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One of the most important characters in a movie often times is actually the setting where the movie takes place.
In the same way that a character has a personality, influences the plot or represents a certain idea,
so too can a setting just as effectively contribute to the mood, style or themes in a story.
While settings always indicate time or place,
I want to look at the many instances when setting goes even deeper and either gives insight into a character,
symbolizes a certain idea, moves forward the plot, or establishes mood.
A setting is wherever a scene takes place and can be anywhere from space to a desert to virtual reality.
A lot of the time, a setting is an extension of a character.
Depending on where a character works, lives or spends their free time, we learn more about them.
Perhaps the best example of the use of setting to describe a character is the Xanadu in Citizen Kane.
This castle where Charles Kane lives is ridiculously large, elusive, secluded and creepy.
The inside of his mansion has many rooms; some of them almost completely empty,
others filled to the brim with knick knacks and other trophies Kane cares nothing about.
His home seems either barren or artificially stuffed with objects.
For Kane to live there, we infer that he's extremely wealthy looking to separate himself from the world,
lonely, empty and unsuccessfully filling his emptiness with pointless trophies.
This setting contrasts nicely with the small, cozy cabin he lived in as a child, which was much more intimate at home.
About Schmidt has a similar use of setting.
If a character is introduced in a completely barren room, what does that say about the character?
In Lost in Translation, Charlotte and Bob feel confused and out of place in Tokyo
and the setting reinforces how they feel out of touch with their significant others.
As they grow closer and understand how to cope with their fears and problems,
the portrayal of Tokyo goes from dark and confusing close ups at the beginning
to clear bright wide shots at the end.
The settings showcased their growth as characters.
A setting can also be a strong symbol in the movie and represent some idea.
For example, Vietnam war movies usually portray the war as ambiguous, senseless and full of confusion,
and these ideas are represented in the dense, dark and menacing jungle where it's oftentimes hard to tell friend from foe.
In Little Miss Sunshine, the beauty pageant represents a flawed American Dream.
Beauty pageants are a strange phenomenon in American society,
where little girls are paraded onstage and judged on their outer appearance.
The film uses the setting of the beauty pageant
to critique how the American dream is composed of superficial and unfulfilled goals.
The pageant is a representation of those who buy into this false dream.
The family members rejecting the beauty pageant and defining their own happiness themselves
conveys the message that one's worth is determined by the self and not by a panel of judges.
A similar example would be Office Space,
where his office represents a world where people put financial security at a well-paying job over their own happiness.
A setting can really represent anything.
In Life of Pi, Pi's journey across the ocean is a representation of his spiritual journey.
While the meaning of this setting is more strongly emphasized in the novel,
the film still makes the connection between his spiritual journey across the ocean and a person's spiritual Journey in life.
One important part of his journey is landing on the moving island.
While he can survive on this island, the island is toxic and he would live his life trapped on it
without completing his journey and dying alone and unfulfilled.
The island is a symbol of the choice everyone has to avoid completing his or her spiritual journey.
The movie criticizes staying on this island.
The setting of the island represents an obstacle in every person's spiritual journey.
If someone wants they can never figure out what they believe in
and instead remain on the island and die unfulfilled and forgotten.
The movie criticizes this religious choice and uses the setting to convey this criticism.
"I saw how my life would end if I stayed on that island."
"Alone, forgotten."
"I had to get back to the world or die trying."
One important thing to note when analyzing a setting is what ends up happening to it.
Do characters leave it or do they stay?
The most powerful ending of a setting is when it gets blown up or burned down
because that represents a rejection of whatever that setting symbolizes.
Settings can act like characters when they influence the plot.
Settings have the power to leave people stranded on a desert island, kill them,
or force two characters to come together.
"Look, we're moving!"
Characters can never truly remove themselves from setting
and setting continuously gets used to advance the story forward.
Not every setting has a higher meaning but just about each one sets a certain mood for a scene.
Film noir sets the mood of mystery and deception
by placing characters in settings with loss of shadow lighting and contrast.
Another very common setting trope is menacing lightning
which consistently conveys fear or doom, often in a comedic way.
Filmmakers really have limitless options in how a setting conveys a mood.
If someone is on a setting high up, that shows power.
If someone is set low in the dirt, it signifies a lack of power.
Whether a setting is big, cramped, clean, dirty, safe or dangerous,
it can contribute infinite layers to a story.
Setting is an underrated character.
Settings provide just as much meaning, symbolism, plot, elements and mood as a real-life character.
So when analyzing a scene, don't forget that just because settings are in the background doesn't mean they're not worth noticing.
Thanks for watching.
Also, I saw The Martian last weekend and wrote a review on it.
Click the link in the description to check it out.