Film Analysis
By Jonathan Davenport
Mise en Scene Film Analysis questions
Dominant: Our eye is attracted to Bill first while he removes the feathers off his soon to be
dinner, to show that he isn’t the dominant figure in the film.
Lighting Key: The lighting seems to be low key, which represents the time that all this is
happening in the afternoon, close to dinner.
Shot and Camera Proxemics: The film starts of at a long shot which then zooms in closer and
pans across Bill to show what he is doing and where the film is located.
Angle: The audience starts off by looking down on the subject and then moves down to face view
to see what Bill is doing.
Color values: The dominant colors are orange and bronze, it seems to be they symbolize that Bill
and Hazel are in Australia.
Lens/ Filter/ Stock: The film seems to be captured with a slow film stock, due to the high quality
of the image and polished look.
Subsidiary contrasts: The main eye focuses on the surroundings and Seven the dog when not
focusing on Bill and Hazel.
Density: The image seems to be very dense and highly detailed, but due to there being little in
the shot, it is easy to focus on the main characters.
Composition: It seems that the film was taken in a horizontal view which based on the
horizontal lines seems visually at rest, but in certain shots it seems that it was taken in a diagonal
view which represents tension and anxiety mainly when Bill is faced with the choice between his
wife and his dog.
Form: Through most the in the film it seems that the form is closed and seems to isolate Bill,
Hazel and the dog Seven to the house. Although when Bill goes out with the dog it narrows in on
Bill and Seven in the car and for a small amount of time the form is open when out in the outback.
Framing: The framing is tight and the characters didn’t seem to have a lot of room to move
around freely.
Editing Analysis
How much cutting is there and why? : There is quiet a lot of editing in the film, maybe because
the director wanted it to be quick and consistent so the audience was constantly paying attention
and that there wasn’t any boring points.
Are the shoots highly fragmented or relatively lengthy? The shots seem to be highly
fragmented with a couple of lengthy panning shots at the beginning.
What is the point of the cutting in each scene? To clarify? To stimulate? To lyricize? To
create suspense? To explore an idea or emotion in depth? : The point of cutting in each scene
is to clarify and give suspense to the audience.
Does the cutting seem manipulative or are we left to interpret the images on our own? :
The cutting does seem manipulative throughout the film but at the end when Bill is coming back
to Hazel we are left to interpret Bill’s decision until the end, when we see Seven.
What kind of rhythm does the editing establish with each scene? :
The editing establishes a quick and consistent pace for the audience, which seems to be a good
rhythm.
Is the personality of the filmmaker apparent in the cutting or is the presentation of shots
relatively objective and functional? : The personality of the filmmaker is apparent in the
cutting of the film and the shots do seem objective and functional.
Is editing a major language system of the movie or does the film artist relegate cutting to a
relatively minor fraction? Editing is a major language system in this film due to how short it is.
What style of editing does the clip represent and why? Sequence shot / Cutting to
continuity / Classical Cutting /Thematic Montage/ Abstract? : This film represents a cutting
to continuity style of editing, because it is a short film and the film artist needs to get his story
across in a certain amount of time.
Motion Analysis
Does the director keep the camera close to the action thus emphasizing motion? Or does
he or she deemphasize movement through the use of longer shots, high angles, and slowpaced action? :
The director keeps the camera close to the actors to emphasize motion, and uses high and far
shots to set the scene.
Are the movements in a scene naturalistic or stylized? Lyrical or disorienting? What are
the symbolic implications of such mechanical distortions as fast and slow motion, freeze
frames, and animation? : Movements in the film are naturalistic and present symbolic
implications; movements by the characters are slow and natural.
The director has dozens of ways to convey motion, and what differentiates a great director
from a merely competent one is not so much a matter of what happens, but how things
happen- how suggestive and resonant are the movements in a given dramatic context? Or,
how effectively does the form of the movement embody its content? : In the film the
movements aren’t fast or quick, they are slow and consistent, they are suggestive and give off
drama in certain scenes. The form of the movements do, effectively embody the films content.
Sound Analysis
How is sound orchestrated in each scene? :
The sound is orchestrated well in each scene it is used to compliment the area in which Bill and
Hazel live in, i.e. traditional Australian birds, or the didgeridoo.
Is the sound distorted? Why? :
No it doesn’t seem like the sound is distorted in any way.
Is the edited down and simplified or dense and complex? :
The editing down is dense and complex.
Is there any symbolism in the use of sound? :
Yes the use of aboriginal music symbolizes the country and gives more feeling to Who Bill and
Hazel are.
