Imitation Of Life Scene Analysis

Improved Essays
Show More
Imitation of Life is the second Imitation of Life movie which was directed by Douglas Sirk and was produced by Ross Hunter in 1959. This movie is an American Drama that shows the love and hardships between mother and daughter while juggling the tasks of work, love, and personal problems. The french term mise-en-scene is shown throughout the film in many different ways through the camera angles, the setting of the movie, props, lighting, staging, makeup, and costumes. These elements play a huge role in this film and help show little details about not only the characters, but their life lessons and the specific ways that they learn them along the way.
Mise-en-scene is the reasoning behind why things are placed on stage in a certain spot. For instance in the opening scene of Imitation of Life, Lora Meredith is frantically searching all around a public beach, with a stranger named Steve Archer, for her daughter Susie. They finally find her and this is where it all begins because Susie is with a woman named Annie Johnson and her daughter named Sarah Jane. Once Lora is calm again because …show more content…
This french term is not used on set by the director of a film; however, the director is in charge of placement, lighting, props, camera angles, costumes, etc. The director of Imitation of Life is Douglas Sirk. Sirk was a German film director who is best known for directing Hollywood melodrama films in the 1950s. Imitation of Life was Sirk’s most popular film. Actress Lana Turner who played Lora in this film had a murder happen in her own home. Her daughter, Cheryl Crane stabbed her mother (Lana Turner)’s lover, Johnny Stompanato in their Beverly Hills home. This is a coincidence because in the movie Imitation of Life Susie, Lora’s daughter ends up falling in love Steve along with Lora in this film. Annie talks to Susie about her love for Steve and after Lora and Susie have a deep talk her feelings

Related Documents

  • Superior Essays

    Selma Mise En-Scene Analysis
    • 1233 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Selma Mise En-Scene Analysis

    Selma is an Oscar nominated movie for Best Picture; the first film directed by a black female director (Ava Du Vernay) in history. The movie is based on the year of 1965 during the Selma to Montgomery voting rights marches, it shows the last final stages of the Civil Rights Movement. The sequence chosen for this analysis is the sequence where Dr. King (David Oyelowo) arrives to Selma. At his arrival to the “Black Belt” region of central Alabama Dr. King and his colleges direct themselves to the Hotel Albert where he gets “sucker punched” in the face by the manager of the establishment; an establishment that only served the “whites”. The sequence in general represents the violence that was still exhibited towards the “negroes” during the segregation…

    • 1233 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More
  • Decent Essays

    Summary Of The Autobiography 'Creeque Ally'
    • 395 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Summary Of The Autobiography 'Creeque Ally'

    For example, “John and Michi…

    • 395 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
    Read More
  • Great Essays

    Rebecca Alfred Hitchock Analysis
    • 1755 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Rebecca Alfred Hitchock Analysis

    In this essay it will be explained how Alfred Hitchock used influences of Soviet Cinema, German Expressionism and Classical Hollywood and how this is evident through the production of the film Rebecca (Hitchock, 1940). Alfred Hitchock believed that everything within a film should be less important than the technique used to film. In his quote “I am against virtuosity for its own sake. Technique should enrich the action... The beauty of image and movement, the rhythm, and the effects- everything must be subordinate to the purpose”.…

    • 1755 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    La Vida Robot Analysis
    • 1216 Words
    • 5 Pages

    La Vida Robot Analysis

    Paragraph 1 They all had personal and group problems, as a team and as individuals. Oscar Vazquez wanted a career in the military but ran into some problems when he went to a meeting to become a soldier. The team also ran into the problem of not having enough money for the robot and had to keep a tight budget for materials. In paragraph 15 it explains that Oscar Vazquez’s parents brought him to the U.S. from Mexico without proper paper work, not allowing him to receive a scholarship, nor get into the military. This is an obstacle because he was kept from fulfilling his dream.…

    • 1216 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Superior Essays

    Scene Analysis: The Night Of The Hunter
    • 1595 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Scene Analysis: The Night Of The Hunter

    Mise-en-scène literally translates “to put on stage”, so here I will be discussing the scenes meaning, as well as the stage setup and the importance in relation to the overall film. One of the most prominent aspects and symbolism is of the owl at the end of the scene. It is obviously intended to represent the children and the preacher, while also showing how life can both be beautiful and evil. Another part that ties into mis-en-scéne, is the trees and the environment. The scenery gives the scene an outdoorsy feel, while almost making it feel like a western style movie.…

    • 1595 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    To Live Character Analysis
    • 765 Words
    • 4 Pages

    To Live Character Analysis

    “When you lose your face [...], it is like dropping your necklace down a well. The only way you can get it back is to fall in after it.” These words of Amy Tan, author of The Joy Luck Club, perfectly describe Fugui’s character development throughout both the novel and the film adaptation of Yu Hua’s To Live. To Live follows the sorrowful life of Xu Fugui in a time of great change in Chinese society (the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution). Despite his character development and desire to grow, he is flawed.…

    • 765 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Great Essays

    Negotiation Depicted In The Film Freaks
    • 1008 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Negotiation Depicted In The Film Freaks

