Mise-en-scene and Night of the Hunter

Mise-en-scene, although a foreign word, has come to hold a place of great importance within the film industry today. The mise-en-scene of a movie can influence the viewer’s perception of certain characters as well as the storyline itself. Our text describes the importance of mise-en-scene as it “subtly influences our mood as we watch, much as the décor, lighting, smells, and sounds can influence our emotional response to a real-life place” (172). From this we can conclude that mise-en-scene functions much like cues that lead us to feel a certain way or call upon a certain memory. Mise-en-scene has two major components that affect how the movie will be made. These two elements are design and composition and they both work together to help shape our understanding of the characters in the film. In the movie, The Night of the Hunter directed by Charles Laughton, the mise-en-scene, including the lighting and set help convey mood and understanding of the story.

The movie Night of the Hunter tells the story of a man, Harry Powell, who is a serial killer who marries women and then kills them. When Powell and Ben Harper are both in the same jail, Powell overhears Harper reveal that he has a hidden fortune at home.Powell is an extremely eerie and twisted character, which the mise-en-scene does a great job at depicting. The scenes in which his character appears indicate that this character is not a good one. 

For instance, in this scene, Powell has decided to come after the fortune Ben Harper has left behind in his daughter, Pearl’s rag doll. While the kids, Pearl and John wait at their savior, Ms. Cooper’s house, Powell appears in the distance. The lighting in this scene depicts only the shadow of a man sitting on a fence as he stares creepily into a house. Even without any understanding of this plot or the characters, a viewer would immediately recognize this character as an evil one. His dark black figure suggests that his presence is unwanted and gives the impression that he is a “bad guy”. The fact that the lighting deliberately avoids showing his face or other human-like features, we get the impression that Powell is almost not human and almost like a monster. This lighting in The Night of the Hunter is a perfect example of how mise-en-scene can give clues to the reader about the characters and their qualities. 

Above is another example of how Powell's role is characterized by the use of lighting. Again his silhouette emphasizes his menacing character. The fact that his face is not shown and only his outline is shown gives us the impression that this character is capable of something very evil. His shadow is also much larger than John's, insinuating that Powell is very strong and over-powering. 

 

Another element of the mise-en-scene that is equally important to a film is the set design. The set design can help convey a prominent mood or feeling throughout the film. For instance, in The Night of the Hunter, the set design feels almost dream-like, which can make the movie, seem more eerie and horror-like. These elements of the set help contribute to this movie's presence in the early horror-esque genre of films. 

In this scene while the children are rowing down the river, the set reflects a very dream like vibe. The proximity of the frog to the camera suggests an element of artificiality. Even the way that the frog is depicted does not look as if it is real, additionally adding to this dream-like sequence. This creates a lost sense of reality to the viewer, which makes the movie seem even spookier. These elements of the set help contribute to the heightened sense of suspense and edginess that give this movie a creepy vibe. 

Elements of the mise-en-scene in films such as the design and composition both cue the viewer into the mood or feeling within the movie. Effective lighting and silhouettes can add to the development of a character, indicating that he or she may be evil or bad. Additionally, set design can establish a mood that adds to the film as a whole, making it seem more creepy or supernatural. These elements of mise-en-scene found in the film, The Night of the Hunter all work together to create an early horror-like film.   

Works Cited

Barsam, Richard Meran and Dave Monahan. "Chapter 5." Looking at Movies: An

Introduction to Film. New York: W.W. Norton &, 2010. 2­63. Print.

The Night of the Hunter. Dir. Charles Laughton. Prod. Paul Gregory. By James Agee. Perf. Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters, Lillian Gish, James Gleason, Evelyn Varden, and Peter Graves. United Artists, 1955.

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