The Arrival (2016)

'Caffeine or decaf?'

 Produced by Zen Studios and directed by Daniel Montanarini, The Arrival is a short film inspired by a documentary which explores the relationship between mothers and their children (All About Mothers), focusing on a single defining moment for all pregnant women. The dialogue within the film is through a verbatim script, consequently adding that further touch of intimacy, fragility and reality to the production. 

The film begins with Anna contemplating whether to have caffeine or decaf, a question which in normal circumstances appears normal, however acts as a cue towards the situation in which the character has found herself, what she wishes to do about her pregnancy. In terms of cinematography, the majority of the film is conducted through a slow centre zoom in which the spectator feels as though they are being drawn into Anna's thoughts, travelling towards her as she contemplates her uncertainty, almost trying to convince herself of the most reasonable outcome. However, once she spills her coffee, it's almost as if the reality of what she truly wants to do sets in, there being a moment of editing where it appears as though she is on a train, advancing closer to her choice.  

In this scene, the lighting is utilised very effectively, using warmer colour grading, further softening the moment as the character accepts that she's keeping the baby. This is further reflected through the use of sound where the special effects of the sound of the train moving almost reflect her mental journey, yet once she has accepted her choice, a silence coming over the moment. Throughout the short film, the use of the narrators inner monologue is also incredibly effective as it acts as insight into what the film is about before anything is truly revealed through indicators in terms of mise-en-scene. 

 

The use of mise-en-scene in The Arrival is employed in a variety of ways and forms the film both aesthetically however also in terms of indicators into the head space of the protagonist Anna. In terms of the set, the coffee shop appears refined with a more simplistic ambience and slightly exposed colour grading consequently creating a colder and more muted environment. This is complemented through the use of costume and props in which the waiters appear to wear blue uniforms and the door is initially frosted. Additionally, the placement of characters in the film is also employed very effectively as whenever Anna contemplates certain element of the pregnancy and her future, the choreography makes it so that these related characters/props appear/are placed in the frame, eg the couple and the clock. These are all intentional decisions as through these the protagonists fears and desires manifest in the confined space of the coffee shop, allowing the spectator to observer her inner journey as the film builds up to the conversation with the baby's father.  

 

A conversation which never happens within frame, as a consequence showing that all that truly every mattered was that she reached the conclusion of what she wanted.