Media Essay

These scanned documents, in order, are:
1. The Question Sheet
2. The Assessment Sheet
3. The Essay
4. The Notes on Psycho I Took into the Exam

Location Shots for our Thriller

This is the boy's bedroom which will be used in the first few shots of our thriller. The cluttered, unorganised room could reflect the character's personality, while the posters and objects can reflect his interests and nature.

This is the upstairs hallway of the house. The dark room at the end of the light hallway suggest a darker secret to this house - something could be waiting in the darkness. The hallway is narrow and claustrophobic, creating a generic thriller environment.

This is a high angle shot of the stairs down to the ground floor of the house. They are narrow and suggest claustrophobia, again, and the contrast in light from upstairs to downstairs creates a sense of mystery and danger at the bottom. The high angle shot also creates a sense of vulnerability.

This is the bottom of the stairs where the boy will come down as you see something flick past in the background. The Rule of Thirds is used here - two parts stairs, one part hallway. There is a vanishing point at the end of the hallway, suggesting that there is something hiding at the end.

This is the front door that is used by the main character, the boy, to escape the house. The contrast between the white door frame and walls and the dark outside creates a huge sense of unease, suspense, and danger concerning what lies beyond this door in the night.

When the boy leaves the house, he will go down this path. The cobbles highlighted by the light show his path, and are an intertextual reference to the cobbled streets used in "The Third Man" (1949, directed by Carol Reed). The light shining on the cobbles connotes nightmare and mystery about what lies beyond the house and it's path.

This is another shot of the path - this time from the perspective of the enigmatic figure who will watch the boy from this window. The spots of rain on the window cause a disturbance on the window - this connotes impurity and corruption. The high angle shot makes the path and everything on it seem vulnerable. The white van on the street also creates a sense of danger, as the white van is a thriller convention - it is used frequently by criminals in thrillers. This is similar to the next shot, where the white van's importance is further analysed.

This is the street outside the house that we will be using for the shots outside the house. The vanishing point at the end of the street creates a feeling that danger could be hiding just at the end of it. The street lamps are a great example of chiaroscuro lighting, as the few orbs of light from the street lamps light up the whole street, reflecting off the wet tarmac and cobbles - this is another intertextual reference to the cobbled streets in the aforementioned film "The Third Man". The white van further connotes danger as it is commonly associated with criminals and dangerous people in thrillers - a good example of this is in "Essex Boys", when Jason uses a white van in the opening scene of the film as he attacks someone.






These shots were taken by James Winterburn.

Kill Bill Vol. 2 Burial Scene Analysis

This scene from Kill Bill Vol. 2 (directed by Quentin Tarantino, 2004) is a great example of creating a claustrophobic environment. The chiaroscuro lighting created by the torch is the only lighting in the coffin, just like when the spotlights and torches are the only lighting in the sewers of Vienna in "The Third Man". The earlier scene where the Bride is first buried creates a brilliant sense of entrapment, as you see the coffin being sealed and then hear it go into the ground. The darkness that slowly fills that scene, combined with the reactions of the Bride, bring you into the scene and it makes you feel like you are also trapped in the coffin. The screen then goes black, and all you can hear is the dirt falling onto the coffin - in a dark cinema you would feel like the cinema is a coffin - you are trapped inside it.

The music used in the scene prior to the burial, when The Bride fails to assassinate Bill's brother Bud (the person who buries the Bride) is an intertextual reference to the music used in the final duel scene of "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly".

Furthermore, the music used in the burial scene shown at the top of this post is also used in this film. A reason why this particular film may be referenced is because the three main characters of Kill Bill are like the title of the referenced film - the Bride is the good, Bill is the bad and Bud, Bill's brother, is the Ugly. They are also having a duel with each other, like in the scene where the music is used in "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly".


The music used in the scene where the Bride escaped the coffin also inspires us to will her on as she escapes - the music tells us that she has a chance - she has a plan. While the scene has aspects of an action-adventure film - the Bride defies gravity as she escapes the coffin - the claustrophobic, gritty nature of the scene where she is trapped inside the coffin makes the scene mostly thriller. The coffin is also a generic thriller location - claustrophobic, dark, and uncomfortable - so much so that other films have been based entirely on this scene. To the right is a film called "Buried", which is entirely about a man who is buried underground and has to find a way out. This is not as suspenseful and well executed as the scene in Kill Bill Vol. 2, as in Kill Bill Vol. 2 there is less connection to the outside world (in "Buried" he has a mobile phone) and you are brought into the Bride's situation more effectively, with lighting and only the diegetic sound of the Bride and the soil falling onto the coffin.

Storyboards for my Thriller

The Third Man (1949, Directed by Carol Reed) Climax Analysis

In this sequence of "The Third Man" (1949), the location, lighting, and other factors contribute to a very effective chase scene. The location of the sewers and the fact that Harry Lime uses them to travel around Vienna relates to his character and the type of crime he has committed (selling watered-down penicillin to hospitals - this is not strong enough and leads to the deaths of many children. This is a dirty, horrible crime - like the dirty, disgusting sewers. He is like a plague rat running through the sewers - he is spreading death and illness to people as he travels. He is also like a wasted human - like the waste in the sewers. The fact that he is running around and hiding in the labyrinthine sewers also makes him like a test or lab rat, trying to escape the maze. Furthermore, as he has plunged into crime, his descent to the sewers reflects that. There is intertextuality here, as this is also done to the extreme in "Kill Bill Volume 2", when the Bride is buried alive. This puts her into a dark, enclosed environment - like the sewers of Vienna.

