I believe the director is trying to
convey the distrust between the two characters, and itself as a theme overall
in the extract. In the extract we see a woman being interrogated about a bomb
and information that she only knows. However, this interrogation goes nowhere
as both the interrogator and interrogated both do not trust each other.
Another example of distrust in this extract is with the people watching the
interrogation on camera. It signifies distrust of the man and the other
workers, as they are keeping an eye on him.
The scene begins with the
interrogator entering a room filled with heavy breathing and anxiety in the
air. It pans to a security camera, letting us know that the interview is being
recorded. The mood is being set in these scenes, as they exchange glances and
the interrogator cautiously puts down a packet of papers. This creates a
feeling of unease and seriousness. Next, the woman glances at a clock helping
convey her emotions of being anxious, this is filmed with an eye-line match.
The woman quickly explains her demands in a serious tone, without any sense of
relaxation. We next see the first instance of distrust; the woman will not tell
the man who her contact is. As the conversation continues the ambiance gets
louder and louder, and so does the score. This shows build-up and pressure in
the conversation. The next example of distrust is the man not letting her leave
until she tells him what he wants to know. The actor increases in pace as he walks
around the room, showing impatience and hinting on an outburst if she keeps
refusing his demands. The editing during the dialogue has intense shadows,
shaky camera movement, and many jump cuts. Reason for this being the fact that
it gives an intense mood to an extract befitting a thriller. After more demands
are denied we see the interrogator's first outburst; He picks up a table and
throws it into the side of the room, demanding that she needs to stop wasting
his time. The perspective is from an over the shoulder shot of the woman, and
we can see her shake as he throws it. The director was trying to convey that
she had no power in her situation and could not stop him if he did anything
rash. The director explains this to the audience with the next lines of
dialogue. There is a shot-reverse-shot with the people watching the interview
from the camera at the beginning, letting us know that they do not trust the
interrogator to be calm after what they just witnessed. Next is the climax of
the scene, where the woman claims he would have to follow her lead. This is her
breaking point because as of this point, he had all the power in the
conversation. This plays out with both their reactions in consecutive
jump-cuts, showing the calm before the storm. Right after, he charges at her
and we hear the diegetic sound of the chair squealing as it slides on the
floor. This is a great sound effect, as it conveys travel and the force, he is
pushing her at. Next, a split-screen is shown of the two pushed into the wall and the people outside rushing to resolve the issue. During this the incidental
music reaches its climax, creating a feeling of impact and violence. This climax is done well as the interrogator
solves the issue of distrust by deciding to do whatever it takes to get the
answers.
All these examples work together to
create the director’s vision of distrust towards each other. The way they act shows that they do not feel like creating friendships and only want to benefit
themselves. The editing creates a violent and disliking atmosphere between the
characters, and the actions showed the anxiety between the two. What is
most important is after all the interrogators' insane scare tactics and violent
methods, she still stands her ground and sticks up for her demands.
