Exposition and Invisible Oners - JAWS
How can you use an invisible oner to make an expositional scene more dramatic?
Our earlier post — Time and space in staging “Oners” — looked at three films who used oners to elevate their setpieces1: the Adventures of Tintin and Children of Men used their continuous takes to make their action absolute heart-thumping; while Goodfellas used a oner to make us (and Karen) to feel breathlessly swept off our feet by Henry.
But oners can also be more invisible and that can be a great way to make expositional scenes more dynamic and dramatic. In this little series we are going to look at scenes from Jaws (1975), Mad Max (1979) and the under-seen Thunderheart (1992) (shot by the legendary Roger Deakins!).
First up, lets deep dive into —
JAWS
This classic scene is a gold-standard exemplar of the invisible oner mastered by Spielberg (see the great Every Frame A Painting on the Spielberg Oner).
The exposition in this scene works dramatically because the Mayor wants something — for the beach to remain open — and his tactic is to intimidate Chief Brody. Visually, Spielberg underscores this power dynamic masterfully.
The Mayor’s words are very measured. But his body language is domineering. Look at how Brody is pushed not just against the side of the barge, but to the very edge of the frame. Five pairs of eyelines all staring at him. The composition makes us feel with Brody: this is a shakedown.
The camera is locked to the boat and, other than the opening pan, doesn’t move. The visual dynamism comes from the background that swooshes around the barge (much like the vehicle-mounted GoPro shots that are common now).
But that background action is timed perfectly with the words of the Mayor and his cronies. It visually reinforces what they are saying: that Amity is a Summer Town.
The Mayor pulls Brody into a mid-sized 3S. This is the second “shot” of the scene but its constructed via blocking rather than cutting. But Brody isn’t having it —
So the Mayor brings Brody into a quiet one-on-one. It’s our third “shot”, a tighter 2S. The Mayor lowers his voice. And we are closer to them both. The wide angle lens putting us inside the conversation, so it feels more intimate… and more threatening. The Mayor wins.
In this 1m43s scene, we’ve gone through 3x shot sizes that shape the scene dramatically. We start in a group wide shot, move into a mid 3S, and then end in this tighter 2S. It ultimately comes down to the battle of wills between these two characters.
And the invisible oner make us feel Brody’s journey in this scene. We feel his power slip away. It’s just fantastic visual storytelling.
Spielberg is a master of showing power dynamics in his blocking. Something we’ll deep dive into more in another Shot Zero deep dive.
Stay tuned for our posts on Mad Max and Thunderheart. They both approach their invisible oners differently from Jaws.
Any thoughts to share? Leave a comment!
IMDB
What Is a Set Piece in Filmmaking? https://www.masterclass.com/articles/learn-about-the-role-of-set-pieces-in-screenwriting