Textual Analysis - Stripes

Stripes

Producer: Doug Holloway

Writer: Sean Spencer 
Director: Sean Spencer

The set up shows two men are the protagonists, one tied up in duct tape and the supposed-criminal is towering over him in full dominance, and we are yet to understand anything about their relationship. Therefore, this creates a hook for the audience, due to the curiosity of the relationship between the two guys and their problem. The set design is of a basic flat and potentially in London due to the modern layout and decoration, the filming technique is over-exposed and so hides a lot of detail in the shots, which goes hand-in-hand with the narrative as no details are given to the audience. The development of this then shows the two men are the opposing forces, this is shown when one of the guys stands in the way as this is the man playing games and beating him up because he is unable to move. The challenge in the development is the guy's need and desperation to escape his attacker. The resolution is how the audience now begins to understand that this attack was provoked by the other man in earlier years and this is just revenge rather than robbery etc. It is done in the same way the guy received the attacks and abuse when he was younger and so therefore shows it as even revenge rather than out-scaling the previous attacks. This therefore makes it seem like a clean slate for the two and potentially 'serving justice'. The narrative is driven forward through the extensive detail in the man being bullied and as he gets more angry the audience what’s to know the resolution to a situation that has escalated so much so quickly. The atmosphere is very dry with not much sound and just the voices of the character being the only thing that you can hear and sometimes you can hear some cars driving past. The mood is very eerie and creepy due to the pure narrative and focusing solely on the relationship between the two characters.

Micro elements from the technical category of sound - diegetic is being deployed with the sustained high pitch noise of the kettle at the beginning as this shows that something is escalating and about to happen and sets the creepy, eerie mood off from the start. It also acts as an alarm to the audience to create discomfort within the location of the scene. Finally, the diegetic sound of the kettle is used at the beginning to show the contrast in volume that will be used throughout the rest of the film. Continuing with the symbolism of the kettle, more micro elements that are displayed are from the technical category of camera shots - close-up as they show the bubbles in the kettle rapidly moving, this is to symbolize the panic shared within the 'victim' and the situation and also to symbolize the anger that has boiled within the other guy over time. Micro elements from the technical category of camera shots - close-up are used a lot throughout the film as this makes the visuals intimate to the audience; the reason behind trying to create intimacy with the audience is that it allows them to feel the mood and atmosphere of the situation more and allowing them a real sense of tension and suspense. Finally, micro elements from the technical category of mise-en-scene - lighting is deployed as the majority of shots are over-exposed and lacking detail therefore this creates a purposeful concentration on other technical categories like sound - dialogue.