Film Analysis ~ 'Inglorious Basterds'

Film Analysis ~ 'Inglorious Basterds'



The scene begins with an establishing shot of Fredrick walking out of the movie theatre, this immediately introduces Fredrick as a main character within the scene. The shot is a mid backtracking shot this leads me to believe that Fredrick is more powerful than the viewer and is forced backwards as Fredrick approaches. In this establishing shot the rule of three is applied with the flowers on the left, Fredrick in the middle and guards on the right showing that Fredrick is important and a figure of authority, which is also supported by the mise-en-scene, because Fredrick is in a Nazi uniform with medals, clearly showing he is of high ranking. Also, within this 'Rule of Three', red flowers are placed on the right hand side. This suggests danger and tragedy, which foreshadows later occurrences. A straight cut is then used, showing a CU of a bell which is ringing proving that it is diegetic sound. This shows urgency, because both the pitch and pace of the bell is high and fast. The mise-en-scene within this shot shows a young woman dressed in a red dress, with red lipstick on. This represents her as a dangerous character, which foreshadows later events. Also, in this scene a medium close up at a low angle is being used showing her looking down into the audience of Nazis. 'The Rule of Three' is all used within this shot, showing her in the middle, suggesting the importance of her character. Parallel editing is used which alternates between the woman and the cinema screen, it shows us the cinema screen flash a cross in a circle which is signalling her to change over the reels, which is what she then goes on to do, helping the fluidity of the story/what is happening at the current time.

In the next scene, there appears to be a black man smoking a cigarette. Mid Shots are used, showing firstly his front, then his side and then to his back. This allows the audience to notice that the camera is focusing on him for a certain purpose. A bird-eye shot is used showing him overlooking a pile of tapes, whilst watching the cinema screen. On the cinema screen plays a video about Nazis, this is poignant because due to the fact that the man is black it shows his resentment towards the film currently playing because the Nazis discriminated black people and their culture. The lighting used within this scene is only focused on the man, and his surroundings are cast in shadow, this reestablishes his vulnerability because he appears to be alone, which supports the nature of the film. Also, the man on the screen is a Nazi who is alone fighting against italians, both the man in the cinema and the Nazi on the screen are standing alone against an enemy of theirs. This scene made me feel sympathetic for the man in the cinema

Within the next scene, a low-angle, LS is used and the camera tilts whilst following Fredrick up the stairs. Whilst walking up the stairs, Fredrick conceals the light that is in front of him causing him to create shadow. This implies, Fredrick has a considerable amount of power, because he is shadowing everything that walks behind him. The light is coming from the top of the stairs, and as he is ascending them, it is as if he is going towards the light (heaven), which links to the next part of the scene where he actually does get shot. Also, because the camera tilts as his ascends the stairs, the angle gets lower and lower, again showing his amount of power. The next shot shows, Fredrick walking down the hallway,  whilst doing so the camera backtracks, again showing Fredrick's power. This scene made me feel intimidated and worried due to the expression upon his face.