Pierre_Lafortune
New member
Mann does a fine job of controlling the pace and emotion of this simple sequence using ambient sound, music, motion, lighting, blocking, and editing--in other words; all the tools we have as filmmakers to deliver the story.
I would not only like to discuss the camera and lighting work, but also mention the dialogue and character motivations and how they affect the way Mann leads the action (especially in frame 14).
Note: This is inspired by one John Hudson. Thank you for your contributions, sir.
Scene: Neil (Robert Deniro) meets Eady (Amy Brenneman) - @24m:34s
Cut 1 - Woman enters in background. Ambient sound. Wide shot.
(continuous shot)Camera dollies left. Reveals Neil reading. Lit softly from the right motivated by the lamp.
(cont) Woman walks behind Neil. She notices him, he doesn't notice her.
2 - Close-up of Neil. Woman passes. Neil now keylit from the side. Too focused to notice the woman; says a lot to the audience about his demeanor. A leftward screen direction is established.
3 - Dining room. Loud ambient sound. Music begins; ominous but subtle, probably unnoticeable to most viewers--it raises the tension just a bit. Tracking shot starts with the olde follow-the-waiter trick (works every time
!
(cont) Continues to Neil walking swiftly, with purpose; again telling us about his personality without having to explain much.
(cont) Continuing the screen direction, Neil is moving left. Great use of the entire frame; foreground extras, background with windows showing outside, and Neil comfortable in the middle of it all.
4 - Neil sits. Camera dollies down and "sits" the audience along with him.
5 - "Pass the cream" - Ooh its the same woman from before.
6 - Woman notices Neil. "What'd ya get?" Neil gives her the look of death. Mann has the camera at a distance. Actors are tightly framed in a two-shot. The color is a little cold. Neil looks bluish gray conveying his uninviting personality. Music continues to pulse.
7 - Neil is annoyed "What?". She continues in getting-to-know-you mode. "Whattya reading?" She's so sweet who could refuse?
8 - He looks. Pauses. And pauses. Great pacing by the actors and director. You can feel him thinking "What is up with this lady? Police? FBI? DEA?" But he answers "Book about metals." Hoping he would get her off his back.
9 - She leans in. "Stress fractures and titanium." Ugh she's not going away, he thinks. That's it, he's had enough.
10 - "What kinda work you do?" she asks. He stares her down, coldly. The lighting even seems a bit more harsh on his face (or maybe he's just that good at freaking me out.) "Lady why you so interested in what I read or what I do?"
11 - The emotion of the scene has shifted from innocent chatter to serious confrontation. Brenneman does a great job of selling her shock and awe. Her look says, "What on earth did I get myself into?" She backpedals, "I saw you at the store..." "What store?" He grills her. "Lucy and Engel's, I work there."
12 - "You don't wanna talk to me, that's ok." Aww, you crushed her Neil. He feels bad.
13 - "Sorry I bothered you," she says. Her previous curiosity motivation is gone. She is finished with this man and the conversation.
14 - "I didn't mean to be rude." Wow what do we see here? The cold, harsh guy is changing. And his face has changed too. There is color in his skin tone now (the film colorist is helping to tell the story.)
(cont) But that's not all, Mann knows that we the audience might need more than warm skin tones to convince us that the mood has changed. Here he does a great scene transformation. The camera dollies right. The woman and some extras break the line while Neil talks. "I'm a salesman, I work in metals..."
(cont) The camera continues. He reaches out his hand. "My name is Neil." The camera stops. We now have a new frame with a new line. The lighting is warmer and the mood has shifted along with everything else.
19 - She thinks about it. Then, "touchdown" she shakes his hand.
20 - Banter, banter. The two-shot is tighter now. We, the audience, feel closer to both of them.
21 - Chatty chat. They are both lit softly and warmly. The extras even look happier--prob just a coincidence; but it would be great for a filmmaker to use every avenue possible to tell the story. But the ominous music continues. Perhaps hinting to us that we shouldn't completely exhale yet.
22 - He moves closer.
23 - Two-shot gets even tighter as they get closer.
24 - The music changes as they talk about where each other's houses are. But the tension doesn't completely let up. Brenneman does a great job of selling her gushiness.
25 - And voila! We are now at his place. Her laugh helps the transition as it continues through the cut.
26 - Green screen magic allows a floating camera in the atmosphere.
27 - A bit of him.
28 - A bit of her.
29 - Lit well on both sides. Prob impossible w/o the green screen.
