Scene Analysis-To Sir With Love

Scene Analysis Paper

Sometimes directors have more than one emotion in mind when they create a scene. This occurs in To Sir With Love, where the director attempts to create a sense of mixed emotions among the students over the end of the year, as well as show the soft side of Sir under his strict exterior. Through the close ups, music of varying tempos, and low contrast lighting, the director creates a mixed tone for the end of the year scene. Through the camera angle in the shot of Sir looking at the students, the reaction shots, and the zoom out on Sir at the end, the director emphasizes Sir's soft heart and his care for the school.
The director highlights that although the students celebrate the end of the year, they do not feel that they can rejoice completely, because they have to say goodbye to Sir. The scene emphasizes this through the close ups of every individual student's face. The shots focus on each face in a way that attempts to capture their emotions. In shot 17, after the girl finishes singing her song, the camera zooms in on her face. It lingers while she wipes away tears. The close up shots spend time to focus on the faces of the students as they deal with saying goodbye. This, as opposed to group shots, gives the scene a feeling of seriousness and a focus on the way the students feel about Sir.
The scene also plays up the sadness of the scene with the song, “To Sir With Love”. The scene opens with upbeat music and dancing. This shows the students' happiness for the end of the school year and their newfound freedom. However, when the girl begins to sing “To Sir With Love”, the tone of the scene completely changes. The music is slower and melancholy. The students immediately become serious and quiet in response to the serious song. The change in the style and tempo of music signifies mixed emotions about the end of the year-happiness at their freedom, but sadness at having to leave Sir.
Throughout the scene, the director uses low contrast lighting. In the opening shot, a dimly lit stage and students dressed in dark clothes appear. These low contrast shots of the band and students emphasize the fact that they do not feel completely joyful and carefree about the end of the year.
The director uses certain film techniques to develop the character of Sir as well. In shot 6, Sir's back faces the camera, and the students face the camera. Sir looks at the students as the girl sings. The shot of Sir in the foreground looking at the students gives the impression of him being a large figure watching over some smaller ones. This gives the impression of Sir feeling protective of his students. This develops his character of a kind person under a tough exterior.
The reaction shots of Sir to the song also add to the development of his character. Shots 21 to 27 focus on Sir struggling to control his emotions after the students give him the song and the gift. The portrayal of Sir as a man struggling to contain his emotion sheds light on Sir's soft heart and the affection he has developed for the students.
The final shot of Sir walking out of the room exemplifies the relationship Sir has with the students. The camera shoots a close up of Sir, who begins to lose composure. He then turns to leave. As he walks out, the camera zooms out on him, focusing on him over the heads of the students and zooming out until he exits the room. The camera lingers on Sir for as long as it can. Once Sir leaves the room, however, the camera does not follow him. This zoom-out shot symbolizes Sir's relationship with the students. When Sir loses composure, he reveals his true emotions for the students-he has come to love them like they are his own children. The camera zooms out on Sir, keeping him in focus as he leaves the room. This symbolizes how Sir and the students hang on to each others' presence for as long as they can. However, when Sir leaves, he does not look back and the camera does not follow him. This shows that Sir understands that while he loves the students, he has to let them go and that he cannot be in their lives forever.
The camera angles and editing techniques add important aspects of the plot to movies. To Sir With Love uses different camera angles, varying music styles and tempos, and low contrast lighting to emphasize the students' mixed feelings and to develop Sir's character as a sensitive, softhearted one. These techniques create a tone of happiness clouded by some disappointment over having to leave a person one cares about.

The Stranger Video

The Stranger Screenplay

The Stranger Murder Scene
Screenplay
Scene: EXT. A DRY FIELD-DAY

MERSAULT walks on screen left from under a bridge

Roll intro

MERSAULT walks through field(slow motion)

Roll Title

Profile shot of MERSAULT standing

CUT TO ARAB lying in field

ZOOM IN on ARAB

CUT TO shot of MERSAULT, ZOOM IN

(VOICEOVER) MERSAULT: There he is.

CUT TO shot of ARAB fidgeting

CLOSE UP of MERSAULT

(FLASHBACK) FADE THROUGH WHITE to shot of RAYMOND handing gun to MERSAULT

MERSAULT refuses gun

RAYMOND forces gun into MERSAULT'S hand

RAYMOND: If he says anything, let him have it

MERSAULT: If he doesn't say anything, it'd be pretty lousy to shoot him.

RAYMOND: Well, call him something, and if he answers back, let him have it.

(FLASH FORWARD) FADE THROUGH WHITE to close up of MERSAULT

(VOICEOVER) MERSAULT: Should I let him have it?

TILT DOWN to MERSAULT'S hand going into pocket

FADE into LONG SHOT of ARAB

ZOOM IN on ARAB'S face

ARAB lifts head, opens eyes and looks in MERSAULT'S direction

FADE into shot of MERSAULT stepping forward

CUT TO shot of ARAB'S pocket
CLOSE UP of MERSAULT'S face

CUT TO shot of ARAB lifting head and reaching for pocket

ZOOM IN on pocket as ARAB'S hand takes out knife

FOCUS on knife, catch light on blade

CLOSE UP of MERSAULT from different angle

FADE THROUGH WHITE into FLASHBACK of RAYMOND saying: If he says anything, let him have it.

