Donnie Darko Analysis

Location and Mise en scene.

In the sequence I watched of the film Donnie Darko and the arrival to the school there are a range of different locations; outside the front of the school, corridor, playground and the classrooms. During this sequence we get a guide through the school looking at each area in detail which successfully creates the world of this school. This is by filming each area in a great amount of detail by placing key characters in these areas. 

The were a range of different mise en scene such as;

• School
• School bus 
• Uniform
• Books
• School facilities (lockers)
• Uniform

The uniform/clothing is the main aspect in the opening sequence as we can tell by the way the characters wear there uniform what type of character they are. Also we can split the the students from the teachers and see the hierarchy due to the use of uniform.

Editing and camera.

At the beginning of this sequence the camera is at a low angle shot viewing students coming off the bus,  the camera then starts going into a slanted angle which can represent the school as a crazy and hectic setting/environment. The camera is then at a normal angle going through the school as if we were looking through a students perspective. When showing the different characters there is a slow motion editing to it so we can get a full glance of each character. This sets up and creates a complex world of the school.