Movie Analysis #1 09/23/2022

 Steven Leon

Movie Summary: The couple scenes that I’ll be analyzing is from a film called, “Spiderhead” a Netflix exclusive. This project is about the bond of two inmates and the truth behind the experiments which the prisoners would be tested on. They would use drugs capable of altering one’s emotions during these experiments.

Scene 1:

- The context behind this scene is that the experiment is testing how strong the "Verbaluce" can take effect when one is dealt with a high feeling of fear. The camera crew used a dolly movement to reveal the stapler, which is what Lizzy, the women in the corner, is being so afraid of. The camera movement wasn’t the only technique used to reveal the object, as a focus pull was used to transition the focal point from the middle ground to the foreground. The change in the depth of field gave a sort of feeling which made the stapler seem to be very important. It made me comprehend how powerful the drug can effect a person; since, it made Lizzy fear a stapler of all things.

Scene 2:

- The majority of the movie takes place in the futuristic state penitentiary located on an island, isolated from society. Only a couple times are there scenes that are outside, either to demonstrate the facility or if there is an actual event happening outside of the prison, just like in this scene. Jeff, the protagonist, and Steve, the antagonist, along with two other guards are heading to a mountaintop on an island different from the one where the facility is located. An establishing shot is used to get a feel of the beautiful scenery in which the penitentiary is surrounded by. When I look at this scene, a feel of loneliness, freedom, and how huge the world is when compared to the prisoner’s world (the facility), overwhelms me. Being able to see the open world gives characters who are trapped, hope to possibly be freed from incarceration.

Scene 3:

- The duration of this scene is about a minute long and it starts off with Steve turning up the music, in which a rack focus is used to see the vibration of the speaker increasing as the music is getting louder. The film also uses a close up shot to achieve the same goal. The camera then follows Steve around the room using a subtle pan movement directing us towards his bed. At first I believed that they used a wide shot to give enough room on the frame so that we can see Steve and his dance moves. But when I watched this scene for a second time, my opinion on that changed to using the camera shot to display where he is and have us guess onto where he may be going next. Finally to wrap up this scene, we see him lying down on his bed in an overhead angle and a Dutch angle. I believe this was an excellent choice made by the directors as the overhead shot allows us to closely pay attention to Steve's reactions; meanwhile, the Dutch angle gave a sense of unease, if something bad is going to happen later, as we get to see Steve using N-40 on himself.

Scene 4:

- Jeff is out partying with his girlfriend Emma and another friend. They decide to drive someplace else (location unknown), with Jeff at the wheel. Each one of them were drinking earlier and were not sober when getting in the vehicle. They end up crashing straight into a tree, which inevitably kills both the friend and Emma. Jeff being alive and the culprit of their deaths, he was charged with two counts of voluntary manslaughter. This is the sole reason why Jeff was incarcerated in the first place. Since this scene is all about Jeff's backstory which led him to being prisoned, it mainly takes place in the car where the incident happened. Using vehicle mounts, the director was able to capture some well shots. One of them being a master shot, where we can clearly see all three characters enjoying the ride, listening to music, and drinking while driving (*please drive responsibly*). We're also able to see Emma's point of view, making me feel as if I'm in the car with them. That plus the ground level angle we get to look at from the side of the car, allows us to see the full story behind the incident and all the factors that led to the tragedy.