Brick OTS-

Duncan Mortimore

Director: Rian Johnson

Release date: 2005

Mise-En-Scene

Location/Setting: The location of the film ‘Brick’ is set in an urbanised town, reinforced by the image above which shows part of a school near the lockers area. This is considered a typical setting for a thriller as they tend to be situated in urban towns, as the producers feel that with a setting that portrays a very normal atmosphere, it therefore creates a more effective location as all of these exciting, nail biting situations are happening in a very ordinary, casual place. Their motto goes; Extraordinary things happening in ordinary places, or to ordinary people. Overall, having a setting similar to lots of people in an everyday, average life, could therefore have a tremendously more EFFECTIVE portrayal of characters than say a more exotic setting, as it appears more realistic. This could be due to the fact that these types of situations do not take place often, in real life, in these types of settings so it resultantly make it more thrilling.

Lighting/Colour: This film tends to have a predominant colour of a grainy grey and darker colours like black. However saying this, it definitely has nowhere near as much dark colours as lots of other thrillers, for instance ‘Se7en’. These colours are specifically used to create a concrete atmosphere of the unknown, emotions of deceitfulness and apprehension. These multiple emotions added together are the emotions which the producers are wanting to be placed upon the audience, for them to experience the thrill ride of a roller-coaster that the film makers strive to achieve as the movie lays out. Additionally, as I mentioned in the setting paragraph, the use of the everyday location adds to the thrill of the film. This applies in this situation as well, having the addition of darker, more conventional thriller film colours with the more average, everyday colours builds a deeper perspective for the film as a whole.

Additionally, there is a large contrast between the first and second scenes, surrounding lighting. The lighting in the opening scene is very dark, and sinister, which reinforces the setting which its in. (drainage/sewer) Whereas the second scene is located in an urbanized location (school), consisting of more high key lighting, reflecting the setting as a whole.

Mise-En-Scene

Costumes: Brendan- A casual look; jacket and jeans. With curly hair and glasses begins to build more of a picture, that he's an outsider/geek. Also showing intelligence. Overall, hes providing an ordinary vibe; which conforms to a theme of thrillers.

Emily: White jumper (suggesting innocence and purity) blonde hair, maybe quite popular, and youthful.

Camera Shot: A long shot is presented, establishing the definite setting in scene, used to convey mystery and suspense. Also providing a contrast between life and death.

Lighting: Dark and grainy lighting, showing the comparison to the death of Emily, and how tragic this situation is Brendan. The lighting reflects his emotions when seeing Emily. Also the blue tint creates the mood of the unknown, as Brendan is so shocked to see his deal girlfriend.Props: The combination of both the white

jumper and blue bangles located on the victims hand suggest her innocence and youth.

Continued… (Character Representation) Costume/Appearance of characters:

-Brendan: Brendan is conveyed as a somewhat of a loner teenage, possibly more appropriately called an outsider.

Glasses: This connotes a possible level of intellect, maybe indicating a fairly nerdy type. Also maybe his eccentric personality.

Smart, dress shoes and casual trousers: His brown leather shoes reinforces my initial idea that Brendan could be more of the outsider type of teenager, not conforming to more of a typical shoe style for his age range. Therefore, the fact his shoes are impractical, reinforces the idea of him being an outsider, not following any guidelines. Also possibly suggesting he's not very active.

As he overall dresses very ordinarily, this helps to emphasise one of the conventions in thrillers, being; ‘Extraordinary things occurring in ordinary places or to ordinary people’.

-Emily: Emily is not actually portrayed in the Opening title sequence, as alive. This is to help add to the level of anticipation. Saying this she is presented in the second and third scenes, on the phone with Brendan.

Not a huge amount of information is provided about Emily, apart from the fact she’s an innocent, young girl being in the wrong place at the wrong time. This is backed up by the items of clothing she is wearing. It is also made apparent that Brendan still feels for her, as she lay there in the sewer, Brendan is too shocked to do anything but stare. The addition of the bangles could maybe be a significant accessory to their old relationship.

Continued… (Use of Props and Camera shots)

The image above conveys an associated POV shot, as we the viewer are looking over the shoulder of Brendan. This is effective as it makes us feel as though we are there, in the scene. Also, the addition of the smart, sophisticated watch adds to the intelligent representation of the character, as it shows he is classy and punctual. (waiting for someone- first glimpse of enigma being created.

The image below is a long shot of Brendan alone, (at the location which was found by the cryptic note at the lockers.) The use of the prop (phone booth) helps to reinforce and emphasise his loneliness and isolation.

This image is a medium close up, showing a clear perspective of Brendan and his location. His emotions conveyed through facial expressions reveal his loneliness and isolation. The empty road in the background multiplies the intensity of the scene, as its also subtly indicates his isolation. Along with the prop (telephone) helps to do so as well, as he’s speaking to someone (Emily) but no one is with him. Plus we cannot see her again, only hear her growing distress. This therefore adds elements of mystery and secrecy.

This image portrays a wide, close-up shot of a cigarette burning, which has just been flicked by a person which passed in the speeding car. The prop used (cigarette) is effective in this scene as it could be compared with the life of his ex-girlfriend Emily. As its burning away and almost done, fairly similar to Emily’s life at this moment in time, which is reinforced by the tone of her voice on the phone just previous to this scene. This therefore hints at the danger which Brendan is going to face, later in the film.

The sound of the muscle car almost juxtaposes the situation. This is known as contrapuntal sound, being in opposition to what we see on screen. This nail-biting scene isn’t similar to a loud, heavy muscle car sound, therefore creating more mystery.

Sound and Summary Sound: The most

common/frequent sound portrayed is the use of no sound (silence). This can be just as effective as having sound to create moods in thrillers, especially to create the mood of tension. In addition to the use of silence, in this sequence there are some uses of diegetic sounds which are effective. For instance, when he's talking on the phone to Emily, and her voice gradually begins to build in terror. This resultantly intrigues the audience, for them to continue watching. Additionally, with the fast, muscle car flying by, make for thrilling noises in this sequence.

Summary: (A list of images that help to build the narrative and character representation)