Mean Creek Textual

Analysis

Mean Creek filmed in 2004 by director Jacob Aaron Estes

is a thriller film which appeals to a teenage audience as
the characters are all roughly in their teenage years, which
helps the audience to relate to the characters.

Camera Shots
We see many repetition shots of the river being filmed and also the filming of nature such
as birds and there is also a shot of a deer crossing the water with its offspring.
- This particular shot focuses on the deers vulnerability in the water, which
later shows Georges vulnerability in the water as its discovered that when he is pushed
overboard the boat, he cannot swim.

The river and the surrounding scenery also makes the characters look vulnerable as it
shows how isolated they are.
- This becomes more obvious when George is dead as there is a lot of silence in
the scenes apart from the use of a soundtrack to show the change in mood

Sound
The background music the director has used the sound of string instruments particularly
the use of the Cello.
- It shows sadness and emotions and reactions of the characters well after
they discover their prank has gone horribly wrong and they have in fact just murdered
George.

Music helps to create tensions in the film

- It helps the emotions to build up in the characters, for example when Georges
body is laying on the river side.
- It shows the shock and reality of what has just happened, and it also helps to
show the darker sides of the characters and their thoughts.

After the accident, there is silence in the background and they appear to become more
hostile to nature.

Themes
A theme of loss of innocence and also a sense of isolation as from when the prank
goes wrong.
- they have to work out what they need to do next on their own, which takes away
any sense of a child's innocence.

Theme of bullying, when George is pushed into the water it makes the characters roles
seem to switch around.
- originally George was the bully and Sam and the others had all
been in some way a victim of him.