Analysis of another film like the one we are doing

The film I chose to look at was 'Secret Window' as it is a psychological thriller and I think that inspiration on cinematography and sounds could be used in our film from this.

Cinematography:
In the first shot, the image is a head shot that shows the facial expressions of the character and lets the audience judge what type of film it is from this one shot. The character looks angry and scared so the film looks to be either a horror or thriller. Because of the rain clearly seen on the car window, the mood is also represented through the character giving it an even more sinister/tense atmosphere.
I noticed during the 15 minutes of the beginning of the film, there were a lot of POV shots. I like the idea of these as it makes the audience feel even more involved and as if they were following the story as if the were there. I also noticed as well as POV shots there were dolly/tracking shots used frequently. This helped to build the tension of the scene and helped make the overall look, seem flawless. In our piece I think that using POV shots would help to build tension and help the audience feel more included.
When the tension is building, slow panning and zoom shots are used. I like the ideas of these also; as well as building tension, these shots are good for setting the scene. Because this is a psychological thriller, the camerawork is usually different to usual films as it will need to be creepier and build more tension. Therefore in our piece, I feel like shots such as canted angles and zoom ins/outs could be used as they are not natural to the eye and give the film a creepier look.

In this film, there is a contrast between high and low angle shots (as seen on the right). Mainly low angle shots are used at first to show the character's uncertainty and self-confidence issue. However, as the movie progresses, more and more high angle shots are used to define the power. I also like this idea to use in our film.



This video is from the opening sequence at the beginning of the film that demonstrates some of the camera shots I talked about.

Editing:

The editing in secret window varies throughout. When the tension is increasing the editing becomes more fast paced, however during conversations for example the editing is slow and goes by the shot reverse shot rule to make the movie seem more tense as it progresses. As well as this, during the shot reverse shots, the camera cuts to important things for instance the dog which foreshadows that something will happen to the dog. I like the idea of using this editing technique as it would fit in with the genre of film we are doing and builds the tension and suspense.

As this film is a thriller there needs to be a lot of tension to be built up. In one scene during the first 15 minutes, the main character (Mort) is falling to sleep on his sofa. The camera is pointed straight over him looking down on to him to show that his eyes are getting heavy. Then there is a cut to the clock to show the time, back to Mort on the sofa and back to the clock again. The time has passed on the clock! This is a good editing technique that I believe we could use in our film (supposedly in the beginning scene in the therapy room).
In the same scene there is an impact cut. There is a slight zoom in to a door, that is being bashed down. The whole lighting is over exposed to make it look creepier. However during this there is no sound apart from the noise of a ticking clock. I really like the use of the editing and sound in this scene, and I think that it could be used in our film. The impact cut is used when the antagonist (Shooter) walks towards the camera and the image is quickly changed when there is a loud noise of a phone ringing. This was done to increase tension. Because our film will be a similar genre, I think using at least one impact cut in our film would help build the suspense and tension.

The clip in which the banging door is shown. Go to time: 2:00 to watch the shot. 

Mise en scene:

The mise en scene for this film is straight forward but adds a good effect to the overall look of the film. I noticed that the weather commonly represents the mood in the film for example in the first scene when Mort's wife is cheating on him, it is dark, snowy/rainy and dull. I think for the mise en scene of the film, it gives the film a sinister look which relates to it's genre.
The lighting in the film is crucial. When something odd is happening the light is usually over exposed to represent Mort's craziness setting in and also to show his anger. I think that in our film, using a bright filter or being somewhere where the lighting is over exposed will suit the iconography used for a psychological thriller.

Sound:
This type of film relies heavily on the use of sounds. At the start of the film there is only the sound of the wind screen wipers or what could possibly be a heart beating. I like the fact that it is left up to the mind of the viewer to decide. The sound usually begins off quite quiet but then increases until it reaches a certain noise and is stopped somehow once the tension has been increased.
There is a voice over a lot of time which lets the audience into the mind of the character, and shows that he talks to himself inside his head and also foreshadows that all of this is happening in his head.
I like the fact that when the audience suspects there to be a loud noise (for example the banging on the door) there is either no noise at all, a white noise or a non-diegetic sound such as a clock ticking. I like this idea as it makes the film look distorted and abnormal. As well as this the fact that in some scenes, there is absolutely no sound creates tension as the audience suspects that there will be a loud bang or an impact cut.

Story line:
 The story line for this film is fairy simple but can be easily expanded on and there are a lot of plot twists. In the first scene it is told to the audience the main characters past so they have a better understanding on what that character is like and empathizes with him. Like this film, we need to make a lot happen in a little time frame and the use of flash backs and the plot moving along quickly is what we are aiming to do in our film.

Genre:
it is clear from the use of cinematography, editing and music what the genre is from the very beginning. The use of close ups of the characters facial expressions let us know that they are angry which informs the audience that the film could possibly be a thriller or a horror. the music is tense and eerie therefore it gives a spooky over all impression. Because the lighting varies from dark and light, (and it also represents the mood of the scene) the film looks dark and mysterious to the viewer.

Characters:

The characters are rather suspicious looking and wear/do things that would put them into a thriller category.
The main protagonist wears scruffy/ripped clothes which represent his feeling and life. he acts suspicious as he constantly talks to himself foreboding that he will turn out to be crazy.
The antagonist, acts suspicious and has the iconography of the colour black. The fact he wears the hat gives him a sinister look and his facial expressions show that he is sinister and bad.