'Elizabeth' Essay Analysis

'Elizabeth' Essay

Throughout the whole scene from the movie ‘Elizabeth’, there are lots of interesting and symbolic things going on with the specific use of mise-en-scene and camera shots in order to portray how the main character is feeling and what she is going through at this particular time. If you look back to the very start of the scene then you will see that symbolism is used right away just as the scene opens. This is by having the scene open to a maid cutting the soon-to-be Queen’s hair. If you notice the colour of the Queen’s hair, you will see it is a very bright orange almost verging on red. The colour orange is created by the mixing of the colours red and yellow. This means that orange had the symbolic qualities on both of these colours.

Therefore the use of orange is symbolic as it can represent passion, which is given from the redness, and also the energy, creativity and enthusiasm that comes from the colour yellow. This mixture describes the personality of the Queen, so having the maid cutting of all of her hair brings the use of symbolism even further as it is as if she is cutting away all of her personality and sexual desires like when she says, “I have become the virgin” which shows a mid shot of her with very short hair, and uses body language by gripping her hair tightly before letting it fall to the ground as she excepts that she has no choice but to let it go.

Another colour that is used in this scene frequently and is very significant to emphasizing the message that the scene is trying to give is the colour white. The colour white mainly symbolizes innocence and purity, and this is used repeatedly in the scene from ‘Elizabeth’. The first example in which white was used in this symbolic context would be when the Queen is painted all over with a white clay-like liquid. This is because it symbolizes how she is leaving her old life and personality behind and becoming the Queen, and with the title it also comes with a certain image that has to be up-held, this image being the image of pure innocence and virtue that is held by all of the citizens of England so they believe that the ruler of their country has only one desire. The desire to rule England.

Another significant use of the colour white would be when the Queen walks into the huge hall, entering from a bright white and proceeding down to the thrown. This also shows how she is going through the change from having a vibrant and erotic personality to becoming pure and innocent, by physically walking through the white background and changing the way she lives her life forever. Finally, there is one last significant use of white in the scene. This is by having the Queen wearing a long white dress as she walks to the throne. This is significant as has more than one context to it. The first context is the same as before, in which it emphasizes the fact that she is becoming pure and innocent as she becomes the Queen.

However, if you put this in a different context, you will notice that with the way that she walks towards the thrown and mentions that she is married to England, it is as if she is actually getting married as she is wearing a white costume and walking down an isle. This represents the commitment and belief she is going to put into ruling England as marriages are know for the commitment that you have. Also in other countries such as Asia, white symbolizes mourning and death. This works hand-in-hand with the message that is being given off as it shows a contrast between the huge and somewhat exciting task of becoming Queen yet the mourning of her personality, which has been lost, as she became Queen.

If you focus more on the camera shots used in the short scene, they are also used specifically in order to emphasize the overall message that is given off to the audience. An example of this if you notice the first shot you see as the scene begins, it starts off with a close up of the Queen’s face as she sits there with a blank and almost un-hopeful facial expression during the cutting of her hair. This emphasizes to audience how she feels about losing the individuality that had made her and becoming nothing more than an image of innocence and purity that is the Queen. This is emphasized further by having the scene end also with a close-up which shows the transformation between the previous her and the new her, using facial expressions and use of colour to show this as she looks on expressionlessly and covered in white clay.

Another example of how a type of shot was used effectively in the scene would be the use of the Point of View shot. This is a very helpful shot, particularly for the audience, as it allows them to see the actions going on straight form the actors eyes which helps them really connect with the emotions the actor is feeling. An example of how this is used in the scene is when the Queen is walking down the hall as people moved aside her just like the story of Moses and how he parted the sea (showing the power she has now that she is Queen) and she notices the face of her previous lover. From facial expressions alone you can tell that he almost looks heartbroken by this unwanted changed taken on by the new Queen. Another advantage of this point of view shot is that as they were all bowing down to the Queen, we saw this man from a high angle shot also which emphasized the low status of this man now that she is the Queen of England and he is a nobody.

By Harry Luke Mulvany