FADE THROUGH WHITE into FLASH FORWARD-CLOSE UP of ARAB's blade in hand-then ARAB puts knife back in pocket

ZOOM out to long shot of ARAB

CLOSE UP of MERSAULT'S hand taking gun out of pocket

CLOSE UP of gun from opposite angle

CLOSE UP of MERSAULT'S face

CUT TO shot of gun

ZOOM OUT to shot of MERSAULT holding gun

FADE THROUGH WHITE to FLASHBACK-MERSAULT: Well, if he doesn't say anything, it'd be pretty lousy to shoot him

FADE THROUGH WHITE to FLASH FORWARD-CLOSE UP of MERSAULT'S face from different angle

MERSAULT looks up

ZOOM OUT to shot of MERSAULT from waist up

MERSAULT looks at gun and hesitates, starts to turn around-looks at gun, and turns back around to face ARAB

FADE THROUGH WHITE to FLASHBACK-RAYMOND: Let him have it.

FADE THROUGH WHITE to FLASH FORWARD

CLOSE UP of MERSAULT'S hand holding gun

FADE to OVER THE SHOULDER SHOT of MERSAULT facing ARAB, holding gun up.
MERSAULT fires gun(sound effect)
(Screen goes black)

MERSAULT'S VOICE: I knew that I had shattered the harmony of the day, the exceptional silence of a field where I'd been happy. Then I fired four more times at the motionless body, where the bullets lodged without leaving a trace.

CUT TO CLOSE UP of gun firing four times

(Screen goes black)

MERSAULT'S VOICE: And it was like knocking four quick times on the door of unhappiness.

(pause)

(roll credits)

To Sir With Love video link

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukONzCkxLkk

Scene Analysis Proposal

Movie: To Sir With Love
Scene: End of the movie, year-end dance where students thank Sir
Scene Running Time: 2:41
Description of the Scene: Scene begins with an establishing shot of the room-filled with teens-a band in the background. Camera focuses on a boy in a yellow suit. He stands up and announces that they'd all like to thank Sir for all he's done for them. Reaction shot of Sir whirling around in surprise to face the crowd. The boy says they'd like to thank him and give him a present. He turns to a girl, and the crowd calls her up on stage. She gets up, and sings "To Sir With Love." During song, camera focuses alternately on girl singing, close up of Sir, and close up of various students' faces, for the effect of enhancing their emotional reactions. Camera then focuses on a girl in crowd, who shyly walks up to sir, clutching a present. She holds it out shyly to sir. She stands and looks at him for a moment, and then he takes it. The song ends. Close up of the singer wiping tears from her eyes. Other girl walks back to crowd. Long shot of crowd cheering, chanting, "speech!" Close up of Sir's face. He stands unsmiling, turning gift over in hands, moving lips. "Well." he says. Close up of his face. Cuts to faces of individual students. Close up of every person in the room, individually, emphasizing their emotions. Silence. Cut back to close-up of Sir. Nods, bites lower lip, looks down. Sighs, looks up and smiles. Says, "I think I'd better go...and put it away." Holds back tears, quickly walks toward door. Camera zooms out as Sir walks, final long shot is of students turned to the door as Sir exits.

Anouilh Antigone Journal 4

Two Themes in Antigone and how they relate to other tragedies:

1. Hubris: Antigone has an idea in her head that she must die to avenge her brother's death. She later reveals that even she does not know why she wants to die. Antigone's unwillingness to change her position and her desire to stand her ground ultimately cause her own death and great pain for her family and those who love her.
-Medea has a theme similar to this. She takes her wounded pride too far-she feels that to get back at her husband, she has to hit him where it really will hurt him-by killing their sons. Her hubris prevents her from realizing the damage it will cause to her own life.

2. The power of illusions: Illusions lead a person to believe something strongly, but once that illusion is disputed, the belief still stays strong. Even though Antigone's belief about her brother has been dispelled, she stil has the steadfast belief that she ahs to stand up for this thing. She refuses to move past this idea that she has of dying because it is an illusion that she has had for a long time that dying is the right thing to do.
-Similarly, in Medea, she has a persistent Idea that killing her sons is the best way to damage her husband's life. But ebven after she deals with an internal struggle over whether killing them is the best way, her desire to get revenge upon Jason gets the best of her. Her illusion that revenge will make her feel better prevents her from seeing the truth-that killing the boys and living with the guilt will ruin her own life forever.

Anouilh Antigone Journal 3

During their fight, Antigone repeats the word "happy" many times. She latches onto this word after Creon tells her "And get married quickly, Antigone. Be happy"(41). Antigone then begins to question Creon's idea of happiness, and reveals that their contrasting versions of happiness are one of the things that has made her so angry. Using sarcasm, she asks Creon, "You tell me that life is so wonderful. I want to know what I have to do in order to be able to say that myself"(42). Antigone resents the fact that Creon wants her to be content with settling down, putting big problems aside, and just worrying about being "happy." She feels that he is belittling her and she resents it. Antigone uses the word "happy" with contempt and sarcasm, as if the type of happiness that Creon outlines for her is a thing that only frivolous people want.

An ambiguous term that Anouilh uses both in the beginning and the middle of the book is the word "understand." In the beginning, Antigone is angry that everyone is always telling her to "understand." "Understand! I don't want to understand!(12). Antigone says again during her fight with Creon, "I am not here to understand"(37). Antigone does not specifically state what she means by "understand." She refers to different situations in which she is expected to understand why she should or shouldn't do something. Antigone's ambiguous use of the word "understand" gives the impression that she uses that word as a way to say that she resents being ordered around and expected to obey orders like a docile little girl.