Pale man scene - office scene

Performance:

The performance is relevant to understanding the scene
 
Her facial reactions show the fear but want to adventure

we also see the concentration and drive to go even though she is scared of the unknown

she shows that she is on edge by her facial expression and the way she is standing

she shows wonder

The way the pale man runs is slow and weird to show how old he is and how he has been asleep for ages


she shows fear and danger through the way she looks and acts

she shows wonder when she sees the key


Cinematography
- tracking back and in shots - fluid camera movements, multiple times - involves spectator - we align with Ofelia
- Track right along the table - follows Ofelia's movements - she motivates camera movements - however, camera holds when she sees pale man
- over the shoulder of Ofelia's perspective



Execution of the poachers: Mise en scene

Chiaroscuro = the strong contrast between light and dark

13:45-

the setting of the exaggerated background reflecting german expressionism

use of uniforms shows they are in the army and their uniforms mirror nazi uniforms

the watch being fixed and put back together shows Vidal's need for order and everything to be in its place and it is funny how he has forgotten about his father but at the end he asks that his son remember him but Mercede's tells him he will not know who you are. Showing how he puts aside his humanity an loses that all in the pursuit of order losing who he is and what made him into the person he is.

she says "forever alone till the end of time" and it shows how until that watch is destroyed meaning Vidals death he will be alone until he dies


Del toro intended for the pocket watch to be a metaphor for the audience to understand as the Spanish civil war. The need for order which made the watch run again shows how as the facists took over time seemed to go forward but stayed stuck in this time with spain going no further into the future. With the facist ideas holding them back.

How does a micro-feature create meaning?

In the scene in which Vidal speaks in his office with the doctor about Carmen’s pregnancy, the spectator better understands power relationships between the two characters, with the doctor being much inferior to Vidal. Initially alone, Vidal is repairing his father’s pocket watch. Vidal does this in the centre of the frame with a low angle deep depth-of-field, and the camera slowly tracking around him as if he were controlling it.  When the camera cuts to the pocket watch, a close-up shallow depth-of-field is employed to show its value to Vidal. This pocket watch is used as a metaphor for Vidal’s character arc. In his attempt to repair it, this shows the spectator how in his pursuit of order, he loses his small amount of humanity. This creates irony, because as his father heroically died in battle, he broke the watch to represent a noble death. However, by repairing the pocket watch, Vidal discredits his father’s memory. Del Toro intended for the hyperreal ticking of the pocket watch to be a metaphor for the spectator to understand the Spanish Civil War. The need for order which made the watch run again, shows how when the fascists took over; time seemed to go forward but stayed stuck in past with Spain going no further into the future with the fascists ideology holding them back.

When the doctor enters, the camera quickly pans left following him, which shows how little authority he has over the camera, and therefore over the events that are unfolding in the office. There is a shot/reverse shot between the doctor and Vidal. In classical film form, the shot/reverse shot would have identical shot sizes and angles to suggest a balance in power. However, in this scene, the doctor is shown in an eye-line shot whereas Vidal is shown at a low angle. Additionally, the shot of Vidal is static, whilst that of the doctor is handheld. Del Toro does this to represent the way the intelligentsia is treated in dictatorships because it poses a threat to the power of the dictator. Cinematographically, the doctor is therefore represented as vulnerable in the presence of Vidal, who is the embodiment of fascism. The use of the crane up shot when Vidal steps towards the doctor emphasises the imbalance of power between them. The strong key light, combined with the weaker fill light, creates chiaroscuro on Vidal’s face, making him seem ghoulish and monstrous. In addition to this, Del Toro employs a muted blue-grey colour palette in the background which renders the yellow-orange light on Vidal’s face more prominent, thereby creating a devilish appearance.

The non-diegetic sound transition accompanying the dissolve from Ofelia’s room to Vidal’s office segues from a major fairytale key to an intense and ominous minor key. Del Toro does this in order to illustrate a contrast between the two spheres of action. 

Editing

Poachers scene 

In the scene editing is key to understanding it 

The slow editing when they find the poachers there is no cuts it is one long cut to show how the issue is between a small group of people as everyone is in the shot 

when he hits his face in the shots speed up with fast cuts but there is a shot reverse shot to vidal and the poachers son and we keeps going back to focus on his face to show his nose being caved in 

long cuts throughout the scene 

Vidals helper (garces) 

Sound

Dark minus music when Vidal starts to hit him with the bottle sudden music scares the spectator which adds to the scare this complements the violence 

When vidal shoots the poacher the music moves up an octive  to increase he dark atmosphere with a eery sound and ominous pitch

The diagetic sound of the gun shot is made louder in the scene adds to the sociopathic nature of Vidal and being merciless 

Cinematography 

(back to camera)

The scene starts with an over the shoulder shot of vidal looking down at the poachers putting him in a place of important as he is above everyone. 

After the violence the camera looks up at Vidal this puts the spectator in a the place of poachers creating sympathy 

there is also tracking shots throughout the scene creating the idea that the action is quick and unimportant to Vidal 

Mise-en-scene 

The monochromatic blue colour palette emphasise the moody and ominous atmosphere. 

The recurrent theme of the grain mill in the background  

Performance 

Laconic - saying as little as possible 

The poachers son acts scared 

the father acts calm until his sons face gets bashed in and then he gets scared 

Vidal acts dominant through the non verbal communication 

when he finds the rabbit the way he looks at graces shows how he is angry 

Overall meaning (1936-1939) Spanish civil war 

The low angle clearly shows how 

election of the PRI