THE ISLAND

SYNOPSIS

Lincoln Six-Echo is a resident of a seemingly Utopian but contained facility in the year 2019. Like all of the inhabitants of this carefully controlled environment, Lincoln hopes to be chosen to go to the "The Island" - reportedly the last uncontaminated spot on the planet. But Lincoln soon discovers that everything about his existence is a lie. He and all of the other inhabitants of the facility are actually human clones. Lincoln makes a daring escape with a beautiful fellow resident named Jordan Two-Delta. Relentlessly pursued by the forces of the sinister institute that once housed them, Lincoln and Jordan engage in a race for their lives to literally meet their makers.

CAMERA
(0.06)The fisheyelense used to introduce the dream sequence emphasises the lack of reality and the heaven like unrealness of the setting. It also foreshadows the idea that things are being hidden under the guise of paradise (0.12-1.03)Cinematic zoom shots, are similar to ones used in documentaries show the audience the beauty of the surrounding landscape and lull them to a sense of security. (0.34-1.19)The women is shown to the audience only through medium close ups and close ups creating a sense of mystery. (0.54)The aerial shot of the boat highlights the isolation of the characters and depicts them as vulnerable. (1.14)The shaky cam (in time with the boat rocking) and shot-reverse-shot create a point of view effect, making the shots personal and emphasizing suspense. It also creates a sense of realism. (1.17)The camera pan of the boat expands duration of shot and stresses the tranquility of the scene and how only the two characters are present which foreshadows romance. The isolation at this point is presented as peaceful instead of tense . (1.55)Close ups of eyes have connotations of fear and pain creating tension.

MISE-EN-SCENE
(0.00-1.24)The abundance of high key lighting and natural colours creates the illusion that the setting is idyllic and is in no way dangerous. (0.23-1.37)The cloth hiding the womens face, her position facing away from the camera and the over exposure of light creates obscurity and initiates the theme of mystery. (1.24-2.10)The dim lighting and blue overtones when the mysterious man is talking is indicative of his antagonistic nature. (1.45-2.08)The camera framing never reveals the man's face; creating further obscurity and mystery. The man's distorted face expresses his distorted morals and portrays him as a threat to the protagonist. (2.24-2.33)The use of the colour white when the dream sequence is complete connotes the clinic control of reality and creating suspense through the created contrast between the chaos of the dream and waking up.

SOUND
(0.00-1.24)The music accompanying the beautiful landscape is peaceful and has religious connotations due to the use of the choir and the lack of words being sung. This creates a sense of the setting being a heavenlike utopia. (1.27-1.45)The synchronous diegetic sound of the protagonist struggling and the fact that it is slowed down emphasizes his fear and the surreal nature of the opening. (1.45-2.08)The antagonists deep, echoing voice depicts his omnipotence and control. (2.24-2.33)The silence of reality intensifies the fear and contrast from the chaotic dream world.

EDITING
(0.34-1.19) The short shot duration of the woman further enhances the mystery as to who she is. (1.27-1.45)The slow motion editing emphasizes the surreal atmosphere and danger within the dream. (1.40-2.10)The cross-cutting as the pace speeds up creates a sense of chaos. (1.58)The jump cuts are indicative of the insignificance of time within the dream and enhance its chaotic nature and fast pace. (1.45-2.08)The mysterious man is in real time whereas everything around him is in slowed down or sped up, connoting his control and significance. (1.45-2.06)The quick flashes of seemingly unrelated clips and point of view shots fabricates the mystery and eeriness of the dream. (2.11-2.22)The reverse editing of the water draining to reveal a bed emphasizes the craziness of the dream.

TYPOGRAPHY
Opens with 'Dreamworks Picture and Warner Bros. Pictures Present' against a black backdrop before the sequence begins, emphasising their importance through the monochrome colours and separation from the starring cast. All other credits featured in white clear to see font, the colour and style conforming to the serenity of the scene. They occur from 0.07-1.12, all in time with the peaceful section of the dream and apart from the action that follows as not to draw attention away from it. The title card is in big transparent font which both allows us to still see the idyllic scenery but also alludes to the idea or deception and how the life in the facility is not as 'transparent' as it seems. The font used has also been altered to turn the A into the shape of an island, enforcing its existence. The credits feature as follows: A Parkes/Macdonald Production (company), A Michael Bay film (Director), Ewan McGregor (lead), Scarlett Johansson (lead),Title card, Djimon Hounsou (supporting), Sean Bean (supporting), Michael Clarke Duncan (supporting), Ethan Phillips (supporting) Max Baker (supporting), Steve Buscemi (supporting), Casting by Denise Chamain CSA, Music by Steve Jablonsky, Special Effects Supervisor Eroc Brevig, Costumer Designer- Deborah L Scott

LIMITATIONS

The huge cinematic shots are an unrealistic goal to reproduce - however they give us some insight into what types of shots are good for capturing idyllic landscape and how it can be edited with shots of characters to create mystery. The speed of the shots in the second half of the opening may be difficult to capture and edit however this technique is effective with dream sequences in openings and insights into character's mind's. This creates suspense and mystery and could feature heavily in a pychotraumatic Thriller. The aerial shots are impossible to achieve on a large scale however on a small scale (e.g, from a building) could still enhance the idea of naturalistic beauty and landscape.