Film Analysis –Fight ClubBy Amber Gardner

Lighting

• Throughout the whole movie the low key harsh lighting is used to represent the theme of the narrative and set the appropriate scene implying dark scenarios.

• The colours of the film are very dark and raw to set a certain tone of direness which can be associated with the actions of the characters and particularly the protagonist.

• Noticeably the lighter differentiates when the narrator is not around Tyler or the fight club itself. The lighten softens but is still high key and shadows are no longer exposed representing that he is thinking more clearly he's alone and is surrounded by less evil and darkness metaphorically speaking.

• Colours can be seen as more saturated and vivid in scenes of Tyler with a large contrast in different lights and colorings. The use of harsh lighting emphasizes the excessive violence in his intensive lifestyle of fighting and crime.

• Some of the scenes in the film feature low key lighting to enhance the intensity of the shadows using no fill light. This lighting implies the danger of the film and the constant tracking of the characters suggesting they are never effectively safe.

Mise-en-scène• Costume: The use of costume in Fight Club immidiently indicated the persona of the

character such as personality, social status, culture and occupation. • Tylers costume is basic and practical, it is very casual and appears to be inexpensive

representing him as a normal working class citizen. This may suggest that he is against large corporations and consumerism. His look is portrayed as scruffy by the use of un-tucked shirts that are regularly unbuttoned and stained with blood as a result of the fight club and Project Mayhem.

• Props/décor: The atmosphere of the film is represented as cluttered through the use of a cluster of props in combination with dark and rustic furnishings to present a dingy view of Tylers lifestyle and representing what type of person he is.

Sound• The main use of sound in this movie is the narration of protagonist Tyler stating his

thoughts feelings and experiences to connect directly with the audience so we feel like we are in his head.

• Other uses of sound in this film includes non diegetic music to compliment the action aspect to enhance the dramatic effect of it. The composure of music was chosen by David Fincher sets an appropriate sense of sound to the visuals being displayed creating tension as of the grungy ambience. One of the songs most associated with Fight Club is the sound track ‘Where Is My Mind’ by The Pixies connoting a deeper connection to the narrative.

• Sound effects are also used to excaudate the impact of certain situations such as the crunches and slaps when the males are fighting so that it appears more brutal and violent to the public therefore adds dramatic effect.

Camera angles• A variety of interesting camera angles are used in Fight Club to provide different

perspectives of the characters and setting. Many close up of facial expressions are used to express emotions and concentrate on a specific character (often the protagonist).

• Many of the physical fighting scenes use high angle shots to display the screen as if we were involved in the fight used as an inclusive aspect of the audience to engage them in what they are viewing.

• Low angle shots are included to establish dominance of characters as a masculine quality linking to fighting we can see who is the strongest and who is inferior.

• Often birds eye view shots are use to set an overview and establish a broader scene so we can look down on the satiation and assess all the details.

Camera and character placement

• Characters are often placed with hidden meanings behind the situation to add more depth to the connotations of the film. The camera placement and movements also provide additional information about certain who characters are the atmosphere they are in. For example this specific scene displayed below in the skyscraper near the end of the film places Tyler directly in the middle of the shot implying he is center of attention as well as providing an almost symmetrical like view. The shadow of the character in the background is specifically placed in the darkness to represent the villain with malicious intentions.

Themes• Strong violence: as implied by the title ‘Fight Club’ the movie features intense scenes

of strong violence particularly the masculine sex. Flash scenes of death and injury are presented as a result of this and hardcore action is presented strongly suggesting that this film is for 18+ and mostly aimed at the male target audience as stereotypically men find violence and action more entertaining than women.

• Isolation/loneliness: Jack is represented as lonely throughout the film as of his dissatisfaction with his lifestyle and the world he lives in. This can be interpreted by the schizophrenia that we discover that Jack has at the end of the film that jack seized to exist and the casual sexual relationship presented with Marla.

• Consumer culture: The film presents a philosophical value to the characters that critique the values of advertising of industry's therefore Jack lives with a plain and simple surrounding of basic Ikea furnishings reflecting his personality.

Plot summary

• A man with a simple lifestyle working for an automobile company suffers from insomnia therefore attends regular group therapy sessions for survivors of serious diseases. He does not need to attend these sessions as he pretends to be victim to attend in which he spots another pretended named Marla. His lifestyle adapts when he meets Tyler on a flight returning back home. Tyler is presented as everything Jack wants to be and together they form a friendship and create a fight club for men to attend as a hobby for bare knuckle fighting for entertainment and sport. A trend is set and fight clubs are launched nationally and the original fight club becomes an anti-capitalist terrorist organization. Marla and his develop a casual relationship which is mainly sexual however they both feel lonely and isolated deep down. The revolution of the film ends with the self realization that Jack is schizophrenic and Tyler is nothing but a hallucination of the mind, a character that jack is without knowing it all along.