My coursework 1st draft

How does the use f cinematography and Mise en scene create suspense in the Escape from the Bastille (01.47:40 to 01.50: 08) from The Man in The Iron Mask? 

This scene starts off with a long shot of a grand tall building which sets the scene to the audience for where this takes place. Then tilts down when the Musketeers walk past, they are carrying someone with them. The audience knows which ones are the Musketeers by what they are wearing, the Musketeers are wearing black capes which shows that they could die while wearing this uniform, they are wearing hats with black and red feather to show the danger of their job and what could happen to them but it could also show their passion, they have silver strips going down the side of their uniform to show that they are pure at a heart and the gold cross on their chest show that they have wealth or their protection, it could also show that the person paying them for their protection is rich. The Musketeers are the guards to the King and royal family. Then is cuts to a close up of a steel door with a spy hole in it, this is to show the audience that this place needs to be guarded and not anyone can walk in there. This door shows the time period they are in because most places nowadays have steel doors like this now. The audience is shown the person behind the door and the Musketeers hand him a note. Then it cuts but to the Musketeers one of the Musketeers has their face hidden which adds a little mystery to the scene but this mid shot is to show the audience that they are shocked that it actually worked and it added a little humour to the film, this made me laugh because they way they looked at each other was like ‘wow it actually worked’ and how one Musketeer was rubbing the back of the prisoner. Also the way the camera is angled it shows that the Musketeers are only a little higher than the prisoner they are carrying which shows that there is more going on here then they are showing. This also went well with my view because rubbing someone’s back is a sign of affections, you wouldn’t do it to a stranger you are carrying into a prison. Once the Musketeers enter the prison it cuts to a high angle, which shows the inside of the prison and where they are walking. This could show that they are out of their depth and they are overpowered because of all the prison guards and there is no way they can actually pull this off. This made me feel really nervous because I didn’t know how this was going to turn out and they looked so small and powerless, I was routing for their success but I couldn’t see a good outcome at this point. The fact that there are a lot of dark place surrounding them shows that they are unsure of their surroundings and they don’t know the best route out, this adds more mystery and makes the scene more worrying for the audience if they know it or not. The unknown is scary and it plays on your mind. This shot also shows that this prison uses fire touches to light certain areas up, this tells the audience the time period that this is set and it is also a convention of this genre. The use fire could also have religious connotations with hell, this deed they are carrying out could end them up in hell because it is a terrible thing they are doing. Then it cuts to a mid angle to show the audience that the musketeers are coming down the stairs they are no longer holding onto the prisoner and as they are coming down the stairs the lighting is coming through the bars to create a sense that they are good people and they could actually go to heaven, this is another connotation of religion in this scene. Also this mid shot shows them walking down the steps but they are behinds bars which shows the audience that they could either end up dead and either go to heaven or hell, or they could end up in prison themselves. Once they are all down the stairs Aramis removes a piece of paper from his glove which shows that audience that they are a plan, maybe a note of where something is or maybe a map. At the same time the prison removes the tatty robe to reveal that he is another Musketeer, which makes it the clique of ‘The three Musketeers’.  Then the camera pans as the Musketeers move into the shadows first of all the audience thinks that they are starting their journey to find the thing they are looking for. But then the camera pans back when the guards run past and then the audience knows that they were hiding from them instead. Then it cuts to the outside, where the trees are making a good view for the man on a horse, this place is well kept and looks grand so wouldn’t be near the prison. This is scene is shot in a long shot the audience cannot see the face of the man on the horse so it leaves then feeling suspense because they want to know why he is there and why is he so far away and on his horse? Then it cuts to a mid shot of a woman who is standing at an open door as if she is closing it, on the door there is a cross which is a religious connotation.