Think about the mise-en-scene in Let the Right One In. Examine all aspects of mise-en-scene: lighting, composition, set, properties, etc. This would include color as well. Discuss the concept of "monster" through the mise-en-scene of the film. Choose another "vampire" film (including Nosferatu, if you're not a vampire movie lover) and compare and contrast the concept of "monster" through various elements of mise-en-scene.
Choose one five minute scene from each movie to discuss.
The mise en scene in “Let The Right One In”can be distinguished by its low key lighting ,minimum to no daylight during outside scenes deficiency of warm colors and deficiency of sharp colors.These elements make the film appear dull in the same manner that “The Hunger(1983)” or “The VVitch(2015)” do.It’s difficult to expect the safety of the characters if few of the shots are bright colorful or warm.In the case of “Let The Right One In” the cold colors compliment exactly what the phrase would imply.Sweden is cold and the film takes place in the winter.Eli , the 12 year old (12 for 200 years)girl, is under clothed for the weather often seen wearing only her pajamas.The lighting which most likely comes from LED bulbs casts a soft blue light onto the pale skin of Eli and Oskar causing them to appear dead.Eli sometimes has wet hair implying that she is drenched in blood or that she has taken a shower because she was covered in blood.In other scenes it's clear that she had just sloppily murdered someone.This is certainly not a movie where blood represents life or vitality , it bears the modern cinematic meaning in horror where blood represents violent death. specific to this movie is the blue skinned girl out in the cold at night time,soaking wet , and wearing her pajamas.This aesthetic profile was probably applied to Eli by the film maker in order to create a vampire movie which didn’t lack novelty as they sometimes do.Eli’s character represents the leaching of vitality as it applies to children, she is left in the cold nighttime under dressed and neglected.
ReplyDeleteTo compare a scene from “Let The Right One In” to a hallmark of vampire cliches I’ll use the bathtub scene from “Let The Right One In” and the opening scene from “What We Do In The Shadows”(2014).The set In the opening scene of “What We Do In The Shadows” emulates that of the Transylvanian castle described in Bram Stoker’s Dracula which is often regarded as the template for a long list of vampire movies and books which fail to contribute novelty to the idea.This documentary was designed to mock such cliches so its opening takes place in a dark dirty old place laden with secret rooms.There is even a secret windowless basement with a stone coffin in it where the old vampire Petyr sleeps.This is a direct reference to Brahm Stoker’s novel.In a similar scene in “Let The Right One In” Eli’s coffin is discovered by an assassin much in the same manner that Count Dracula’s is by John Harker.He enters her empty , dusty apartment and goes into the dark room behind the door where he finds Eli in the bathtub.The clever detail in the mise en scene is that because of the film’s cultural context the audience knows that this is the scene where The curious man in a foerign home discovers the coffin of the vampire.The novelty is contributed to this scene by the fact that it is merely a small apartment and the vampire does not sleep in a coffin she sleeps in a bathtub.
In the movie, Let the Right One in, the director utilizes mise-en-scene to represent the monsters within the film. For example, the set of the film consists mostly of snowy areas and regular public buildings (schools, pools, etc.). The snow adds an element of purity as this film is a coming of age movie too,it is then splattered with blood in multiple murder scenes, signifying the tarninshing of purity surrounding the characters especially Oskar. The costumes are another impactful addiction towards the mise-en-scene. The monster in the film, eli, is given a costume of dull colored clothes, unkempt hair and messy appearance. This coincides with the main character Oskar as they form an unbreakable bond together. The other monster in this film, the bullies, are given bright colored coors and overall neat appearance. This juxtaposition is meant to highlight the conflict as well as the resolution between the two monsters of the film. This takes me into the discussion of light. Eli is almost always dimly lit to reinforce the idea of her being a vampire, while the bullies consistently remain in either natural, bright light or just bright light in general. This is the most impactful at the end, in the swimming pool it is lit brightly but it’s night and this is when Eli murders all of them but one. She broke out of her norm of dark lighting to kill the bullies. Overall, the director uses a lot of contrasting elements of mise-en-scene to highlight how the real monster is the bullies as compared to Eli who essentially saved Oskar and is shed in a positive tone at the end of the film.
ReplyDeleteThe Hunger uses some of the same mise-en-scene elements as Let The Right One to depict the monster/vampire of the film. The lighting in this film is dark and cool as it is also about vampires and stereotypically, they cannot be exposed to sunlight. The lighting surrounding the main character in this film is dim and meant to hide her selfish desires as it hides her face too. The next element that was necessary in both films is costume design. Miriam in the film dresses with extreme extravagance giving her the appearance of untouchable and powerful. This is necessary for her character as it’s how she seduces her victims. The lighting and costumes in the film represent the monster as someone who hides behind her extravagance when in reality she sucks the life out of all her lovers when h=she becomes bored all for her own selfish reasons of everlasting life.