This scene from Ginger & Rosa (2012) which features early in the film, tells the audience a great deal about the title characters within a short period of time. The first shot shows both girls in the bath together, reading, demonstrating just how close the two girls are. Most of the shots in this scene, so it’s unclear exactly what the girls are doing until the shot of their wet jeans. This shot, along with the discussion, suggests both girls are concerned with appearances, or at least that it’s important to Ginger because it’s important to Rosa.

The camera focuses a lot on Ginger’s reactions to what Rosa is saying in this scene. For example, we don’t really see Rosa deliver her first line of dialogue. Instead, we see Ginger’s serious expression, as she listens to what Rosa’s found in the magazine. Just as in many other points in the film, the way the scene has been edited shows the audience how important Rosa’s opinion is to Ginger. This is particular clear after Rosa states that “boys don’t like girls who are too serious” and we see a close up of Ginger, peering behind her magazine with a look of disappointment, as she clearly feels she fits into this category. There is also a quick cut after this shot to one of the same angle as Ginger puts her magazine to one side. While it’s mostly unnoticeable, it is slightly jarring and unnatural, particularly if you’re watching the scene closely.

The main light source within the scene is the light coming from the window. It lights the offside of Ginger’s face, while backlighting Rosa to give her a halo kind of effect, which could be seen as reinforcing to the viewer how much Ginger looks up to her and sees her as the ideal of what a girl should be. Interestingly, the lighting on Ginger’s face is often obscured by the magazine she is reading, creating shadows that are constantly moving on her face. After multiple viewings of the clip, it does make the cuts feel a little more disjointed and could be making the cut where Ginger puts her magazine away more noticeable.

The final shots in this clip show Roland, Ginger’s father, walking into the room, just after the shot of Rosa unzipping her jeans to look at her now blue underwear. The shot shifts focus from Ginger laughing to her father looking at the girls, contributing to the suggestion early in the film of Rosa and Roland’s relationship. Roland is also standing outside the room looking in, which is the position his daughter ends up in at the end of the film.

Like many of the other scenes in the film, it’s been given a cool feel to it, probably from both the set and some colour grading. This helps to engross the audience in the setting of England during the cold war and convey the feeling of nuclear threat that is present throughout the film. This also makes Ginger’s character more sympathetic, as she is the one most fearful of potential attack, and the audience is watching the story unfold from her perspective.