Blog #4

For this assignment, I chose a scene from BBC's "Sherlock" in which the villain, Moriarty, breaks into several different high security vaults using only his phone. Moriarty is portrayed in the series as a highly whimsical, unpredictable, and ultimately feared man. In this scene, through the use of contrast and music/sound effects, Moriarty's power and intelligence is shown.

The scene opens with a long shot of Moriarty's body, arms raised, standing in front of the crown jewels. Classical music is playing. Already, we get a sense of power and victory. A cut to the headquarters shows close ups of frantic, sped up movements such as a man's arm spilling coffee and quickly dialing someone, and a woman's feet walking really fast. This cut in contrast to the very relaxed, slow motion of Moriarty's scene signifies his power. 

Throughout the scene, the music is building up, creating a sense of quickness and urgency. The cut to Moriarty taking his time to write on the glass casing contrasts the government scenes. The camera moves in a very fluid and circular motion, almost as if it were dancing to the classical music playing and mimics the way Moriarty gracefully moves about the glass, creating an atmosphere of whimsy and playfulness, contrasting the urgency and seriousness of the government officials. 

Moriarty's scenes juxtaposed with the cops are much slower and more fluid. When he finally breaks the glass, it's shown in slow motion as the music intensifies, creating a sense of high excitement. When the cops finally enter the vault, the song ends, and the camera zooms into a close up of Moriarty as he sits in the throne, wearing the crown jewels. This image paired with classical music blaring to an end illustrates Moriarty's victory over the officials and solidifies him as a "king." 

The editing and composition of this scene creates an atmosphere of high energy and intensity. By including lots of fast cuts between Moriarty and the police, we can see his power. The contrast between his calmness versus their panic creates a mood of uncertainty and suspense, as we don't know if they will reach him in time. With the cop scenes, we get lots of closeups on their feet and hands, things that create action, to show how fast they're moving to catch Moriarty. The shots of the police are much shorter because it creates more movement and quickness, while Moriarty's scenes are longer and slower, to create a more flowing and serene feel.