Research into mise-en-scene

Mise-en-scene refers to everything that appears before the camera and it's arrangement including composition, sets, props, actors, costumes and lighting. Clever use of mise-en-scene can make the film more immersive and suspensful.

Setting, Iconography & Lighting

The scene is set out in the middle of nowhere near a long stretch of road. The background is never in focus throughout the whole scene and the whole scene is brightly lit. This allows the focus to always be on the various characters in the scene and always show their facial expressions. This film is a psychological thriller so it's important that the audience know how the characters are feeling throughout. Having a busy background would only cause to distract the viewer and have a negative effect on the suspense and immersion the film creates.

The gun plays a big part in the scene. Brad Pitt's character is seen waving it around as he decides what he's going to do about the man who killed his wife. The gun represents the fact that Brad Pitt's character (Mills)  has the power to end Kevin Spacey's (John Doe) life. Whether Spacey lives or dies is completely up to him and the gun is used to show this power, this creates the tension and suspense typically seen in psychological thrillers. The gun prop is only the focus of the shot for a brief second as the trigger is being pulled, this shows how the gun only has power if the owner is willing to use it. This is conventional for a psychological thriller as the focus on the mind games the characters play with each other and suspense comes from not knowing what certain characters will be prepared to do.

Costume, Hair & Make-Up

In the scene I analysed Mills is seen wearing what looks like a bulletproof vest. This represents the fact that Mills himself isn't in any danger. The problem is what he could do to others, including John Doe. This is typical as in the scene he is shown as the character with the most power and the suspense comes from what he could potentially do with this power. John Doe on the other hand has no protection which shows how he has nothing to protect himself from Mills. Doe is the main antagonist and is wearing a brightly coloured prison jumpsuit which reminds the audience how he is a criminal, and clearly presents him as the bad guy. This is also conventional as thriller films often have underlying themes of good vs evil.

Facial Expressions & Body Language

Throughout the scene John Doe remains calm. He never looks scared or sad which is strange considering he knows he is about to be killed. This unnerves the audience as a in this situation Doe would be expected to be scared for his life but is calmness makes it seem like he is in control even though he is assumed to be powerless, this makes him even scarier. The audience are frightened of this man who manages to remain calm with a gun pointing at his face and realise that he really is in control. This is typical for a psychological thriller as conflicts are usually of the mind and the person with the most power is usually the one with the most intelligence. Antagonists in these films are always intelligent and usually psychopathic.

Mills facial expressions are ones of sadness and anger, especially after finding out his wife was pregnant. His expressions let the audience know how he is feeling and how tempting it must be for him to use his gun, the audience sympathises with him. In this scene Mills acts as an audience stand in as just like the audience he doesn't want the villain to win but he is also powerless to do anything.

Positioning of Characters & Objects

Mills and Somerset (Morgan Freeman) grow close during the film but in the scene they are distant. Somerset is standing away from Mills as he is too scared to get any closer to him. This shows how Somerset is able to tell how Mills is mentally unstable and doesn't want to go near him, this puts the viewers on edge as Mills is usually calm.

In this low angle shot Mills is looking down at what he's done whereas Somerset has his back turned. Low angle shots are commonly used in thrillers to show which characters have the most power and in this scene Somerset had power over John Doe's life. The positioning of Somerset with his back turned suggests that he knew Mills' actions were inevitable and that while he isn't surprised, he doesn't want to turn and look at Doe's dead body. He disapproves of his partner letting John Doe win but sympathises with him; his feelings mirror the audience's who also regret seeing the antagonist's plan being successful but are also made to sympathise with Mills.

Conclusion

My research will help me design my own thriller as I know understand how mise-en-scene can be used for different effects. I know understand how important it is to pick the right setting and I will make sure I choose a setting that enhances the immersion of my thriller without being to distracting. I will have to make sure the people in my thriller are wearing something that fits with the design of the film and doesn't make anyone look out of place. I also now know how I can use the positioning of characters within the frame to show the audience what kind of relationship they have with each-other.