Lone Survivor Mise en Scene Analysis

Peter Berg’s 2013 film, Lone Survivor, tells the true story of a SEAL team with the task of taking out an important Taliban leader, Ahmad Shah. The film follows the four SEALs, Marcus Luttrell (Mark Wahlberg), Michael Murphy (Taylor Kitsch), Danny Dietz (Emile Hirsch) and Matthew Axelson (Ben Foster), as they fight for survival when their mission goes wrong.  In this particular scene Luttrell and Axelson are shown fighting for their lives while Murphy sacrifices himself to keep his comrades alive. Director Peter Berg does an incredible job of conveying a sense of chaos and fear in this very intense film, using different types of cinematography, editing and visual design.

Cinematography plays an important role in this scene especially, making the viewer more involved in the scene. One of the most important shots in giving the viewer this feeling is the point of view shot, which is used in this scene. We see this when Luttrell is firing at the Taliban fighters, we see through the scope of his rifle and then a close up of his face. This puts the viewer in the place of Luttrell, putting the viewer right in the action and feeling how the character feels. Special effects are also uses extensively in this scene to add a more realistic feel. The authentic appearance of gunshots and gore adds a lot of intensity and fear to this action packed scene.

In film, the editing sets the pace of the movie, and in this scene that becomes very apparent. At the beginning of this scene, shots are not more than a few seconds longs, creating a very fast paced and intense experience for the viewer. Near the end, the shots become longer, making the experience a more emotional one. Slow motion is used when Murphy is being shot, further adding to an emotional scene, but also making him appear more heroic.

Visual design is a huge part of any film, but in this scene it creates a very realistic feel. The scene was filmed at the Santa Fe National Forest which provided the rocky terrain that would be found in Afghanistan where the real mission took place.  Costuming and Makeup of the actors gives them the look of elite, but worn down and injured soldiers that is required for the scenes authenticity. Equipment and camouflage  of the SEALs is accurate for the 2005 time period where it takes place. Lighting is used to make Michael Murphy look very heroic when he makes the radio call, with the sun shining down on him.

Overall Peter Berg does an excellent job with this film, but especially this scene, giving the audience the sense of fear and intensity that goes along with war. Aspects of visual design, cinematography and editing are all used very carefully to create the authentic scene and give the viewer something to think about.

Django Unchained Visual Design

Django Unchained,  directed by Quentin Tarantino, is a highly stylized American Western set in the late 1850’s before the Civil War during the time of slavery. The film is about a former slave who begin collecting bounties after being freed by a wealthy German bounty hunter, while searching for his wife.  Dr. Schultz (played by Christoph Waltz) is a very well off and well educated German man who makes a living collecting the bounties of criminals throughout the South. Django (played by Jamie Foxx) is a former slave, determined to do whatever it takes to free his wife. Dr. Schultz frees Django from slavery, offering to help him find his wife as long as he collect bounties with him through the winter. In this scene, Dr. Schultz explains what he does to Django, very much surprising him. Visual design plays a very important role, creating a scene that gives the audience the atmosphere of the time period and highlighting the difference between social class.

One very important aspect of this scene is the setting. Since the film is a dramatized western, this scene is set in the 1850’s in a saloon. The saloon is dimly lit and dusty telling us that this is a rough time in history. Candles are seen throughout the saloon further establishing the time period. Social structure is also a factor in this scene and is apparent when Dr. Schultz who is well educated has to demonstrate proper manners to Django by making him take his hat off of the table and explain to him what a bounty is. A couple more subtle additions to the set include a Victorian style painting of a woman with her head hidden by shadows, making her appear dead, like her bounty has been collected. There is also a stuffed mountain lion at the top of the staircase, which is a predator just like Dr. Schultz.

Wardrobe is also essential to this scene, highlighting the time period and class of the film’s characters. Dr. Schultz is dressed in very nice clothes, wearing a grey coat and pants over a white shirt with a black vest. This tells the viewer that he is a man that has money. The golden chain from a pocket watch can also be seen on his vest, giving him the appearance of an educated man, which he certainly is. Django on the other hand, is wearing all clothing that had been taken from others, still stained red from blood, showing that he is of the lowest class of the time period having nothing of his own. A scar on Django’s forehead also further explains his background as a slave, telling the viewer he has been abused by his owners.

Quentin Tarantino payed very close attention to the color palette of this scene. The setting consists mostly of browns, making the place look rough and not very wealthy, but it also highlights a couple of other things. The browns cause the grey and white of Dr. Schultz's outfit to stand out showing the audience he is unlike most other people, in contrast to Django almost blending in the scene. The golden color of the beer he and Django drink together also stands out because this is something that Django has never had before as a slave, that he isn't part of this culture.

When color palette, wardrobe and an authentic setting all come together in this scene, it give the feeling of the 1850’s, a harsh world in the time of slavery, ruled by the ideas of social class that are demonstrated very well here. Quentin Tarantino certainly takes all of this into consideration to give the audience the most authentic experience possible.