The Art Within the Masterpiece

Have you ever realized that there is more to film than meets the eye?

Film is a work of art, and it is like a painting. Paintings require colors and contrast to bring out its beauty and draw attention, likewise film uses "mise en scene". "Mise en scene" is the way scenery and properties are arranged in a production. Some moviegoers only watch movies for the action, the actors/actresses, or the story line. What isn't good is that they are not paying attention to how the movie is made and what makes it up. Everything they are missing is a part of Mise En Scene. 

Mise en scene is a complex element in cinema, and there are five categories that make it up:

 One of the major components of mise en scene is the setting. The setting captures the scene. It is the place where the story take place. The setting can either be in a sound stage or a real location. It also is used to evoke emotion or response from the audience.

Another major component is the lighting. The lighting is a big deal because it creates mood and effect on the scene. There are three types of lighting: Soft Lighting, Hard Lighting, and Natural Lighting. Soft Lighting is more large and diffused and it leaves the scene and the characters with minimal imperfections. Hard Lighting  is more small and close up to the subject. There are more shadows and the imperfections are revealed. Lastly, Natural Lighting is light from the actual outdoors. It leaves different places with different types of light. The sunrises and sunsets also effect the scenes differently.

Human Figure also makes up Mise En Scene. Human figure is the way the characters or actors are placed in every scene. It also encompasses the acting style as well. Especially, if a scene is maybe a more upbeat or an action scene than a normally pace scene. The style of the acting would have to be faster and the expressions would of the actors would have to show more suspense or thrill. 

Another one is the movement of the characters or also known as blocking. Blocking is the act of staging all of the objects within the scene. The Director and Production Designer would plan out which way the actors and the cameras would go. They would make up a plan sheet that would show the actors and cameras every move to get every shot.

Last but not least is the composition. Composition is the balance of the images and the symmetry withing them. Composition also consists of lines and diagonals. It is said that straight lines seem to put people at ease and diagonals build up stress and anxiety. Loose framing also composes scenes by leaving quite a bit of space around the main subject and indicating openness and freedom. Tight framing, which is the opposite of loose framing, indicates more isolation or constriction. Perspective and the way the directors arrange the image, composes a different sense to the film. The color as well alters the mood of the film. 

The Rules of Thirds is simply as if there was a tic tac toe board on the image. The director sets the subjects and objects a certain way and symmetrically places them in a specific section of the tic tac toe board. The eyes of the subject normally rest on the bottom line of the top center square. 

Movie Reviews

Rear Window                                             

      

          Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window, which was released in 1954, is a great example of mise en scene. The story takes place with a newspaper photographer, named Jeff, who had recently broken his leg. To pass the time by hit sits up in his apartment and watches his neighbors through his rear window. One afternoon, he

spots what he thinks to be a murder and takes it upon himself to try to solve it. With some help from his "too perfect" girlfriend and disapproving nurse, he tries to not get himself killed as he searches the clues for the murderer.

          Rear Window was filmed in a sound stage with great backgrounds. Alfred Hitchcock shows great mise en scene with the placements of the neighbors windows. Also, the straight lines on the buildings and in the apartments also accompanied the mise en scene. The setting is very important to the story-line of Rear Window and the great mise en scene basically ties it in a neat bow. 

Additionally, there was very distinct lighting in Rear Window that brought suspense and character to the

scene. Especially, when the murderous neighbor, Mr. Thorwald came into his home and tried to violently assault Jeff. The room was dark and as Mr. Thorwald came closer and closer, Jeff blinded him with his camera flash. A lot of work and mise en scene went into putting that scene together so that the audience could feel and see the effect the bright light had on Mr. Thorwald.

The costumes that the actors/actresses wore in this film were chosen to reflect the time period that they were in. The story took place in the 50's so their clothing were styles from that time period. Such as the dress that Grace Kelly wore when she visited James Stewart. The dress captured her super stylish stardom. She was also said to have worn some of most stunning outfits in cinema. All her ravishing dresses and outfits were all decided and chosen using mise en scene.

                                                                         

Movie: Great!                                                                                          Mise En Scene: Perfection!

Beasts Of The Southern Wild

Beats of the Southern Wild, directed by Benh Zeitlin, is a great precedent of mise en scene. The film, which was released in 2012, holds many of the characteristics and components of mise en scene. In a small, almost invisible community called the Bathtub, a six-year old girl named Hushpuppy is faced with many obstacles as she becomes on the edge of being orphaned. She lives with her father, who is mysteriously struck with illness, and as his condition continues to worsen, nature seems to fall with him. As the water in the river rises higher and higher, Hushpuppy is forced to leave the community in search of her long-lost mother. 

The first component of mise en scene that is noticeable in Beasts Of The Southern Wild is the setting. The story takes place in a washed up and forgotten community so the directors need to set up the scenes as accurately as the can, and that is when they use mise en scene. The land that Hushpuppy lives on is dirty and

all the houses are rusted and run down. The Production Designer uses mise en scene in the film to make the audience understand the environment that Hushpuppy is living in.

The costumes in the this film help shape the scenes as well. The characters in Beasts of the Southern Wild wore rugged and old clothing to show the poor environment that they lived in. Which was a thought out using mise en scene. 

One of the scenes the stuck out with mise en scene was when Hushpuppy broke the crab with her hands and everyone around her, including her father, were cheering her on. The lighting in this seen was very distinct and showed the energy of what was going on and the setting during that scene. The human figure also is huge in this scene because it shows Hushpuppy acting just like her father and being proud of herself. 

Movie: Awesome!                                                                                        Mise En Scene: Perfect!