    “Spurs” is a short story about a midget circus performer named falling in love with a bareback rider named Jeanne Marie. Jeanne brushes off Jacques at first, but decides to marry him after he inherits a vast estate from his deceased uncle. The short story was adapted into a film titled Freaks which loosely follows the original work. After the wedding between Jeanne and Jacques, a feast is held in a circus tent in a town called Roubaix. The tone in this scene is both jovial and bizarre, much like a real circus.…

    • 1008 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Empire Strikes Back
    • 862 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Empire Strikes Back

    Mise-en-scene is commonly characterised by how everything in the frame is organized. The whole sequence is organized very well and it is clear that Lucas put a lot of work in preparation for this…

    • 862 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Theme Of Mise En Scene In Shawshank Redemption
    • 1029 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Theme Of Mise En Scene In Shawshank Redemption

    The scene in reference is when Andy realizes he’ll be stuck in prison forever, due to corruption, so he finally finishes his escape route and tunnels through the sewage and climbs into the nearest river where he lets out a huge cheer with his hands raised high. This is the climax of the movie, but also the scene that most effectively uses mise-en-scene. This scene is in the middle of the night during a strong thunderstorm, and it has Andy slugging through the river, stripping off his dirty clothes in an exhale of happiness, all while the camera begins to look down on him with quick flashes of lighting as Andy lets his hands up celebrating his freedom. This is the most iconic scene in the film and it is also the most beautifully directed scenes as well. The camera panning out looking down on him celebrating is used to show that the stresses of prison have been lifted off his shoulders, while the flashes of lighting are used to emphasize the pure and raw emotion of just how much Andy is exalted when he realizes he escaped the horrors of prison.…

    • 1029 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Aesthetic Of Astonishment: Film Analysis
    • 1237 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Aesthetic Of Astonishment: Film Analysis

    In the article “Aesthetic of Astonishment: Early Film and the (In)Credulous Spectator”, Tom Gunning argues that the first people who watched Lumiere’s Arrival of a Train at the Station were not in shock because they believed that the train was real, they were astonished by the illusion they witnessed before them on the screen. In contrary to the myth that people feared that they were going to be killed by a train, Gunning stresses that the Audiences’ astonishment was derived “from a magical metamorphosis”(Gunning, 119). This metamorphosis is essentially cinema itself and the illusions it produces on screen. Gunning calls cinema a “magic theatre”(Gunning,117) where filmmakers strived to make the impossible, appear believable through visual representations.…

    • 1237 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Theme Of Mise En Scene In Imitation Of Life
    • 942 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Theme Of Mise En Scene In Imitation Of Life

    In the film, Imitation of Life, director Douglas Sirk utilizes the visual elements of mise-en-scene to affect viewers emotionally when presenting them with life’s limits of race. Throughout the film Sirk provides the viewer with a particular perspective of American life during the 1950’s. There are specific conventions and mise-en-scene devices that Sirk employs which are conducive to displaying the limitations of race. An example being, the scene where Annie and Sarah-Jane first arrive at Loren’s home and Susie invites Sarah-Jane to play dolls.…

    • 942 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Elements Of Mise-En-Scene In They Live, Directed By John Carpenter
    • 624 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Elements Of Mise-En-Scene In They Live, Directed By John Carpenter

    They Live, a film directed by John Carpenter, presents numerous elements of mise-en-scene throughout the entire film. Carpenter successfully utilized the various elements to properly convey specific functions of mise-en-scene. Particularly, setting, color, costume, hair, and makeup were used to reveal character, shape the audience’s feelings, and lastly, to reveal the subject of the film. Mise-en-scene exposed characters and molded the audience’s feelings by applying the elements: setting, color, costume, hair, and makeup throughout the film. When we were first introduced to John Nada we could tell that his character was not wealthy and he appeared to be a drifter.…

    • 624 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    SILVER LININGS Playbook
    • 906 Words
    • 4 Pages

    SILVER LININGS Playbook

    This exemplifies the theme of self-improvement through the love of someone. Without using close ups in the first scene it would have been more difficult for the viewer to pick up on initial separation. The importance of mise-en-scene is not always known until scenes such as this are pointed out. David Owen Russell uses mise-en-scene in SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK to create a stronger message and more powerful theme, without its use the wrong message could be pulled from the story and the theme could fall…

    • 906 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Superior Essays

    Flower Symbolism In Chronicle Of A Death Foretold
    • 1552 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Flower Symbolism In Chronicle Of A Death Foretold

    For example, Marquez’s female characters have flower names such as “Divina Flor, who was just coming into bloom” (5). Divina Flor is specifically related to flowers as her name translates to divine flower. Through the…

    • 1552 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Citizen Kane Mise En Scene Analysis
    • 1326 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Citizen Kane Mise En Scene Analysis

    It creates meaning and enhances the story of the film. In the scene where Kane destroys Susan’s bedroom, the control and handling of the mise en scène amplifies the feeling of loneliness, vulnerability and defeat. This scene takes place near the end of the film and is arguably the film’s climax. It starts quietly, with Kane’s anger slowly growing. Welles uses a low angle shot to make the…

    • 1326 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More

Related Topics

Ready To Get Started?
Discover
Company
Follow
©2024 Cram.com
Privacy Policy |  About Ads |  Site Map |  Advertise  | 
  • Cookie Settings