MISE-EN-SCENE

I chose to comment on the mise-en-scene on the MTV show "Teen Wolf", with Director Jeff Davis. I thought it would be nostalgic to try to analyze. I had a slight addiction to the show for over five years so I frequently re-watch it (six times to be exact). Because the show has paranormal plots, I think it could be interesting to see the different ways the directors and editors are able to create settings, costumes, and character portrayals. I am commenting on Season 3, Episode 24, "The Divine Move".

Setting: Deep space can be observed in one of the scenes in the Sheriff’s Office. In this scene, Sheriff Stilinksi and Deputy Parish are seen having a conversation at Parish’s desk, and behind Sheriff Stilinski, through the open doorway leading into the other deputy desks, an unidentified deputy officer can be seen flipping through some documents. Though they are all officers in the same office, the distance between the unidentified character and the known characters emphasizes the importance of the known characters, which is also blocking (Staging). The setting also plays a major part in portraying a particularly intense scene later on in the show: the hospital slaughter. The absolute irony of the Oni massacring anyone in sight in the hospital adds to the intensity of the scene. The Oni can be seen eerily walking down the halls slashing everyone in sight as they run frantically for safety from the one place intended to help victims.

Lighting: Lowkey lighting can be seen in the flashbacks of Allison killing an Oni and her father facing the Oni in his teenage years. The scenes are hazy and, although they still have color, appear grey and melancholy. The stark contrasts between the darker and lighter parts of the scenes perfectly set the mood of the flashbacks. The hospital scene mentioned earlier that features the Oni walking down the hallways slaughtering everyone uses a mix of lowkey lighting and high-key lighting. As the Oni walk down the halls, and as people are screaming and running for their lives, the lights are flickering rapidly and eerily, creating the intense scene that’s switches between the ominous shadows of the Oni executing their murders and the bright flashes of light that clearly depict such horrors.

Costume: The makeup and costume choices made for void Stiles and the actual Stiles were extremely important in this episode since void Stiles has the same body as Stiles. Void Stiles is wearing all black clothing with messy hair and the most atrocious red eyebags created by the makeup crew. Normal Stiles is wearing colorful clothes and his hair is less messy. His face is sickeningly pale, but he lacks the dramatic red eyebags.

Staging: The performance style of void Stiles throughout the season makes him one of the most loved villains of the show. In fact, one of the Top 5 scenes from the entirety of the show is when he screams at the pack in the hallways that they have no moves left and that he is 1000 years old and unkillable. The method acting done by actor Dylan O’Brien brings the callous ferocity and crazed anger depicted in the scene to life and really makes his declaration one of the best lines and scenes of the show (I would 100% recommend the 30 second clip linked below!).