Mise en Scene

Mise en Scene is a French term meaning "what is put into a scene or frame", it is made up of 5 elements which are settings and props, costume, facial expressions/body language, lighting and positioning within the frame. I will be analysing a scene from each film that I have been analysing already so far, starting with the Book of Eli, to I am Legend, The Road and finally to 28 Days Later.

This scene is shot in a cell, the walls are old as you can see the old paint on them showing through, this shows that the cell is to make you feel like a prisoner because it is not a luxurious place to stay in, however for Eli it probably makes him feel comfortable because usually he is out and about looking for shelter and food. The sink in the background looks scruffy and broke which makes the cell look uncared for anyone' s use. The door is the only thing that looks new and looked after in the setting which is strange. Eli is wearing clean clothes, at the start of the film we see him completely covered with dirty and dark clothes, however in this scene he looks looked after and groomed well. The female wears a dress and has long luscious hair, as soon as we see her in this scene we can already see that the woman is used as bait just like the first woman in the start of the film, women are not appreciated and are constantly being used. The female stands by the door looking very nervous as she is slightly hunching her back as if she is trying to be polite to see if she can be welcomed to come in, Eli on the other hand looks very powerful as he is standing more straight, he hold his book in his arm that is not facing the door to hide it, in the other hand he is holding a gun to protect himself as he can tell that this is a trap. The characters have a door used a barrier between them, this shows a lost of tension between them already, the light is mainly focused on Eli as the shadow is on the female, the light also suggests that the two characters are fighting between good and evil.

This scene shows an urban city, it looks very busy as the cars are all parked behind one another which looks like the cars where in a traffic jam, this shows us that the city used to be very busy however now it's down just to a small amount of people left. The main character is wearing dark and loose clothing and looks as if he is at war, he has a weapon strapped to him to protect him too which can also be seen as an accessory. He is standing tall and the camera is pointed straight at him which shows exactly that he is powerful and mighty, because he is stood in the middle is exaggerates the fact he is alone. The lighting looks very gloomy as it looks foggy, it is a simple natural lighting.

This scene is mainly focused on the two characters therefore we do not get to see much of the scenery, we can see in the background which isn't focused looks like an old house or maybe a furniture shop, I can see a table turned over on the floor inbetween the characters and the child looks as if he is sat down on a chair, the wires that are dangling down make me think it could be in a shop as they would have bigger wires or pipes around, but because I have not watched this film just yet I can not exactly identify and explain the setting features. The characters are wearing warm, thick clothing as if it is winter which makes sense because there won't be any heating on when this is a post apocalyptic film, the father looks very tired and hopeless and his beard shows how he is aging slowly and can not look after himself but he does prioritise his son hence him giving his phone the last can of pop, this is a very heart felt scene because the connection between the father and son is precious and makes you feel sorry for what they have gone through and we are proud of how far they have come. The father is kneeling on the floor and looks up to his son which also shows he would do anything for his son and to make him feel comfortable, the son also looks like he respects his dad and looks like he is learning a lot from his father about hope and how to appreciate everything in life. The lighting is very dark as they are in a building, we can see in the background that the natural light from the windows are coming through on the table.

Again I have not watched this film just yet therefore I will be assuming on what is happening in this scene just by looking at this image. The two characters look as if they are in a house or shed, the place looks normal as if it isn't even post apocalyptic themed, because in the background we can see curtains and the christmas light decorations. Personally I do not think that these two characters look like they are friends, they look more like acquaintances instead because they aren't close to each other, the female also looks very suspicious because of her facial expression. The are both covered up well and are wearing something to cover their heads so maybe the christmas lights are up because it is winter time at this point in the film. The lighting looks very dark as if only a lamp is used for this scene, in the background we can see through the window that outside it is dark so it's a night or evening scene which would make sense as to why the lighting is so dark, the christmas lights in the background add a happy vibe to the scene which is the only thing that makes this scene seem positive.