12/16/20
Analyze how the extract from Black Mirror constructs meaning, including the specific representations of individuals/groups/events/places, through the following technical elements.
Notes:
Crowded city….takes place in 1987 (car radio)…girl walking, camera following by side then behind….front angle from medium shot….looks interested in the tv….people arguing in the background…camera switches to the arguing couple…leads backwards….shows couple going into a place over the shoulder of main character… music gets louder as she approaches.
camera in the doorway…. shows view of the inside over the shoulders shot… neon colors…dance club...camera follows aside main character as she walks through, focusing on dancing heads…. arcade… shows her going into arcade then disappears … camera focusses on guy with drink … guy looks over at main character.
Switches over to arcade…. Darker colors… plays game… guy walks up and starts talking to her… switches over the shoulder from him and her… distracts her and she loses… he asks to play a game with her… in game car crashes... she flinches and says no… she walks away.
Sits at table… show couple again… the girl walks up to her… tells her to go along with what she says… shows front view of whoever is talking… guy leaves… looks like a diner/club… start talking… go to bar… looks main character over.
Writeup:
The scene opens with an aerial view of a popular part of a city, the establishing shot. Ambient sound of people talking, music, TVs, and car engines makes the scene more realistic. Because of the old-fashioned cars and costume of the background actors, this clip from Black Mirror takes place in the 1980’s, and the film further proves this when the radio of a car reads “1987.” The ambient sound soon mixes with incidental music when a track is used to follow the main character as she approaches a few TVs. She has an unreadable expression on her face as if she is lost. While she stopped to look at the TVs, non-diegetic sound of two voices seemed as if they were approaching the camera, which switches to an arguing couple. This camera is mounted on a dolly leading the couple backwards in a mid-shot. The couple is shown going into a building by an over-the-shoulder shot behind the main character, whom them soon after. As she approaches, the camera is located in the building and the music playing in the building get louder. This edit was made to allow the viewers to predict what type of place the main character was entering. In this case, she was entering a bar/dancing club.
When the main character enters, the club is shown over-the-shoulder of the main character. This scene consists of only ambient sound of the music and voices of the club. It is dark, but had neon lights, amplifying the fact that this is a club. A long-shot is used to follow the main character as she examines the scene, but the camera focusses on the heads of dancing people, showing how popular this club is. The camera continues to follow her as she disappears into the arcade. A mid-shot focusses on a guy who looks in the direction the main character is going.
The main character is shown in a mid-shot as she plays an arcade game. The guy seen previously is shown walking towards her by an over-the shoulder shot. As he is talking to her, the camera repeatedly switches from a mid-shot of him to a mid-shot of her. This is to see the guy talking, while also seeing the facial reactions of the main character in response. After the camera shows the car crashing in the video game, it immediately shows the main character jumping as if she was scared, which tells the watchers she has experienced something awful. She walks away, but instead of the camera following her, it quickly changes to her next location.
As soon as the main character sits down, the arguing voices come back. The camera then shows a long shot of the girl walking up to her. A guy soon follows her. This scene seems darker because it is further away from the crowd and the ambient sound has quieted, making their dialogue easier to hear. Throughout the conversation, the camera is placed at a mid-shot showing whoever is talking. When the guy leaves, the girl takes the main character to the bar. They are shown talking in a two-shot at first, and then the camera focuses on whoever is talking with over-the-shoulder shots.