The scene revolves around a sperm whale falling through the air, which is a bizarre and comedic situation reminiscent of something from Monty Python. The whale is voiced by British comedian Bill Bailey. A flower pot silently falls through the air alongside the whale, creating irony since only the whale can be heard speaking. Stephen Fry provides the narration in his characteristic comedic style. Gentle jazz music plays to add to the random nature of the scene. When the whale crashes and says "Hello Ground!" it mirrors a comedic death in Hot Fuzz. The scene relies heavily on CGI to depict the falling whale.

1. Hot Fuzz

2. Mise En Scene
Shows a police station, instantly sets scene and genre of
film.
Angel wears a police uniform and has a stern expression
showing that the character is a serious character.
He marches forwards, again showing he is serious.
His voice is fairly monotone when voicing over the
montage.
A shot in the montage shows him shooting someone
which is mentioned later in the film.
The montage ends with Angel being stabbed by a man
dressed as Father Christmas, this shows the comical side
of the film.
Martin Freeman, Steve Coogan, and Bill Nighy, three big
British comedy stars, all make cameos in this scene.
Sound
Police sirens can be heard in the background asynchronously, this helps to
set the genre.
Synchronous sound of his footsteps get louder as he gets closer into the
frame.
The backing track is up beat though seems to conflict with the nature of
the more serious montage.
There is a voice over from Angel explaining the events of his life as they
appear on the montage. This is done in a professional way as if he is listing
qualifications and gives us more information about the character.
The music stops as soon as Angel enters the office, this signifies the scene
is changing.
When he is told he is getting a promotion an angelic non-diegetic sound
starts to play in the background, this stops suddenly when he is given the
bad news that he has to move to the country.
The dialogue in this scene is actually funny, which helps with it being a
comedy film…
When the chief inspector is mentioned there is a tense build up of music
which comes to an anticlimax very quickly.
Cinematography
A long shot establishes the setting as a police station
and allows Angel to spend a long time walking into
the shot for a comedic effect.
There is a close up on the face on his badge, which
shows the exact same expression that is on his actual
face.
There are lots of close ups and zooms in on items
such as Angel, pens, tires etc.
Back and forth over the shoulder shots during the
conversations in the office.
Wide shot on full police force saying goodbye to
Angel. Finishes up behind him.
Editing
There are lots of cuts that are very quick, as is expected within a
montage.
The start of the scene is a montage, this gives us the back story of
Angel in a very quick way.
There are a couple of shots that transition to a different shot in the
exact same location with the same framing; the street with members of
the community and the fencing/chess/karate.
Everything slows down when the montage ends.
When Steve Coogan’s character is being introduced he simply slides
into the frame.
The transition to the next scene is done through the flash of a camera.
Opening Scene

3. Mise en scene
It appears to be a typical village fete.
There are lots of people laughing, though it seems to
be fake.
Tim Messenger looks very suspicious.
Angel wins the shooting game without firing the gun,
this is a good example of British Comedy.
Everyone wears fancy dress, aside from Angel who
remains serious in his police uniform.
We are lead to suspect Simon Skinner as he is selected
randomly but is not there.
There are signs that say ‘save the church roof’ which
suggests that the death could have been an accident to
the townsfolk.
The murder is very gruesome, though it is also fairly
comically juxtaposed with Messenger saying ‘Hello’ in a
friendly voice, just seconds before.
Sound
‘Someone’s in for a surprise at 3!’ – This is some of the
subtle ironic foreshadowing that happens before any
significant event in the film.
The song playing in the background is about a typical
village in the country.
Tense music plays when Messenger is being watched at
the start of the scene.
The rifle range has western music playing.
Dialogue is used to juxtapose, ‘I’ve never shot someone
before- maybe we should go on the bouncy castle to take
our minds off it.’
All of the sounds are heightened and louder in the
moments before Messenger’s death.
There is also a creepy chanting and orchestral music
playing in the background.
The music crosses between laughter and the chanting as
we see the pillar falling towards Tim Messenger.
Cinematography
Pans down from church roof to village fete.
Close up of Angel’s face while cross cutting what he is looking
at.
Close ups of the targets being shot down in the shooting
range.
Generally there are lots of close ups in this scene.
Editing
There are a lot of quick cuts, mainly towards the
end of the scene.
Juxtaposition of Angel winning the shooting
game and Danny shooting the doctor in the leg.
There is cross cutting between Angel, Tim and
the killer as the murder is about to happen.
Blood appears on the camera lens after the
murder to make it seem just that bit more brutal
than it already is.
Village
Fete

