Get Off My Land (Dir. Douglas Ray) 2007
Mise-en-scene:
The
costumes used in this film helps us as the audience have an assumption on the
characters. During the beginning, we see two characters, one male & a female;
we assume that they are a couple because of the way they act towards one
another. The female, is wearing a lilac jacket, a white top underneath her
jacket, grey trousers & mustard coloured boots. This tells us that she is
familiar with the location (countryside). She’s prepared for the mud so she’s
wearing suitable shoes however her boyfriend is wearing, a black jacket, black
jeans & white trainers. We can see that his shoes are muddy & during
the beginning, we see that he’s wiping his trousers, this tells us that he’s
from the city, he is not familiar with the countryside & he hasn’t dressed appropriately
for the countryside conditions. The land owner is wearing a flat cap, a green
jacket with a brown jumper underneath, he is also wearing yellow trousers with
green boots. We know that he is the land owner because he states that the paths
the couple are walking on belong to him. We also know that he is prepared for
the mud too, he arrives in a green land rover & the clothing he is wearing
represents that he is prepared. His clothing & car also represents that he
is from a higher status, which means that compared to the couple, he is richer
than them.
This film
is set in an open area what seems to be a farm. I would say that this is a farm
because of the gate we see during the beginning, the specific gate you see
during the beginning is usually used to stop the farm animals from getting out.
Cinematography:
During the
beginning of this film, we see a close up on the two people walking, the reason
why this close up is effective is because it shows us the difference between
the two people & one came prepared, whilst the other one did not come
prepared.
The long
shots during the beginning shows us the relationship between the couple, the
man is further behind whereas the woman is walking away from him, this tells us
that they are currently arguing due to the distance between them. We have
another long shot when the man is about to climb the fence & although the
woman is walking away, she still turns around to check if he’s okay & this
tells us that she still cares about him. There is another long shot we have
after the man has climbed over the fence, & it’s the couple walking
together & it’s as if their arguments have come to a halt & they can
finally walk together again.
Whilst the
man is climbing over the fence, we have a close up of the woman’s face; this
shows us her facial expression. Her facial expression shows us that she’s angry
whilst looking at her boyfriend, & she looks down before she turns away.
Looking down can symbolise sadness or avoidance, so this tells us that she’s
sad because of their arguing but she’s also avoiding eye contact with her
boyfriend because of the argument.
As the land
owner approaches the couple, the couple stand together & we have a mid-shot
from the waist upwards, this shows us the body language & the facial
expressions they have together. Whilst the lady is apologising to the land
owner, we see that her boyfriend is looking at her & nodding his head as if
he was disagreeing with her. His facial expressions tells us that he’s annoyed
because the farmer is telling them that they are on his land but he is also
annoyed at his girlfriend for giving in & apologising to the land owner. As
the land owner continues to speak, we see the boyfriend getting angry so he
puts his hands on his hips & this tells us that he’s had enough of the land
owner & he is ready to argue back to the land owner. As the lady is about
to walk away, she touches her boyfriend’s arm to turn him around however her
boyfriend does not turn around & he starts to speak & as he begins to
speak, his girlfriend hides behind him & this symbolises the dominance in
the males. The woman touching the man’s arm also symbolises that they are in a relationship;
they have the physical contact between each other.
Edit:
During the
start of the film, the pace is slow to symbolise the speed of getting to one
place to another however whilst the man is arguing with the farmer, the pace
suddenly gets quick & this represents & emphasises the heated argument
that the two men are having.
Sound:
We have the
non-diegetic sound of the gunshot & this was used when the land owner used
his shot gun to kill both the man & the woman.
The
dialogue is the diegetic sound. The dialogue is mainly between the couple &
the farmer. During the beginning, the man says to his girlfriend “it’s a bit
wobbly” however she doesn’t respond verbally, she just sighs & walks away.
Performance:
The
performance between the two couple symbolises their problems in their
relationship. The space between them whilst walking only changes before the disruption.
It’s as if they put their argument behind them because they felt like it was
the last time they might be together.
During the
heated argument, the girlfriend stays at the side & her boyfriend chucks
the jacket at her & this emphasises his anger towards the land owner.
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