Mise-en-scene

At first glimpse of this picture our eyes are drawn to look at the knife in the actor's hand. In this image the lighting is based around the actor and mainly on his hand and the knife. This contrast of a dark, shadowed background and the low-key lighting focused on the knife makes it stand out more. Low-key lighting is often used in mysteries and thrillers. The knife is placed in sharper focus than the rest of the shot which creates a dominant. The use of the prop of a blade signifies that the boy may be a murderer or a psychopath. His body language and placement shown in this close up shot suggests that he is threatening somebody with the knife or confronting somebody. The lighting on the knife is mainly focused on the tip of the blade which makes it look more sharp and harmful- this creates a sense of fear . The lighting used in this shot is mainly focused around the knife the boy is holding, this exposes to the audience what appears to be cocaine or a white substance on the knife. This shows the audience that this character may be connected to drugs or is around somebody who is, making us question why there may be cocaine on the knife. In this shot he is holding the knife in a position that only exposes half of his face (his eye area) which brings focus to his angry, sinister expression, looking up at something or someone. His face is shadowed on the left side which makes the actor appear more sinister and threatening. It looks as if around his eyes have been darkened with black eye-shadow which makes the character look more intimidating and in some senses unwell- this makes the audience question whether he has deeper issues such as mental health which is why he is supposedly threatening someone with a knife. The scene is set in what looks like a compact room with dim lighting and very little colour which creates an eerie feel, it's not an ordinary environment that you would find a child in. A sense of danger is created through the setting. The fact that the character is wearing an all black attire give some off a sense of mystery ; black is a mysterious colour that is either linked with the unknown or the negative. The actor used is white with blonde hair which is interesting because normally society links white people with blonde hair to being innocent and almost vulnerable- this shot shows the complete opposite.

The female character's makeup creates a deathly, ill look, showing her to be pale and look dirty. She has relatively new cut wounds and bruises on her face which makes her look run down however her body language presents her as having lots of energy, moving around. She has yellowy green contacts in which makes her look evil and devilish, suggesting to the audience that she may be possessed but overall highlighting that there is something extremely wrong with her. As an audience we recognise that the little girl is possessed through the character of the priest. We recognise he is a priest through his costume, he is wearing religious clothing and is holding a bible. His body language also indicates that he is a priest as he is seen to make the sign of the cross at the little girl- this further suggests that he may be exorcising her as this is typical body language used for healing and 'exorcisms'. We definitely recognise that she is 'possessed' by a force greater than humanity when her head spins around in a 360 motion- this is inhumane and confirms our previous assumptions. The dark lighting used in this scene creates an eerie, evil atmosphere, making the audience feel more vulnerable and on edge. 

In this scene we are introduced to two male characters. From the mise-en-scene of the black male we assume he is a slave. From the mise-en-scene of the white character we assume that he is the slave master and the person who is in charge. The black male is shown to being wearing a thin shirt and trousers- as his shirt rips easily when the slave master pulls him we can interpret that it is made of cheap materials, reinforcing his status. The white male is shown to be wearing a shirt with a waistcoat which suggests that he is of higher status than the other character. The fact that the when we are introduced to the white male he is coming out of a big house suggests that he is wealthy and owns this piece of land, suggesting that all of the people on it he owns. Through their attire and the setting used we can establish a time period in which this is set; this movie is connected to an older time period which reinforces the idea of slavery which helps us to understand the characters. The idea of slavery is reinforced as with in the background of this scene we see other people of African american background working, dressed the same way as the main focused male black character in this scene. The prop of a knife used by the white character shows him as being in control and intimidating. This idea is reinforced through his body language and the way he talks down to the black male character suggesting his dominance with in their relationship.

The setting used is in a canteen in a school which gives the audience an idea of the age of the characters. The characters shown in the whole scene are predominantly white and dressed quite nicely which suggests that this is a middle class school and the students come from quite wealthy backgrounds. On the left side of the table we are presented three girls, through their placement and body language we can see that the girl in the middle is the leader of their friendship group. The character in the middle of all on the left is wearing a ironed pink shirt with a black jumper on top presenting her as neat and fashionable as her attire looks very put together. This shows that as a character she takes pride in the way she looks, suggesting that she puts a lot of thought into it- this shows her as quite a feminine character. She also has long blonde hair which is straight and out which makes her look neat and put together. The placement of the female character sitting opposite these three girls by herself suggests that she may not be a part of this friendship group. This idea is also reinforced by her clothing, she is shown to be wearing a creased blue checkered shirt with her hair up in a loosely tied ponytail. Her overall look is more simple and laid back which shows the audience that she is less concerned about her appearance and fashion compared to the three girls opposite her who are all seen to be dressed stylish. The body language of the girl in the middle to the left constantly leaning in when talking to the girl opposite shows her as being assertive and almost dominant, this is reinforced by the fact that during this scene when talking she doesn't take her eyes off the girl who is sitting opposite alone. The character to the right of the table is often seen looking around the canteen whilst in conversation with these girls suggesting that she may feel uneasy or uncomfortable around them, looking for a distraction or escape.