4. Somerfield's Siege
Mise En Scene
The Somerfield logo fills the screen at the start of the scene.
This is a very clear way of setting the location of the scene.
The police officers are now in riot gear and look a lot more
professional than they did previously in the film.
The shootout happens in a supermarket which is not the type
of place you would expect one to occur, this challenging of
what is expected is another aspect of British Comedy.
A lot of red foods are used to look like blood, for example
Bolognese.
Ignoring a wet floor sign is what causes the trolley-boy to be
knocked unconscious, this is another instance of irony being
used heavily in the film.
All of the police officers have guns, thanks to the joke earlier
in the film about the farmer having a lot of unlicensed
weapons.
They use a row of trolleys as a battering ram, the wet floor
sign, cutlery and fruit are also used as weapons in this scene.
This is because they are using what is available to them.
Sound
There is the type of music you would expect to hear in a typical action
film playing behind the montage of them loading the guns up.
There is a lot of clicking of guns being reloaded/readied for use. This is
another sound you’d associate with action films, this is the big action
scene in the film.
The floor is squeaky because it has just been washed, this is not a sound
that you would expect to hear in a typical action film.
People swinging their fists and knives whistling through the air can be
heard, despite the fact that you would have to be very close to
something like this to hear it. It puts the audience in the scene.
The soundtrack fades at one point and changes to something different to
suit the mood of the characters and what is going on with them.
There is a comical ‘ahhh’ when the police officers charge forwards with
the trolleys.
The wet floor joke keeps coming up as a body slides across the floor and
squeaks while doing so.
There is a lot of innuendo from Doris, this is similar to the British
Comedy from the Carry On Films.
Generally the dialogue is comical and not too serious, despite the
situation.
Cinematography
Close ups on the guns being loaded, this is done in the style
that is used throughout the Cornetto trilogy.
There are short tracking shots that follow the police officers
down the aisles of the supermarket. This adds the tension of
the situation.
There is a close up of Michael's face as he spins around, this
shows his shocked expression.
Angel slides into the shot, it is an entrance you’d expect in an
action film.
Knives fly past and enter the shot.
The camera looks at what Angel looks at, in particular the
trolleys.
Editing
A short montage shows the guns being loaded at the start of the film.
There is a shot that shows them being watched through the CCTV
camera.
‘He knows what he’s doing’ is followed by Angel being thrown out of
the window. This is comical.
The shot that shows the police officers push the trolleys forwards
seems to have been sped up.

5. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

6. Whale Scene
Mise En Scene
The scene revolves around a sperm whale falling
through the air, this is a bizarre situation. The stupidity
of it is an incredibly good example of British comedy
and reminds me of something that could be put into a
Monty Python film.
The whale is British (Voiced by Bill Bailey)
There is the contrast of a flower pot silently falling
through the air, this is equally strange. The irony is that
the pot of plants is just a pot of plants, yet the whale
can be heard speaking.
Sound
The voice over for the scene, (and narration for the whole
film) is done by Stephen Fry who is a big name in British
Comedy. This fits with my theory that British Comedy is
largely due to the actors who are in the film.
The music in the background of the scene is gentle and
jazzy, it simply adds to the random nature of the scene.
The line ‘Hello Ground!’ being followed by a crash reminds
me of Tim Messenger’s death in Hot Fuzz. The friendliness
before the death is such a contrast that its actually funny.
As the flowers fall there is simply the whistle of the wind as
opposed to the monologue, as it would be ridiculous to
hear a plant’s thoughts as it falls. This is done for the sake
of irony.
All that is heard of the flowers is a smash in the distance.
Cinematography
The main shot is a wide shot that shows the whale falling
through the air.
There are some close ups on the whale, though as whales do not
show facial expressions as people do, this is done purely for
comical purposes.
The flowers simply fall out of the shot, whereas the whale is
followed out of shot.
Editing
The entire basis for the scene is a CGI whale falling through the
air. This scene is a CGI scene.

7. Snowy Scene
Mise En Scene
Dent is still wearing pajamas as he is throughout the film. This
costume makes it seem like it could all be a dream. Its also
quite funny as that is definitely not the costume you would
expect to be worn in a sci-fi action film.
A mysterious hooded man appears. The costume adds a lot of
suspense about who he could be. This is something that is a
big part of British Comedy. Suspense and tension is built up
and then brought to an anticlimactic end.
The scene is full of big names in British cinema and comedy;
Bill Nighy, Martin Freeman, Alan Rickman, Stephen Fry and
Warwick Davis.
They are in a very vast and empty space. This fits in with the
genre of sci-fi which the film parodies.
The snowy place that Dent is stranded in is contrasted with
the Aztec-like and warm planet that Deep Thought is on. This
is done because the film is set in a fictional part of space so it
can do whatever it likes.
The snowy planet darkens to show the passage of time, the
sun setting in the background also does this. (This is despite
the fact that there wouldn’t necessarily be a sun set on a
different planet.)
The name of Bill Nighy’s character is random and
unexpectedly long.
Sound
The wind in the background sounds harsh. This helps to put the
audience in the scene.
The music is used to build tension as Dent dives through the portal
with his friends. However it cuts off quickly because it closes as he
dives through.
We hear the president cheering as they found deep thought, this then
cuts back to the silence of Dent and Marvin sat in the cold.
The exchange between Dent and Smarty is funny, Smarty is a very
deadpan character. Deadpan is typical in British Comedy.
There is a pun in used in the scene, though rather than let the joke go,
it has to be explained. This is keeping on with the deadpan humour.
Marvin is sarcastic and depressing. His comments in the background
are not helpful to the situation at all. He links to something I read that
said we British people find our own misery (and that of others) funny.
Cinematography
The camera pans over the top of the portal and across the the other
side when following Dent as he tries to dive through.
There are a lot of high angle shots of Dent which show him as the
weaker and more afraid character.
The conversation is done with shot, reverse shot.
The final shot of the scene is just Marvin sitting alone, this shows
that he is insignificant and has just been forgotten about.
Editing
Cuts between two contrasting locations and contrasting sets of
characters. Dent and Marvin who have given up, and the others who
have found their way to Deep Thought.

8. Picnic
Mise En Scene
Dent finds a food banquet in a reconstruction of his old
house. His friends are also all there enjoying the food. The
scene is too good to be true. Everyone looks really overly
happy, another link to the film Hot Fuzz at the village fete.
This all warns the audience that something is wrong.
He starts drinking some tea which is a British stereotype,
there is also the stereotype about his house being a little
house out in the countryside.
There are two mice on the table, it is revealed that mice
run everything on the planet Earth. This is another plot
twist that is something completely unexpected, it fits with
the whole theme of the film.
The mice then turn out to be the bad guys, another
ridiculous circumstance plays out where the mice try to
extract Dent’s brain because they need it in order to
reconstruct the planet.
The chair he was sitting on suddenly restrains him and a
drill comes out of a fruit bowl.
His friends all fall asleep suddenly. The whole mood has
changed to a desperate struggle.
Dent breaks free and kills the mice by squashing them
with a tea pot.
Everything starts to shake which emphasizes that there is
imminent danger. This is a throwback to the beginning of
the film when everything starts to shake outside of Dent’s
house.
Sound
The song ‘Magic Moments’ plays when he enters his house for
the first time. This is a happy song.
The mice have creepy high pitched voices. This is what you’d
expect a mouse to sound like though if it were to speak.
‘Your brain’
‘Right’
‘More tea?’
‘Sorry?’
Tense music starts playing as soon as the mice reveal their plan to
take his brain. Dent’s pace and volume pick up as he gets more
scared.
The music softens when he starts to be sentimental.
The mice interrupt and ruin his sentimental moment with a funny
line ‘Rubbish we don’t want to be happy , we wanna be famous!’
There actually is a climax to the music and tension this time as he
breaks free.
Loud intrusive music suddenly starts playing. This signifies that
they are yet again in danger after only just getting out of danger.
‘Left, right, left, right’ can be heard in the background.
Cinematography
Dent walks into the shot through the door.
The shots of the Mice are high angle shots that look down
on them.
There are lots of close ups on his friends eating, there are
lots of close ups on his face as he panics about the drill
getting closer to his head..
Close ups of the restraints on the chair to show how trapped
he is.
The camera zooms in on his face as he gives his sentimental
speech about Trillion.
There is a POV shot of Arthur looking at the dead mice.
Editing
CGI mice
Lots of fast cuts as the situation becomes more desperate.
Juxtaposition of the victory against the mice and the
arrival of the Vorgons.

9. Monty Python and The Holy Grail

10. Black Knight
Mise En Scene
The setting of the scene is in a forest, this is very
obvious. They also seem to be ‘riding’ deep into the
forest for the scene due to the amount of shots of
them going through the forest.
The characters, and actors, are British, which is very
important for British comedy films.
The Black Knight wears a full set of black armor so
his face can’t be seen. Despite this we still get close
ups of his helmet.
Arthur is dressed in White, the opposite of Black,
this is just a subtle suggestion of bad and good.
The costume design is not only done to be relevant
to the time setting and give the audience clues
about their intentions, but it also allows for the
Black Knight to be mutilated.
The weapons used are also medieval swords and
axes to fit in with the story and time period.
The Black Knight is left at the end of the scene,
limbless on the ground. The fact that he continues
to taunt Arthur is funny and works well with the
satirical style of the film.
Sound
The scene begins with a fanfare, that becomes a motif used for King
Arthur’s entrances in the film. It is very dramatic and contrasts with the
fact that Arthur is pretending to ride a horse. There is a sound effect of the
horse running made by two coconuts being hit together, this is
synchronous to the action actually happening on the screen.
The sound of metal weapons clashing against each other can be heard, this
first happens before Arthur sees the Black Knight so we know a fight is
going on.
The Foley seems to be over the top. Particularly the sound of blood
gushing out of a severed limb.
The dialogue in the scene is witty, for example, when the Black Knight loses
his arm he says “ ’tis but a scratch ”
The screams are also very over the top, though this is comical.
There is a tense soundtrack behind the action which suddenly stops when
the Black Knight loses his arm.
Cinematography
The establishing shot of the scene shows the forest from a wide shot,
Arthur ‘rides’ into this, it then pans across with him.
There is a wide shot from where Arthur is standing which shows the Black
Knight fighting. It shows the audience was Arthur sees and why he wants
the Black Knight with him.
Some of the shots of Arthur are from a low angle, this makes him look
more powerful.
The final shot of the Black Knight is from a high angle, depicting him as
weak, which makes sense as he is limbless.
There are close ups of both men during the fight. There are also close ups
of his follower, and his reactions towards the brutality.
Editing
There is cross cutting between the initial ‘ride’ and
the Black Knight fighting. This gives an idea of what is
coming up before Arthur sees it.
There is also cross cutting during the fight with
Arthur. Before he takes the Black Knight’s first arm
off, it cuts to Arthur’s follower and shows his
reaction. The sound can be heard asynchronously.

11. The Bridge of Death
Mise En Scene
Smoke, or Steam, is rising from below the bridge. This creates a
larger sense of impending doom. This is also done by the
random explosions that occur.
All of the characters are wearing white armor to show that they
are on the same side, and are the good guys.
The bridge itself is a rope bridge that looks like it could fall apart
or give way under pressure.
The scene revolves around tricks and anticlimaxes. More
features of British Comedy. The first is that Lancelot has no
problem at all crossing the bridge, which is completely
unexpected. Then it is very obvious that when Robin tries next,
he fails, the same with Galahad. The next twist comes from
Arthur accidentally tricking the Bridge Keeper into getting a
question wrong and being killed himself. This scene is very
British in its style of comedy.
Sound
“There’s the old man form scene 28!” “What’s he doing here?”
is an example of the dialogue in this scene. It also shows the
aspect of the film not taking itself seriously.
The Bridge Keeper has a Scottish accent and speaks in rhyme.
This is odd and makes it seem like something from within a fairy
tale or the fantasy genre.
The screams and splash as they fall below the bridge are over
the top and very comical.
Cinematography
There are a lot of wide shots in the scene, this is due to the large
landscape. One is of the bridge which sets the scene. Another is
from the five characters moving along the cliff edge, another is
from behind them looking at the bridge to show the scope of it.
The bridge has to be presented as a deadly and dangerous thing
to be feared.
Editing
The main bit of editing in this scene is when the Knights, Robin
and Galahad, get tricked and end up being thrown off the cliff
and below the bridge. They spring up out of the shot and are
then shown falling down passed the bridge. I assume a green
screen or some form of CGI was used for this.

12. Police Scene
Mise En Scene
A lot of knights run up into the shot over
the hill. They do not have horses but
pretend to ride horses, similar to Arthur.
This is a funny running joke throughout
the film.
The castle across the river is associated
with the genre.
A police car and police officers come into
the scene all dressed in much more
modern clothing than that of all the
other characters. There is an ironic twist
ending to the film as Arthur is arrested
and the camera shut off.
Sound
Drumbeats sound as the knights
appear over the hill. It seems to be
building up to a big battle.
This comes to a halt and everything
falls silent while looking at the full
army of King Arthur.
Arthur gives a big dramatic speech
to his army and enemies, he also
gives a battle cry of “charge!”
A big dramatic fanfare plays,
accompanied by cheering and
shouts from the army.
It is interrupted by sudden police
sirens which do not make sense to
be in that particular time period.
The police speak to the army
through megaphones.
There is a crashing sound as the
camera is cut off.
Cinematography
There is a long wide shot of the army
emerging over the hill, this is incredibly
dramatic, which is actually funny due to the
unexpected nature of it.
There are lots of close ups of random people
and weapons in the army.
Shots pan across the full army.
A long wide shot shows Arthur in front of his
army.
While the army is running the camera pans
across and tracks some of the army running
down the hill.
The police car drives into the scene.
Editing
The end of the shot makes it seem as if
the camera has forcibly been shut off.
There is a juxtaposition of a large army
and an empty castle.