Analysis

Analysis of ‘Fellowship Of The Ring’

In the first shot we get a wide shot of the four Hobbits under the tree. The Hobbits take up a very small space in the frame to show that they are very weak and vulnerable in this situation. Also the fact that there is a lot of free space in the frame may suggest that they are about to joined by much larger presence in the shot. The Hobbits are in such a small part of the frame to show that they are trapped and surrounded and under threat, they are shown as small and vulnerable.

In the shot following the camera has moved to a low angle shot. The Hobbits are at the bottom of the frame in an even smaller section of the frame than the shot before with the Ring Wraith occupying a huge space in the frame above them. This suggests that the Ring Wraith has a lot more power and control in this situation, putting the Hobbits under threat. The Hobbits are positioned closer to the audience so that we can sympathise/empathise with them and to show that they are the protagonists in this film and the Ring Wraith is the antagonist.

In this next shot the camera changes to a low angle close up of Frodo. The reason we have gotten this close up is to show that Frodo is very alone in this situation and is also very isolated. We also get this shot because it gives the audience a chance to see the emotion on Frodo’s face so we can empathise with him and connect with him as the protagonist. We have a low angle of this shot because although Frodo may not be in control or be very dominant in this scene he is still the protagonist or hero and the audience should look up to him.

The next shot we get is a close up of Frodo’s eyes in a very small space surrounded by the trees twigs and logs. This emphasises the point that Frodo is very much trapped and isolated in this situation. It shows him in a very uncomfortable position showing that the situation he is in is a very uncomfortable and tricky situation. We also get to only see his eyes because we should empathise with Frodo and you can see a lot of his emotion through his eyes, we should be able to understand how uncomfortable this situation is for Frodo.

In the next shot we get a series of cut ins which are made up of three extreme close up shots of different parts of the Ring Wraith’s horse and his body. We get these shots to represent the Ring Wraith as a huge figure. These shots are also P.O.V from Frodo and they take up the entire frame emphasising the sheer size of the Ring Wraith in comparison to Frodo and the Hobbits. As we don’t get a clear view of the Ring Wraith this adds the aspect of the fear of the unknown, as it is a P.O.V from Frodo we get to understand that Frodo cant fully see what the Ring Wraith is or what it is doing which adds emphasis to situation Frodo is stuck in. He doesn’t know what he is being trapped in by which makes his situation a lot more uncomfortable. When the Ring Wraith jumps off his horse he lands in slow motion, this adds importance and significance to the Ring Wraith, showing that he is a big problem for Frodo and not just an average man on looking for him.

The shot then cuts to a low angle mid shot of the Ring Wraith over the Hobbits under the tree. We get a low angle in this shot because the angle is representing the Ring Wraith as the dominant character in this situation. The Hobbits are occupying a very small space in the frame while the Ring Wraith is occupying a large space on his own. This suggests that the Ring Wraith on his own has more power than all the Hobbits together. It also suggests that he is very much in control of the situation while the Hobbits are trapped in a very small space without much space to move. A lot like in many shots before we see the Hobbits at the bottom of the frame, closer to the audience. This connotes that we as the audience should relate to the Hobbits and feel closer to them than we should the Ring Wraith, representing them as the good guys/protagonists. Though while all the Hobbits are the protagonists we see Frodo gets a lot more time in the shot on his own. This is to represent Frodo as the central protagonist; he is the main character we should be looking up to.

Following up from the previous shot we then get a high angle close up of Frodo looking up at the Ring Wraith’s hand. We see the Ring Wraith’s hand is very large in comparison to Frodo’s head due to how close or far they are from the camera. This is done because it is representing the Ring Wraith to be very large and Frodo to be very small to show that the Ring Wraith has a lot more power.