Disturbia
Disturbia: Todorov Theory of narrative
The Title
The title gives us a sense of what the whole film is about; just from de-constructing the film title we get the clue that someone/something is twisted. The name Disturbia also sounds like suburbia, it is a suburban town where all the disturbing action takes place. Also the idea that the protagonist is spying on his neighbors is rather disturbing, yet it saves his life.
Equilibrium
The film starts of with a father and son fishing. The mise en scene of this opening is very peaceful, there is a lake backdrop and the protagonist and his father are enjoying a coke. Everything is in order, there is a solid sense of equilibrium However an erratic driver who they are tailing on the drive home changes everything. We are then faced with dis-equilibrium, the car flips over and tumbles to the dirt. In this severe crash the protagonist's father is killed.
This crash makes our protagonist angry, leading to him atacking his school teacher in a fit of rage. Our protagonist is placed under house arrest. Boredeom leads him into spying on the neighbors, our protagonist soon discovers that his neighbor is a murderer. Introducing to us our antagonist. After long nights of spying and studying his neighbors actions the protagonist decides its time to make a move. The antagonist takes advantage of this and kidnaps the protagonist's mother. he soon winds up in the arms of the antagonist in an attempt to retrieve his mother.
After the antagonist is triumphed over, equilibrium is restored, the protagonist is released from house arrest and life goes on as normal.
Roland Barthes
This film contains a lot of enigma coding. A great example of this is when the protagonist is walking through the antagonist's house, the lights flicker yet nothing happens. This builds suspense and also leaves the audience wondering what will happen next and what caused the lights to flick on and off. Another example being the scene where the protagonist's best friend has been "killed", an image of the best friend flicks onto the protagonist's computer screen, the best friend appears dead. The message below the image says check your closet, leaving the audience wondering what has happened to the best friend and what is in the closet.
Sound
The sound in Disturbia is often used to build suspense. On many occasions in the film there is a very dreary, slow and anticipating score. There is also a lot of non diegetic sound used, in one scene the antagonist splatters blood all over the curtains. This splatter can be heard due to the editing process, making the sound more shocking and helps jolts the audience.
Camera work
The camera work in Disturbia often sets the scene, there are plenty of panning extreme long-shots used to set the scene. One of my favorite camera techniques used is the over the shoulder shot, used in the scene where the antagonist jumps in front of the protagonist's love interest's car. This is a very clever shot as it surprises the audience when the antagonist suddenly jumps into shot.
Lighting
The film's lighting changes as the equilibrium changes. While the equilibrium is still in tact at the beginning of the film most of the lighting is high key, almost the whole of the first 30 minutes of the film is filmed during the day. However, as we head into dis-equilibrium the lighting becomes more and more low key. Especially towards the end of the film. This low key lighting helps add to the suspense during the more action filled scenes.
Mise-en-scene
The mise-en-scene in this film often reflects in the characters personality. The protagonist's bedroom is a mess, there are skateboard decks on the wall and clothes litter the floor, a typical teenage male. The antagonist's house is all very normal, until later when we discover he has a whole body pit under his house, and a workshop behind the walls. The antagonist also dresses casually, this allows him to blend in, lowering suspicion.
Derry's theory
This film is a thriller of moral confrontation. This is because the protagonist is faced with an anti-ethical situation, he faces an antagonist who represents evil and is forced to try and stop him for his and everyone in his neighborhoods well being.