Analysis of a short film

A MESSAGE FROM FALLUJAH

Storyline Daniel Crane is an American civil engineer who, nearing the end of a three month stint trying to help rebuild war torn Iraq, is intoxicated by the exotic people and surrounds. On the morning of his last day in Fallujah he stays for "One more cup of habibi". This is all it takes for Daniel to find himself beaten and alone, a hostage in the drama of war. As hope of living fades, he is left with one last wish, to tell his wife how much he really loves her. Lance Henriksen delivers a heart wrenching performance as Daniel Crane, taking the viewer on a deeply personal journey of heartfelt desire. A Message From Fallujah puts aside the politics and rationalisation of war, to show that in the end, it doesn't matter in what name the violence is committed. For the dead, the homeless and the orphans, the effect is still the same. Daniel is attacked and as they throw the black bag over his head he is oblivious as to what is hapening until he wakes up in an abandoned room alone and he is left there for months. The hostage is trapped and cannot escape we know as we can see in the room him sitting in the room alone. This short film is similar to ours in ways such as that the main character gets kidnapped and held hostage in an abandoned room and cannot escape. The genre of both this short film and our short film is thriller/crime. There are some inconography is both films such as guns or weapons that are used. Also scenes of violence are shown in the films which make it a crime also. 

Characters In this short film the main character is 'Daniel Crane.' He gets kindnapped and held hostage in the film where he is put is a desolate room and is left there alone. This is practically dentical to the beginning of our short film as in ours 'Jason' is attacked by being hit over the head until he is unconscious and is then dragged to an abandoned room where he is then kept. In both films we see the main character banging an pleading for help as they are left there alone and there is no way of escape. The other characters in the film are the kidnappers who capture him and lock him up in the room and plan to leave him there. Little do they know to begin with Daniel has escaped from the room through the window. Also 'Daniels' wife and children are shown in the film. In the scene where he is out in the open desert they are shown getting into a car and he tries running after and chasing them, this shows Daniels motivation to escape, to get back to his family. Also towards the beginning of the film we hear a voice over plea from his wife encouraging whoever has him held hostage to give it up and release him. 

Cinematography  In the short film a large variety of shots are used in order to create different emotions and emphasise expressions throughout the film. 

 In the two shots shown on the left close up shots are used. The first close up (top left) shows his happiness and relief to be speaking to his wife on the phone and also he speaks to his son. The phone then cuts off and the camera shows that the wire has been cut. The camera then shows the second close up in the scene(bottom left) which shows his realisation that he is going to die and that it was a set up. 











The next two shots are coupled and a long shot is used to show what has happened to a man as he has been beheaded. We can see this as the terrorists are holding only his head by the hair. The second shot moves into a mid shot to show the audience that the man is infact Daniel and he has died at the end of the film. The twist was that he thought he had been saved but it was all part of the plan. 

  
   

 This next shot is a close up. It shows the frustration in Daniels face as he cannot understand what the little boy is telling him as he continues to speak another language.

The next shot fades from a close up with Daniel being in focus to a long shot where the young boy is in the frame as well and the camera then focus' on him to show he is dead. 

In this shot opposite Daniels wife and baby are shown using a long/mid shot. By having this shot it shows the audience what Daniel is running towards trying to reach his family and it shows us why Daniel is so desperate to escape. 

Mise-en-scene

 Here in the two shots shown to the right the lighting changes in the differen't scenes.  In the image on top (top right) the lighting is very bright. This is because in the scene the helicopter hovers outside the window and the light is shining into the room which is why Daniel escapes out of the window as he thinks it is his saviour but as he climbs out of the window the helicopter flys off leaving him trapped still.

In this image there are flashes of light to show comotion and the hectic atmosphere are shootings take place into the building where the characters are holding Daniel.

 In the film props such as :guns, photographs, helicopter and blood are shown. These are all typical iconnography of a thriller film. The guns are used in order to portray an authoritive figure of the terrorists. The photograph is of Daniels family which shows the audience the reason for his desperation and motivation to escape and make it back to his family. Also blood is shown as the end of the film especially on Daniels bandage cloth which is a clue to the audience that Daneil is dead. 

No makeup is used in the film on any of the characters, mainly because they are male and are out in the middle of Iraq and so the characters do not have to be portrayed as attractice ect, Daniels face is dirty and looks in pain because of the dust and blood ect on it. However we do see his wife from a distance which looks to be wearing makeup. This is to portray her positively as he is desperate to get back to meet her as they are currently seperated.

The costume worn by Daniel is an orange prision smock, this represents his capture and takes his personal identity away from his and makes him appear as just a figure this could be so that the terrorists find it easier to kill him although i suspect they wouldn't hesistate anyway. The terrorists are dressed in turbans and robes which is what you would stereotypically expect to see people dressed in in Iraq. 

Sound/music In the scene where Daniel has escaped and is running away from the place where he was held hostage, the music is deep and fast paced. This creates tension as it is possible at any minute that Daniel could be caught and something disasterous could happen. This leaves the audience is suspense as they are eager to find out what is going to happen next. In the scene where 'Daniel' is in the helicopter the music is different to before, it is a higher pitch and slower which creates a more posotive attitude and the music creates a hopeful tone in the fact that he is finally going home to his family. 

Editing

There isn't that much editing in the film as it is a linear film and the filming is contiuous as the scenes follow on from one to the other. 

In the two shots opposite there is a change in saturation to show that the day changes from night to day. This shows the time in which Daniel has been out in the open after he escaped, it emphasizes how long he has been trapped and trying to escape.

The next shot fades from a close up  with Daniel being in focus to a long shot where the young boy is in the
 frame as well and the camera then
 focus' on him to show he is dead.