Cutting It Essay

In the opening scene the characters are in the back of a London taxi, this highlights that they are middle class people who have some money. Also the way they are dressed helps portray the characters to be wealthy, as they are wearing smart clothing and look well groomed. They are both wearing gold wedding rings which indicates they are both married to each other, the dialogue also implies that they are married and deep in love. The woman in this clip is portrayed as the one who is in control as the male is questioning the female about where they are going, this keeps the audience enticed and thinking. Also when the woman gets out of the cab she pay for it, this highlights that the female in this clip is taking the controlling role. This is unusual as the stereotypical male usually is the one who is in control. Also the fact that she wants to go to see the consultant by herself, again symbolizes that she is strong enough emotionally to deal with the news she is about to hear, good or bad, the audience still don’t know. The low key lighting in the consultants room connotates with the mood of the characters which is nervous and fright. The final scene with the woman lying on the floor with flowers all ruined on the floor indicates the mans life and how it is also ruined.

The camera shots in this clip help portray the couples relationship and how in love they are. Firstly, the camera shot of the couple in the back of the cab emphasizes how in love they are as the camera keeps showing them touching and linking with each other. The medium close-up of couple also helps to indicate to the audience that the conversation is serious, the dialogue also suggests that the conversation is serious. The extreme close-up of the couple holding hands with their wedding rings on show draws the audience’s attention and indicates that they are married. in the background of the shot of the woman getting out of the taxi there is an ambulance, highlighting that they are at a hospital, this allows the audience to understand what is going on and that the woman is actually ill. The over the shoulder shot of the woman hearing the news from the consultant focuses on the womans face and emotion, the woman is crying which is surprising to the audience as at the beginning of the clip she was portrayed as a strong minded female. This indicates to the audience that even though she seemed to be strong and independent, she still shows her emotion like stereotypical females. The camera shot of the man stirring his coffee, then the camera cuts to his point of view of the woman emerging, which builds tension as the audience still doesn’t know if she is okay. The medium shot of the man’s face when he realizes she has been hit by a car, highlights his emotion and then the jump out closer to his face expresses the feeling of shock. The final close-up shot of his face symbolizes he is distraught, it also highlights his tears which is unusual for a stereotypical male to show emotion.

The editing in this clip is very effective in the way it helps build tension and keeps the audience interested. The editing at the beginning of the clip is very relaxed and show from the man to woman, this allows the audience to see the love and caring I the relationship. When the couple get out of the cab the cuts become more frequent and quicker as the conversation gets more serious as she wants to go to the consultant by herself. This helps the viewer see the expressions and emotion on the characters face.  The cuts between the woman and man whilst she is in the consultant is slow and cuts happen a lot, this builds up tension and makes the audience enticed in the clip as they want to know if she will be okay. There were slow motion shots also to help build up tension in the scene and make it more dramatic. When the woman comes out of the hospital and the man is waiting to hear the news, he suddenly hears a crash, however a bus is in the way. The man immediately thinks its his wife involved with the incident, the camera does a jump shot from a medium shot to a close up shot to emphasize his shock. The slow motion shot after the bus passes also helps indicate that the man is stunned and surprised and conotates with his feelings as he feels like part of his life has stopped.

The sound in the clip has a mixture of non-diegetic and diegetic sound which helps the viewer understand the characters emotions and how the clip is very feminine. Firstly, the non-diegetic sound of the couple speaking with the noise of the street in the background and the taxi helps the scene seem real and like a normal day for the characters. When the diegetic music starts whilst he is waiting it emphasizes the emotion of the characters which is worry and stress. The music is quite feminine which connotates with the man in this clip as he is not the stereotypical male as he shows a lot of emotion throughout the clip, he also never seems to be in charge and it usually is the woman. The echo sound of the car crash and then the silence of the clip creates an effect as it again indicates that the mans life has stopped as his wife is going to die. Then the non-diegetic sound enters the clip again with a car horn it makes the audience come back to reality. The final scene when the woman is on the floor with the slow depressing diegetic music playing creates a sad scene and has connotations of the characters emotions.