Connect:
The narrative is linear in this short film but at the same time it does have elements of a non linear film. It is linear because there is a clear beginning middle and end but at the same time there are dream sequences in this short film where it completely leaves the narrative behind. the story is that the main character is on her way home in rush hour on a busy bus and despite the world being an antis-social, silent place she connects with someone before the man she connects with gets off at his stop. However the dream sequences leave the narrative and focus on other characters and their feelings, one being the expression of a man on his way home having to stand up on the bus and when he looks at the woman on the seat the main character imagines him shooting her with a pistol and taking her seat, this reflects peoples attitude to other members of the public as people think this could be possible. Then at the end of the film she sees everybody on the bus dancing which reflects her mood as she has found somebody in the public who she can connect with and who isn't antisocial.
The sound used in the film is a combination of classical music and pop music but there are no lyrics to the music and relies on the acoustics of the music to create tension. The music is only heard by the main character as the music is playing from her headphones. The titles that are used are on a red background which is with reference to the location as it is filmed entirely on a bus which in most cities are red so the red background tells the audience that it is set on a bus. As well as this the text is white so against the background it makes the text pop and stand out but also suggests that it is set in England as it uses the colours of the fag as the colours for the titles.
There is no dialogue in this film because its aim is to show that people are disconnected in the public and will go out of their way to ignore others and their presence. Therefore peoples actions speak volumes in this short film as what they do is more important than what they say, for example the ending has a dance sequence which expresses the main characters emotions instead of her expressing herself through speech.
The mise-en-scene used in this short film support the idea of the public turning into an antisocial society. This can be shown through the use of headphones by the main character as they show that she wants to be disconnected from the rest of the world and defines the idea of antisocial behaviour. Then there is the gun used in the scene where the man in the suit shoots the woman on the seat. This again is used to show the antisocial nature of people by showing aggression to the public. This creates tension in the film as it gives the audience anxiety until it becomes clear that it is a dream sequence.
The sound used is all diegetic sound as it is all from the perspective of the main character who can hear the music through her headphones. The gunshot would be classed as non-diegetic sound because nobody hears it due to it being the main characters dream, although from her perspective the sound is diegetic as she can clearly hear the gunshot. The only other sound used in the film is also diegetic as it is the sound of the bus moving off and traveling, it is diegetic sound as it is something every character is aware of and can hear.
In terms of editing the film mainly uses continuity editing because its a very simplistic plot that requires very little editing to the film. However having said that sound would need to be edited because the gunshot for the scene where the woman is shot would have been added in after. In the same scene it is not obvious that make-up has been used to look like blood so there is also the possibility that special effects were used to create the effect of blood in that scene.
In the first scene there is no establishing shot of the scene but instead there is an extreme close up of a woman who is the main character and this is done to make us assume that she is the leading role. After a cut we see a shot reverse shot where we see the main character in a close up from a different angle cut to a point of view shot of the corner of a bus shelter and the bus headlights before cutting back to the woman. This is used to show the scene and to let the audience know what the rest of the film will be set on (the bus). For these camera angles the camera is hand held so it makes it seem as if we are seeing the story through the eyes of another character which is effective as it makes the
audience feel as if they are part of the film.
After this there is a mid shot of the main character waiting to get onto the bus as the doors open and it constantly cuts between the image of her from the drivers point of view and from outside of the bus. This is used to give two images, the first from inside the bus, that life is often a cruel and unfair thing based on the fact she is barged and pushed past and then the image from the outside shows her acceptance and her passive aggressive nature.
When the film moves onto the bus there are another series of shots, all from the main characters point of view, the first is a mid shot of a man and the mid shots pan between the two characters multiple times before moving on. This suggests to the audience that this is the connection that is being referred to in the title. Then there is a high angled close up of a man sitting down looking glum which is used to show the hostility and negativity that we face in the public but the angle suggests that we should also look down at them and condemn them for their negativity and ignore those people in society. After this there is a long shot of a woman sat at the back corner of the bus on her own. The image that is trying to be shown here is made more effective by the fact that there are peoples bodies in the way because it is showing the empty seats around her and that people have got to a point where they are so anti-social they won't sit next to others. Finally it uses a mid shot of the three people in front of the previous shot which focuses on their statue like body positions and facial expressions which is showing the fact that people have become affectionless to others over time based on the attitudes we have when living in cities.
No comments:
Post a Comment