American Beauty : A Visual Treat

Few filmmakers have struck gold at their very first attempt at feature filmmaking by winning an Academy Award. Sam Mendes is one of the few directors to earn one for his work in 1999’s suburban satire American Beauty. Set in an ordinary neighborhood, it follows the ordinary life of the central protagonist, Lester Burnham, who is living the typical “American Dream”. American Beauty portrays such themes as the falseness in lust, power and appearance and that we need to remind our selves “…of all the beauty there is in the world”, as beauty is a matter of opinion.

Many techniques were used to portray these themes and influence audiences opinions of characters and events, including Filmic techniques of Cinematography, Soundtrack and Mendes’s original dream sequence methods, as well as such Visual techniques of symbolism, colour and contrast.

American Beauty is abounding with several visual elements that emphasize the design aspect efficiently. Visual design elements that feature prominently in American beauty are such as its beautiful cinematography, especially in terms of compositions and framing, meaningful use of color and contrast, & an immaculate sense of production design.

Cinematography : Composition, Lines, Shapes & Movement

From the perspective of cinematography, it’s evident that the usage of peaceful compositions provoked a feeling of old-world charm and classicalism, contrasting it with the turbulent turns of events on-screen. The framing employs formal visual design conventions such as diagonal patterns, foreground-background relationship in determining the tilt of balance amongst the characters, and a particular quality of symmetry to the visuals. For instance, the scene where his daughter’s best friend Angela besots Lester for the first time is effective in conveying the visual design conventions presented through cinematography elements like composition, framing and movement. Here is a scene analysis :

• The scene begins with Lester and Carolyn already in the stands with the crowd. Angela, Jane, and the other cheerleaders enter the picture with right to left movement assisted by a panning camera shot of right to left forming a diagonal pattern. This foreshadows the unordinary actions that are about to occur.

• Almost immediately, into the dance routine, Angela is given an upward position in the frame elevated with dynamic composition. It is dynamic composition because there is movement (Angela dancing) within a fixed frame. By giving Angela an upward position within the frame this suggest Lester is first noticing her.

• As the scene continues, and Angela has Lester's full attention, Angela is shown moving towards the camera in another dynamic composition shot complemented by the camera zooming in on her. This gives the audience an idea as to the degree of attention that Lester is giving to Angela due to her sexuality. It also enhances her presence.

• The scene continues with a static composition shot of Lester. It is static composition because there is no movement within the frame. The camera then begins to zoom in on Lester.

• As the camera zooms, the crowd is eliminated and only Lester is shown in the frame. 

• Furthermore, the camera focuses on Lester's eyes and makes them appear bigger than they actually are. This makes Lester look like an animal drooling at the mouth over something he desires.

• At this point, the camera performs a POV shot showing what Lester's eyes are fixated on, and focuses on Angela. This, once again, displays the degree of enchantment that Angela has placed over Lester. Angela is also shown alone in the frame. This shows that in Lester's mind, only Angela and himself exist at this moment. Not even his daughter is of any relevance.

• The scene concludes with the camera then performing a shot-reverse-shot of Angela then Lester. This allows the audience to see that in Lester's fantasy, Angela is dancing erotically just for him and is paying as much attention to him as he is paying to her.

It is important to note that Angela and Lester are never shown in the same frame in this scene. This suggest that there is some barrier that is between them such as the fact that Lester is desiring a girl that is his daughter's age.

Several other instances where several lines and shapes create a visual depiction of Lester’s life are put forward effectively in American Beauty. The lines and shapes form a symmetrical pattern illustrating the feeling of rigidity and confinement in Lester’s life. There is a sense of claustrophobia created by imaginary lines and shapes in the imagery.

The essence of “Color”

The significance of color as a form of symbolism is also integrated skillfully to convey the story through leitmotifs as a visual design technique. For instance, the color “red” plays an important sub textual role in the conveyance of the story. As we follow Lester, who seems to have a perfect life in the beginning of the film we go through the “red door”, which symbolizes hidden truths camouflaging his brittle life. The color red represents emotions that Lester experiences such as lust, seduction, and forbidden attraction towards Angela. It basically exemplifies his desire for her. The color’s representation in the form of props such as red napkins on the dining table, red flowers in the garden etc foreshadow the events that are going to affect Lester’s life consequently. Eventually, as its unraveled by the splatter of blood on the wall just after Lester gains closure and contentment in his life, red represents danger. But the most effective use of the color red would have to be in the form of “red roses” which resurface all throughout the film. As mentioned before in the paragraph, they most eminently represent Lester’s lust and desire towards Angela.

