Tsotsi Analysis

Tsotsi opening

I will be analysing the opening scene to the film Tsotsi (2005, Hood) in terms of mise-en scene.

The scene begins with a shot of 4 males playing a game using only dice. We as the audience see their location, which is dimly lit boxed house with the only lighting coming in being from the open window. The light has a yellow tint to it, giving it a gritty feel. We see three of the four males seated around one small table with different styled chairs, suggesting they were possible stolen or previously thrown out by someone as they don't match. There is also a be single bed in the room with thin sheets over it. The props suggest poverty and poor living conditions as the bedroom is also the living room and every other room as we can also see the front door.

Spacing is important in this shot as we see three of the males at the table whereas on in standing at the window, on his own. This provokes the thought that he is the leader as he is not involved in their games and is more independent and is more of an individual, he is also the only one standing representing dominance. His position as the “leader” is reinforced when one of the guys ask him what they are going to do today, meaning he is the one that makes the decisions.

Costume and props helps to represent our characters and their personalities are touched on briefly in the opening. One of the males, sitting is shown wearing glasses, typically associated with smart people, this is supported when he corrects his friend on his multiplication. He is also holding a newspaper showing that he is not involved in the other two males games. One of the other males is shown smoking a cigar and when he lays money on the table he stabs it, this shows that he is the more reckless, aggressive member of the gang.

When they leave the house we see the location, which was probably shot on set because of the stylised sky, which is also has a yellow/brown tint. The shack they were in is made from scrap metal, wood and cardboard, which allows the spectators to know that they are living in a township and that they are in poverty. We see the 3 males standing outside the house waiting for the leader, Tsotsi, showing his status. When he comes out, he walks through them and barges one of the members and they all proceed to follow him. This shows that he is in charge as they are following him and it also suggests that he is feared as no one commented when he barged the other male member of the gang.

They walk through the neighbourhood, which is clearly a township as we see other shacks made from scrap metal around. The spacing in the group is clear indicator of their position. Tsotsi is standing in front followed by the aggressive one, the biggest guy and the “smart” one trailing in the back. This is a clear indicator of their rank. Tsotsi is also shown wearing a red top with a black leather jacket. Red represents danger and blood whereas black represents darkness, mystery, crime, rebellion, superiority and power.

When the gang are at the train station the camera tilts to show an establishing shot, showing a sign that says “We are all affected by HIV and AIDS”. Townships and Shanty towns in South Africa have a high AIDS problem. It is also the most dangerous country in the world, which is not at war.

They scope people around the train station and the leader eventually chooses a man shown dealing drugs. They follow him onto the train, at this time Tsotsi taps the bigger guy giving him an instruction to make the first move, this also reinforced the idea of him being the one that makes the decisions as they are waiting for his instruction. They surround him in a tight circle, generally to intimidate him. Tsotsi give the aggressive one the permission to stab him, which he does. The other gang members faces are looks of fear, shown in close up shots. The leave the man on the floor, alone in the train carriage as a high angle long shot shows his isolation.

Mise En Scene

ChngKing Express Mise - En - Scene Analysis

I will analyse the opening scene of Chungking Express in relation to mise en scene. We as the spectator see the recognisable costume piece, the wig. This is iconic as it represents a character in the film, known only for this blonde wig she wears. It establishes a clear character early on to the spectators as this is not typical and no one else wears a blonde wig or has blonde hair in the film. It gives us an insight into who she might be as we see her walking though a crowd of people in a small hallway. The fact that there are so many people yet a small hallway suggests that there are not meant to be that many people in the house provoking the thought of criminal actions. It also suggests that they are in poverty as the halls are hard to walk through. We see her walk through a red light, red connoting danger suggesting she is a dangerous person.

With lighting, we see glimpses of flashing lights, blurred as the camera moves through the streets. It is mainly dark outside and all we mainly see are dark silhouettes of people. The blurred flashing lights and dark environment suggests chaos and negativity. We see the title screen which is only black and white. The contrast of colours connotes conflict and opposites, which relate to the story of conflicting people and opposite attractions. The sky is dark and we see outlines of power plants letting out thick black smoke connoting negativity and set a dark mood to the film.

With space we see cramped locations, inside and out. I think the outside shots were shot on location to maintain realism of the film but the inside shots were shot on set. Inside we see the small hallways filled with people and outside where we see a plain clothed policemen chasing someone through the crowd we get glimpses of the city. It is cramped and he is bumping into people trying to run through the city. There is a claustrophobic feel to the city, which suggests they are in poverty as there is minimal room for movement.

Props used are the wig and the person being chased in the city has a bag over his head. This is cultural and once someone has been arrested a bag is put over their head to protect their identity from paparazzi. This prop indicates that this person is a criminal and also let's us know that the person chasing him must be a police officer even though he is plain clothed.

Short Film analysis

Replay

This is a short foreign animated film about a mother and her son in an abandoned area. The film begins on a disrupted equilibrium as the spectators are shown fast paced editing of the woman running to safety. We see her running from a point of view shot and also a close up, this allows the spectators to see the environment and where she is and so can also be classed as an establishing shot. We see that she is not being chased and as she is shown to be wearing a gas mask we are led to believe her running with a sense of urgency is because of this.

This film has an omniscient narrative as we are told the story from both main characters point of view. It is told from in a non-linear way as it jumps forward in time, shown when the narrative skips a day shown simply through a fade. There are action codes which move the story forward, these include the mother showing her son a tape of children playing.

The main narrative techniques used in this film is enigma codes, from the start the narrative provokes a question in the audience. The first being why is she running and where is she. Other enigma codes are who are the children heard on the tape. This is shown in the scene in which the mother is showing her son what she brought back, we see a deep focus shot showing the tape recorder in the front of the screen in a close up and the young boy staring at it in a mid shot, dialogue begins as he asks “what is it?”, the voices on the tape are high pitched connoting children as they say “do you want to play with us?”. This is another enigma code, as the spectators were lead to believe they were in an isolated location.

The next day the boy goes out looking for the children on the tape, we see extreme long shots of him walking across the shot, showing the isolated location he is in. This is another enigma code, where are they and why are they the only ones there. He finds the children who are glowing, connoting that they are not real. They repeat the dialogue on the tape “Do you want to play with us”, he takes off his mask and joins them. This is both and enigma code and an action code. The mother finds him dead in the same spot in which he took his mask off and the film finishes. The film has an open narrative as there is no resolution at the end.