What Dreams May Come
 
To be, or not to be, that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune;
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing, end them: to die, to sleep
No more; and by a sleep, to say we end
The heart-ache, and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to; 'Tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish'd. To die to sleep,
To sleep, perchance to dream; Aye, there's the rub,
For in that sleep of death, what dreams may come,
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil

Must give us pause.

Vincent Ward works overtime in this movie to create the dreamlike visuals that convey Christy’s and Erin’s heavens and Annie’s hell (both literally and on earth). In a paper of 1.5-2 pages, explore some of the ways that Ward manipulates his mise-en-scene to create the physical and psychological effects he wants to convey. Use specific film terminology to express your ideas.

In your essay, compare Ward's use of mise-en-scene related techniques to those found in Sam Mendes' Academy Award winning film American Beauty. Do these directors employ similar devices? How do the physical and psychological effects Ward creates compare to those created by Mendes?

E-mail your completed work to me in Word or Appleworks files.

To ease your efforts (because God knows I want to ease your efforts), here is a list of many of the essential terms we have seen thus far:

Shots

* High angle shot

* Low angle shot

* Bird’s eye

* Establishing shot

* Deep focus long shot

Lighting

* Backlighting (“halo effect”)

* Silhouette

Color

* Use of cool colors

* Use of warm colors

* Color used as symbol

Body position

* Full front

* ¼ turn

* Profile

* ¾ turn

* Back to camera

* Proxemics

Mise en Scene

* Frame-within-a-frame

* Top placement

* Bottom placement

* Placement on the edges

* Balanced, parallel or symmetrical design

* Elements out of the frame

* Dominant contrast

* Movement

* Lines

* Composition using: foreground/midground/background

* Tight framing

* Loose framing

* Stark density

* Detailed density