Sherlock Essay

Sherlock Essay

The main camera angles used in the Sherlock clip were mid shots, over the shoulder shots, wide shots, and close-ups. 

The mid shots were used frequently to add to the sense of tension by showing the danger a character was in at the same time as enabling the person watching to see their facial expressions. For example, at the start of the clip a man is standing with a bomb on his chest, the mid shot lets us see his facial expression which is worried and scared. The shot enables the audience to sympathise with the character and see the danger he is in at the same time.

The over the shoulder shots are generally used in the clip to show a gun and what it is pointed at. Near the middle of the clip it shows Sherlock point a gun. The camera follows the gun from behind his shoulder and racks the focus from the gun to the bomb on the floor. By showing the gun and the bomb in the same shot it creates a sense of tension for the audience and shows them the threat at the same time.

The wide shots are used to show the audience full effect of what is happening in the scene to create tension. A wide shot shows Sherlock and the antagonist in a gun stand-off while the third hides behind Sherlock gives the audience a clear image of the scene and the setting of the scene also.

Close-ups were used to show the expressions on the characters throughout the clip. The protagonists have guns pointed at them during the clip and does close ups of their faces. The audience can clearly see the distress on the first mans face and Sherlock calculating how to get out of the situation. This builds tension for the viewers as they feel for the men in danger. The use of focusing on facial expressions adds drama and intensity to the clip.

For editing, at the beginning of the clip there are many short, quick cuts as it shows a recap.The camera fades in and out of blackness from one shot to the next and this creates the effect of blinking. The word 'PREVIOUSLY' is edited onto the screen at the beginning of the clip. during the quick cuts Sherlock walks through a door and his entrance is sped up, this creates a sense of urgency and builds up tension for the watchers- they want to find out what happened to the protagonists.

At one point in the clip a camera focuses from a gun to a bomb. This helps let the full effect of what the character wants to do set in on the audience so they can feel the full effect of the decision.

There is continuity editing- the clip carries on from beginning to end and makes sense in the world of the story. 

The clip starts of with eerie music in the background, and then a creepy voice begins talking- its the antagonist. Two of the characters dialogue over top of the music. There is a 'swish' noise as a character is sped up by editing as he walks through a door. As the characters who are talkings voices get harsher the music builds up and gets more powerful, the volume is also increased and the pace of the music sped up which creates tension and a sense of danger. When two of the characters are under threat, the music builds up in the background and the drums mimic the noise of a heartbeat getting faster and quicker which reflects on how the protagonists are feeling under the highly pressurised situation. The non-diegetic heartbeat builds and builds and suddenly stops. The silence on-screen is penetrated by the diegetic noise of the antagonists phone beginning to ring. Ironically the two protagonists have multiple guns pointed at them and the ring tone of the other mans phone is the song 'Staying Alive'. This changes the mood of the scene from intense and heavy to almost humorous and light. The character suddenly yells 'Say that again!' and threatens to 'skin' the person on the other end of the phone which switches the mood back to heavy, and dramatic music begins building up again in the background. It builds up till the character leaves and then stops as the door closes and you hear the diegetic noise of the door clicking shut.

For mise-en-scene the lighting in the video is quite dark, the blue light in the pool and weak overhead lights almost contrast to the dark pillars and roof in the building. The setting of the pool is shown by an establishing shot at the beginning of the video. The setting is a contrast in itself as a pool is usually a fun place for kids to go and play, whereas now it is ironically the scene of an intense and dangerous situation. At the start of the clip a character talks from behind a pillar- this makes it mysterious as the watchers don't know who is talking and makes the scene tense.

The three characters all have very different personalities shown in the clip. The antagonist has a creepy voice, and his mood changes frequently suggesting that he is bipolar and his facial expressions and eyes give off a psychotic feel. He wears an expensive looking tuxedo which is black and white which could represent the good and evil having a face-off inside him. His tux and his body language and the way he communicates suggest he is wealthy and possibly in power and a superior position to others. The main protagonist, Sherlock, is dressed in a cheaper looking suit, suggesting he doesn't care so much about money and power. His facial expressions are calm under pressure along with his body language, this shows the audience this is not the first time he has been in a situation like this. He has an air of experience and confidence in the situation which puts him on a level playing field with the antagonist. The third character is almost portrayed as  Sherlocks side kick. His clothes are cheaper looking and he is not in a tuxedo like the other two characters. He expresses a calm demeanor through most of the clip but is not as collected as Sherlock as we see him unable to hide his worry in many of the close-ups. We see by the way he and Sherlock look at each other for confirmation and how he nods slightly saying yes Sherlock almost shooting the bomb without saying anything that they they have worked together often and trust each others decisions.

The contrasting and opposite personalities add together to make a scene with diverse characters which helps add to the dramatic, intense and  overall heavy mood of the clip.