichstartsveryslow and quietwhile he ispreparing
the acid thenas the firstlimbstartsto dissolve the trackbecomesveryloudanddramaticto be more
fittingtothe visuals.Asthe final scene fadesinfrom black, we canhear the birds and thena much
quieter,calmingtracktoagain showthe audience the moodof the filmhasagainchanged.
Editing
The filmwaseditedverytofitthe thrillergenre includingatense montage of quickshots,andthe
blackand white filtersuggestingthatsomethingisabouttohappen,orsomethinghaschangedin
the film.Withthe filmbothstartingan endingbya fade fromblackto blackI feel thisleavesmore of
an effectonthe viewerbecause itismysteriousgoingintothe filmandthiscontinuesthe wholeway
throughthe filmuntil theyare leftshockedandconfusedafterthe final scenes.Anotherpowerful
editof the filmwouldbe the blackinwhite filterthatchangesafterthe firstdeadfishhitsthe
bottomof the tank,thisis commonlyusedinthrillerfilmsandwasverywell usedinSalvatore where
it indicatesthathe haschanged,italso completelychangesthe moodof the scene toa darker tone.
The montage scene isverywell puttogetherwhere the visualsandaudioisperfecttogetherwhere
the shotsare veryexplicitwithoutbeingoverthe top,andwhere the backingtrack fitswiththe
movementsof the characterthiscan impressthe audience withoutevenlookingtoodeepintothe
filmandthe editingof it.
Frequency
Thisfilmisa one-off filmbyMichael Groen whoiswell respectedDutchdirector,he’sone of the
foundingmembersof DPPLRas well astwootherDutch directors.
Production Process
Thisfilmwasfirstput ontothe DPPLR website whereall membersshowcase theirwork,the filmwas
thenenteredinthe Dutchfilmfestival in2017 for the goldencalf award.Thisgave the filmmore
publicityandalthoughitdidwell togetnominated itdidn’twin,howeverthispublicityallowedthe
filmtoget ontoALTER whichis YouTube channel withoveramillionfollowerswhoshowcase short
filmsandseries.The filmisnowon93,000 viewswhichisimpressive fora small film.
