Research into Mise-En-Scene - Miss Georgiou

Research into Mise-En-Scene

Mise-En-Scene is a french term for 'placing on stage' is, simply put, what the audience sees in the scene and is used subconsciously in the film to create effect in the audience. The 5 elements of Mise-en-Scene are Settings and Iconography, Costume, Hair and Makeup, Facial Expressions and Body Language, Lighting and Color and Positioning of Characters. The film I have chosen to analyse is 'Saw' and the scene in analysis is the opening scene in which Adam (Leigh Whannell) awakens in an industrial bathroom with Lawrence (Cary Elwes) and a dead body resting between the two with a gun and tape recorder in his hands. Both Lawrence and Adam are bolted to pipes by the ankle, restricting their movement and further reinforcing the idea that they are both trapped in the situation. The URL link to the video is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAWK9V9Hk_A.

In this scene, Mise-En-Scene is used to create surprise in the audience through the use of body positioning. The audience see a dead man lying in the middle of the room between both Adam and Lawrence, with a revolver in one hand and a tape recorder in the other, and although he may not remain in the shot the whole time his presence is always noted by the audience. This tells the audience that this man is important to the future events of the film and should be taken note of by the audience. His equal distance from both Adam and Lawrence also suggests that they are both equally close to death as they are both trapped in a situation where they are not in control and could die, with both being in trouble and neither being superior to the other. This creates surprise in the audience as they want to know why this man is dead under suspicious circumstances, as it appears he chose to kill himself after listening to something on the tape recorder with no clear instructions in the room, and why he has been left in there with them, as a killer so organised as to chain them to a wall and lock them in would clear the body out before he moved his next victims in.

In this scene, Mise-En-Scene is used to create shock in the audience through the use of costume. The audience see both men wearing sweaty clothing with dirt on them, Lawrence wears a ragged suit while Adam wears casual clothing. This tells the audience that they have been kidnapped and left in poor conditions, the dirt, and that they have been there awhile, the sweat. The different styles of clothing also show how both men are of different social standings yet they have both been kidnapped suggesting that they have been specifically targeted by the antagonist. This creates shock as the does not expect our protagonists to be this damaged upon the beginning of the film and so this makes the audience question how long the protagonists will be able to survive in the conditions they are in due their already damaged state.

In this scene, Mise-En-Scene is used to create intrigue in the audience through the use of body language. The audience see Adam and Lawrence walk with a hunch when they start to walk around after the lights come on. This tells the audience that both men are physically hurt or under duress due to the way they are unable to stand up straight. This creates intrigue in the audience as they want to know why these men are hurt or under duress as they have both just appeared to the audience and they do not know why they are so hurt or tired. This effect of suspense is also supported as the audience want to know whether the protagonists will be able to hold their own if they were to physically oppose the antagonist.

In this scene, Mise-En-Scene is used to create suspense in the audience through the use of iconography. The audience see a gun, as well as a tape recorder resting in the hands of the dead man, both outside of Adam and Lawrence's reach. This tells the audience that these represents the choices that the dead man, Adam and Lawrence have in that they can play the game that the killer wants to play, represented by the tape recorder, or they will die, represented by the gun. This creates suspense in the audience as they want to know what's on the tape and why the man has killed himself although both objects being in the man's hand suggests the tape said something he did not want to hear and he killed himself because of it. This suspense is further supported by the question as to whether Adam and Lawrence will play the killer's game or if they will kill themselves like the man did.

In this scene, Mise-En-Scene is used to create suspense in the audience through the use of color. The audience see, as the lights come on, that the room is tinted blue by the lighting. The use of blue to light the room connotes to the audience as sense of cold and justice to the audience with the coldness of the lighting suggesting to the audience that they are both out of their element and not comfortable in the situation they are, while the justice that is felt in the audience by the lighting opposes the lawless situation that they are in and connotes that the antagonist will face justice at some point in the film. This creates suspense as the audience want to know why the room has been lit blue rather than standard lighting as well as the connotation of cold and how the characters being out of their element will either help or hinder their attempt to escape from the clutches of the killer. The sense of justice gathered from the lighting also creates suspense as the audience want to know how the killer will face justice in the end and how it will affect the protagonists. In this scene, key and top lighting is used to create shock for the audience. The audience see the lights come on in a wave illuminating the room that Adam and Lawrence are in, temporarily blinding the two. This connotes to the audience how the police will attempt to track down the killer. The way that the light passes over the body in top lighting connotes to the audience that the police, Tapp and Sing, will come across death as the narrative progresses, because the top lighting casts light on the entire room and doesn't leave shadows, and the room being fully lit at the end of the scene represents that the police will have a full understanding of what the killer is doing by the end of the film. This use of key lighting that lights the room up light by light connotes to the audience that the police will not be able to catch the killer in a fluid motion and will instead encounter step-backs that lead them to taking their time. This creates shock as the lights come on suddenly, startling the audience, representing how the police will find the antagonist amidst the chaos.

In conclusion, by analyzing this sequence I am able to see how Mise-En-Scene has been used in a highly successful thriller film in different ways and see the different kind of effects that have been put upon the audience and the different combination of effects that they have wanted the audience to feel and why they may have done it. In making my own thriller I would like to include iconography as it is very easy to create an effect with the iconography as it is easy to hold the audiences attention and will be easy to provide and use in making my own thriller film. Another Mise-En-Scene element I would also like to use costume as it allows for the audience to create the effect themselves by seeing the audience and even working out character's positions themselves. Costumes are also easy to create and use as the character will always be wearing the costume whereas something like lighitng or body positioning may go unnoticed by the audience unlike how iconography and costume is always focused upon.