Fish Tank Analysis
Scene
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Micro features
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Narrative features and ideological analysis
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Cinematography
Sound
Mise-en-scene
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The dragonfly disappears before Joanne can see it - she can’t see the beauty in the world that mia can.
By creating an opposition of man (connor) vs nature (the fish), connor is displayed as a predator. By having Connor being skilled at catching a fish, and also doing it subtly with no difficulty, his predatory characteristic is reinforced. This also mirrors how he ‘caught’ mia - we weren’t 100% sure of his intentions with her until he finally has sex with her. Connor also mentions how the fish here are easy to catch as no-one comes here, which is reflective of how Mia is young and vulnerable, and so was also and ‘easy catch’.
Mia cuts herself in the water which represents the unseen dangers of delving into the murky world of their relationship - she is willing to go into these ‘minging’ waters.
Connor in this scene is teaching mia how to catch the fish - this passing down of knowledge through the generations can be seen as something that typically, a father would do, highlighting the perverse nature of him having sex with her. The whole film oscillates between their relationship being father/lover , in this scene, he is carrying out the social norm of the father. He does this again when he wraps cloth around her injury , which also emphasises her vulnerability.
By using sound to put focus on the water, what also comes to the attention of the spectator is the symbolism of the water. By going into the waters, there is a sense of purity and cleansing that Mia goes through to reach connor. This is a red herring as what one might infer is that their relationship is pure and clean, although it takes a much darker, unexpected turn later on. There is also a contrast in the purity of mia and connor being in touch with nature and the impurity of Joanne, who whips out a fag. This highlights the separation between Mia and her mother, how they both have different values and attitudes - mia is willing to step into the water
Later on in the film, the fish is seen to be eaten by the dog. Seeing how this has come after an argument between Mia and Connor, it can be said that the fish is symbolic of their relationship, like a souvenir from a bonding experience they had, and now that their relationship is tarnished, the fish too is destroyed.
The title of the film ‘Fish Tank’ connotes entrapment, something which Mia might feel about her life. This scene links to the tite as having the fish caught and killed could be conveying the message that Mia feels as though she’s escaped her destiny to have a dead-end life like her mother’s now that she has someone new in her life , and is also given the chance to audition, yet all that ends horribly for her (just like it did the fish).
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Scene
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Micro features
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Narrative features and ideological analysis
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13:20 - 15:42
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Cinematography
Sound
Editing
Mise-en-scene
Performance:
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This is part of the fragmentation of Mia’s body, an obsession over small parts such as the waist portray her as a sexual object, which the spectator can later infer was what Connor was looking at when he came in. Connor is watching for an unknown amount of time - he is subtle in his ways yet still predatory, just like his intentions are unknown until they have sex.
While Mia was initially making the tea, connor takes over. This shows his dominance over her and the household (which he walks around as if he owns), how he is a conformist to the societal norm of the male to take charge, while she is the passive character who stands to the side and watches him. In terms of blocking, it is almost like she is forced to step out of any act in the kitchen, she is pushed back by his dominion over the setting.
opposition between her innocence as a child and her desire to be accepted as a grown up woman.
binary opposition of him being the homemaker (making tea is something the homeowner does not the guest) and the lover
Mia could never fulfil the Oedipal trajectory as she never had a father, and so her supposed ‘penis envy’ has not been developed nor gotten rid of. Therefore, when Connor is introduced into her life, this is a new feeling for her, and she is likely to experience the symptoms of the Oedipal pathway, that being an obsession with the male father figure, one with a sexual nature, that causes her to feel the need to impress/ be flirtatious with the father, shown later on in the film when she dances for him and is willing to fish with him.
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