Kill Bill

How is the bride represented through 2 sequences of Kill Bill through the use of sound and Mise-en-Scene

Within the 2 main themes they differ due to key factors such as lighting, dietetic and non dietetic sound, camera angles and more. 

In the first scene we can see that she is very scared. The coffin that she is in is pitch black with no colour that can be identified. The no colour which connotes that she has no hope and no chance of escaping. The only bit of light we can see is the flickering of the torch before it runs out of batter. This signifies the bries lack of breath and exegetes her fear and the feeling of being trapped. When watching this the audience feel uncomfortable as it brings out peoples fears such as claustrophobia and darkness and makes the audience feel like the coffin is getting smaller and smaller due to the instant dimming of light. However in the second scene where she escaped the lighting completely changes. The lighting is stronger and brighter representing hope and we can see the whole dynamic of the scene has changed and therefore see she is going to have a chance to escape. Before there was no colour and now there is a golden yellow tone which signifies her belief and determination of escaping. The light also makes the coffin look more spacious which gives us optimism. 

Another thing that impacts the scene is the use of sound diegetic and non-diegetic. In the first scene the use of sound is used completely different compared to the second scene. In the first scene the non diegetic sound of the nails being hammered into the coffin creates and affect of isolation, when the mud is being thrown onto the coffin it gets quite and quitter the further she is underground which symbolises her hope decreasing. When she is crying and breathing heavily this signified her terror as you can hear the fear on her crying which therefore amplifies she isolation again. In the first scene there is a lot of background noise, for example the cars driving away. This makes her and the audience realise that she is actually alone now and trapped and therefore her death is appending. However sound is used in a different way in the second scene as it shows more of a hopeful positive point of view. For example the non diegetic sound track music emerges from the back ground with an increased tempo which connotes her heart beat and adrenaline. Her breathing has now calmed down and the tempo of it is in time with the drums which represents she has more control over the situation she is in. When she realises that she may have found a way out trumpets start playing and asynchronous celebratory music comes on which we therefore realise she is going to try escape and that there is hope. 

More over another thing that is used to capture the difference in both scenes is the camera angles. In the first scene the coffin is made to look like it is getting smaller which impacts the film to increase suspense and tension and make the audience watching feel uncomfortable and Claustrophobic. There is close of up of the brides face which show her emotion of fear and how scared she is as you can see she is crying. Within the close up you can also see sweat on her face which makes the audience relate to her and feel hot as well. However in the second scene the same camera shots are used however they create a different effect. There is a close up in the second scene of her face however it highlights her concentration and passion to escape the coffin. Instead of seeing watery eyes we get to see the determination in her eyes. In the first scene the coffin looked tiny and looked like she had no space to move however in the second scene they place the camera above her head (Panning shot) and we get to look down at her feet which exaggerates the space she has in the coffin and we get to see what she can see from her point of view.