Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
The Returned - opening scene - Coggle Diagram
The Returned - opening scene
Genre
The coach crashes and the students die - themes of death which are relevant to horror and zombie films.
Low-key lighting cast over Camille's face - this is sinister and links to the horror genre.
Slow-paced piano music - sinister, horror genre motif.
Low-key lighting and mist cast over a house which stands alone in the forest - isolation.
Narrative
Binary opposition - nature versus man; camera tilts up to mountain (nature) which stands tall above the dam (man-made).
Hyperreality - handheld camera mimics the way in which documentaries are made. Audiences are encouraged to believe that the story is real.
Foreshadowing - windy road and handheld camera are not smooth and straightforward, unexpected turns are foreshadowed.
Foreshadowing - Camille's reflection in the mirror alludes to duality - she will be both dead and alive.
Music is melancholy - it is a slow-paced piano track which is both relaxing and sinister - links to the idea of duality.
Establishing shot with the bus driving towards the camera - foreshadows the inevitability of confrontation, collision and danger.
Establishing shot of the mountains and the house - a stark contrast between the naturalistic lighting and the low-key lighting.
Tracking shot of the butterfly flying towards the picture of Mr Costa's wife - the butterfly represents the returned and their journey to seek freedom.
Themes
Establishing shot of the dam - a man-made border. Links to constructed geographical borders and immigration policies which stop refugees and asylum seekers from entering countries.
Establishing shot includes water - Calais (which is where refugees are sent to in France) is on the border of France, by the sea.
Biblical themes of resurrection - water is symbolic of rebirth.
Snow links to winter - winter is commonly associated with death.
High angle used as part of the establishing shot - alludes to themes of supernaturalism and religious omniscience.
Shot // reverse shot of the mountains and the mist - mist alludes to mystery and a fear of the unknown.
Dead butterfly comes back to life and breaks free, shattering the glass; foreshadows the idea that the returned are metaphors for oppressed people in society (e.g. refugees) who have been alienated and trapped. They will react violently in an attempt to seek freedom because oppression leads to conflict.
Representation
Camille is positioned as a character who is not threatening - she is positioned as one of us through the eye-level mid-shot.
Hyperreality - when the bus crashes, there is no non-diegetic music. We feel as though we are on the cliff watching and listening to the bus crashing; we are positioned with Victor (who really is there)
Camille is breathing heavily when she climbs up from the dam and her facial expressions allude to panic - she is anxious and lost and we are therefore positioned with her as a vulnerable character.