http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/films/p004pc9y
The short film that i had reviewed was
Domestic by Suzi Ewing. This 12 minute comedy was produced in 2002 of a man who's "profession" is to clean strangers houses who do not seem to have any hygienic stability. Yet this man's approach is very unorthodox: he sneaks into the houses like a burglar (i.e. through the window) instead of getting their permission to clean their house. In this particular visit, a man and his wife have just exited their house as the man throws a milk carton on the floor before they departed. The cleaning man, with his brief case, hos in through an open window and examines the horrid scene of the house. Dishes are compiled on the counter with left over food that has yet to be washed out into the sink. The man, understanding the task that is needed to be done, puts down his brief case and begins his cleaning. He washes the dishes, mops the floor, dusts a golden lamp, and straightens out the bed. When he just finishes matting out the bed, he hears a key turn; the man and his wife have returned. He quickly scatters under the bed and waits to it is clear. Meanwhile, the man and his wife are in utter disbelief with the transformation. The women, filled with joy and anxiety, turns to her husband and kisses him thinking that it was him that has done the cleaning. The man excited by his wife's joy accepts it, and they enter the bedroom. The cleaning man awkwardly lies under the bed as the couple. . . does their business. Once the couple was asleep, the man slithers from underneath, grabs his suitcase, and exits, throwing away the milk carton on the way. The cleaning man returns to his wife at home with a smile on his face and a story to tell.
Many unique cinematography tactics were used throughout this film. These tactics were often used to portray a mood and character identification since this movie lacked of much music and dialogue. Cinematography was very powerful in this film as well to portray the underhandedness of the main character, the cleaning man. In this particular shot, the cleaning man is scoping out the house that he will be choosing to clean for the day. The positioning behind the windshield of the car and the long shot itself in relation the man allows to create the sneaky aspect of this man as his "profession" is to break into houses and clean them. This shot satisfies one aspect of this oxymoronic character as it begins to reveal is underhanded character, yet this shot hides the glorious aspect of his character; thus, leading the audience to believe that he is solely up to mischief. The attached shadows within the car enhance this portrayal as well. The positioning of the camera is also significant in this shot as it creates a high amount of depth of field as created by the fences in front of the house, and the rule of thirds is also considered within the shot allowing a clear visual of the man and the car as it continues to dolly around the car.
This particular shot is when the man is just beginning to get to work and clean the house. The camera slowly dollies around him as he first ties up his apron, then puts on his first glove, and is in the process of putting on the second one. This is a very active shot as the man is putting on all of the appropriate cleaning apparel, running the water, and the camera is moving as well. This "busy" framing helps portray the following work that the man will have to do. Along with that, their background of many cups and dishes also helps portray this message. Ironically, the music that begins to play is very joyful and relaxing which, in turn, contradicts this depicted message. But perhaps this method is used to characterize the man. The calming and joyful music suggests that the man himself is happy doing these manual labors and doesn't see the work he has to do as daunting, but rather appealing. The relatively dark lighting also helps show how dirty and unwelcoming this house really is.
This shot happens when the couple have just arrived home. They had already checked out the new, clean house and have just met up again after scrutinizing the rooms. The women believes that her husband has done all of this, so she says " Your are an angel" and repeats this over and over again. This shot includes the angel that the cleaning man picked up in the shot. the angel is facing both of the characters as this is being said. Perhaps the angel is symbolic for the man's deeds, despite the fact that the women is mistaken. This conveys an important message within this short film: generous deeds such as helping others in what they lack brings out the true angel within us; therefore, bringing peace with the world. This is directly shown as the man and women hug each other in complete happiness. Last, it also seems to have pulled each other closer to one another as before when the couple had a messy home, they seemed to be somewhat miserable, but now they seem like the happiest couple to be possible.
This particular shot is when the couple have just ended a long night together and are now asleep. the cleaning man has been waiting under the bed for multiple hours. this shot begins with a blurry shot of him in this position. Suddenly, the women's arm goes down, focusing on the hand and the cigarette. after, the camera rack focuses back to the man, repulsed by the cigarette. This position of the women's lackadaisical arm signifies that the man is able to leave now.