30 - Not too much key light. Great close-up
31 - Ooh lala
Feel free to add your thoughts!
I would not only like to discuss the camera and lighting work, but also mention the dialogue and character motivations and how they affect the way Mann leads the action (especially in frame 14).
Note: This is inspired by one John Hudson. Thank you for your contributions, sir.
Scene: Neil (Robert Deniro) meets Eady (Amy Brenneman) - @24m:34s
Cut 1 - Woman enters in background. Ambient sound. Wide shot.
(continuous shot)Camera dollies left. Reveals Neil reading. Lit softly from the right motivated by the lamp.
(cont) Woman walks behind Neil. She notices him, he doesn't notice her.
2 - Close-up of Neil. Woman passes. Neil now keylit from the side. Too focused to notice the woman; says a lot to the audience about his demeanor. A leftward screen direction is established.
3 - Dining room. Loud ambient sound. Music begins; ominous but subtle, probably unnoticeable to most viewers--it raises the tension just a bit. Tracking shot starts with the olde follow-the-waiter trick (works every time
!
(cont) Continues to Neil walking swiftly, with purpose; again telling us about his personality without having to explain much.
(cont) Continuing the screen direction, Neil is moving left. Great use of the entire frame; foreground extras, background with windows showing outside, and Neil comfortable in the middle of it all.
4 - Neil sits. Camera dollies down and "sits" the audience along with him.
5 - "Pass the cream" - Ooh its the same woman from before.
6 - Woman notices Neil. "What'd ya get?" Neil gives her the look of death. Mann has the camera at a distance. Actors are tightly framed in a two-shot. The color is a little cold. Neil looks bluish gray conveying his uninviting personality. Music continues to pulse.
7 - Neil is annoyed "What?". She continues in getting-to-know-you mode. "Whattya reading?" She's so sweet who could refuse?
8 - He looks. Pauses. And pauses. Great pacing by the actors and director. You can feel him thinking "What is up with this lady? Police? FBI? DEA?" But he answers "Book about metals." Hoping he would get her off his back.
9 - She leans in. "Stress fractures and titanium." Ugh she's not going away, he thinks. That's it, he's had enough.
10 - "What kinda work you do?" she asks. He stares her down, coldly. The lighting even seems a bit more harsh on his face (or maybe he's just that good at freaking me out.) "Lady why you so interested in what I read or what I do?"
11 - The emotion of the scene has shifted from innocent chatter to serious confrontation. Brenneman does a great job of selling her shock and awe. Her look says, "What on earth did I get myself into?" She backpedals, "I saw you at the store..." "What store?" He grills her. "Lucy and Engel's, I work there."
12 - "You don't wanna talk to me, that's ok." Aww, you crushed her Neil. He feels bad.
13 - "Sorry I bothered you," she says. Her previous curiosity motivation is gone. She is finished with this man and the conversation.
14 - "I didn't mean to be rude." Wow what do we see here? The cold, harsh guy is changing. And his face has changed too. There is color in his skin tone now (the film colorist is helping to tell the story.)
(cont) But that's not all, Mann knows that we the audience might need more than warm skin tones to convince us that the mood has changed. Here he does a great scene transformation. The camera dollies right. The woman and some extras break the line while Neil talks. "I'm a salesman, I work in metals..."
(cont) The camera continues. He reaches out his hand. "My name is Neil." The camera stops. We now have a new frame with a new line. The lighting is warmer and the mood has shifted along with everything else.
19 - She thinks about it. Then, "touchdown" she shakes his hand.
20 - Banter, banter. The two-shot is tighter now. We, the audience, feel closer to both of them.
21 - Chatty chat. They are both lit softly and warmly. The extras even look happier--prob just a coincidence; but it would be great for a filmmaker to use every avenue possible to tell the story. But the ominous music continues. Perhaps hinting to us that we shouldn't completely exhale yet.
22 - He moves closer.
23 - Two-shot gets even tighter as they get closer.
24 - The music changes as they talk about where each other's houses are. But the tension doesn't completely let up. Brenneman does a great job of selling her gushiness.
25 - And voila! We are now at his place. Her laugh helps the transition as it continues through the cut.
26 - Green screen magic allows a floating camera in the atmosphere.
27 - A bit of him.
28 - A bit of her.
29 - Lit well on both sides. Prob impossible w/o the green screen.
30 - Not too much key light. Great close-up
31 - Ooh lala
Feel free to add your thoughts!