Does the film employ repeated motifs? :
Yes it repeats the motif or Seven’s destructive nature.
How is silence used? :
It is used to create tension.
What type of musical score does the film feature?
The film features traditional aboriginal music.
Is the score original or derived from outside sources? :
The score seems to be original.
What types of instruments are used? How many? A full Orchestra? A small combo? A solo
instrument? Or was it all Synthesized? :
The didgeridoo, voice, guitar, and natural Australian birds.
Is music used to underline speech or is it employed only for action scenes? Or not at all? :
Music is used to underline speech in this film and to create atmosphere.
How is language used? Is the dialogue spare and functional? Or “literary” and richly
textured? :
The language is used sparingly.
Does everyone speak the standard dialect or are there regional accents? :
Everyone in the film speaks a standard dialect.
How does dialogue correlate with class? :
This depends on how they were brought up and where they grew up but Bill and Hazel seem to
just be casual Native Australian’s.
What about the subtext, the emotional implications beneath the dialogue? :
There is subtext in this film, when Hazel finds out Bill didn’t do what she said about killing Seven.
How do we know what characters want if they don’t talk about it? :
We can interpret what they are thinking from many things, such as music, emotional expressions,
tone of voice, and actual speech.
What about the language choice? Any fancy words? Swearing or coarse expressions? :
There doesn’t seem to be any swearing or fancy words used in this film.
Is there a voice-over narrator? Why was he or she chosen to narrate the story? Why not
another character? : There is no voice over narrator.
Acting Analysis
What type of actors are featured and why- amateurs, professionals, or popular stars? How
are actors treated by the directors- as camera material or as artistic collaborators? :
These actors are definitely amateurs; usually directors treat their actors with respect and tend to
work alongside them, to define the character they are acting out.
How manipulative is the editing? Or are the actors allowed to recite their dialogue without
lots of cuts? : The editing is quiet manipulative and it seems that the actors do get interrupted
with quiet a bit of cuts.
Does the film highlight the stars or does the director encourage ensemble playing? :
The film doesn’t seems to highlight the actors.
What about the star’s iconography? Does he or she embody certain cultural values or does
the star change radically from film to film, thus preventing iconographic buildup? :
The stars are not well know so they don’t have any iconography, but they do embody a lot of
cultural values within Australia which does change the film and also allows the build up of
iconography for the actors.
If the star is highly iconographic, what does he or she embody? How does the cultural
information function within the world of the movie? : The stars are not highly iconographic,
but the actors do embody the aboriginal history of Australia and have a lot of cultural value.
What style of acting predominates? :
Bills ignorance to Seven’s destructive nature, and Hazel’s love for her grandfathers boomerang
but also her love for Seven.
How realistic or stylized is the acting style? :
The acting seems to be stylized for each actor/character.
Why were these actors cast? :
Because of their cultural background
What do they bring to them to enhance their characters? :
Their cultural background and the country they grew up in.
Costume Analysis
Period. What era does the costume fall into? Is it accurate reconstruction? If not, why?
It seems that the costumes fall into the years of 1980-1990, yes it does seem to be an accurate
reconstruction.
Class. What apparent income level of the person wearing the costume?
They seem to have a very little income if any at all considering they hunt to eat.
Sex. Does a woman’s costume emphasize her femininity or is it neutral or masculine? Does
a man’s costume emphasize his virility or is it fussy or effeminate? Yes in a way a female
dresses does show her femininity and in this case she (Hazel) seems a bit masculine. How Bill
dresses just show’s he is a casual Australian guy doing his own thing but Hazel does seem to have
a bit of control over him.
Age. Is the costume appropriate to the character’s age or is it deliberately too youthful,
dowdy, or old- fashioned? The costume does seem appropriate for the time period although it
also seems a bit old-fashioned.
Silhouette. Is the costume formfitting or loose and baggy?
Hazel’s clothing is formfitting maybe symbolizing her control over Bill, whereas Bills clothing is
loose and baggy perhaps representing his attitude towards life.
Fabric. Is the material coarse, sturdy, and plain or sheer and delicate?
The material seems coarse on Hazel’s clothes but on Bills it seems delicate and plain.
Accessories. Does the costume include jewelry, hats, canes, and other accessories? What
kind of shoes? No accessories, plain shoes.
Color. What are the symbolic implications of the colors? Are they “hot” or “cool”? Subdued
or bright? Solids or patterns? The clothes seem cool, bland, plain, and subdued they are neither
bright or hot. The symbolic implications could mean that Bill and Hazel are simple people.
