LOVEFIELD

Lovefield:

Lovefield starts with many semantic codes to make the film genre seem as though it is a thriller. The semantic codes, such as the black crow, which represents death and the CU of the knife, another prop related to death, create an eerie atmosphere, making the audience feel as though they are watching a thriller. The pathetic fallacy creates a scarier atmosphere through the dark, stormy sky, being in a vast field and the tall corn... making it a perfect place to hide and commit a crime. An ELS is used to show how isolated and empty the field is.

Lovefield follows Todorovs narrative theory of a linear plot. The equilibrium is the panning shots of the corn and the CU of the sign, setting the scene and setting to the audience. The disruption is when we see and hear the bleeping mobile phone, the money and bloody clothes lying on the floor. The diegetic sound of the phone being disconnected and the eerie music that crescendos into silence are all aspects that make the film seem as though it is a thriller. The moving foot, along with the woman screaming makes the audience feel as though the film is about to lead them along the lines of rape or murder. We are introduced to an old man (who is first seen as the villain but then seen as the hero in Propps theory), obviously a farmer, who's skull tattoos give the impression to the audience that he has murdered this lady. With blood on his shirt and shifty, guilty looking facial expressions we assume he has killed or raped the lady. When looking through his car, the Confrontation starts. As the audience though, we feel as if he has found this blanket to wrap the dead body up in, however, we see that it is used for the newly born baby, which is the Resolution. The New Equilibrium is established when we see the baby in the blanket. The pathetic fallacy changes too- the weather turns bright and sunny to contrast with the dull and dark weather beforehand which made the film seem like a thriller.

There are many enigma codes in Lovefield from Barthes Narrative Theory. The film is full of mystery and suspense. For example, what has happened to the injured body on the floor? why is she in the middle of a corn field? who was she trying to call? why is the man looking so rushed and worried? etc. All these keep the audience engaged and motivate them to answer their own questions, making them watch the rest of the film and moving on the narrative.

Propps characters aren't really seen in Lovefield as it doesn't have a particular genre and only 3 characters, making it hard to predict, which is one of the reasons Propps made this theory in the first place. The farmer is first seen as the villain. The film is designed to make the audience think that he has killed or raped a lady in the middle of the corn field. However, at the Resolution, he is seen as the Hero. From the situation we see that he has helped a lady give birth and has saved her and her baby's life.

From Claude Levi-Strauss' theory of binary opposites, life and death is the most important one displayed in this film. Throughout Lovefield we think that the lady is dying from murder or rape, however, we find she is not only living herself, but has brought another life into the world too. The pathetic fallacy is also a binary opposite with dark and light. The film starts with dark lighting to reflect the mood and the 'genre' of the piece, however turns bright and light when we discover what really happened.