Inspirations/Influences

Prior to the process of shooting, the group collectively accumulated a collection of ideas, many of which were influenced by various films which members of our group have seen.

One idea we though of was to have a shot showing countryside rushing by through the window of a car. This would be reminiscent of the opening of The Shining (1980, Stanley Kubrick), in which the countryside represents the distance between the family and the rest of the world; showing their isolation. It also represents the ‘calm before the storm’ as it is serene and very eerie, especially with the non-diegetic music which fills the audience with dread. In our film it would show the character’s isolation from society.

One shot we came up with was to have a shot of a droplet of blood splashing into a bathtub of water. The camera would then pan up to reveal the main protagonist shaving. The shaving idea was inspired by Pink Floyd: The Wall (1982, Alan Parker), in which the main character, Pink, shaves off all of the hair on his body. This is an indication of his mental state. In the preceding shot, he is seen placing every item in his room into neat patterns across his floor and indeed, throughout the entire film he is mentally unstable.

This differs to our idea because the first shot in our scene will show the drops of blood, leaving the audience wondering where it is coming from. The sight of blood naturally suggests something altogether more grisly than shaving, so when it is revealed that he has simply cut himself it will be a surprise to the audience. A similar effect is achieved in the opening of American Psycho (2000, Mary Harron), in which red sauce is dropped onto a white surface. The audience is oblivious to the fact that it is actually food being prepared until the camera pans out. We like this idea of the blood droplet into clear water, as it suggests a loss of purity as with the red sauce on the plate.

We also decided would be extremely effective would be if we could find a split mirror for the shot when our protagonist is shaving. This is inspired by the shot in the film Garden State (2004, Zach Braff), where the protagonist is looking in a mirror. The split in the mirror divides his face into two images, reflecting his personality; as it is unstable and throughout the film he is on proscribed drugs.

The shot of the protagonist shaving also has connotations towards murder, as we intend on having him use a cut-throat razor. This is reminiscent of Sweeney Todd (2007, Tim Burton), in which Johnny Depp murders people by cutting their throats while he gives them a shave.