Mise En Scene

                 The movie I watched for this blogpost was "The Hate U Give", which is a crime and drama movie, it is about a fatal shooting of a boy at the hands of a police officer who confused a hairbrush with a gun and shot him. The movie contains several elements of setting, lighting, costume, and actors all contributing to the film's overall message. Mise en scene is used to provide narrative information to increase the emotional part of the film. The movie uses different settings to show the difference between the main character Starr's life in her black neighborhood and her involvement at the white private school she attends. These shows the conflicts she faces throughout the film. Lighting is also a big part in putting the film together, is used to show the mood and tone of different scenes, for example the scene in her neighborhood uses more natural, warmer lighting creating a sense of community, while the scene in her school uses more cooler lighting to show Starr feeling of isolation. Costume is another, what the characters wear helps define their social statuses, for example, Starr's wardrobe changes depending on where she is, like when in her neighborhood she dresses casual more comfortable while in her private school she dresses more polished. These elements go together to provide a better understanding of the character and her life.

                    In the film, Starr is represented as someone who struggles with her identity represented through her clothing and behavior changing depending on where she is at. Her family is represented as supportive and loving as all the scenes with them are intimate and comforting. The police and authority are shown as a more negative figure often shown in harsh lighting to show the threat they pose to Starr and her community. When watching this, the audience may feel empathy for star or see the issue as racism or injustice. Different scenes add different meaning to the film for example, Khalil's shooting which is seen from Star's perspective shows her helplessness, the close-up on her face makes the audience feel her pain which provides the entire narrative and what the story is going to be based on. Another example is the moments with her family like the dinners, these scenes use warm lighting and close angles to create a sense of love, this shows the importance of family support. This contributes to help define the genre by addressing issues of police brutality and emotional part through a relatable story. Finally, I enjoyed this movie because it shows a aspect of real life nobody really talks about and was also an eye opener.