I picked a scene from the movie “UNBROKEN”. The theme of this scene was to never give up even when the odds are stacked against you. The scene dealt with a man named, Louis "Louie" Zamperini. Who was enlisted into the military when World War II broke out. After his plane crashes in the Pacific, he survives an incredible 47 days drifting in a raft. Until he was capture by the Japanese navy. Sent to a POW camp, Louie becomes the favorite target of a particularly cruel prison commander. Louis was put through so many tremendous tasks and work but this particular scene gives the best example of brutality he went through. Louis was forced to hold a log over his head that weighed approximately one hundred pounds. If Louis was to drop the log he would be shot and killed by the Japanese commander watching him. All the other soldiers held captive and Japanese commanders stopped what they were doing and watched Louis hold the log. He held it threw the night for almost 24 hours until the Japanese commander got irritated and started beating him. IT was amazing that Louis was able to accomplish this tremendous task.

 

This was a very cinematic scene. The filmer would switch shots of Louis holding that log and then back to the Japanese commander watching him. After many camera shots going back and forth between the two, the camera would get shots of the soldiers working. The shots would lead from the soldiers working to the soldiers stopped in place watching Louis. Lighting was bright because it was mid day and the location was believed to be in a hot climate. I was impressed with how the director focused all the sound on Louis while he was holding the log and the commander in front of him. All the outside sound was silent which made the scene very suspenseful. Also, it was interesting to see how the setting made me feel how hot and tired the soldiers must be. With the light from the sun and sweat and dirt seen on the working soldiers. I was also impressed with how dirty the soldiers were and how the director made viewers feel the brutality and discrimination being brought on to the soldiers.

 

Overall, I thought the director and filmer did a great job on creating suspense that made me interested throughout the whole scene. That is a tough thing to do. The lines of the commander created drama throughout the scene. Louis wasn’t even given lines in this scene, his communication was shown through grunts and noises that made him sound angry and tiresome. When the camera was on Louis, the camera focused on his facial expressions that made me eager to know what was going to happen next. This movie showed how the main character was tough and determined to stay alive. The main point of the movie that kept viewers interested was to see if Louis could survive through all the obstacles that were yet to come. I thought the filming of events throughout the movie especially in this seen was fantastic and gave me ideas for myself as I create some films of my own. I learned many techniques from this movie and scene that will help me create stronger and move advanced films for myself.