Film Language Test: Learner Response

33 = B

WWW: A really strong response throughout with excellent insight and reference to the clip. The challenge now is to move from solid level 3 to level 4.

EBI: You need to bring in some media theory and possibly more on genre too. This is a key aspect for top level answers (narrative theory would work well for this exam)
-Some paragraphs need a little more depth... for example, you could say a lot more about Keaton's expression when he sees the killer.
-For sound, you missed SFX and for editing, eye-line matches. Areas to revise for next time!

LR:

How is editing used to create drama and tension in the opening scene?
The editing of this scene is very successful at creating drama and tension. For example, the pace of the editing is very slow and this type of editing is generally associated with the build up of tension - in this case the audience is left anticipating what is going to happen between the two characters. The shots of the killer standing on the boat and walking down the steps are particularly slow paced which shows that the majority of the tension is coming from this character and his actions which makes the audience aware that he is someone to be feared and we assume that he and Keaton are about to encounter one another, and the fact that Keaton is already injured and his identity is exposed to the audience which is quite the opposite of the killer (who we already know is up to no good), we could also assume that their confrontation probably isn't going to end well for Keaton.

As the killer approaches Keaton, Keaton looks up at him and usually, we would expect (as the audience) to see an eyeline match from Keaton to the killer but in order to create tension, the director appears to have made a conscious decision to hide the killer's identity from us which then leaves us wondering who the killer is throughout the rest of the clip. The camera continues to cut to other shots during the scene, but there is never an eyeline match from Keaton to his killer's face. This could be an example of an enigma code created by Barthes which intentionally withholds information from the audience, information that could be crucial to the narrative and its ending (that information in this scene is the killer's identity) This is a very successful way to build tension and retain the audience's attention.

Finally, towards the end of the scene, the killer drops his lit cigarette onto the spilt fuel on the floor, just as Keaton had done with his matches. However, as he drops it, slow motion is used which lengthens the build up to the final explosion for which slow motion is also used. This could add to the strong emotional impact felt by the audience about Keaton's death and also adds to the dramatic atmosphere. In terms of other aspects of film language, the emotion of the scene is heightened by the crescendo in the music which happens at the same time as the explosion and this enables the audience to feel resentment towards Keaton's killer which makes us all the more desperate to discover who he is.