'The Arrival' Zen Design Studios 2016 Analysis By Connor Hilton

'The Arrival' Zen Design Studios 2016

Research By Connor Hilton

About the film:

A character named Anna sits and waits inside a coffee shop contemplating a big decision. The whole film is shot in one take and is narrated by the main character. She is deciding whether or not to keep a baby and is waiting for her partner to get there so she can talk to them about it.

Concepts: 

• Narrative
•  Representation
• Media Language

Analysis:

Title Screen

As you can see, the title screen is very simple yet effective, which relates to the film because it is shot all in one take which is also simple yet effective when done right. 

• In the first shot we seen Anna, the main character, come in through a frosty door into the warmth of a cafe.
• The waiter approaches her table and she orders a coffee, which we hear through diegetic dialogue.
• After a brief moment we here diegetic dialogue of Anna's voice, however, the voice is much louder and clearer so it is indicated that we are hearing Anna's thoughts.
• She thinks "I should've ordered a decaf or a tea...No it's fine", this is enigmatic as it makes us wonder why she wouldn't want a normal coffee while also showing indecisiveness. This furthers the plot.

Long Shot of Anna Entering Cafe

• We learn that Anna is waiting for somebody and has arrived early, giving herself some time to think about what she is going to say "You...We made me pregnant", this is showing that she initially gave the man the responsibility and then corrected herself.
• We also learn through diegetic dialogue that Anna is pregnant and is deciding whether to keep the baby or not, this is a very political issue that many women struggle with in their lives so it is a feminine issue. 
• This reveals the answer to the question as to why she thought she should have a decaf or a tea. 
• As the film continues the plot becomes more enticing because more details are being revealed which attracts the audience into the film.
• It is also indicated that Anna planned on aborting the pregnancy, yet hasn't fully decided.
   

  

  LS of Anna Contemplating her decision

   
• Next, Anna begins to question the amount of time she has left.
• The camera slowly zooms in from the LS and the shot begins to shrink within the frame.
• This could relate to Anna's diegetic dialogue about time and how much she has left to have children and that amount of time shrinking.
• A younger couple enters the cafe and Anna watches as they walk to the counter holding hands, envious of what they have.
  

  

  Mid Shot of Anna watching young couple

• Anna then begins to think about the other possibilities she has in this decision.
• We hear this through more diegetic dialogue "What if he wants to keep it?" , "We're not in love." and "I can't even remember what colour his eyes are...they're blue".
• All of this links to her being even more indecisive about the big decision that is faced by the social group of women all the time.

• Lastly, we see another mid shot of Anna, but, her eyes are locked onto something. 
• Her body language is frozen and suggests she is uncomfortable.
• We hear a child's cry via a diegetic sound, revealing what she is looking at. 
• Anna overflows her coffee with milk because she was focused on the child entering the cafe.
• After this disruption, she starts to think about what the baby will be like, indicating that she has now changed her mind and wants to keep the baby. 
• We hear through diegetic dialogue "Will it be a girl or a boy?"and "What if it's twins?" which further suggests that she wants to keep the child. 

Overview:

Narrative:

The narrative is linear, Anna starts off  with the mindset that she wants to abort the pregnancy, however with the time she has to think, she realizes that she may want to keep the baby. There are certain key events that fit into the plot such as the young couple entering the cafe, the child entering the cafe and her spilling the coffee as she realizes that she may want to keep the baby. I don't however, feel that the story follows Todorov's theory because there are parts of the plot that are missing, there doesn't seem to be a final equilibrium, Anna hasn't fully decided or discussed anything with her partner. This means that the narrative is open ended, it leaves the viewer to decide what happened. 

Representation:

The arrival shows some key examples of issues that face the social group of women and young couples deciding to have a baby. The baby is the result of a 'one night stand', which is another social issue that faces the social group. It shows that the decision to keep a baby is tough and should be thought about thoroughly.  

The Short Film (The Arrival):