Hanna - Film Analysis

In one of the more action packed, violent scenes of Hanna there is little dialogue however the mise en scene here almost tells you something bad is going to happen. In the opening shot both of the characters look messy. The man is dressed in a suit, however his top buttons are undone and his jacket and trousers are crumpled which could give you the message that he used to be In more control, or have some sort of power as his clothing indicates authority however as it is now crumpled and dirty and he has a cut down his face implying this power he once had has been taken away. The girl looks similar. However, her clothes are very plain and simple yet also dirty and un tidy. She is obviously young and she has white hair. Her hair could symbolise her innocence and purity as a child.

The close ups of the characters faces showcase their facial expressions well, you can clearly see that they are both distressed. This distressed mood is highlighted even more by the expression on the mans face as he sees the car pull up through the sheets. It almost foretells a future scene in the film, as the mise en scene here almost tells you that something significant and possibly dangerous is going to happen.  Here the man seems in control as he tells the girl where to go and goes to confront the people in the car himself, where as he protects her. However, the sheets are very narrow, almost like a path which makes it seem like the girl knows exactly where she has to go which does give her some sort of control on the situation also. A tracking shot with shallow focus follows the man as he is running towards the car. This pulls your attention to him only, and shows you where he is running to. The P.O.V shot of the man showing the car door opening in front of him is very effective for showing an action scene as it brings more excitement into the scene as you immediately feel alarmed by the fact that he almost got hit by the door, whereas if that was from a long shot it wouldn’t be so significant and memorable.

The editing  also begins to get very fast paced here and the camera shots are constantly changing. These techniques basically continue like this until the end of the scene which I think makes this scene more exciting to watch. The different angles and P.O.V shots and the way the editing is hard to keep up with makes you more interested in the scene and gets your attention more whereas if it was a slower edited scene from long shots and medium shots it wouldn’t have gotten my attention this way. Although nothing is actually said in the dialogue regarding whether the people in the van are “bad guys” it’s clearly shown that they are by the use of mise en scene. They are first seen in a white van that has a lot of mud and dirt on it, white usually symbolises purity and innocence just like the girls hair however the mud all over the white shows that the owners or drivers of the van are almost taking that innocence, goodness away and are tarnishing it with evil.

In this scene a new character is introduced to us. She is first seen quickly reversing her car after seeing the man running away from the van and there is a close up of her in the car showcasing her facial expression which indicates quite severe concentration. There is a contrast between her and the other characters. She is very well presented, in a suit and has a clean and expensive looking car whereas all of the other characters seem to be quite rough and battered looking. She has seen the man running, however he has not seen her. The way she suddenly moved as soon as she caught sight of him could either mean that she is going to protect him, or do quite the opposite. It is unclear here who she is and what her role is, and whether she is good or bad. I feel that because I don’t know who she is I am immediately more encaptured in the film as I want to see what’s going to happen and whether she’s going to play a big part in the storyline.

At one point when the van is chasing the man, there is a medium shot of the man running and a shallow focus. This, for me, brings my attention on the man running but the van in the background is still significant as it’s seen, yet blurry. I think this technique is good here so you keep your focus on the main character of this part of the film, yet you don’t completely forget about the others. There is an over the shoulder shot from in the car, almost like a shot from the drivers point of view where you can also see the man running,yet it looks like you’re looking out of the car window at him This gives you a clearer view of how close the van is to the man which can build anticipation as the van gets nearer. As the van is involved in a collision with two other cars, you can tell that the drivers are annoyed by the use of mise on scene. They have an annoyed facial expression however the most significant part of mise on scene used here is the man in the passenger seats actions. He angrily climbs out of the van window, so is obviously very determined to go get his target. He must jump over another car to get to him and there is a close up of his foot strongly hitting the bonnet of the other car leaving a dent which to me shows his strength and anger which indicates that something violent is about to happen between him and his victim. The fight scene is in a playground which to me is significant, as the playground equipment to me links back to the girl we saw in the opening shot. Playgrounds are supposed to be innocent places full of fun and children, however obviously here that is not the case. It reminds me of the girl as she is supposed to be young and innocent yet she is blatantly caught up in something serious.

The weather during this whole section of the film is a dreary, grey sky. It looks cold and all colours are dull and toned down. This to me indicates the nature of the scene, and gives you a feel of what the scene is going to be like right from the first shot. The next part of the film is the most dramatic part to me, where it can make you feel a little emotional. Even through this small section of the film I think a relationship is created between you and the main man as it’s obvious that he’s on the “good side.” There is non  diegetic sound throughout the fight scene but it cuts off as he kills the last man, showing that the fight is over. He turns around and his facial expression is clearly shocked and scared which indicates something significant is about to happen.  There is a close up of the ginger women seen before with her gun. This shot makes the gun stand out more, especially during the over the shoulder shot where you can clearly see that the gun is pointing at the man which creates a tension as you wait for whats going to happen. He drops to his knees which to me symbolises defeat and could foretell that he is about to get shot.

In the closing shot the girl is seen still running away, yet she hears a gun shot and drops to her knees. Although we do not actually see the man getting shot, the use of mise on scene in the film implies that it was him. Her dropping to her knees is significant in the fact that she obviously knows what’s just happened. The camera then pans into her face into a close up to broadcast her emotions to the audience.