Textual Analysis: The Usual suspect

The director has used a range of techniques to create a dark atmosphere. The opening of the film is set at night at a dock and on a boat; this is a shady setting which clearly screams crime. It could be a private boat belonging  any of the characters in the opening scene. It begins with an un-introduced character smoking on the floor, near him is a body; most likely suggesting that he killed the man. This character then lights a trail of petrol or another flammable liquid, from the matches he lit to light his cigarette, which has spilt onto the ground.

 Behind him there are also flames meaning this is possibly the end of a fight. The music during this is slow violins meaning the scene is calm but not safe, this adds tension. As the flames run along the trail of petrol the Antagonist puts it out with his own urine from a higher level. The camera tilts up so you can see the male but the lighting is set so that you can’t see his face of any other feathers but you can see the male is wearing a long overcoat and hat. The male smoking below him is unable to move while the antagonist walks down the stairs towards him but he doesn’t attempt to move or escape meaning the two know each other

 The character on the ground has to look up at the other male making him look more powerful. The antagonist has a dark calm powerful voice. You never see the antagonist face which makes the character completely unknown. As the pair talk, the flames behind the sitting character flicker, making it look almost like hell. The antagonist warns the sitting character before he shoots him, this makes him seem in control of the situation. As the dark character walks away he relights the trail of flammable fuel and the dock blows up, maybe this is to get rid of any evidence that the murder ever happened. The music intensifies as soon as the fuel trail is lit. During the scene the camera focuses on several pieces of rope which are in the dock, the reason for this is to make the audience think that maybe there’s something hidden in the rope or that the antagonist will use the rope as a weapon.

At the end of the scene it cuts away to a man bathed in white light, this effect makes him look heavenly or like an angel meaning he has good intentions, but sometimes characters are pacifically dressed in white to make the impression that they are good when they are in fact evil.

This is my textual analysis of the usual suspect.  i don't have the original print out with the markings on. This was the second textual analysis i was forced to do