How the Director of Faceoff Uses Technical Codes

In the film Face/off, the director uses a wide variety of technical codes to create impact aesthetics.

From the beginning of the film, and also throughout, diegetic sounds - those of gunshots, voices shouting, sirens and explosions are foregrounded to create a sense of chaos and confusion. This is effective, as right from the start the audience can feel as though they are involved with the film, trying to make sense of who is who and what is going on, through all the noise and confusion. The slow music in the clip which plays from the beginning gives a short respite from the action when there is pictorial contrast, as there is a bold colour clash from the darkness outside and in the warehouse, into the bright light of the tunnel, and gives the audience a chance to reflect on what they have just seen.

Also in the scene, diegetic noises that usually would go unnoticed are foregrounded, such as footsteps and guns cocking - this emphasises focus on the two main characters, and adds tension. Other things such as glass breaking and bullets ricocheting off metal in the warehouse are much louder than they would be normally. Both Castor and Sean have powerful voices, compared to the much weaker voice of Pollux, this shows authority, and gives them an air of confidence.

As well as diegetic noises being present throughout the film, there are many short takes pieced together, these create a sense of speed of the action taking place. We it also allows the audience to see what is happening and where, without focusing too much on one aspect of the fighting. There are also multiple shots of the same piece of action that are edited together to show it from a range of perspectives. An example of this would be when the villain is jumping out of the plane, we see him from different angles. This occurs again when Castor and Pollux are facing each other and moving in circles with guns drawn, it creates an air of suspense.

There is slow motion during the fighting, when one of the characters jumps sideways out of the plane, which makes the action seem more graceful, and almost balletic and choreographed, this is a trademark of John Woos.

When the villain and hero are facing each other, pointing guns, there is a lot of shot reverse shot, which shows them looking back and forth at each other. This allows us to see from the point of view of the character, and also invites us to identify with the characters, it gives us a sense of where they are in regard to each other. We also see them facing each other from a high angle looking down on them, making them look smaller and more vulnerable.

The longer takes such as when a gun is being held to a characters neck create a smooth pictorial continuity. This gives a spatial continuity which creates a stable, understandable film space.

The low angles that are used illustrate both power and vulnerability. Examples of this would be when Sean climbs then stands on top of a police car, it gives him a sense of power, status and exposure. Also, when there is a low angle as Castor looks down on his captured brother, this emphasises his brothers vulnerability, and Castors' power.

A high angle of the warehouse shows the destruction, the size of it, the obstacles and the places to hide.

Two significant close ups would be of the eyes of one of the characters, and of the guns in the pocket. The camera zooms into a close up of they eyes to an extreme close up shot, this shows us how the character is feeling, as a lot of expression is shown through the eyes.

then cuts to the warehouse which allows us to see it from his perspective.

When the shooting takes place, the camera pans round to show the action that is happening from a series of different angles. This creates a feeling that the gunshots are coming at you from everywhere, as if you are surrounded, this also adds to the chaos and confusion created by the diegetic noises.

We can see in the pocket of the villain are two gold, custom made guns that look expensive. An extreme close up of these show the symmetry, and symbolise the owners wealth, power and status. It also makes the audience wonder what the owner did in order to own them.

There are a lot of guns involved in this clip, which create an obvious element of danger, they also imply wealth and power of the owner. Another prop would be the aircraft engine. There is a significance to this as we have seen it before, and the sound of it firing up adds to the dramatic effects of the blast.

The two main characters are wearing suits that are almost identical, although the villain is in a black shirt, and the hero wears a white shirt. Here it could be said that light represents good, and dark represents evil. Most of the characters are men wearing suits and uniform, which symbolises status.

The location/set is a dark warehouse, which gives a sense of isolation when the two characters are pointing guns at each other. Also the shadowy darkness of the warehouse offers obstacles, and places to hide. It also provides contrast with explosions.

All the male characters are typical of action films. They are portrayed as the men who men in real life envy, in their sophisticated suits and sex symbol status.