Mise En Scene Elements In A Film example essay topic

In the film industry, the various amount of different types of film are incredible. But as different as films may seem, they all have one element that links them all together. That element is known as Mise-en-scene. Mise-en-scene is a French phrase that means "putting into the scene". Mise-en-scene includes elements such as setting, lighting, costume, and figure movement and expression (acting). In the films Rumble Fish and Meet Me in St. Louis, the elements of mise-en-scene are highly visible.

Each movie uses the use of setting, lighting, costume, and acting in a different way to help support the plot of the film. The film Rumble Fish uses the mise-en-scene element of setting to help the plot of the movie evolve. Elements such as color, props, and location add to the atmosphere of the film. One huge mise-en-scene element of the film is its use of color, or more specified its lack of color. The entire film is filmed in black and white. One would think that this film is an older film, for most modern films are filmed in color, but this film chose to film in black and white on purpose.

The black and white in this film helps to convey the primitive and chaotic world that the characters live in. It dulls the world that the characters live in, for colors often express emotion or feelings. For example, a director can use color in a fight scene to show a character's emotion. If a character's face is red, it shows one's anger or fatigue from a fight. Black and white film does not allow that. Portrayal of emotion must be exhibited in some other way.

I believe the main reason the director of the film decided to shoot the film in black and white was because he was showing the film through the eyes of Motorcycle Boy. Motorcycle Boy could only see in black and white, and even though the film did not revolve around him completely, it was shown from his point of view. Another aspect telling that the film was from Motorcycle Boy's point of view was that in parts of the film, mainly the parts where Motorcycle Boy was in the scene, the sound would be blurry or murmured because Motorcycle Boy's hearing was the best either. There are only three scenes throughout the entire film that actually use color in them. The first scene is at the beginning of the movie when the four boys are walking past the pet store window and look in at the fish tank of four rumble fish. The four rumble fish, which are in the foreground of the shot, are all in color.

Everything else in the scene is in black and white, which makes the fish stand out. The second scene is also located in the pet store. Motorcycle Boy and Rusty James go to look at the rumble fish in the pet store, which are again in color. In this scene, Motorcycle Boy explains to Rusty James that that rumble fish must be separated from each other when they are in a confined space or else they will fight and kill each other. They only live peacefully together when they are free.

This ends up being a metaphor for the boys in the film. The third scene with color in it is the ending scene where Motorcycle Boy is killed by the cop when trying to set the rumble fish free. The fish are in color, as well as two shots when Rusty James is being escorted by the police. The police siren flashes in color, and Rusty James sees his reflection in color for a brief instant. These shots in color could be argued to be some of the most critical spots in the film.

The rumble fish represent Motorcycle Boy, Rusty James, and their friends. Special attention is to be brought to the fish to make their symbolism in the film more apparent and the audience won't blow them off as "just fish". The scene where Rusty James sees his reflection in color is the moment when he realizes that he must be free and cannot be contained anymore. Color is used as self-realization. Rusty James sees his true self in the color reflection and realizes that he wants to escape. The director of the film also uses very vibrant colors when he chooses to use colors at all.

He uses fire engine red and royal blue to color the rumble fish. These are very vibrant and are hard to miss in the scene. The human eye is immediately drawn to them in the black and white world that the characters live in. The police siren also flashes in the same fire engine red and royal blue that the fish are portrayed in. The reflection of Rusty James is also very bright, as if he were heavily lighted, making his skin very peachy looking, even though this scene is clearly shot at night. The audience notices these flashes of color and remembers these scenes.

The lack of color and brief instances of color is what makes Rumble Fish a unique movie. Mise-en-scene elements also show up in other movies as well. Meet Me in St. Louis, which is vastly different from Rumble Fish, also uses similar elements of mise-en-scene to tell its story. Meet Me in St. Louis uses the mise-en-scene elements of costuming and lighting to help tell the story more effectively. Meet Me in St. Louis is a musical, which are often defined by the mise-en-scene elements of costuming and lighting. The film sticks to some of the traditional methods of these elements in the film, yet also stray from them to add a variety to the film.

The film takes great advantage of the use of lighting in this film. Lighting can be used to portray the atmosphere of a scene or a character's emotions. The traditional characteristic of a musical is to use high key lighting. High key lighting shows off the vibrancy of colors in the costumes and draws attention to the musical numbers.

High key lighting is used in the beginning of the film with the introduction of the family. The family is very happy and everyone is shown in a "bright, happy" mood. The lighting throughout the film reflects the characters' moods at the time. For example, the trolley scene uses high key lighting to express the happiness that Ester feels because John Truett decides to join them to the fair grounds. The entire scene is highly lit, showing off the bright, colorful costumes that the characters are wearing.

There is also high key lighting at the end of the film when the family is happy that they are not moving to New York City. The summer scene is brightly lit to show the happiness of the scene. Lighting is also used to show romantic or sad scenes in the movie. There are three major scenes in the movie that do not use high key lighting in the film. The "Halloween" scene, the "Romantic" scene, and the "Snowman" scene use non-high key lighting. The "Romantic" scene uses dimmed lighting to reflect Ester's feelings once again.

She is trying to create a romantic atmosphere so that she can make John Truett want to kiss her. Low lighting is usually a sign of romance in a film. The "Halloween" scene uses low lighting to add a sense of fear and mystery to a scene. Only a bonfire and dim streetlights light the streets.

This adds a spooky undertone to the scene. Halloween has a traditional spooky tone, so it would contradict the scene to use bright high key lighting. This is the scene where Tootie tries to fit in with the bigger kids as well. She has to show her bravery despite the dark and spookiness of the setting. The third scene that uses non-high key lighting is "Snowman" scene. In this scene Tootie is extremely upset with the fact that the family has to move to New York City.

The scene uses icy blue colors, subduing the emotions in the scene. The low lighting shows the pain that Trudy feels during this scene. She is going through emotional anguish, which is mirrored by the low lighting. Besides these three scenes, the rest of the film uses high key lighting.

The use of costumes in this film is also a mise-en-scene element. The costuming of the film reflects the time in which this film is shot. The film takes place in 1903, turn of the century America. Fashion was very extravagant for women at the time, having highly decorative dresses, full of accessories. The women in this movie all have brightly colored dresses.

Certain colors are also used to define certain characters. Many of Rose's everyday dresses are yellow, which Ester is usually wearing blue. Most of the main characters wear bright, vibrant colors, which distinguish them from the rest of the cast. This visually shows the audience who is the important character in the scene. The vibrant colors are exemplified by the bright lighting, which makes them stand out even more. Lighting and costuming are used in this film to help define this film as a musical.

Even though high key lighting is used, low-key lighting is used as well to provide a contrast. The costumes reflect the time period in which the characters are living in. Mise-en-scene elements in a film can either be drastic or subtle, depending on the director. The use of color in Rumble Fish is very drastic against the black and white of the film, while the lighting changes in Meet Me in St. Louis are not as obvious to the average viewer.

In both cases though, these elements help to tell the story of a film and enhance the meaning of it to the audience, hopefully making the film a success.