Battleground Mise En Scene

American cinematographer Conrad Hall once said, “ Cinematography is infinite in its possibilities...much more so than music or language.” Like the sound production, cinematography helps viewers visualize and understand the story, using different effects. Battleground is a short film, that features in the television series Nightmares & Dreamscapes and filmed/aired in two-thousand-six. The original short story writer is Stephen King, however, it is a screenplay by Richard Matheson and Brian Henson directs it. Battleground stars William Hurt as a professional hitman named Jason Renshaw, who returns from his assassination of a toymaker named Hans Morris but the role was played by Bruce Spence to find an unexpected surprise waiting for him at his
apartment. It was a package from the toy company; there were miniature toy figures/objects of an army including all types of weapons, vehicles, and soldiers but what Renshaw didn't know was that the soldiers weren't here for fun, instead, out for revenge, they wanted Renshaw died! My three scenes were Morris’s murder, war, and closing scene. But since Battleground lacks dialogue, it relies on a skillful use of cinematography and film techniques like the point of view shot which helped us see what Renshaw saw through his eyes after murdering the toymaker, the high angle shot making the army in the frame look tiny and weak when Renshaw tried to kill them, as well as the establishing shot which helped in establishing the closing scene etc. At the end, all the film techniques engage the audience and intensify the drama.
Firstly, in the Morris's murder scene there are three examples of two shot, mid shot and point of view shot that play a big role in the scene to show the intensity and fear of Morris’s emotion.The first film technique used is two shot, two shot is a shot taken with two people.
In this scene two shot was used when Renshaw was about to kill the toy maker; showing Renshaws smirk and Morris’s fear. Morris was so afraid that his hands were shaking.The second film technique is mid shot also known as normal shot, t is used to show what a character looks like.In this scene, once Renshaw has killed Morris, it shows Renshaw observing and touching Morris’s personal belongings. Lastly, the film technique used is the point of view shot. Point of view shot helps us to see the actions from a character's point of view. You can see that the ballerina spinning in Renshaws hands, as he observes it quiet
intensely.
Secondly, in the war scene there are three examples of high angle, worms view and reaction shot which help to show Renshaw’s confidence and preparedness.The first film technique used is High angle.
High angle is used to make whatever is in the frame look tiny and weak. In this scene high angle was used when Renshaw had fired bullets and now most of the army was in a desperate need of help; they were hurt. The second film technique is worm view. Worm's view is a shot from the ground and closed up, making the subject look gigantic and menacing. In this scene it showed Renshaws shoes crushing the soldier that tried to run away. Lastly, the film technique used is reaction shot. Reaction shot is a shot showing the characters expression as they react to something. In this scene you can see Renshaw reacting to the soldiers that still shot gun fires at him, even though they were
hurt.
Finally, in the closing scene there are three examples of establishing shot, close up and long shot which show how creepy and unexpected everything that happened is. The first film technique used is establishing shot. Establishing shot is used to establish a scene. In this scene establishing shot is used to show the disaster at Renshaws apartment. The lights were flickering, glass broken everywhere and the furniture totally destroyed. The second film technique is Close up. Closeup draws our attention to an object. In this scene close up was used to zoom in on the sticker which Renshaw did not read. It said “plus bonus surprise”, but if you peeled it it was a list of all the toys that were inside the box. Lastly the film technique used is, long shot. Long shot features the entire body of the person in frame. In this scene you can see the book case not harmed at all leaving the ballerina from the first scene twirling all by itself, leaving the audience in suspense.
In conclusion, cinematography helps in visualizing and understanding Battleground; using different camera techniques that help in reflecting the mood of the audience. especially referring back to Conrad Hall’s quote because Battleground lacks dialogue.The first scene was Morris's murder scene which has the three film techniques two shot, mid shot and point of view shot.The second scene was the war scene which has the three film techniques as high angle, worms view and reaction shot. Finally the last scene is the closing scene which has the three film techniques as establishing shot, close up and long shot.