К основному контенту

Denis Villeneuve Saved Jake Gyllenhaal From An 'Impossible' Prisoners Scene

On the surface, "Prisoners" -- director Denis Villeneuve's 2013 English-language debut -- is a revenge tale gone wrong, about a devout survivalist, Kelly Dover (Hugh Jackman), who finds out that his daughter Anna (Erin Gerasimovich), has been kidnapped. However, much like the film's central metaphor, "Prisoners" is a labyrinth, wherein the characters are trapped in their own mental prisons made of internal tussles and moral quandaries.

A central character responsible for solving the labyrinthine mystery in "Prisoners" is Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal), who is first introduced in a noir-ish shot of him sitting inside a diner, as heavy rain lashes against the windows. In a brilliant demonstration of "show, don't tell," Villeneuve and cinematographer Roger Deakins reveal aspects of Loki's character and motivations with the aid of visual metaphors and evocative shots. This technique is used throughout the film to allude to certain events. For instance, a close-up shot of a tree acts as a prelude to disaster moments before Anna is kidnapped, capturing the somber mood of the events that are about to play out.

Although most of the film's key moments were carefully planned out and relatively easy to set up, Gyllenhaal found the setup of the story's climactic scene "impossible" to act out. In 2020, Gyllenhaal revealed in the "Team Deakins" podcast that it was a struggle for him to enact the scene as was expected of him, and how Villeneuve and Deakins had swooped in to make things easier.

The Power Of Perspective

The climatic scene Gyllenhaal is referring to above is the one in which (spoilers!) Detective Loki visits the house of Holly (Melissa Leo) and stumbles upon evidence that proves that she is the child kidnapper. Loki walks into a room and finds Holly drugging Anna, which leads to a tense shootout between him and the perpetrator. After managing to shoot the killer, a severely wounded Loki rushes the drugged child to the hospital. The sheer amount of pressure that Gyllenhaal's character undergoes within this taut, chilling scene cannot be overstated, and the actor said that he was not sure how he could pull it off:

"The way it was written, it was impossible for me to act. It made it almost impossible for me to pull off. I would have had too much egg on my face as a performer to try and pull that off...It's this dramatic thing where I have to keep her [the killer] at bay with my performance, save the kid, and I also just got shot in the head. It was too many elements as a performer to hold."

Thankfully, Villeneuve and Deakins had already figured out how they would shoot the scene in a compelling manner. In order to balance an already tense scene, they decided to focus the camera on Anna throughout the sequence, as her fate is integral to the outcome of the shootout. Loki and Holly are seen in the periphery, and while the details of what goes down are crystal clear, it is the power of perspective that makes all the elements work. Gyllenhaal went on to applaud the director and cinematographer's vision, saying that the pivotal scene in "Prisoners" is "how you see something and how a story is seen."

Read this next: The Best Movies Of 2022 So Far

The post Denis Villeneuve Saved Jake Gyllenhaal From An 'Impossible' Prisoners Scene appeared first on /Film.

/Film https://ift.tt/qJU8VPw September 26, 2022 at 09:00AM

Комментарии

Популярные сообщения из этого блога

SPONSORED POST: How to Find Cleaning Motivation When You Really Don’t Want To, According to an AT Editor

Happy Place is a brand-new editorial series dedicated to helping you live your happiest, healthiest life at home. Every week for 4 months, we’re sharing quick, doable, and not-at-all-preachy tips that wellness pros, home decor experts, and Apartment Therapy editors actually use (really!). Sign up now to get 16 weeks of actionable advice in your inbox. This issue of Happy Place is presented in partnership with Yogi Tea. READ MORE... Apartment Therapy| Saving the world, one room at a time https://ift.tt/ejoIE5F February 22, 2022 at 12:00PM

Read This *Before* You Bring Your Dog Trick-or-Treating With You

The holiday can be spooky for dogs, too here's what a trainer wants you to know. READ MORE... Apartment Therapy| Saving the world, one room at a time https://ift.tt/3bczgaD October 26, 2021 at 01:30PM

Common Causes of Wi-Fi Connectivity Problems

Imagine settling in for the night to watch a few episodes of your favorite binge-worthy TV show when suddenly, your streaming service stops loading, and all you can do is watch the Wi-Fi go in and out, hoping the endless buffering stops soon. You might be gritting your teeth just thinking about it — you and 7 billion other people. The demand for Wi-Fi is now global. In a study, 75% of people reported that they’d be grumpier during a week without Wi-Fi than they would during a week without coffee. In fact, 60% of the same group said they couldn’t go without Wi-Fi for even one day! When the Wi-Fi is down, our internet-dependent world quickly comes to a halt. Our emails stop loading, our virtual assistants stop responding, our tablets and laptops become useless, and our phones dip into our precious data supply. Approximately 71% of all our mobile communication occurs over wireless internet, according to Wi-Fi Alliance, and surveys say we like it that way. Wi-Fi is now the preferred me...