Composition and framing was the topic for this week’s lecture, and the movie we watched was “Kill Bill, volume 2”, directed by Quentin Tarantino. Composition is considered as an art, and if the guidelines for composition are broken, it must be done by someone who understands and recognises how they can be successfully transcended. In this movie, Tarantino uses a wide range of untraditional and original composition- and framing techniques, which differs a lot with the traditional principles. He does it very successfully and makes the movie spectacular, interesting and aesthetically pleasant to watch.
The way he uses the framing and composition techniques also play an important role for how the story is told, making it easier to guide the viewer through the story.
For example, he uses black and white colours in the scenes from the wedding massacre at the Two Pines, illustrating that this is something that happened long ago, in the past. In another part of the movie that shows scenes from the past, Pai Mei’s training of the Bride; it is used cold, gray/blue/green-looking colours, which also contrasts that it is something from the past.
One of the examples of where it is used untraditional composition techniques is in the scene when the Bride is outside the chapel and meets Bill there. When they are talking to each other there is not enough talking room and it is use of big close ups on both persons. When they are talking to each other, the camera is only showing one of the parts at the time, but rather focuses on their feet to show how they are closing up on each other. There is although an object in the background of the characters, the electricity chain pole that connects the two people to each other.
Another scene that uses unconventional composition is the training scenes with Pai Mei. There are a lot of fast changes in the framing sizes of Pai Mei, that illustrates how fast and unpredictable he is, and also suits to the fast clipping Kung Fu movies and Kung Fu scenes are well known for.
In the scene where the Bride finally faces Bill, there is a fast and intense close up as she sees him, which illustrates that the final moment she’s been waiting for is about to happen, and also illustrates her strong emotions about Bill and what he has done to her.
In this movie there were a lot of camera angles that impressed me, and I liked how the big effect of these camera angles had for my viewing of the movie and for the understanding of the plot and also how it illustrated the mood and the action in the different scenes. One of the scenes I liked the most and made the biggest impression on me, was the scene where the Bride is buried. It gave you great understanding and empathy for the panic and fright she must have felt and for the progress of how she finally gets control of her feelings and start the fight to get out. Since it begins with total darkness, you understand the confusion and panic for not knowing where she is, how far beneath the ground she is and you get the feeling of being there. When she finds the torch and starts the battle to get through the lid, and finally starts to dig her way up to the surface, you see how she overcomes an impossible task, so it seems more impressive.
I was also impressed by the fighting scenes between the Bride and Elle Driver, because the camera angles managed to show how both parts are struggling to fight each other off, and how they desperately seeks for new tools and strategies. The camera angles manage to show how good both of the girls are, and how much they have to use all of their skills and knowledge to stay alive. The finale of the scene is a very good ending, with the Bride using a very dirty trick to put Elle out of action, by stabbing her eye out, since Elle herself always have been using the dirtiest tricks.
The fighting scene between the Bride and Pai Mei was also very impressive. It makes Pai Mei look supernatural and really shows how superior he his.
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