Mise-en-Scène Review
Hello viewers! Today, I will be doing another movie analysis, but this time, I will be discussing Mise-en-Scène! This is a French term that refers to everything that the viewer can see in the frame. Producers use Mise-en-Scène to help express the mood and atmosphere they desire. For this review, to change things slightly, I will analyze a different movie in the Jurassic Franchise, opting for Jurassic World (2015)!
Scene 1 - Location, Setting, Lighting
To begin, a shot from the early stages of the movie, intended for exposition, places emphasis on the location, setting, and lighting. For location, the audience can clearly see it takes place on an island rampaged with forest and mountain ridges. With the movies context, we know this island is referred to as Isla Nublar, a fictional island set off the west coast of Costa Rica. This evokes a feeling of adventure and nostalgia (it's the same island used in the original blockbuster, Jurassic Park). As for setting, in this specific scene, it occurs in the theme park's most concentrated area, the Innovation Center. Along with the high-key lighting coming from the bright daylight, the setting and lighting go hand-in-hand to convey the exhilarating, fun experience that the park visitors are having.
Scene 2 - Actors, Costume, Scenery
This next scene is further utilized for characterization of the two main characters of the movie through the actors themselves, the costumes they wear, and the scenery around them. The actors Bryce Dallas Howard (left) and Chris Pratt (right) are perfect for their roles, given Howard's elegant, feminine appearance and Pratt's masculine, blue-collar vibe. Paired with their costumes, their characters are illuminated to viewers. Howard's costume consists of white business attire, paired with high heels and a full face of makeup. This expresses her character to be formal and job-focused, caring more about analytics and order than family and relationships. Contrastingly, Pratt's casual shirt and pants, messy hair, and dirt-stained limbs convey him as a hands-on guy who engages with nature and his environment more than modern technology. To finalize this meaning, the scenery provides the cherry on top to their characterization. The trailer, motorcycle, and camping equipment in the background show us that Pratt's character is accustomed to this lifestyle in nature and is embracing it. At the same time, Howard's arrival to the scene creates a significant distinction between her and the scenery, highlighting the contrast between the two personalities of the protagonists.
Scene 3 - Setting, Scenery, Lighting
Moving on, this scene near the middle of the movie utilizes setting, scenery, and lighting to express the calmness of the film right before disaster strikes. The setting is a vast, flat, open field surrounded by distant mountains. This creates a relaxed mood in the audience as the flatness allows for a full view of everything ahead, eliminating any surprises or dangers. The scenery further adds to the tranquility. For fans of the franchise, they would recognize the dinosaurs in the scenery as herbivores, who have been repeatedly characterized in the films as being gentle creatures. Being surrounded by these animals poses no apparent threat to the two teens in the spherical vehicle (gyro sphere). The high-key lighting finalizes the peaceful setting, using sunlight to reveal everything in the scene to the audience minimizing shadows to avoid an offset look.
Scene 4 - Setting, Lighting, Costume, Props, Framing
A lot going on in this scene, and rightfully so! In a thriller scene, the movie directors emphasize setting, lighting, costume, props, and framing. In this still, the setting is a congested forest, filled with trees, bushes, and other greens of nature, creating a hostile environment. The lighting adds to the danger, as the producers opt for more lowkey-lighting, creating suspense and drama in this chaotic scene. More obviously, the costume of the character is a blend of security and military, outlining his trained combat against any possible threats on the island. The prop extends this, being a powerful shotgun meant to inflict heavy damage on its target. Finally, the framing creates a dramatic difference between the size of the dinosaur and the soldier. While the dino is certainly larger, this mid-shot/low angle creates an even more striking difference, making the mouth of the dinosaur itself appear TWICE the size of the man's entire body!
Scene 5 - Setting, Scenery, Lighting, Framing
Lastly, this shot from the final battle of the movie stresses on setting, scenery, lighting, and framing. The setting is back at the Innovation Center, the same one that was depicted in Scene 1 above. However, its destroyed nature conveys the destruction throughout the movie, and even adds foreshadowing into what is about to happen (even more destruction). The scenery is key to the emotional appeal. It consists of the same buildings, structures, objects, etc. from earlier in the film, but they are changed to be harmed or destroyed in some way, similar to the setting. As for lighting, the extreme low-key lighting creates drama, danger, and suspense, the perfect mixture of emotions ahead of a final battle! The only light present comes from the few neon lights and street lamps that still have power, further expressing the damage inflicted. Finally, like many other instances in the scene, the framing is used to show the audience everything they need to see: The destroyed architecture, wet ground, raptors on either side of the group of people, and the mighty Indominus Rex up front. The wide shot creates emphasis on the power difference between the people and dinosaur, expressing the ginormous size of the dinosaur compared to the people despite the creature being further from the camera!
