A still frame analysis is depicting certain sections from a film and explaining a deeper meaning into what the shot tells the viewer.
Sian Elias
STILL FRAME ANALYSIS
THE MAZE RUNNER
These shots are from the film called the Maze Runner. Automatticaly, our eyes are drawn to the subject in the middle of the picture which is the man in the first picture. We can see that its a medium shot and that the subject is looking around the place where hes been put. In this shot, we are also able too to see the surrounding and can tell that it looks like quite a cloudy day although, he apears to be sweating which shows that it may be humid/ hot or, show his anxiety... The lighting is quite low key as there appear's to be shadows on his face aswell.
In the second picture, we are overpowered with a cluttered composition where the young man is lying in what seems to maybe be a container/ boat which hes been transported in to this unknown place hes never heard of. He seems clutered around the buckets and ropes, but from his facial expression we can also tell that the light is blinding him which means that hes been kept in the dark for a long period of time.
The last shot is an establishing shot as it sets the scene and on a wide scale shows the young man and us as a viewer the height and space that the 'maze' has which encompases us as the viewer, almost making us feel small and at risk of danger. Vagouly, you can see two people walking through these large pillar like walls, due to their minature size, it shows how engulfed they are in this world.
Sian Elias
BLACK SWAN
This is a long straight shot, which makes the audience feel like they are in the room watching this rehearsal. The lonely female protagonist is also introduced to us at the very beginning. The bright spotlight on her shows the audience that she will be the main character. There’s a sense of darkness closing in on her, outside of the spotlight it is very dark. There’s an isolated environment as she’s dancing alone and there’s a sense of control- assumption that this will be shattered as the film progresses.
This is a close-up of a female character massages her feet after a dance session; focus on the normality of this action/ situation. Again, this character is alone, no one is around her. This is a fairly lighted setting; there are shadows in the corners of the room. This shot is set up as a normal room and in typical psychological thrillers the settings tend to look normal but are actually abnormal.
Well-lit room, but shadows are evident in the background. The close-ups create a sense of tension and the character is not wearing a lot of make up in the scene; revealing her true self... the image in the mirror as her reflection moves without the the real object.
Poorly lit which creates a tense atmosphere. You can barley see his face but we can tell he does not look normal and that there’s something wrong with him. The background is a familiar one to the audience as it is where the ballet dancer practices. This creates a sense of unease because this strange character has appeared in a place where the dancer seemed to be comfortable.
The lady is wearing white, which connotes innocents, and purity, which contrasts, to her violent behavior in this scene. The shot seems to be in a dressing room type setting. Use of mirrors in psychological thriller is fairly common; seeing things from a different viewpoint/ how the character sees themselves. The audience is shocked by the sudden violence of the protagonist, pushing someone/ something into a mirror.
Contrasting sides of the room; one side is very bright and well lit, allowing us to see everything there, whereas the other side id very dark and doesn’t allow us to see much.
Sian Elias
SHUTTER ISLAND
The audience’s generic expectations of the text are fulfilled in the opening due to the use of eerie piercing sounds, misty weather and a scary location (both on the water on a ship and on an isolated island). However it could be argued that the audience’s expectations of the text are challenged because the film adopts a Noiristic style, in turn partially obscuring the protagonist.
By using the Noir style the text does not conform to the characteristics of the genre, instead treating them playfully. Many thriller films do not do this, therefore challenging the generic conventions of the thriller genre.
The mise-en-scene in the opening sequence is key for introducing the audience to the characters. The trench coat and hat that the protagonist wears connotes secrecy, mystery and crime.
Also the grey and silver metal on the boat connotes the thought of trapping someone into somewhere – especially the railings and bars. The colour grey is dull and reflects the murky, misty weather in the opening.
The use of camera work in the opening positions the audience with the protagonist. The camera shot on the protagonists’ face allows the audience to see his reactions to the situation that he is in and he is positioned central in the lens allowing the audience to focus entirely on his expressions. The two-shot shows the conversation between the two characters and allows the audience to see that they are on a boat because of the water in the left of the frame. The last shot in the scene reveals the island and the location including the weather building the tension and suspense in the opening.