The lighting in this chase sequence creates brilliant effects - it is a great example of chiaroscuro lighting.


For example, in this shot the chiaroscuro lighting is used as a lighting tool, and for effect. The spotlights are like searchlights, which also refers to the searchlights of the recent Second World War which has greatly damaged Vienna. The lighting also reflects off the wet brick surfaces, to create a very effective shot that completely exposes the criminal, Harry Lime. There is also a vanishing point, where the seekers of Lime are. This makes the vanishing point the end for Harry Lie - his capture awaits there.

In this shot the floodlight is lighting the sewer. The wide area with the floodlight gives a sense of no escape - you cannot hide in this area.Furthermore, the lighting reflects off the water on the walls, floor and cieling to create a mirror effect, which creates illusion and an ominous, creepy look. In addition, this shot contains a clear vanishing point at the source of the light. As Harry Lime is running into the light and the vanishing point, it creates the sense of him running away "into the light". This is a well-known phrase for dying, so this is foresahdowing the end of the scene where Harry Lime does indeed die. Many vanishing points are used in this film for effects such as this e.g. directly after this scene when the enigmatic figure Anna walks past Holly from a clear vanishing point.

Jackie Brown - The Shooting of Melanie - Analysis

At the start of this clip we see the two characters getting out of the van in very stereotypical ways. The man forces his way out, while the woman gently opens the door. This immediately portrays the two characters as individuals and gender stereotypes. Also the van, a Volkswagen camper van, is an icon of it's time period. It is an icon of the 1960's and is a symbol of the "hippie". This, in turn, makes it a symbol of peace, and love. This is very ironic as the people inside the camper van are not peaceful in any way - as we find out in this scene with the sudden death of Melanie.

 The costumes that the characters wear also tell you a lot about them. They are wearing quite dirty, old-looking clothes, which tells us that they have not got a lot of money. This foreshadows the events of the sequence, as the pair steal clothes from the shop. This is further emphasized by the quick shot of Jackie Brown, when we see her in a clean, new-looking suit that makes her look of a high status (as in the opening scene). This creates a clear difference between the people. This happens again when Louis looks over the shop and sees another man dressed in a smart suit.

The shooting of Melanie is shocking and surprising. Usually, deaths (especially in thrillers) happen at night, or in dark and/or secluded, secretive places. The shooting of Melanie in broad daylight breaks this tradition and catches you unaware. This makes the film absorb you as you have no idea what could happen next. It also tells us about Louis' character, as he is quickly provoked into irrational behaviour. This tells us that he is unstable and easily provoked, as well as aggressive. In addition, he calmly walks away from Melanie after he has shot her, making an ironic joke. This tells the audience that he has no problem with committing a murder or a crime - this is emphasized by the stolen clothes he is holding as he walks away.

At the end of the sequence, he drives away in the symbol of "peace and love" (as aforementioned) that is the Volkswagen camper van. This, combined with the ironically happy, upbeat music, creates an ironic end to a shocking, surprising, and humorously ironic scene. 

The Shooting of Beaumont - Jackie Brown (3:33 - 7:42)

The scene that contains the shooting of the character "Beaumont" (the character in the blue shirt) starts with an effective shot of the two characters looking into the boot of the car. The shot used here is a shot used by Quentin Tarantino on several occasions - for example, it is used in Kill Bill and Reservoir Dogs. Robbie (the other character in the black shirt) persuades Beaumont to get into the claustrophobic, trapped area that is the boot of the car. Both the car and the claustrophobic area and stereotypical thriller aspects. As Robbie puts on his black gloves, he foreshadows the death that is coming. This is through the black colour of the gloves, which symbolizes evil and death. In addition to this, the colours of the two characters in this sequence are a contrast that tells you about the characters. The relative "good" character is wearing a bright blue shirt (blue often connotes heroism, such as in the entrance of Harrison Ford in "Witness") and Robbie, the soon-to-be murderer is wearing black (as aforementioned, this connotes death and evil).

Furthermore, the combination of his look backwards towards Beaumont, his smirk, and his careful observation of his gun tells us that he is planning something, likely to be the murder of Beaumont. As he drives into the location of Robie's death, the camera pans out. Robbie then stops the car in a deserted, dark area where no one can witness the crime, gets out and shoots Beaumont. The quick, merciless style of his death makes it stand out more and strike you. The area that it takes part in is another obvious thriller location due to the dark, run-down nature of the location. Also, the long shot and the deserted location show that Robbie is far away from society and the community.

Jackie Brown - Opening Scene Analysis

The opening sequence to "Jackie Brown" is an excellent piece of film production that immediately draws you into the film. The static shot of the woman (Jackie Brown) against the moving background makes her look like she is gliding along, without any resistance. This makes her look like a powerful, dominant figure. Also the lack of emotion shown by her means that you do not connect much with her character immediately - this also makes you unsure of her character. This also give her a sense of power.

When she is striding through the airport, her large strides combined with the low angle shots reinforce the sense of power that Jackie Brown has. Also, as she walks in a straight, direct path with nobody and nothing obstructing it, this further backs up her powerful look.

Another important part of this opening scene is the soundtrack. The lyrics at the start can reflect her job - the lyrics "trying to break out of....a day-to-day fight" can tell us that she might not be entirely happy with her job or status. It also tells us that she is someone who is ambitious and is fighting to be more than an average person.