Cape Fear Analysis

Cape Fear is a 1991 crime thriller. It is directed by Martin Scorsese. The screen play is written by James R. Webb. The film stars Robert De Niro, Nick Nolte and Jessica Lange.

The film opens to a view overlooking a dark, gloomy sea with low key lighting and there is the sound of a thunderstorm in the background. The water is a dark colour which means it is deep, giving the sense of drowning and claustrophobia. The opening music is creepy and solid which adds a dramatic sense to the opening which sets in the standard of the film for the audience to expect. The music represents the male leads mind as it is loud, strange and changes in speed a lot. The storm also represents him as a person as it powerful yet confusing and angry.
Images start appearing in the water, all the images have connotations with the main character, the pictures also create confusion for the audience as nothing is yet explained to them. The images reflect how the male lead sees the world. The eagle is a predatory bird, it represents power and determination. The eyes show a  phsycological side to him, it makes the audience wonder if he has something wrong with him. The first eye shown is scared and the second is determined, this shows two different sides to a thriller.
The screen is drowned with the colour red. The colour red has connotations with danger, blood and power, these three factors put together create the idea of war and fear which is perfect for some types of thrillers.
The font used in the opening titles is jaggered and sharp which are both connotated with the thiller genre.
Direct address is used this takes opens the film on a personal level and makes the audience feel more involved as the girl is talking to the audience. No body knows who she is yet, she is wearing a white top, buttoned up to the top, this represents innocence but also makes the audience wonder if she has OCD.
The audience meet the male lead in his prison cell, this immediatly tells the auidence that he is the antagonist, as no hero is stereotypically in a prison cell. There are pictures of powerful people on his wall, this shows he is perhapes violant and maybe aspires to be like them or have their power or control. He has tattoos which are connotated with power and criminals which suggests he has power over everyone else through fear. The tattoo shown is large on his back, it is of scales which represent justice - An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. This suggests he wants revenge but the audience aren't aware what for.
An officer walks him out of the prison but he walks in front, this shows the audience that he fears no one and considers himself to be more important then the officer. No one says anything to him on the way out which suggests that everyone fears him. He walks straight to the camera, this shows power and that he will take over everyone and get revenge.

By Natalie Grant