Sunday, 12 October 2008

Anaylising the Opening Sequence of Gothika by Sammy Wood

Analysis of the Opening Sequence of Gothika (Kassovitz, 2004).

Gothika is a horror film directed by Mathieu Kassovitz
in 2004. In Gothika the audience’s expectations are fulfilled because from the very opening scene we learn about a character being possessed by the devil and this is a typical convention of a horror film. Also this character is a stock character of a horror film; this is because she is a typical character that you would have in a horror movie. The text conforms to the characteristics of the horror genre because it’s location is set in a mental prison which gives an eerie and scary atmosphere. Also this first stock character is talking about how she cut her step-fathers throat open. These examples are conventions of typical horror movies.

Mise-en-scene conveys meaning in the opening sequence of Gothika. For example the stock characters, firstly there is Chloe, the possessed character which is a connotation of a horror film and there is Miranda (the character of Halle Berry) who is a pretty character trying to help Chloe from the situation that she is in. Also the security guards in the sequence show that the location, where the scene is set, is dangerous and therefore people should be protected. Also by having a prison as the main location, has connotations of dark and gloom and a tense atmosphere. Also the room which the questioning is going on is dark, which makes it difficult to completely see characters facial expressions and doesn’t allow you to see exactly what is going on, which again creates an eerie atmosphere. The camera techniques also convey meaning to the opening sequence. An example of this is in the very first shot, where there is a close-up on Chloe. It emphasizes what she is saying and allows the audience to focus on her. Also, when the camera is panning along the prison cell bars, it conveys the meaning that Chloe is dangerous and therefore needs to be isolated away from other people where she could do damage. Another camera technique that conveys meaning is when Miranda is walking up a corridor and there is a mid-shot of her, then in the background you can see an extreme long shot of Chloe struggling and trying to get away from the guards, which shows her anger and her problems. Sound anchors the images in Gothika in many ways to give meaning and to give an exciting atmosphere. The voice of Chloe gives meaning because of the para language, because the sound of her voice is scary and monotonous, also her voice is quite quiet in places, so the audience really needs to concentrate on what she is saying. Also, when she is being taken away, she is screaming and struggling which creates tension. The voice of Miranda is calm and soothing, so we learn through her voice that she is a nice character trying to help another person. The soundtrack is weird and eerie and quite quiet, so that you can hear the screams and shouts of Chloe to make the atmosphere tense and so you can hear her reactions over the music. In the opening sequence of Gothika we learn a lot about the two characters through the dialogue and non-verbal language. Through listening to the characters conversation we learn that Chloe is extremely violent character because she describes how she killed her step-father. Also she explains how she ‘Cut his Adam’s apple in half, like a piece of fruit on a summer’s day.’ This makes her seem even more disturbed because she is making a terrible act seem pleasant by using a nice simile. The para language of Miranda’s voice is soothing and relaxed, which shows she is caring and is trying to help. The non-verbal language of Chloe’s voice makes the dialogue sound scary and the way she speaks is quiet, which therefore means that you have to listen carefully to what she is saying. Visual techniques that have been used by the director are the use of lighting. In the prison the room is very dark, which has connotations of mystery and because it is a bad place it means that bad things will happen there. Because the prison is dark, it means that there is little visibility, which has connotations of death and violence and is therefore foreshadowing future events.


The narrative in the opening sequence of Gothika immediately informs us about the characters because we learn the Chloe is being possessed by the devil and is in the mental prison. Also we learn that Miranda is somebody who works at the mental prison to try and help people like Chloe. It is organized and structured in such a way to give you information straight away about the characters and the reasons for why they are in that location. The audience has a privileged position in the opening sequence because we are allowed to be in the cell whilst Miranda is talking to Chloe, which gives the audience insight to why she is there. Also, the audience is allowed into the mental prison unlike any member of public. The techniques of identification are used to let the audience have an insight to the characters. This happens in Gothika where we learn about the character Chloe and we learn what she is like. The major themes in the narrative are violence, death and being possessed because we learn that Chloe killed her step-father, and before that she cut his throat open and we know that the reason she is in the mental prison is because she has done these things and know she is being possessed by the devil in the evenings. Tension is created and maintained in this sequence by the location being set in a prison, which has connotations of darkness, also learning about the fact that Chloe thinks she is being possessed which creates suspense. Also when Chloe is being taken away for getting angry at Miranda she is screaming and shouting and saying to Miranda that ‘she is dead.’ This would create a scary atmosphere and would be difficult to take from Miranda’s point-of-view.


Social Groups that are represented in this sequence are people that have problems and need help. We find this out through the character of Chloe being possessed by the devil. The beliefs and values that is evident in Gothika are good and evil and this is shown through the characters of Miranda and Chloe. Also, in this day in age we live with science and new technology, however many people still have religious beliefs, and this narrative can effect us because of the fear of the unknown. This mean's that because science has given us answers about ideology, it can not necessarily prove or disprove the existence of the devil and because we know that there is evil in everyone, we fear people who have this illness to the extreme because they are a danger to society.


I think the target audience of Gothika is early twenties to early thirties; this is because I think that anybody under twenty wouldn’t necessarily find it interesting because of the weird ideology and beliefs. Also I think people over the age of thirty would not find the film interesting. Many people would have different opinions about the meaning of the film. The preferred reading of the film would be that they understand that people do have these types of problems, but hope that Chloe gets better and becomes a better person. The negotiated reading of the film would be that they understand that people may have those types of problems, however due to their beliefs they don’t believe that somebody could be possessed by the devil. The oppositional reading of the opening sequence of Gothika would be that they want to watch a film, so they watch it anyway but do not go along with the intentions of the film. I read and evaluate the text by thinking that it is quite violent and tense and that it could happen in the real world. I also think the way in which Chloe speak about how she killed her step-father quite disturbing because she says “I cut his adam’s apple in half like a piece of fruit on a summer’s day,” by comparing the act to a pleasant simile it makes the action worse because it comes across that Chloe thinks that it is okay. I think that my evaluation is influenced by my age because I would believe the scene and I would become more involved than an older person would. My gender also influences my evaluation of the text because again I am more naïve than boys are which would make me find the situation scarier.

A famous actress has been used in Gothika called Halle Berry, and she has been in many films before Gothika including one of the Bond films. This means that she is noticeable and would mean then men would also be attracted to the film because of her, which would mean good publicity. Gothika is an industrial film produced by Warner Bros’ Pictures, Columbia Pictures Corporation and Dark Castle Entertainment. Strategies that have been used to market the film are trailers that have been produced to give an insight to the film and posters and advertisements to display.


1 comment:

Ms Johnson said...

Very good attempt Sammy. Distributionis a little vague and rushed at the end.
Ideology - We live in an age of science and technology, many of us still have religious beliefs. this narrative effects us on many levels, we fear the unknown (science brings up many answers but cannot prove or disprove the existance of God and therefore the devil). We know evil is in everyone and in society we fear evil people (we lock them away)Mental illness (used to be thought to be possession by the devil) is fascinating and frightening in some case but mental people shouold also be locked up if they are a danger to society. (dominant ideology on dangerous people).