shot analysis

This paper is an analysis of a single shot. You can choose a shot (one that we didn’t discuss in depth
in class) from Sherlock Jr., The Wizard of Oz, Stranger than Fiction, or Singin’ in the Rain. Remember
that you’re only analyzing one shot (which will have an edit—a cut, a fade, a wipe, etc. on either side
of it).

The goal of this analysis is to explain how everything in the shot comes together to accomplish the
director’s purpose for that shot. Assume that everything in the shot–the lighting, the costumes, the
set, etc.–is there for a reason. The following instructions will give you suggestions for things to
consider as you analyze the shot. They do not constitute an outline for the paper (that is, you
shouldn’t necessarily discuss these items in the order in which they appear below). Make your argument
in the clearest, most persuasive way that you can.

It’s a good idea to begin by determining what the function of the shot is. How does it help to move the
action of the scene or the film along? How is it related to the rest of the film, for example, is it an
echo of any other shot or does it pick up on themes or visual motifs that are being used in other parts
of the film? How is it related to the shots that precede and follow it?

Technical aspects of the shot to consider include: what kind of shot is it (close-up, establishing shot,
etc.)—note: you should definitely say what sort of shot it is early in your paper; duration of the shot;
how the shot functions as a visual composition (is it balanced or unbalanced, is the field shallow or
deep, etc.); camera angle, set-up, and movement; point of view from which it’s shot; special effects
used; lighting; sound (intra- or extra-diegetic); the action that takes place in the shot and scene;
dialogue; any other elements of mise-en-scène including setting, set decoration, costumes, make-up,
etc.; is anything going on off-screen?

Use these details in your analysis to explain how they all come together to accomplish the purpose of
the shot. It’s not enough to just catalogue them. Remember to mention the film’s title, release date,
director’s name, and the name of the actors in the shot fairly early on in your analysis. Use the
present tense for describing action in the shot (e.g., “When Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) walks into Rick’s
American Cafe that night, she finds Sam (Dooley Wilson) at the piano…”). You’ll also need a “Works
Cited” (even if it’s just for the film you’re discussing).

The paper should be approximately 2-3 double-spaced pages. It’s due on Monday, November 30.

Be sure to look at the Shot Analysis Rubric I’ll be using to grade the assignment, and also at the
annotated Sample Shot Analysis to see how one student did it. (Both are under the ANGEL Lessons tab.)
1. Have a clear and interesting thesis that explains the purpose of the shot and proposes an argument
about it (e.g., relating to key themes, ideas, or elements in the film)?
2. Identify the type of shot (e.g., close-up, tracking, establishing, etc.), the surrounding edits
(e.g., cut, dissolve), and its position in the film (e.g., 1:30:15 – 1:30:18)?
3. Contextualize the shot in relation to the plot and to other relevant shots/scenes in the film?
4. Contain a technical description and analysis of significant elements of the shot’s visual
composition, such as framing, balance, depth of field, use of color/b&w, and graphic patterning; camera
angle, pov (objective/subjective, etc.), setup, focus, and movement; film speed; and spatial arrangement
of characters (blocking) and props?
5. Provide a precise description and analysis of significant elements of the mise-en-scène, such as
lighting, sound, special effects, setting and sets, props, action and acting, dialogue, costumes and
makeup, etc.?
6. Exhibit the qualities of good argumentation and writing: presentation of strong supporting evidence
for thesis/argument; thoughtful, logical organization (including effective hook, introduction,
conclusion, and transitions); engaging and graceful style; correct grammar and punctuation; and proper
citation of any sources used (including the film itself)?
7. Observe the conventions of writing about film: meaningful paper title; early mention of film’s title,
date, and director; mention of actors’ names; and use of present tense?
example of what i want
Megan Morgan
Professor Geyh
Shot Analysis

