Use of Mise-en-scene in Drug Films

    When it comes to films and filmmaking the scenes and the planning of scenes are very important aspects in order to not only capture the attention of the audience, but also evoke a shared feeling or response from the scene or scenes. The importance of realism another important aspect of films and I feel that when it comes to drug films it is especially important for drama genre films about drugs and drug addiction to better get a feel and understanding of that particular film. This is a hard aspect for filmmakers to accomplish because there are many details both big and small. They have to consider in order to truly accomplish the different goals of their films, which in a big way makes filmmaking a true art form. According to Cardullo, “the long struggle on the part of the cinema to be accepted as an art began with its having to get past the belief that it was merely reproductive or imitative, a matter of mirrors and not of new perception”. This art form that filmmakers create has a background in theater and is what is known as mise-en-scene, which has several aspects that coincides with it. The elements of mise-en-scene include: setting, costumes and makeup, lighting, and staging.
    I mention this film term because I think these particular aspects play a major big role in films that depict drug use and drug addiction for several different reasons. When it comes to the setting of the film it is important because the director may want to give the film grungy appeal in order for the audience to get this sense of may a drug addict just roaming around high on the streets. What I mean by that is you as a viewer can almost feel for the character when you see him or her at that low phase in life that the filmmaker is trying to capture. . I have included an example of the type of setting that has been used in drug films below.This is image from the film, The Basketball Diaries (1995). As you can see it seems as though the character is just living on the streets in a bad neighborhood as he struggles being a junkie at such a young age.

    Costume and makeup is another aspect of mise-en-scene and when it comes to movies about drugs and drug addiction it really plays an important role. The different costumes that certain drug films have range from the type of film. In the film, Scarface (1983) the main character was a major drug dealer and in this film you get this visualization of expensive and lavish clothes to give this sense of power to character because of all the money and wealth he has because of his drug dealing. Other drug related films have costumes and make-up for their character in order to try to make their character look sick and making look as though they do have a drug problem or are going through major withdraws this is when costumes and make-up really jump out to the viewer in drug films. Mise-en-scene can be seen as being a big part in films and film making because it implies this importance of connecting with the audience and the ability to put as much into the scene as you can as a filmmaker in order to get the best out of the scene.

Cardullo, B. (2010). Through the Looking Glass: The American Art Cinema in an Age of Social Change. Midwest Quarterly, 52(1), 86-102.

Bordwell, D., & Thompson, K. (1997). Film art: an introduction (5th ed.). New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies.