Friday, 28 November 2014

How does the use of mise en scene and sound create excitement in the sequence from Divergent?

The scene opens with a mid shot of Tris with the mise-en-scene of blue walls surrounding her and Four. This could show that Tris feels isolated because she’s in an unfamiliar place, suggesting that she is used to a more civilized and warm atmosphere. This contrasts to the idea of Four being shown as a cold-hearted figure, implied by the colour. This also highlights his transformation after he has been brainwashed. Non-diegetic subtle chanting sound occurs, giving connotations to Four being in a trance. The chanting is religious, suggesting that Four is compared to an extreme believer who thinks they are doing the right thing. There is then an eye line match showing their equal dominance. In the same shot, there is mise-en-scene of white windowpanes. This made me feel like I was looking into a blank canvas, Four’s old self had been wiped and someone else had taken his place. A straight cut to a close up of a control panel of a brain starting to turn red, foreshadowed danger and blood, fitting in with the Sci-Fi and action genre conventions of violence and the brain being of use to scientific conventions. In the background, the lilac floor symbolises femininity, foreshadowing that Tris will take control very soon. Lilac also calms the mind and nerves, suggesting that Four is in a trance with a lasting effect.


A sudden non-diegetic sound of a dramatic drum rhythm, matches the action of a sudden fight between Tris and Four. The fast pace and high volume created suspense, further creating excitement for me as it was pulse raising. The sound reminded me of rhythmic drums, showing adrenaline between the characters but it also showed that Four had his own rhythm, which was being controlled, linking to the fact that he was executing demands but not from his free will.  After 3 straight cuts of moving the intense action along, there is a diegetic sound of lab equipment being knocked off a table, implying that it is a chaotic situation. The lab equipment adds to the sci-fi conventions further because lab equipment usually involves experimentation, showing the science aspect of the genre. The recurring diegetic punches and kicks also enhance the action conventions. The next over the shoulder shot was a fight break out with Four and Tris. The lovers fighting were a clear comparison to ‘The Hunger Games’ where Katnis had to fight Peter in order to survive, making me empathise with the two characters. The comparison shows that fighting is an action convention used in those genres. There is mise-en-scene of their black outfits representing that they’re ruthless, they have dominance and they both have authority. It shows me that they both possess equal strength. There are then multiple straight cuts showing the fast pace of the action, which was pulse raising for me. A straight cut to a low angle of Four towering over Tris is used. This shows his superiority in that moment. There is a clear binary opposition in this scene of good vs. evil. Tris is good and Four is evil, however I know that he is not evil because he has been brainwashed.

There is then an extreme close up of a gun lying on the floor panning sideways to Tris, foreshadowing that she will have power over Four since a gun signifies power and the pan to Tris implies that she will likely use it. An eye line match is used where Jeanine is looking at Tris and Four, resembling her dominance and her significance to the plot. Her dominance is also shown through her performance. Behind her, there is mis-en-scene of white walls and a white ceiling, signifying purity and the recurring binary opposition of good Vs evil. However, this is juxtaposition, since in the plot Jeanine is the evil character, leading me to question why there are connotations of purity towards her. This could show how in her mind, wiping out divergent’s is the right thing to do, showing that she has been misled, to thinking that she is pure. However, she is in high key lighting, suggesting her power at this point, emphasising her evil, as the lighting exposes who Jeanine is. Tris and Four are in low key lighting, contrasting to the idea that they are not powerful when it comes to beating her.


The non-diegetic sound increases in volume when there is a straight cut to Tris holding a gun up to Four’s head, signifying that the action is about to reach a climax, which made me feel tense. A straight cut to a repeated low angle of Four standing over Tris, highlighted his superiority, followed by a high angle of Tris, showing that they are equal in power. An eye line match between them indicates that their love still remains and they still had a connection, no matter the circumstance. This made me upset that Four had forgotten his love for Tris up until this moment.


At this point, non-diegetic sound decreases in volume, making me anticipate that the action was over. However the extreme close up to the gun trigger after Tris put the gun to her own head, showed that the action was not over, foreshadowing further violence. There is then a straight cut to the performance of Four, fighting with his inner self, to try and restore his composure and need to kill Tris, rising the tension for me. The close up shot of Tris at gunpoint can be compared to the film ‘The Avengers’ when Natasha is held at gunpoint by someone she cares about (Clint). This is the scene, when Clint has been brain washed, similar to Four and he is about to kill Natasha, showing the dominance of males as a popular convention in the action genre. 

Non-diegetic supernatural music then occurs when there is an eye line match between the two of them, showing their connection, highlighting that Four is starting to remember who he is about to kill. I felt empathy for Tris and an emotional response, as I understood the emotional involvement the two of them had and the narrative built a personal relationship. The music emphasises the extraordinary circumstance of Four when he overcomes his brainwashed state, another regular convention of science fiction. The non-diegetic rhythmic sound kicks in once again, instantly building suspense, followed by a straight cut to the fighting beginning once again.

There is an extreme close up of Tris picking up a knife, suggesting a further threat. Multiple jump cuts are used to show action moving along quickly showing that Four and Tris are not having any trouble defeating their opponents. The jump cuts highlight the intensity of the fight and the recurring diegetic gun shot sounds add to the action genre conventions. A straight cut to Jeanine with a blue suit also implies that she is cold hearted, the mid shot then with the mise-en-scene of a control panel indicates that it is the driving force behind the ‘mind wipe’ of Dauntless. The panels gradually turn from white to red, showing the transition of purity to impurity, as well as the red foreshadowing the imminent danger.  A straight cut to a medium-close up of Tris shows her significance and that stopping Jeanine is all down to her. I worried that she could fail in her mission. There is a straight cut to a projection screen of faction citizens being ordered to kneel. There is a sideways pan to another screen showing the same, which highlights the mass number of people under threat. The next forward tracking shot of the knife flying through the air, suggests violence and threat. Once it stabs her in the hand, the non-diegetic music stops suddenly, which added to the shock factor for me. The non-diegetic sound starts to build up again, matching the fast pace of Tris walking towards her target. Another straight cut to Tris threatening Jeanine with a knife shows she is superior and is thinking one step ahead. The repeated sideways pan to the projection screen enhances the idea of the number of people under threat. The mise-en-scene of more red panels on the control pad showed the increased death and escalation of the slaughter. This manipulated my emotions as I felt angry and felt that it was an unfair reality.

Parallel editing is used from the lab scene to Dauntless pointing guns at civilians. Dauntless’s black outfits as aspects of mise-en-scene once again show dominance, compared to civilians with grey outfits, creating the idea of them being lifeless, with depressed emotions. The fight sequence is linear with an equilibrium and a new equilibrium throughout the sequence, similar to the equilibrium in The Matrix when the fight commences. The climax of the fight made me feel excitement. The jump cuts used, relate to the fast paced fight, similar to divergent. In both sequences, the guy and the woman team up to fight their opposition, showing that a partnership is an action convention.






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