Another feature to note is that the color “red” is used to subconsciously manipulate the audiences, while “blue” is the other more prominent color present just to offset the equilibrium and tilt the visual balance more towards the red in the frame.

As far as the tone is concerned, the look changes from the brightly lit preceding portions to a mystic, romantic, soft yet gray palettes with a striking presence of rain in the backdrop. Despite being a narrative backdrop, rain acts as a pivotal visual device proposing several manifestations. In the climax, rain symbolizes Ricky’s outburst towards his father, Angela’s virginity at its very brink, surfacing of Col. Fritz’s homosexuality and Lester’s dripping gratification, first through an almost long desired fulfillment of union with Angela, and then an innate sense of closure when he even mentions how once he “lets it go, it flows through him like a river”. These choices not only underline strong plot points, but underscorelatent conventions of visual design to provide a course for a meaningful interpretation in the audience’s psyche.

Blue Velvet : The Lynchian Resonance

If one has to decipher the exceedingly intrinsic elements of David Lynch’s mystifying body of work, the significance of sound and sound design would form the crux of his modus operandi in storytelling. Lynch himself considers the aspect of sound design and soundtrack to be an integral constituent of his films. In his collaboration with Angelo Badalamenti, Lynch has carved a niche for a multitude of dark and evocative soundtracks. Blue Velvet is the prime example; one of those gems that composes the trademark “Lynchian” resonance.

Even the visuals complement the auditory essence of Lynch’s approach to storytelling in Blue Velvet. This is beautifully emphasized by the use of an “ear” as a suggestive leitmotif in the film, the subtext being the subversive interpretation of the ear being a physical organ with a hole, suggesting a deep plunge into somewhere mysterious.

Despite having a stirring soundtrack, one cannot deny the presence of elaborate sound design in Lynch’s films. Blue Velvet’s intricate sound design is a characteristic sonic milestone. A fact that is often overlooked is that “silence” is also an element of sound design. If orchestrated efficiently, silence exemplifies the lull before the storm. That’s precisely what’s evident in several sequences of Blue Velvet. One of the major instances is the climatic scene, where the protagonist Jeffrey follows Frank. As the scene starts, Jeffrey climbs up Dorothy’s apartment, and no sound accompanies his stealth. This silence is an indication of “hyperrealism” in sound, as if one were to stalk someone stealthily; the ambience could be eerily soundless. Also, this makes the scenario tangible for the viewer as it recreates the real feeling. Whereas, when Jeffrey proceeds, we hear the ambient noises of his footsteps and keys, which are intensified for cinematic effect, which can very easily be referenced as “The Cocktail Party Effect”. Also, from this portion of the scene, a minimal score in the background, which heightens the tension, supplements the effective sound design. Following this, once again silence is maintained when Jeffrey enters the room and sees two men dead. What breaks the silence next is a radio that produces a harsh sound, and terrifies Jeffrey as well as the viewer.

As evident in the aforementioned paragraph, the heightening of sound effects as a form of “The Cocktail Party Effect” is one of the sound techniques Lynch and his sound designer Alen Splet compellingly employ. For instance, there are several sounds that are exaggerated for cinematic effect such as Gunshot (when Frank is shot), car honking, screeching tires, footsteps, cigarettes etc. Such sound effects complement the visuals efficiently and help in imparting a certain amount of edginess to the proceedings.

Another auditory aspect that makes Blue Velvet stand out is amazing musical compositions at important intervals of the story. Characters have thematic musical compositions at important points in the story that define their personas and journey into the bizarre world that Lynch has shaped for them. For instance, the song “In Dreams” plays two times in the course of the antagonist Frank’s (Dennis Hooper) journey on screen. The first time we hear the song, its at his friend’s place, where he initially mimes the words. Frank is hypnotized at first but then his expressions almost abruptly change to anger. His character appears to have a deep rooted, perplexing and bizarre emotional relation to the song, which is essentially a “love song”. This suggests a possibly devastating meaning for Frank, putting forward his persona through his connection to this song. Thus, the usage of this particular soundtrack in the film helps in bestowing the character with an inexplicable degree of depth.

Juxtaposition of sound over visuals at critical junctures of the story is an essential element of storytelling, especially if its sound of humans. This is best illustrated in the sex scene between Jeffrey and Dorothy when primal screams are collocated along with the disturbing visuals. This demonstrates how Lynch effectively uses the aspect of human sound to create a visually explicit yet subliminal impact on the psyches of the viewer’s mind.

In conclusion, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that Blue Velvet is one of those movies that encapsulated sound like very few films. David Lynch, along with his composer Angelo Badalamenti and sound designer Alen Splet create a haunting atmosphere that enthralls the viewers in more ways than one.