Minority Report Shot-by-Shot Analysis

Shot 1 - Medium Close Up (MCU)

Why is it a Medium Close Up (MCU)?

Top of shoulders are visible

Waist is not visible

Head is visible

This Medium Close Up (MCU) allows us to see a few of the people that are chasing the main character which gives the audience a rough idea of what he's up against. Although we can't see all of the characters it is clear to see that the protagonist is outnumbered which causes the audience to lose hope and assume that he will be caught which will surprise them for what's to come. In the shot we can see that all the actors in this scene are wearing the same thing so we can infer that this is a uniform that they are most likely wearing for work. Their hats are quite similar to those we would see being worn by members of the army, this shows us that their jobs could have something to do with hostility. In addition the way they are positioned in this shot makes it seem as though the man at the front is the leader of them as the rest are just standing behind him and don't seem to play any important part in this scene. The fact that there are quite a number of them might make the audience feel intimidated.

Shot 2 - Establishing Shot (ES)

Why is it an Establishing Shot (ES)?

Can tell the characters position
Can't see the facial expressions of the characters
Can clearly see the setting

This Establishing Shot (ES) allows us to become familiar with the setting of which this scene is currently taking place. The current location appears to be quite deserted apart from the characters in the shot, this might be because they don't want to show what they're doing to the public and would rather carry out their task in private. The use of the car in the shot could imply that this scene might include someone trying to run/get away and will probably successfully due so as a car is very fast, this could be symbolism of some sort. Also, it looks as though one of the characters in the shot are running, this suggests some kind of action that might be developing in the scene.

Shot 3 - Close Up (CU)

Why is it a Close Up (CU)?

Can see the characters face

The whole top of the shoulders can be seen

A little bit of background can be seen

This Close Up (CU) allows us to clearly see the face of the character in the shot and understand what he's feeling/what is going through his head. Looking at his eyes, I can tell he is looking at someone and is most likely considering whether or not he is about to do something, most likely to be run away. His mouth seems to be making a smirk which supports the point that he might be planning to run and is probably confident that if he does so he will get away. In addition, the shadow covering the other side of his face could possibly suggest he's either turning into a bad guy or he's about to make a bad decision.

Why does the pace of the editing change in this sequence and what is the effect on the audience?

The pace of editing changes in this sequence to clearly show the contrast between the somewhat calm beginning compared to the large amount of action towards the end of the clip. This causes the audience to almost feel the change in the scene along with the editing and so it flows well and looks much better to the audience. This is because if we were to be watching an action filled scene with slow editing, it would be boring and lose the excitement that you'd to feel.