Mary Shelley’s Frankenstei Essay

The audience is made to feel that Frankenstein himself is evil, for playing with life and mocking God. The sounds made by the monster are similar to those made by wild animals, but also they sound like the monster is in pain, which would make sense as Frankenstein has just rejected him. We see Frankenstein’s former professor talking through a gate. This signifies the difference of opinion and belief between the two doctors. Sound effects are used very well in the creation scene, especially the non-diagetic musical score that has been added. It is mainly in a minor key, but has drastic changes to a major key when there is extra tension in the frame. It creates a build up, and when there is suddenly a pause with no music, tension is created, then when something dramatic happens, the audience shows a greater reaction. The use of diagetic and non-diagetic sound is very good in this scene, for example when the electrical probes go into the monster’s feet and there is the sound of crunching bone. This is diagetic sound. Music is an example of non-diagetic sound. The sudden silences at some points in the scene allow the audience a chance to reflect upon the immorality and reality of what Frankenstein has done. Camera angles are used to make the scene more effective and more enticing to the viewer. If there is a large quantity of movement and change in camera angles, then the shot is used to create responses in the audience. There are many randomly strange camera angles in the creation scene, and we don’t really ever see the whole of the creature’s body when it comes out of the copper vat, this is because the monster was made of lots of parts and wasn’t really a complete person in the doctor’s eyes. In the creation scene, we experience many different shot types, such as an extreme low angle shot when the monster is being lifted into the air on the body tray. This is to symbolise the life being created and is mocking God. The mis-en-scene of the frame when Victor is running up to the dais in his large billowing coat is very cluttered, which in my opinion represents his mind being a jumble of thoughts. I think there are a lot of shots in the creation scene that represent the stigmata of Christ. For example, when the spikes are driven into the feet and hands of the monster when he is not alive, in the copper vat. And the extreme close-up shot of Frankenstein’s head, then of the creature’s head. The doctor’s head bears no (visible) injury, but his creation has huge scars as if his head had been crowned with thorns. Also, there is the part where the monster is lowered into the copper vat, which looks oddly like a sarcophagus (a type of coffin used to bury Egyptian pharaohs in ancient times), this represents the descent into hell that Frankenstein is embarking on. This is mocking God yet again, and shows the immorality of Victor Frankenstein. When we see the low-angle shot of the monster hanging on the chains, it resembles the crucifixion of Christ. There are violins playing at this point, which symbolises the loneliness that Victor is feeling from the rest of the world. There are many different visual effects used in the creation scene, such as the lighting striking the window behind the monster, when he appears in Frankenstein’s bedroom. Another special effect was the make-up used on the monster’s face to make it look more dramatic and horrifying. There is also the amniotic fluid that the monster is born in, when that spills out the copper vat, it makes the audience feel sick and repulsed. Only diagetic sounds are used at this point, there is no music. When the monster is lifted up to the ceiling, the circle of light around the body represents Leonardo Da Vinci’s â€Å"Vitruvian Man†, which is a drawing that shows the proportions of a perfect human body. This is ironic as most of the monster was made of murderers and criminals- hardly perfect people. The editing in the creation scene is very clever, I have previously mentioned the lecturer being super-imposed over a frame; there is also the part where all the scientific equipment is displayed. One shot dissolves into another, which resembles them being combined together to make the monster. The pace in the scene changes from being very fast when Frankenstein is giving the monster life, to a lot slower when the monster is â€Å"born† and trying to stand up. Overall, I think that Branagh has made the film much more appealing to the audience by using the effects available to him. He uses location, costume, characterisation, dialogue, sound effects, camera angles. Shot types, visual effects, editing, and pace to make a very effective film. I am most impressed by the way he read between the lines of the Mary Shelley novel to give the audience lots to think about. I also liked the way he used discreet blasphemy to show that what Victor Frankenstein was doing was immoral and mocking God. I think that Branagh has more than done justice to the Shelley novel. Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Mary Shelley section.