Uniforms

               We all know little Miley Cyrus as the cute teen pop star, "Hannah Montana". Her TV show on Disney channel captured the love and tremendous attention from millions of little girls all around the world. Her songs, bubbly personality, and trendy style inspired her fans and ultimately molded her reputation as the warm hearted, goodie two shoe pop star. However, as Miley started to mature, we saw that she outgrew her beloved innocence and wanted to break free from her reputation, and create a whole new image of herself. The images above show the drastic difference from young and sweet Miley, to grown up and unique Miley. This shocked the public and caused many complications with her vast fan base. Now, we see that Miley's hair cut is a type of "uniform", or cover for her, even when she may not even realize it.
                As Miley got older and grew out of her Hannah Montana stage, she deeply desired to make a new name for herself that reflected who she is now, instead of keeping the reputation she had as an early teen. One of the most significant examples of this is her new hair. At first, one may think that getting a totally new hair cut isn't a big deal since it's just hair. However, as we see above, Miley's new hair cut had created a whole new image for her. It's not something you typically see everyday, and I definitely think that is what Miley was going for. The phrase, "everyone must wear a uniform, but everyone must deny wearing one", from Paul Fussell's book, Uniforms: Why We Are What We Wear is a good interpretation of how Mileys new hair cut acts as a "uniform". Even though she may not realize it, her hair cut is a symbol of the way she wants people to view her and her personality. Miley may have decided to style her hair this way just because she wanted something new and was being spontaneous. However, to the public, we can infer that she chose to get her hair done this way because she wanted to show the world that she is her own unique person, and doesn't care to be what everyone else wants her to be. She's not a little girl anymore, and she wants everyone to realize that.
                  In the book, Uniforms: Why We Are What We Wear, Paul Fussel states, "it is equally unlikely that people in general will abandon their secret pride in being identifiably themselves and imagining themselves honored for their originality in appearance". Mileys hair acts a symbol of her new originality and spunky personality. The quote above makes it clear that people will change their appearance in the hopes off obtaining a certain image of themselves, and we saw Miley try to do so with her hair cut.
             

How The World Shapes Us

           There are endless ways that the influences in our lives shape who we are and how we behave. These aspects range from the small influences like school or our community, to huge influences like our state or country. And of these influences, I feel that family is a huge one that a lot of us don't usually regonize or acknowledge. As we grow up, we become so used to the things that each family member shares, that we don't realize that it is those things that shape who we are. For example, rules. Every family has their own set of rules that the parents set up (usually at an early age) to maintain stability within the household. And since you grow up following these, they ultimately shape who you are and how you act when you are not around your family. That is why when you go to a friends house, you are very likely to act in the same way to do at your own house because that is what you're used to. And since each family differs with their rules, individuals from different familes will find themselves reacting differently to a situation than the other person. This is because something that seems compeltely normal to one individual, might seem insane to another individual due to how they were raised. Also, the things that your parents make sure are important aspects of your life, like religion or getting good grades, also shape you as a person. If religion is a big part of your life, that is going to influence the way you behave for the rest of your life. Even when you go to college, religion is still going to be apart of you. Overall, I feel that our world completely shapes us as individuals, and creates the world that we inhabit.

Double Indemnity: still shot

              Although you may not be focussing on it while viewing this particular scene, there is a large amount of information being portrayed to the viewer in this shot. This was taken towards the end of the movie, when Phyllis and Neff are meeting at Phyllis' house, and they are unaware that they both have a plan to murder each other. There is a lot going on in the shot, such as the body language of the human figures, the lighting/shadows, the furniture placement, and more. The director took this shot in a way that it shows the vast amount of space between Phyllis and Neff. So right off the bat, we get a sense that this scene is going to be a lot different than the others because the two are usually very close in all the other scenes. We see that Phyllis is lying down looking relaxed, while Neff is standing and looking cautious of what is to come out of this visit. The shadow of Neff at the door creates a mysterious mood because that is basically the only light we see in the image since the whole shot is mostly in the dark. In all, the shadows of Neff and the windows makes the viewer feel uncertain but also very compelled for what is to come next. The shot is also taken so we see that the furniture makes a clear path from Neff to Phyllis, connecting the two from the start, even though they aren't even near each other yet. I like how we are able to see the front of Neff, but only a portion of Phyllis since the chair is blocking the majority of her. The fact that Neff keeps the door open and stands there for a second before closing it instead of just walking in and shutting it right away adds to the uncertain feeling the viewer is feeling throughout this scene. The smoke from Phyllis' cigarette creates a barrier in between the two, which tells the reader there is something foggy and off between them.

Minority Report Still Image Blog

              In this particular image, the characters, Agatha and John Anderton, are being focused on and centered. The image is capturing the closeness between the two and the intensity within each of them intertwined. The crossing of the heads is what draws the viewers attention because this is a shot that is not very commonly captured. Also, the fierceness in both of their eyes is eye catching as well because it lets the viewer know that whatever is happening right now is very significant to the films plot. 

             According to the grid, we see that their faces and the light is what is being backgrounded, while the contact between the two heads is what is being foregrounded. Since Agatha and John's faces are at the end on either side, and they are both looking directly at open space, the viewer can infer that they are both thinking deeply about the future and what is to come in the next moments. I feel as though the eyes are one of the more important elements of the image since both sets of eyes are in the light. They seem to catch my attention more than anything else. After all, the element of eyes has been a key motif throughout this film, so combining the intense energy and the light framing their eyes shows the viewer that this image is important in understanding what's to come next. 

             The lighting in the scene is extremely prevalent in this image. Overall, the image is mostly dark which creates a mysterious and suspenseful feeling within the viewer. However, on either side of the image there is a light shining on both of the characters faces. Since their faces are the only aspects of the picture that are lit up, we can infer that at this point in the movie, they are the two people that are doing good while everything else that is happening is questionable and uncertain, thus why everything else in the image are in shadows. The different expressions of each of their faces are very distinct and go along perfectly with the overall scene in which this image is from. We see Agatha here with a wide eyed, somewhat worried look on her face since she is the one that keeps repeating "you have a choice" to John. And we see John with a very serious and determined expression because it's clear he knows what he wants to do and won't let anyone stop him from finding out the truth he has been seeking for so long. However, even without knowing the background information about the film, the two sides to this image are so distinct that a viewer could easily tell that there is a conflict between the characters thinking due to their expressions and the way the light hits each of their faces. 

             This image is a full close-up shot. This type of shot is perfect for what the director was trying to capture in the scene. Having the shot be so close-up of their faces gave us a chance to depict their expressions and also see the close contact between the two characters, and how they are basically represented as one individual with opposing thoughts. If the director took the shot in a full shot or a medium full shot, the image would be much less significant. The excess background in those shots would of easily taken away from what the director meant for us to pay attention to. This type of shot contributes to how we understand these characters because the close-up image allows us to get more personal with the characters thinking, which increases the amount of impact the film has on us. 

             I feel that the way the two characters are positioned is very significant in the image. Like I mentioned earlier, the extreme closeness of the two makes us feel like they are intertwined into one. And since we can't see their bodies, the viewer only sees a neck with two faces. Since Agatha is focusing her attention up and the light is hitting her face from that angle as well, she can be portrayed as John's conscious and logical side, because she is the one telling his that what he is doing isn't worth it and he has a choice. And since John's vision is looking straight forward and determined, he can be portrayed as his regular self. This contrast that Agatha and John create of what's right and what's wrong is prevalent throughout the whole movie. Overall, there is a lot of bad and a lot of good in the movie and the question of what is considered right and wrong or what is considered good and bad is always present throughout the film.