How is camera work, sound, editing and mise-en-scene used in the opening 2 minutes of 'Children of Men'?
In the opening two minutes of 'Children of men' we are being shown a representation of London in the year 2027. We can see this being represented by the traditional red double-decker buses, the architecture of the buildings and the fact that we are told in some subtitles the location and year in which the film is set. The London we are being shown is a dark crowded place that seems to be extremely dirty with litter and rubbish bags all over the streets. Clouds of black smoke are coming from cars and gypsy cabs, too. This is a negative representation and is created by the dark lighting and monotonous colours of the cars, people and buildings, these dark colours, often gray, have connotations of negativity and a lack of cleanliness.
Our hero is more or less a protagonist to begin with. Theo is not somebody we would see as a hero. However, we are lead to think he may have the most significance or be the closest thing to a hero in the story, as he seems to be the focus of it. He doesn't necessarily fit the established ideas of what a hero is like; he seems uninterested in the issue facing the world. When juxtaposed with the common idea of what a hero should be like, Theo is almost the complete opposite. He ignores the broadcast at the beginning of the film and pushes through all the people watching who are obviously greatly moved by it. Theo is a sceptical middle-aged man, not somebody whom we are lead to believe will go out of his way to help anybody. His attitude seems somewhat cold as he shows little facial expression.
Women seem to be represented as weak, perhaps feeling a greater pain and empathy from the situation of the world because of their maternal instinct. They are shown as crying and petting dogs in the coffee shop, showing more emotion than the men watching the broadcast. The future is represented as dirty and gloomy, as if all the ideas of global warming and saving the planet no longer matter as there is no future generation to save it for. The streets of London are represented by the red double-decker buses, the police officers, the architecture of the buildings and the gypsy cabs. The people in the coffee shop are also wearing mostly blues, greys and blacks, this has connotations of sadness and negativity.
The lighting in the opening two minutes is dark and seems very slightly greyscale at times, this gives the text an almost apocalyptic air and a feeling that something is wrong or overshadowing the world. The camera work is never stationary in the first two minutes, it is always moving even if it is only very slightly, this gives it the feeling that you are not just overlooking the situation, you are seeing it from somebody's perspective. This makes you feel more directly involved in the situation you are seeing, allowing for you to be absorbed into the scene. I think that this style of filming is different, I haven't noticed it in many other films. I think that if it is done subtly it can be extremely effective. I also think this is why these camera shots have been chosen, because all of the angles and heights are that which are believable from a human viewpoint. The camera also uses a panorama when exiting the coffee shop. This allows us to see the whole of the surroundings in the film, matching the slow pace and tone of the scene, too.
One of the main editing points that I noticed was the fact that the television in the coffee shop is a flat picture in the corner of the room. You cannot see the sides of the television or any shadows from it. I did not notice this the first time I watched the film, so I feel that this piece of editing is effective. It also looks a little like the television is almost floating, perhaps adding to the futuristic theme of the film. The pace of the clip in the cafe is dictated by the broadcast we see on the television screen. As Theo is walking out of the cafe, everything seems to slow down slightly. This includes the news presenter's voice, who is reading the exact age down to minutes of Diego Ricardo. I feel that this very gradual slowing down added to the impact of what the news reporter was saying.
The first part of the sound editing I noticed was when the music that seemed to be accompanying the report on television continued after the voices from the broadcast faded out. I feel that this was subtle and effective, it allowed the emotion from the report to continue in the music as Theo left the cafe. Another piece of sound that was edited was when the woman emerged from the cafe screaming. The scream was cut short, perhaps so that it did not die out and fade, adding to the impact. As the scream is cut off short we hear a high pitched whistling tone which continues into the next scene. This is almost as if it is the echo from the scream. I feel that this creates a very strong effect of what seems to be terror, the sound from the scream makes your blood run cold, and so does the tone that follows. The tone lasts a lot longer than any scream could, which increases the negative feeling we gain from hearing it. I think this is why the director chose to use it, it is a sound that can be linked with screaming or absolute silence, this gives a huge impact. The sound overlapping into the next scene may also reflect that the scene we are now seeing is directly after the incident, so the memory of it is still vivid in the protagonist's mind.
The locations have been created by using iconic parts of London life, making it instantly identifiable and creating a sense of verisimilitude. We get a feeling of the future from the moving pictures on the buses and directly on the buildings, along with the edited television screen in the cafe that appears to be floating. The situation seems dismal, this is reflected in the dire condition of the streets. The sky is gray, there is rubbish all over the streets, it is noisy and black smoke is coming from almost all the vehicles.
From the first two minutes of this film I think that the genre is a little like a thriller and has hints of horror to me. I get the idea of it being a thriller from the bomb going off in the street, creating chaos. I also got the sense of the film being a little like a horror film from the fact that the woman came out of the cafe screaming, holding an arm that had been torn off her torso. The scream, twinned with the echo afterwards was extremely powerful to me, making me see hints of a horror theme in the film.
