The Hurt Locker

Gianluca & Jake

TEXTUAL ANALYSIS

SHOT 1:

The first shot establishes the

setting of the film, the beginning of

this film is very fast pace. The

voice over sounds very dictatorial

and it refers to the setting of the

film. The dessert looking ground

connotes a middle eastern type of

country where there is a lot of

corruption. The diegetic sound of

the alarm connotes

evacuation, an insight of what is

about to happen. In the next shot

we see the evacuation take place.

SHOT 2:

The long shot of these

people being evacuated

gives a better

understanding of the

setting. Their clothing

connotes a middle

eastern type country and

with the accompanied

text we are instantly

aware of the setting. The

non-diegetic sounds of

shouting adds to the

effect of the evacuation.

SHOT 3:This extreme long shot connotes a

chaotic environment which is similar

to the previous evacuation scenes.

The diegetic sounds of the car

horns connotes impatience and it

controls how we interpret the

situation. It allows us to believe that

it is more chaotic than it really is.

The camera then zooms and pans

to the robot , also the camera is

shaky, which connotes a sense of

watching. This camera movement

seems very aware, and you could

associate it with the army and how

they use their equipment to find

things e.g. Binoculars. This

movement is very similar.

SHOT 4:

This long shot connotes how

everyone is affected by the

corruption in the city.

However, the children act

naturally to the situation as

though it is a normal

procedure. The non-diegetic

sound of children

talking/shouting adds to the

shot and it connotes a sense

of fun and games. As the

audience we assume that

they will just carry on with

their games elsewhere.

SHOT 5:

The pan and zoom which

follows the car, connotes speed

and a sense of urgency. The

diegetic sounds of orders being

passed on through

megaphones adds to the sense

of urgency. The dissonant

score connotes how the

civilians aren't responding to

the orders of the army, they are

all over the place reacting in

different ways.

SHOT 6:

This medium shot explains

how the civilians won’t

cooperate, this man won’t

move from his shop. We

can assume this from his

hand gestures and his

head movement. This

connotes poverty, leaving

his store will result in him

possibly losing his stock

which will leave him with

nothing.

SHOT 7:

The extreme long shot of

the truck connotes a

focus on how big the truck

is. The track that follows

the truck allows us to

follow the action. The

diegetic sounds of car

horns connote normality

and a sense of

continuation .

SHOT 8:

The diegetic dialogue

of the armed men

connotes urgency

which adds to the fast

pace. The shaky cam

and slight pan makes

the audience feel as

though they are there

and watching the

soldiers every move.

SHOT 9:

The shaky cam in this

shot connotes realism

as though it is

strapped to the back

of a soldier. The

medium shot connotes

regimentation and

organisation.

SHOT 10:

The quick zoom out, pan

and zoom in connotes a

sense of watching, and it

feels as though someone

is observing the

soldiers, for example

through a sniper rifle

zooming in and out on

the subject.

SHOT 11:

SHOT 12:

The extreme close up on the

soldiers eyes connotes

determination, accuracy and

concentration. He says

“approaching” which

connotes a regimental frame

of mind.

This extreme close up

connotes concentration

and makes the audience

assume the difficulty of

the task as two sets of

eyes have to be aware.

SHOT 13:

The previous shot

This long shot is of what the

soldier is looking at in the

previous shot, this allows the

audience to get a perspective of

what the soldiers see which

creates an effect of feeling

involved with the film. The

previous shot connotes a sense

of awareness and gives the

audience an understanding of

how the soldiers must react to

any situation.

SHOT 14:This medium close up shot connotes

awareness of surroundings and

uncertainty. Due to the many people

watching from balconies and buildings,

the soldiers are wary of who the bomber

is.

SHOT 15:This shot is of what the man in the previous shot is

looking at, this gives the audience an idea of what the

soldier see and it allows them to feel like they are in

their shoes. At this point most of the evacuation

process is complete and we are aware of this through

the change in sound. The non-diegetic foreign

dialogue is no longer there but the dissonant score is

still there, which connotes fear of the unknown.