Cinematography

 

• Camera rotates to be the correct way around
• The violence and harm reverses
• Blue lighting
• Yellow lighting in car
• Over the shoulder shot of the fairy
• Close up of the fairy – important character
• Low key lighting to high key lighting in one shot
• Goes from underneath to above

 

Mise En Scene

 

• Watch – metonym for Vidal – Vidal is damaged, Vidal’s identity. Also, a symbol for death (fathers story associated with the watch – he smashed it when he died)
• Ofelia wears green
• Fascist symbol on the car
• “dead” – see a skull – symbol of civil war aftermath and Vanitas – skull as a symbol for mortality and death
• Fairy-tale book – Ofelia’s silhouette in the book
• Expensive car
• Underground is the ruined city (links to the Tower of Babel)
• Based off of the initiation wells (stairwell)

 

Performance

 

• Ofelia uses her left hand to shake, Vidal uses his right hand, symbol of left and right wing politics. Vidal is a fascist captain.
• Ofelia uses her right hand to hold her books, could suggest that they are more important to her
• “15 minutes late” – punctual person, captain
• Vidal takes his glove off when he speaks to the mum/touches bump, but has it on when it’s Ofelia
• “Do it for me” – bossy and controlling
• Vidal grasps Ofelia’s hand

 

Sound

 

• Lullaby (Mercedes lullaby) – we hear it before we see anything
• Hear the wind when you see the eye
• Insect/fairy is loud – exaggerated, appears close, important
• Hear the watch before the close up, – hard wooden percussive clicking – sound bridge and links to Pan, clunky movement natural (wood), unnatural (otherworldly), creepy, manipulative
• Wind – classic gothic
• Close sonic perspective (and sound bridge) of the heavy breathing – close to us, dramatic
• Leaves and the walking are loud – suspenseful and close to us (gothic/horror) – Ofelia is the main focus – child’s perspective

 

Editing

 

• Slow cut rate?
• We get context and then Ofelia dies
• Fairy-tale links to Ofelia (seeing fairy book)
• Ones text (factual, distant), the other is narration (poetic, powerful images)
• Reverse motion – looks like a continuous shot (eye)

 

Genre

 

• Bildungsroman (coming of age)

 

 

Messages/Meanings/Response

 

• Dramatic irony – knowing that she dies (foreshadowing)
• Sound bridge of the watch – death

 

Themes

 

• Story telling – context and the fairy-tale book
• Death
• Gender – Vidal underestimates women
• Gothic

 

Representation

 

Age

 

• Young girl has to take responsibility for her mother
• Ofelia explores and is curious

 

Ethnicity

 

• Spanish
• White

 

Gender

 

• Pregnant woman – presented negatively and problematic and needs hep from the men
• Vidal bosses the mum and Ofelia around

 

 

Context

 

• Spanish civil war
• Tower of Babel
• The initiation wells