The deep string music starts when the island is revealed connoting fear. The eerie sounds also follow the traditional conventions of a thriller opening and build the tension as the titles come up on screen.
The dialogue positions the audience with the protagonist, in particular the line “Pull yourself together. Pull yourself together.” makes the audience feel sympathy for the protagonist but also questions why he needs to pull himself together or what is the situation that he is in. The non-verbal language of the protagonist further reinforces the worry that the audience feels towards him due to the scared, sick emotions on his face.
The director chooses low-key lighting for the first part of the opening when the protagonist is inside connotes mystery and follows the traditional generic conventions of a thriller.
Laura Rojas
LUCY
The audience can see that there will be violence because of the character holding a gun in her hand, this signifies danger and death. The serious and worried face expression of the character connotes that she is scared of what she is walking towards but she is brave enough to face it, instead of running the opposite direction. The character’s body position is also quite straight, which also signifies that she is brave, and not giving up on what she is fighting for. Also the cut on her lip, signifies that she has already been caught in some kind of trouble, this connotes that she knows what she is facing. The dark background connotes that something bad is going to happen, and the wires at the top don’t look in place, which signifies that the character is not safe and is in danger. The Chinese writing on the wall is in red, which signifies blood and death.
The character’s facial expression signings that she is not scared or worried even thought she is chained up, this connotes the power which she may have also because the man is not standing close to her even though she is in chains, he is still keeping his distance away from her. Even though the character is sitting down, her posture is quite straight which could connote that she is the one with the power but the only thing holding her down is the chain on her arm. However, he facial expression signifies that she has a plan and she knows what she is doing. The Chinese writing on the wall behind the character connotes blood and danger because of the colour red, it also bring mystery for the audience because they don't know what it actually means. The walls are in separate block piece and look like it is held together by ropes, this could connote that something wrong is happening and someone is trying to hold everything together.
Marija Gustainyte
DON'T LOOK NOW (1973)
This still frame from Don’t Look Now denotes a small child’s reflection in the water. The child is wearing a red coat; the colour red connotes danger and blood and is used for warning signs. The girl is not looking at her reflection and is instead looking in the other direction, this connotes that she is unaware of the water behind her and that she does not know where she is.
Additionally, her reflection in the water makes it appear that she is in the water; the girl’s entire body is in the reflection, which connotes that the water is consuming her and that she is going to fall in. This links with the character wearing red as it simplifies that the danger is the water.
Plus, the trees in the reflection have very little leaves on them, so it is set in autumn or winter; this is a pathetic fallacy as the weather is very gloomy and dull. All of the nature appears to be dying, which connotes that the child may be in danger of death.
OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN (2013)
This still frame from Olympus Has Fallen denotes a car balancing on the side of a bridge, with half of the car hanging over. The scene is clearly very foggy and badly lit, this is a pathetic fallacy and connotes that something bad will happen, due to the negative atmosphere. Also, the colour of the scene is dark and dull; this connotes death, as the colour black is associated with death. The car appears to be falling off of the bridge, and it is falling into the dark area with simplifies that the people in the car are going to die. The headlights on the front of the car are bright white lights, this connotes that there is still life and innocence left inside the car.
FIGHT CLUB (1999)
This still frame denotes a man lying on the floor on broken glass. In thrillers, broken glass is an omen so the audiences are clear on the genre of the film. Additionally, the broken glass connotes that something else is going to be destroyed and can be compared to a mirror breaking, which is believed to give you bad luck. The glass is broken into lots of pieces, which connotes the man’s life being shattered. He appears to be losing consciousness, as his arms are falling and his eyes are closed, this connotes that he has been defeated by another character or object. The character’s arm is on a magazine with the words ‘speed’ and ‘power’ written on it, this signifies that he was not fast or powerful enough to save himself from what has happened to him.
Plus, there is blood coming out of the character’s nose and mouth, this signifies that something powerful has hurt him to have that much of an impact. The colour red of the blood connotes danger and blood is often associated with death.
Amy Miller
