'The Giver': Film Analysis
Phillip Noyce's 2014 social science fiction film, 'The Giver', explores the contrasting societal structures of utopia and dystopia. The story, based on the 1993 novel of the same name, centres around Jonas, a young man, who lives in a 'seemingly idyllic' community free from suffering and difference. When Jonas is assigned the position of 'Receiver of Memory' he begins to discover the true pain and pleasure of life that he has been sheltered from. To show the differences between utopian and dystopian societies, Noyce has used various film techniques including setting, colour, costuming and camera angles and shots.
The community Noyce has depicted is a dystopia masked by a utopian façade. This is evident through the social heirarchy, lack of free-thinking and even infanticide. Although these factors are apparent, the people within the community live blissfully ignorant, unaware of the brutal realities present, a point that is accentuated by the Giver who explains to Jonas, "It's what he was told to do, and he knows nothing else."
The Giver highlights the importance of setting and colour as a way to develop and emphasise key themes within a film. To begin the film, the director has utilised a monochromatic colour scheme to create a sombre mood as well as to highlight the importance of …show more content…
Throughout the film a number of close ups have been used as a means of capturing the emotions of the character at hand. This particular type of shot is frequently used to show Jonas' initial reactions to memories he received, emphasising the fact that his community is denied the ability to experience emotions. Montages of memories from the past have been used in a number of scenes within the film. The use of this technique is seen each time Jonas' receives memory, this allows the audience to experience similar emotions as the
The community Noyce has depicted is a dystopia masked by a utopian façade. This is evident through the social heirarchy, lack of free-thinking and even infanticide. Although these factors are apparent, the people within the community live blissfully ignorant, unaware of the brutal realities present, a point that is accentuated by the Giver who explains to Jonas, "It's what he was told to do, and he knows nothing else."
The Giver highlights the importance of setting and colour as a way to develop and emphasise key themes within a film. To begin the film, the director has utilised a monochromatic colour scheme to create a sombre mood as well as to highlight the importance of …show more content…
Throughout the film a number of close ups have been used as a means of capturing the emotions of the character at hand. This particular type of shot is frequently used to show Jonas' initial reactions to memories he received, emphasising the fact that his community is denied the ability to experience emotions. Montages of memories from the past have been used in a number of scenes within the film. The use of this technique is seen each time Jonas' receives memory, this allows the audience to experience similar emotions as the