The Film maker's aspect of the wondorous world of Harry Potter and the prisoner of Azkaban

Rating: 10/10 (18 January 2006)

The mise-én-scene of Harry Potter Happiness can be found, in the darkest of times, if one simply remembers to turn on the light. Welcome to the magical world of Harry Potter! Our feature presentation is Harry Potter and the prisoner of Azkaban, directed by Alfonso Cuarón. It is Harry's third year at Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He is a thirteen year old boy, shaping his future while learning more and more about his dark and heroic past. "A true kid's classic is just as magical for adults. " Says Peter Rainer of the New York Magazine. But just how was it created so that adults sit spell bounded in their seats. Enchanted.... Charmed.... Bewitched.... If it weren't for the excellent use of mise-én-scene, it probably wouldn't be the same. No, my fellow Harry Potter fan, mise-én-scene is not a spell, nor is it the name of a character or actor. It is the thaumaturgy of the director and the Director of Photography; it is the sum and substance of the directors' wits that draws you attention to the screen. Mise-én-scene was originally a French theatrical term that meant "placing on stage". It is the use of many different elements in movies, kind of like painting a picture on the closed space of the canvas and placing objects appropriately where they belong. Some elements of mise-én-scene amongst the hundred of others used on the set of Harry Potter are composition and design, territorial space, and the superb use of proxemic use of proxemic patterns.
Composition and design refer to the systematic placement of people, places, lights, camera, and objects. The human eye attempts to harmonize the elements of a composition into a unified whole. The director takes advantage of this fact by strategically lighting different parts of an image, guiding our eyes to the dominant, which attracts our eyes with its compelling contrast. Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint), and Hermione (Emma Watson), embark upon a journey neither one wished to take, leading to their finding out more and more about Harry's "criminal, murderous" Godfather, Sirius Black (Gary Oldman). In one of the final scenes, the audience's eyes are carefully guided from Harry's face of shock, to Hermione's face of absolute fear, to Ron's face of mingled pain and surprise and finally to the cause of their reactions --- Sirius Black, who wears a maniacal glow and a wicked smile on his unsightly face. He really does look like a murderer! How close should the camera get to the subject? Or how close should we get to the subject, since our eyes identify with the camera lens. Space is one of the principle methods of communication in all films. The way people are arranged in space tell a lot about their emotional, social, and physical relationships. Harry has yet to find out who his Godfather really is; he thinks or rather the whole world knows his Godfather to be a murderer. The first time Harry meets, or more exactly encounters his Godfather, they keep quite a distance. Harry stands at on end of the room while Sirius stands at the other end of the room. The spacing suggests a distant or scared relationship between the two main characters. Harry is positioned, standing in a quarter turn, with a high degree of intimacy but less emotional involvement. Sirius is shown with his back towards the camera, conveying a sense of mystery and concealment.
Harry stands ten feet away from Sirius at their first meeting; both look hateful and full of vengeance. Neither knows why the other hates him, but the rest of the movie makes us understand Harry's anger. Sirius remains a complete mystery until the end, where he and Harry find out and clarify the truth about their odiums. As the movie ends, Sirius and Harry stand beside each other, exchanging words of comfort and relief. Harry has just rescued "an innocent man from a terrible fate", and their two-minute talk ends the tension between them. Harry now regards Sirius as a mix between a father and a brother and comes to love him like no one else. The proxemic patterns or relations of organisms within a given space, give us a commentary on what each character feels, without them having to tell us anything. Harry and Sirius start from being bitter enemies in a public space, to uncovering their true relationship as Godfather and Godson in a personal space.
Mise-én-scene . Harry Potter. Director Alfonso Cuarón enchants us, bewitches us, charms us by the use of mise-én-scene . We see Harry's point of view and then Sirius's. When they become Godfather and Godson again, we feel happy and elated for both of them. We witness and feel the human trials and triumphs that they go through. We watch Harry turn into a true hero despite the "Double, double, toil and trouble." Get ready for a bumpy ride!!!