Donnie Darko Mise-en-scene evaluation

When I was watching this film i specifically looked at the mise-en-scene of the opening couple of minutes.

Right at the start of the film its very dark with a person lying in the middle of the road

This has already shown that the film is unusual, as you wouldn't normally see a body lying in the middle of the road in an action film. Especially as its seemingly in a valley somewhere which means it will be hard for someone to find the person. Also when the camera starts to pan in on the actor and hes moving, this shows that he wasn't there from a crash. He's there from a dream, this can be shown from costume he's wearing, of which are pyjamas. But at the side of him was a a bike which will lead you to believe he fell of it, but the way he smiles shows that this can't be the fact either. So at this point the audience are completely confused about whats happening, even though there are various mise-en-scene hints all of which you think of are wrong as it goes on.

The way the lighting has been used in this shot is important as it has little light so it feels as though its dusk, because the view in the sky is orange. This also fits in with his colour scheme of pyjamas as they are dull colours too. So it's not as though he has been abducted during the middle of the day whilst wearing day clothing and taken to a different country or galaxy. This has all been given away by the way he has a huge smile on his face, which wouldn't be present if he was scared. So the only reasonable idea could happen is he has something mentally wrong with him.

The non-diegetic sound during this small clip is a light droning sound which makes you as the audience think whats going to happen. Also the sound of crickets mean its the early hours of the morning. When the piano starts to play this shows the person has started to think properly and walks away, so this could represent his heart rate or his thought process.

So from this beginning part the tension has been built using the mise-en-scene and non-diegetic sounds, the use of cliff hanger is a typical part of the thriller genre so that the audience can peice together various parts of the film on their own. This also allows them to think of their own little narrative whilst being told how it actually happens.