Film Sequence Analysis Final
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Get Out is a film that sparked ample controversy with its racial storyline when it was released in 2017. The film addresses the subtle forms of racism that people of color, have to deal with in modern America. During a pivotal scene in Jordan Peele’s Get Out we are able to see the curiosity of the goal-oriented protagonist’s white and Asian counterparts by the way they observe, touch, and question him. The scene sequence starting at 42:08-50:00 has numerous correlations with the historical issues of class and racism in America. Chris Washington, the goal-oriented protagonist, and his girlfriend, Rose Armitage look out of the window to see several black vehicles arrive in the Armitage driveway. The couple then go downstairs where Chris finds himself confronted with several questions about his race, sex drive, and the advantages of being black in America. He then is able to get away from the crowd of his white counterparts where he meets a blind art dealer who tells him he had a great eye, which one finds out to have a double meaning later in the movie. The goal-oriented protagonist is castrated because he was unaware of what was going on and being betrayed by his girlfriend, Rose.
Cinematography and editing shows the connectivity between the numerous elements in the film. The cinematography used in Get Out has a large number of long shots and close ups to express the feeling of being out of place between Chris and guest at the Armitage guests. During this scene sequence the scenes where Chris is interacting with the guest they are all long shots, it is like he in not totally engaged with his surrounding or it is not his point of view. The close-up shots are the only time that one is able to see from his perspective is when he is looking through his camera lenses and taking pictures of his surroundings. One is then able to indicate this is the way in which he interacts with the surrounds and is finding the truth because the long shots are not his truth. The editing of this scene sequence uses glance-object cut which in return assists with expressing the engagement that the protagonist is having with his surroundings. The film in not really being told from his perspective and we are viewing it as if we the audience where standing next to him. However, the glance-object cut allows the audience to see him his perspective in a few moments in the film to allow connectivity with the audience, Chris, and his surroundings.
Jordan Peele uses pastiche, a theoretical concept, where one is able to see the similarities between films, such as The Stepford Wives, which shows close similarities between another film. Aside, from the two films having similarities we are also able to see discrepancies and distortions. The Stepford Wives and Get Out are similar in ways such as the Eberhart family moves to a wealthier neighborhood and Chris in Get Out is visiting his girlfriend’s wealthy family in the suburbs. Also, when Joanna, The Stepford Wives, was having speculations about the women in her town being different and had an eerie feeling no one was believing and she herself eventually became a robot. While watching Get Out we see similarities with Chris’ storyline because his girlfriend was not believing his speculations however he did not become a body for Jim Hudson’s conscious. So, there are several distortions between The Stepford Wives and Get Out. The film The Stepford Wives is about the female body and the controlling behavior of men with some issues dealing classism. With Get Out the film addresses race and classism. In the scene sequence, we are able to see the vast misconceptions that some whites and Asians have about Black people in the film. Chris was an established wealthy photographer living on his own and did not have much family. Rose’s targeted Black men who were wealthy and had a good income so that them being with a white woman would not be questioned. Then with race they make statements like “Black is in fashion” and even one woman asked if his penis was large and if the sex was good. The ways in the Black male body in this film is viewed reflects the ways in which they are viewed in society.
The next theoretical concept is the mise-en-scene in melodrama. This concept addresses the oversaturation of color, and how characters turn inwards by over investing in everyday objects. The color during the scene sequence and the movie had a sepia color effect to it. This exaggerates the mystery theme of the film because honestly no one has no idea of the Armitage family’s intent until close to the end of this film. As the party scene sequence grows more and more intense Chris decides to go upstairs to converse with his friend, Rod to discuss what is happening. However, once he reaches his phone it is dead and had been unplugged. His frustration causes him to invest in him keeping his phone charged because he felt as if the maid, Georgina was trying to sabotage his need to communicate with the outside world just in case something happened. The hostile environment of being asked and hearing almost insulting questions made him claustrophobic. With the movie reflecting modern racism one is able to see the harsh reality of how minuscule racism can be induced into society.
Conclusively, Get Out is a controversial film that reflects how African Americans have to deal with racism in modern America. Chris had to maneuver through any infuriating conversations during the scene sequence that reflect how Black people usually deal with day to day conversations. Invalidating the Black struggle, stating that his culture is a trend, and assessed as a sex symbol the scene sequence honestly reality that many members of our society do not understand. From the pastiche to the mise-en-scene Jordan Peele was able to convey Black America eloquently just from this one scene sequence of his film.
