Evaluative anlysis

Prisoners clip analysis

Towards the beginning of the scene we are presented with a longshot of Jake Gyllenhaal in the restaurant. This shot is used to establish the setting and position of the character. It is from behind which makes the viewer unable to see the facial expressions of him.

In the same shot, we see him have a conversation with the waitress about Chinese tradition. This dialogue happens in the same shot, which means the viewer can hear the guy but cannot see his face. It makes him seem less threatening, as in a way, he appears to be more normal than he did. It allows the viewer to predict what he may look like, by judging the sound of his voice.

The shot following, is a mid-shot which shows the identity of the person sitting down. The position of the camera and protagonist in relation to the waitress says a lot about his character. The camera is at eye level to the protagonist, which connotes an even feeling towards him. However, he is talking up to the waitress, which makes the viewer feel like the waitress is the dominant character, after all, he is in her restaurant.

Furthermore, the lighting is high key, which is important as it heavily contrasts with Jake Gyllenhaal's character. The protagonist is dressed in black, and the room is lit up brightly, which really makes him seem out of place and almost alien to his vibrant surroundings.

Later on, we are given a long shot of the protagonist, revealing that he's sat alone in an empty restaurant. This may infer that he is a lonely character, who doesn’t really associate with other people. His hunched posture suggests he's unfamiliar of these surroundings and out of his comfort zone.

We are then given an over shoulder long shot of the caravan in the distance. This allows the viewer to know where the protagonist is going. The camera being placed over the shoulder allows the viewer to be further immersed into the experience, as from this perspective, you feel like you're in the film itself.

A mid shot of the other character gives us a silhouette. This is effective as it makes the viewer question what type of person the silhouette is. The non-diegetic sound of classical instruments creates a sinister feel to the situation.

Shortly after, we are given a Dutch- reflection shot of the protagonist from the perspective of the person in the caravan. The protagonist is seen approaching the caravan, as a shadow with a flashlight. It makes the viewer feel as if Jake Gyllenhaal's character is hunting down the caravan driver.

Soon after, we are given a series of long shots, which shows the surrounded caravan attempting to escape. The diegetic sounds of the engine revving vigorously infer that the driver is preparing for a fast departure and is threatened by the police surrounding him.

Once the vehicle has crashed, we are given a long shot of the front of the caravan, and Jake Gyllenhaal slowly approaching the door. We can tell he's cautious, because his path is calculated, his gun is raised and he's barking orders to fellow officers. The officers are seen as dark silhouettes and the caravan is steaming, with the lights booming through the gas. This is significant as the surrounding area is a low key lighted place, which creates a major contrast in lighting and visibility.

As Gyllenhaal reaches the door of the van, a pan/swivel shot, focusing on the driving seat, is used. This is effective in making the viewer invest all their focus onto the identity of the driver, which at first cannot be seen, due to a major high-key lighting addition from officers on the other side of the van. This shot is good at building tension, as all you can hear is the sound of heavy rain and the footsteps of fellow officers. The camera is hand held, which makes it shaky and uneven, which makes it better at building anticipation. The stability of other shots definitely makes you feel more comfortable, as they make it easier to focus, as the frame still.

A collection of mid and long shots shows that the protagonist made his way round to the other side of the van. Soon after, we see that he has broken into the caravan and is surrounded in darkness and smoke, generated from the crash. The lighting in this section is all based off of the policeman's flashlight, which may subtly infer that the policeman (Gyllenhaal) is the morally good character here. The lowkey lighting of this section means the protagonist is covered in darkness and smoke, which may represent evil and the bad side of society. His only source of light is his flash light, which lights up the interior in front, helping him to see what lies ahead. The flashlight may represent the morally good side of society.

The over the shoulder shot of the well-lit curtains allows the viewer to imagine what lies behind.

In this shot we hear Gyllenhaal ordering someone to surrender, we can't see them, but due to the position of the camera, we assume the suspect is behind the curtains. The viewer thinks this because all of the light is directed onto the curtains, and the camera heavily focuses on them.

A long shot shows Gyllenhaal violently removing the suspect out of the van. We can tell that the suspect is definitely the criminal due to the way his silhouette struggles against these officers. He just moves so forcefully and wobbly, the police definitely have little respect for him as they just chuck him around.

A mid shot of the criminal portrays him as weak. The shot of him turning around, with all of the officers' lights on him, makes him look alone and somewhat victimized. The fearful emotion on his face indicates he's extremely intimidated. There is evidence of pathetic fallacy, as the rain of the scene makes the criminal shake and cower, making him look alienated and lonesome.