Film Analysis- The Bourne

The Bourne. 

The scene begins with an establishing shot to show the location which is a busy street set in the winter time. The use of the snow and the cold surroundings mean that we can assume certain aspects of the protagonist's personality, for example the snow has connotations to danger, distance and isolation. This may translate in how the protagonist reacts to situations and how he is often surrounded by danger.  This use of mise en scene to set up the theme of danger is very effective as it subtly gets the idea across.  The camera then pans down to then land on the protagonist who is walking across a road towards the camera as it focuses in on him. Again the idea of danger is portrayed through the carelessness of our main character, played by Matt Damon, as he walks out into the road without acknowledging a safer route. 

The editor then cuts to a close/mid shot of Damon's character recieving a phone call and we hear the diegetic sound of the mysterious voice on the other end. The telephone he uses is red which can symbolise danger and caution towards the caller, this is another example of the mise en scene being used to indicate hazard. Point of view shots are then used to show Damon's character frantically looking around for the source of the caller, the cuts in this scene are very sharp and quite to put emphasis on the tension and anxiety our protagonist is going through due to this unsettling phone call. There is also the diegetic sound of the busy streets and cars to create an even more poinient atmosphere of confusion, this is partnered with the non diegetic music that is slowly building in the background to create apprehension with the audience and mirror the conflicting emotions taking place within the protagonist. 

Forward tracking of the characters movement as he starts quickly walking away from the pay phone, from this we can infer that the call triggered a strong emotion within him that has caused him to react in such a way. Because of this, the audience is also lead to feeling worry towards what might happen next. As the tense non diegetic music continues, we see a long shot of him walking fast pace towards the camera. He stands out from the crowded street because he is walking significantly faster than the surrounding people which emphasises the fact the he is clearly walking for a purpose, in this case his purpose may be to escape the situation he has found himself in. He also stands out because of how he is hanging his head looking shifty, everyone else in the crowd looks calm and settled in their location whereas he clearly wants to get out of the situation. 

The camera then goes from a close up of Damon's worried face to quickly panning to an ambulance  then back to his face, this is a reaction shot that gets across the fear and apprehension our protagonist feels towards the ambulance as it is associated with authority figures who are within their power to catch him as he is clearly running away from something. This is also a point of view shot as we see what it is that is making the character feel so anxious. As his fast past walking increases, so does the music and we are forced into more tension as he finds himself walking past two police officers. This is shown through mid shots so we get a good indication of his reaction which is quickly looking down and continueing to speed walk away from any cautious signs. 

We see him walk in front of a incoming train without being phased which is another indication of his association with danger and his disregard for consequences. 

As he walks into a large building we see him use his passport to jump ahead of the que. Due to this being shown through a close up, it emphasises the importance and makes us think that perhaps the protagonist is more significant than initially thought and also the significance of the building. 

Point of view shots are used to show him searching for security guards as he subtaly waits in line, trying not to draw attention to himself. The mood swiftly changes as he catches the eye of the security which moves to focus in on him. A close up of his face tells us that he knows he's been caught. Non diegetic music builds to emphasise tension as our protagonist moves to try and did an exit. The music suddenly pauses as he is cornered by an officer and told to stop before a huge climax hits the audience as the scene cuts to an upbeat fight with quick cuts and fast pace music what puts emphasis on the danger and adrenaline going through all the characters involved. Mostly mid shots are used to show the fight which let the audience see a significant amount of the violence while still keeping it close enough to the characters to make the scene feel more crowded and trapped. The fast pace music continues as he runs away from the fight, a close up shows him throwin a gun into a bin to protect his identity then the camera tracks him funning up the stairs and out into the cold outside where he stands on an unstable balcony which only adds to the tension. 

As the protagonist dangerously climbed onto the edge of the rusty balcony, we see a close up of his feet so we get an indication of just how thin the surface he is standing on really is. The non diegetic music is very subtal as silence is needed in order for the audience to focus on what is going on, it allows us to become more involved in his situation. Low angle shots are used to show how high up Damon's character is climbing down from which may envoke fear within the audience. High angle shots are also used to give us further indication of his height and to allow us to see things from his perspective. Overall the scene is very tense and keeps the audience apprehensive and constantly nervous r about the consequences that the protagonist may have to face dude to his dangerous way of life.