Deconstruction of Camera Angles

Deconstruction of Camera Angles

I decided to look at different camera angles used in 'Dracula Untold' and see how effective they were at portraying characters, locations and different elements of the film. Using a variety of angles is important because firstly it keeps the audience engaged because it isn't boring and repetitive to watch, but secondly just by using angles, you can create emphasis on particular things. Here are some that I looked at.

This is an aerial/birds-eye shot. It allows the viewers to see the enormity of the warriors the protagonist has killed. This shot means that we can see the almost perfect circular shapes of men defeated as well as the main character standing right in the middle of them. And the fact that the shot also slightly zooms out allows the camera to get as many of the men in the frame as possible and the audience can also assume that there are more men that he has killed that we can't see. Using this aerial shot as opposed to a ground long shot for example, meant that it visually looks more impressive because we can see more people lying dead on the floor. However, even though the main character has slaughtered all these men, the extremely high angle shot looking down on him makes him look small, slightly lost and out of place, suggesting that this isn't normal for him and that his character is potentially an underdog hero.  

This low angle shot shows the dominance and power that these riders have. Being on the horse also gives the character extra height and having the dark grey clouds behind him shows how sinister he is. Having a flatter shot would have implied that he is more equal with everyone else; being higher up suggests authority. 

This over the shoulder shot allows the audience to gain a perspective into the main character and allows them to essentially see what they see. It also allows the camera to view such a beautiful setting which looks majestic and the fact that this character is seen to be looking over this land again shows power and control, almost like the kingdom is his. Additionally, it shows that he is actually there and it's not just an establishing shot for the audience's benefit.

This level close up shot of the hand smashing the concrete works well because you can see the detail really clearly. The bits of rock crack and little bits fly off, you can see the smoke-like dust then engulf his fist and the match-on-action (the previous shot) makes it really clear who's fist it is by having a medium-shot of his body and face and then going into the close up of his fist. The close up just really emphasises the smashing of the rocks by human hand and the immense strength that was needed in order to do so.

Having the camera in the middle of the battle field on ground level and having soldiers and bats being swept towards it almost creates a 3D effect. It's like the objects are coming towards the viewer which creates anticipation and sets the viewer on edge because they feel as if they are going to be hit. It actually creates a point of view shot for the audience in a sense, even though it's supposedly just another shot, being in the midst of all the chaos and in the middle of the action allows the audience to feel including in the fight scene; all through a camera angle.