Scene analysis #1

This scene, taken from Somewhere (Sofia Coppola, 2010) is probably one of my favourite scenes of all time. Within me, it instills the feelings of nostalgia, longing for the past and hope for the future. This is all achieved through a number of different cinematic techniques, including the use of different camera angles to create the idea of drama and an emotional narrative between customers, as well as the use of soundtrack to encapsulate the overall mood of the scene.

Firstly, to understand the overall context of the scene, its important to know that the film focuses on the complexities of being a child to a famous actor. The establishing long shot of the ice-rink, surrounded by the whimsical palm trees of LA, makes the audience aware that the movie does take place in the beautiful, yet mysterious surrounds of Los Angeles, California. Los Angeles is well known for being the geographical birth-place of Hollywood, a place that many associate with superficiality and disposability.

Throughout the whole scene, the two characters are shown in their respective positions on set through the use of a shot reverse shot. Elle Fanning’s character, who is an interpretive ice skater, is portrayed using a long shot, whilst Stephen Dorff’s character, is watching his daughter skate whilst being portrayed using a mid shot. I believe that this combination of shots is used to correlate to the audience the type of relationship that Johnny (Dorff) has with Cleo (Fanning). The use of the long shot might symbolise the emotional distance that Cleo has with Johnny at this point in the movie. Although they are biologically related, their emotional relationship is one of distance and the unknown.. Johnny does not really understand his daughter, but by attending her ice skating practice, he is able to slowly understand the essence of his daughter through her craft. At the start of the scene, the first mid shot of Johnny shows him glued to his fine, although as the scene progresses, he gradually learns to let go of his emotional connection to his phone and to focus more on his daughter. This is symbolic of their relationship starting to develop. The way that the shot reverse shots are ordered allows the audience to easily interpret what is happening, through the cinematography as well as the acting techniques utilised by the cast.

The use of score is also important in this scene and helps to set the thematic mood that is present in not only this portion of the movie, but throughout the whole film. Gwen Stefani’s hit song “Cool” plays as Cleo skates around the ice rink. The song tells the narrative of a character who once felt a deep love for another person, but now through the natural progression of life, is no longer in love with them but accepts their respective fates in life. This can be applied to the scene, as Johnny, leading up to this moment has not been a great father to his daughter, but is now in a position where he is ready to take it upon himself to be present in her life.