Short film analysis
Wasp, released 2003, was written and directed by Andrea Arnold. The film stars Natalie Press, a young single mother living in poverty, determined to not let her 4 children get in the way of budding relationship with her ex-boyfriend, Danny Dyer. The short film is set in Dartford, Andrea Arnold's hometown.
The first shot is showing the feet of the main characters. We see the mother is bare foot, however the children have shoes on. The following shots show the surroundings of the family and the costumes they wear.
Bare feet shows the mother is facing poverty by not being able to provide even the basic of clothing and materials. We also have insight to what sort of mother she is, by proving her children footwear before herself, putting her children first. We also see this plot twist as we discover this isn't as true as it seemed. Herself and her children are dressed in poor clothing, also hinting at poverty. The location here is important as they leave a shabby flat and step into a rough run down side street. This shows the area is rough and dirty, setting the scene for what sort of protagonist feature here. The camera movements are handheld and shaky. This portrays the more realistic viewing, rather than using equipment to steady the camera, giving a rounded sense of lacking.
The scene before this screen shot the fighting scene is again used by handheld camera shots, featuring only medium shots. This doesn't allow the audience to see all the picture but gives a sense of what is happening. The shot seen above is a medium long shot, featuring mise-en-scene relevant to the economy the actors are in. Rubbish is seen to the left of the frame, showing a sign of lower economy and a less hygienic way of living. The brick work and door are damaged and look rough and shabby, giving the setting a roughed up look, mirroring the actors presentation on the characters 'roughed up' look also.
The scene here features shot reverse shots, as the two actors have a conversation. The camera uses close ups, showing their expression only, making the shots look raw and undefined adding to the rough affect. The background is also blurred out here, giving the impression the young woman is infatuated with the man, as she forgets where she is and what she is doing while speaking, as insinuated by the blur.
Here, an extreme close up is used. The close up focuses on the wasp walking across the window. Many connotations are used within this, such as the typical danger theme and foreshadowing theme. Showing the wasp on the window gives more a connotation of being trapped, like the actress in the shabby apartment, trapped in poverty and her way of living, not realising danger which awaits her. The windowpane is cracked and chipped of white paint. This also connotes the purity of the family stereotype is damaged here. The window is also dirty and smeared, showing the family is facing poverty.
The wall shown in the flat in which they live shows children's drawings and a picture of David Beckham. The children's drawings symbolise the innocence of the children, and their naive minds. The picture of David Beckham, who is well known for his 'good looks', is also situated next to the children's pictures. We assume this picture is for the mother as the children are too young to understand attraction. The stereotypical picture suggests the mother lusting for a wealthier life style with a wealthy husband.
Again, the quote resembles the life the mother longs for. The derogative curse word 'bitch' also indicates the lower class family, as this stereotype typically use terms like these. The fact of this sticker being in sight of young children also hint at the mothers nontraditional nature.
The dialect and accents used within the diegetic speech are important to this short film as this helps the audience analyse their social class and where they live. The East London accent lets the audience know where the short film is based as there are no establishing shots to determine this throughout. Also, the low register language used by the mother and the children determines they come from a low social class and aren't very wealthy individuals.
The mise-en-scene of the moldy bread also distinguishes the families wealth. The semantic field of danger repeats throughout the short film, with such as the fight scene, the wasp on the window and now the danger of mold and death. This is also known as a motif in a short film as it also resembles the moral behind the movie. Another mise-en-scene is later in the movie when the family cross a bridge on the motorway, the camera focuses on the young daughter in a close up shot with a shallow focus on the motorway. This also symbolises the danger that lies behind, foreshadowing the plot.
In addition to the motif of danger, the scene here intimidates the cliche of 'Sugar Dummy'. This is the definition of a man buying a woman's love in hope to receive her affection back. This has been added to the short film again to display the mothers wishes, and this cliche is very common with a standard audience which knows such cliches.
Following the previous shot, the mother asks the daughter to share out the sugar with the rest of the children. I have analysed this as a metaphor for the daughters following in the mothers steps due to poverty and upbringing. This is another motif of the short film that children see and do, following their parents, not being to avoid the inevitability of how they are raised, where they live and the parents morals.
The following scene clarifies the children seeing their mother as their role model as the little girl pushes the toy pram next to her mother pushing her baby in her own pram.
The story follows on to the pub where to mother meets Dave (Dyer) and leaves her children outside. The mother is in an awful situation in which she hopes to court Dave for financial stability but means sacrificing her children to be taken away for negligence which is a big risk for the mother to take. Eventually time passes from day to night, having the children being on their own. This shocks the audience as the oldest of the children is around 9 years old looking after three other children in their mothers absence. The mother decides to refuse Dave and go to comfort her children. This displays how poverty and longing for a better life can put lives in danger.
The end of the movie, Dave understands the mothers situation and helps them by feeding them and taking the family home. The movie ends on a cliffhanger, initiating a reaction from the audience of emptiness, one of the conventions of short films.
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