“From Among the Dead”:
Madeline’s Return

Alfred Hitchcock’s classic film Vertigo (1958) is a mystery and a romance, but above all, it’s a ghost
story with multiple hauntings. (The film’s original working title, “From Among the Dead,” makes it sound
more like a horror movie than the final title.) Madeline Elster (Kim Novak) is haunted and possessed by
her tragic ancestor, Carlotta. Scottie Ferguson (James Stewart), who has been hired to follow Madeline
by her worried husband, is obsessed and haunted by her, even before he watches her plummet to her death
from the tower. After Madeline dies, he is unable to forget her. When he meets Judy Barton (also Kim
Novak), he becomes obsessed with the idea of making her over into Madeline. Judy is in love with
Scottie, and so she agrees, but she’s not happy about it. This make-over is completed in a climactic
shot, which I’ll call “Madeline’s Return” (1:55:37-1:55:40), in which Hitchcock makes use of all the
resources of mise-en-scène to convince the audience to share Scottie’s view that he has brought Madeline
back to life.
In a series of scenes that precede “Madeline’s Return,” we see Judy undergo the process of being
transformed into the image of Madeline. Scottie buys her the same clothes that Madeline wore (though she
protests that she prefers different ones); her hair is bleached platinum-blonde; and her make-up and
nail polish are done just as Madeline’s were. Scottie waits for the transformation to be completed back
at her hotel room, but when she arrives, he’s disappointed. She’s almost “right,” but unlike Madeline,
who wore her hair up in a French twist, Judy’s is down, loose around her shoulders. “It should be back
from your face and pinned to the back,” he says. “I told them that. I told you that.” Scottie sends her
into the bathroom to put it up and as she does, he anxiously waits for her outside.
As Bernard Herrmann’s eerie music (the same music that accompanies earlier scenes in which Madeline
visits Carlotta’s portrait and grave) rises to a crescendo, we hear the faint click of the bathroom door
opening and watch Scottie slowly turn to see Madeline (not Judy) come through the bathroom doorway. We’
ve been waiting with Scottie, and as the music rises, so does our anticipation. The camera zooms in on
him, going from a medium shot to a close-up of his face, with its expression of utter fascination. Then,
in a powerful, three-second full shot, the transformation is complete, and Judy returns as “Madeline.”
Like a painting suddenly come to life, the figure of “Madeline” is framed by the bathroom doorway. To
the right, we see her shadow at the edge of the doorframe, a faint “double” that disappears and then
reappears in subsequent shots, sliding across the bed and moving away from her as she walks into the
room, as if emphasizing and then banishing Madeline’s doubleness. In this shot, our view of her is
slightly obscured by a greenish fog that surrounds her like the fogs that swirl around graveyards in old
horror movies. The music, already at its crescendo, makes a dramatic, sweeping flourish as she takes a
step forward.
She’s back!
The frame is divided into three parts. In the center, “Madeline” silently pauses in the doorway before
taking one step toward Scottie (and us). The camera doesn’t move: like Scottie, it’s frozen in
fascination. From eye-level, we see “Madeline’s” full figure, so that we (and Scottie, since we’re
sharing his point of view now) can inspect her head-to-toe transformation, as if we (like Scottie) were
standing in the room with her. Now everything’s right—the clothes, make-up and hair—and she’s perfect.
She’s exactly what Scottie wants her to be, his “dream doll.” It’s important that the fog, which fades
as she walks toward the camera in subsequent shots, is greenish, because that’s the color that has
always been associated with Madeline throughout the film (her green car, her green satin ballgown,
etc.). The grave (if this were really a horror film, that bathroom door would be a coffin lid, opening)
she’s returning from is Madeline’s. To the left of the doorway in which she’s standing, there’s a kind
of “dead space,” taken up with the dim outlines of the wall and front door in deep shadow. It’s not
clear why this space is here, though it does allow Hitchcock to move the rectangular image of Madeline
closer to the center of the frame, where it can more easily capture our attention. Perhaps this
virtually empty space is meant to make us a little bit uneasy. Will Scottie move in to fill it? Or is
there room for another ghost?
The lighting is most intense in the center section of the frame: it’s Madeline’s figure and the right
side of the bed next to her that are most illuminated, so they’re both important. The right-hand side of
the frame is entirely taken up by the bed, with its white bedspread and greenish headboard. There’s also
a painting hanging over the bed. All three—the bed and the headboard and the painting—have a bouquet of
pink and red and white flowers on them, just like the bouquet of flowers Carlotta carries in her
portrait and the one Madeline bought for herself before she jumped into San Francisco Bay. The flowers
suggest Carlotta and her haunting of Madeline that leads Madeline to try to kill herself, just as
Carlotta did. So, there is more than one ghost in this room. The bed takes up more than a third of the
space in the shot because there’s lots of sexual tension here. Scottie and Judy haven’t slept together
yet, but once she’s “Madeline,” Scottie will presumably be able to recover his virility (which has been
the source of all sorts of earlier jokes, particularly in the much-earlier bra-design scene in Madge’s
apartment) and make love to her. He’s already been possessed by her, and he’s taken “possession” of her
in return through his gaze. Now he might as well do it for real. In this short but stunning shot, we and
Scottie see that he has, at least for a brief time until he learns the truth, succeeded in making
Madeline return from among the dead.
Works Cited
Vertigo. Dir. Alfred Hitchcock. Paramount Pictures, 1958.