Body exposure. How much of the body is revealed or concealed? The more body revealed
the more erotic the costume. Most the body on both individuals are concealed and they are not
wearing anything erotic.
Function. Is the costume meant for leisure or work? Is it meant to impress by its beauty
and splendor, or is it merely utilitarian? The clothes are not work clothes. They don’t seem to
be for impressing people, they seem to be just for wearing.
Body Attitude. What about the wearer’s posture? Proud and tall? Or caved in and
embarrassed?
Bills posture seems relaxed and slouched, whereas Hazels is upright and stern.
Image. What is the over all impression that the costume creates- sexy, constricting, boring,
gaudy, conventional, eccentric, prim, cheap looking, elegant? The costume creates a boring,
cheap looking view maybe representing that both individuals are on a cheap allowance.
Story Analysis
Narration. Who’s telling the story? Is it a voice-over narrator? Why him or her? Or does the
story “tell itself,” like most plays? There is no narrator.
Who’s the implied narrator of such stories, the guiding hand in the arrangement of the
narrative’s separate parts? There is no narrator.
What do the spectators supply to the story? What information do we provide in order to
fill the narrative gaps? There are no other characters within the film apart from Bill, Hazel and
Seven the dog.
How is time presented- chronologically or subjectively rearranged through flashback ad
other narrative disjunctions? The lighting in the film represents that the time of all the events
happened in the afternoon and at night.
Is it realistic, classical, or formalistic? What genre, if any? What phase of the genre’s
evolution?
The film does seem realistic; if it was to be given a genre it would be drama.
What does the movie say about the social context and period that it was made in? What
does the narrative embody mythical concepts or universal human traits?
When Hazel finds her boomerang broken and she gets upset and claims her grandfather made it
for her, that in itself could be related to the Aboriginal past and how they were treated when the
English settlers first came over and immigrated over.
Writing Analysis
How “literary” is the film?
The film seems mildly literary.
Is there emphasis on lengthy speeches, verbal wit or adroitness, talky scenes?
Yes during the conversations Bill and Hazel have there is emphasis on there conversations, which
is shown through emotion.
How articulate are the characters? If not how do we get to know what’s bothering them?
The characters did seem to be able to articulate what was bothering them without any problems.
Who contributed what to the screenplay? Is the dialogue stylized or does it aim to sound
like realistic speech? The dialogue does seem stylized it doesn’t sound like a realistic
conversation.
Does the movie contain any figurative tropes: motifs, symbols, or metaphors? How do
these how does these deepen and enrich the movie? Or, do they? Yes the film does contain
symbols and metaphors they deepen and enrich the movie by representing the aboriginal, and
Australian background.
Who’s point of view is this film told from?
Bills.
What kind of rapport does the narrator establish with us? Is the movie is a literary
adaptation, is it loose, faithful or literal? The narrator establishes a kind and stern rapport
between Bill and Hazel throughout the film. The film seems literal.
In analyzing a film’s ideology, we need to determine its degree of explicitness. If the values
are implicit, how do we differentiate the good guys from the bad? We differentiate between
the good guys and the bad guys through their own decisions throughout the film.
Do the stars embody ideological values or were the actors cast precisely because they
don’t convey a ready- made set of moral assumptions? The actors seem to play out their parts
well and but as to if the actors embody the same moral values I don’t now, because I can only
assume the characters own set of morals from what I viewed throughout the film.
Are the cinematic techniques ideologically weighted – the mise en scene, the editing,
costumes, décor, dialects? It seems the director did think about what he wanted to convey
before he started filming and it did turn out well.
Is the protagonist a spokesperson for the filmmaker? How do you know? Is the protagonist
primarily a leftist, centrist, or rightist? I don’t know if the protagonist is the spokesperson for
the filmmaker but the protagonist seems to be a centrist, always trying to avoid the extremes.
What cultural values are embodied in the film?
The Aboriginal values seem to be embodied in the film, i.e. hunting, animal kinship, family.
What role – if any – does religion play?
None as far as I can tell.
Are there any ethnic values present?
I do not know
What about sexual politics? How are women portrayed?
In this women are portrayed to be strong and in control.
Does the movie adhere to the genre’s usual conventions or are they subverted?
It does adhere to the genre’s usual conventions.
What is the film’s tone? Does the tone reinforce or mock the values of the characters?
The film’s tone seems to be quiet and it reinforces the values of the characters.