Individual Analysis, 15 Minutes of similar film

I will be analysing 15 minutes of the film Source Code. Source Code is a Thriller with sub-genres of Mystery and Sci-Fi. In this analysis i will explore the similarities of Source Code and our film Fixation. I will also be analyzing why the director of Source Code thought this film to be an effective thriller by using certain camera shots, different sounds, editing and mise-en-scene. 

The very beginning of Source Code, is the Summit Entertainment and then Vendome Pictures Logo's. This is a usual start to a professional film. The first part of the actual film is shown using an establishing shot of a city, Chicago. The establishing shot was used to basically establish were the film was set. Then the camera slowly zoomed in onto the tall buildings, and cut to another part of the city, panning to give you more of an idea where this was actually happening. A few times during the establishing part of the film there was train tracks and busy roads, showing that the city was a busy place and many people were around. The Non-Diagetic sound of music is edited into the first part of the film with the beats of the music matching with the cuts of the film, this builds the tension with the film.

The establishing shot at the beginning.

This part of the film is very different to ours as we decided not to use an establishing shot to keep the character as mysterious, but the music part is the same as ours but it isn't classical music like on our film. Although it is different there, the next bit of the film as it zooms in on the train and a white screen appears as a flash to the inside of the train with a close up of 'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' shows a similarity to our as he is a normal guy in a normal day, the same as we did with Gilbert getting ready for a normal day. As the camera zooms into the train the music gets more dramatic and suddenly ends.

The camera zooming into the train.

As  'Sean/ Captain Culta Stevens'  wakes up on the train, you can hear gun shots and an airplane, then as another train passes by  'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' quickly moves his head from the window to sit upright, then slowly looks around him. When this happens, you can see a few people surrounding 'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' on the train and see that them and him are all wearing ordinary clothes some in business suits. The next clip shows a series of shot/reverse shot of medium shots to show that 'Chrsitina' is having a conversation with 'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' but as the pace of editing gets quicker to show that 'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' is confused.

As 'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens'  is on the train you can hear sounds from around him, such as Christina talking to him "I took your advice, it was good advice thank you." this is the first speech you hear in the film and this seems normal. Other sounds are things such as people talking on phones, phones ringing, someone opening a can, spilling coffee, typing on laptops, and also other trains going past. Then there is the ticket conductor, and the voice on the tannoy. This video clip below shows the movie from 'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' where I have spoken about.



As the pace gets quicker the music starts playing again and starts to build up, this shows tension and shows 'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' confusion rising, as he sees his reflection in the window of the train he goes to the toilets to see his reflection in the mirror and then realises he is in somebody elses body, but the audience can see this which is using the psychological 'mind games' theme like in Fixation, this is another similarity. As 'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' leaves the toilets and is talking to Christina, she is clearly worried about 'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' and this is shown by using close ups of her face to show emotions, just as she finished saying "everything is going to be alright" another train passed by then there is an explosion from behind the two of them.

This is when  'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens'   is in the toilets and finds that he is in somebody else's body. Sean is the character on the left, Captain Colter Stevens is the character on the right.

The explosion then the blue screen before
Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens ends up in the pod.

As the explosion happens it then jumps to a blue screen that started with a flame type image then went to images what had happened to him like a series of memories together. This is then where the film becomes to explain itself. Then you hear another voice over a tannoy talking to  as he is caged in some sort of pod. After a few seconds there is a visual display of 'Goodwin' and she is dressed as a captain. The film then cuts from 'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' to the visual imnage of Goodwin asa shot/revers shots. During this conversation 'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens'  then explains that he was last flying in Afghanistan for the US army whilst taking on enemy gunfire then he awoke on a train. Goodwin then gives 'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens'  a series of tests to make him remember what was happening, he is also told that he has been with 'Beleaguered Castle (A military unit named after the card game)' for two months now. She then explains to him through the computer screen that he is now on a mission to locate the maker of a bomb which destroyed the train heading towards Chicago. This is to be accomplished using the Source Code, a time loop program that allows him to take over someone's body in a reenactment of their last eight minutes of life.

This is 'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' in the pod.

Video of Goodwin.

Watch showing 7:59

Goodwin then sends 'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' back to the train to find the bomber so it doesn't happen again. The exact same things happen on the train other than  'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' didn't seem as confused, and he pace the film had been edited was slower. The first thing  'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' does is look at his watch and shows 7:59 with an extreme close up and then the time descending, this shot is used to show detail of the watch, and that the time is running out.  'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' then says "Its the same train but different." Still with all the background details and sounds the same.

Once the film gets back to the part with the ticket conductor, the film then jumps to  'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' being in a public bathroom with another man, running water, the other man then splashes the water onto his face grabs his things then walks to the hand dryer and turns it on. Then there is a medium close up of  'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' looking at the other man with an eye line match. The film then jumps back to  'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' handing his ticket to there ticket conductor.

Once the ticket conductor has left, another passenger asks the ticket conductor "What the hell was the delay back there?" and  'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' jumps up and asks him what hes late for. Then the film shows the other characters on the train looking at 'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' and the other passenger arguing.  'Sean/ Captain Colter Stevens' then goes to look for the bomb, realizes that the bomb was behind him when it exploded last time, goes into to the toilets.

This film is only similar to ours as it plays mind games with its audience.