Jacob's Ladder

Written by Jean-Marc Rocher, Jacob's Ladder tells the srory of a New York postal worker Jacob Singer who is trying to keep his frayed life from unraveling. His days are increasingly being invaded by flashbacks to his first marriage, his now-dead son, and his tour of duty in Vietnam. Athough his new wife tries to help Jacob keep his grip on sanity, the line between reality and delusion is steadily growing more and more uncertain.

Opening scene focuses of Jacob's ladder. The opening scene of the film focuses on Jacob as he is stuck in a uncanny underground system at night as he starts to experience weird happenings.

Common conventions:

• the uncanny day today situation
• sound of footsteps
• small pockets of light
• lack of sound
• Diagetic unsettling noises
• claustrophobic enclosed spaces.

  Mise En Scene:
• Work clothes; shows how it is normally casual and he is totally unprepared.
• Underground train carriage; makes a dark and claustrophobic environment. We are placed in the train as well and claustrophobia is a common fear.
• We are always placed in the dark, this means we can’t see what’s behind us or what he is looking at.
• The rats show how he is not alone. It also shows how dirty and vermin filled the setting is. Rats and rodents are also another common fear. The wet and dirt everywhere also shows vermin and makes you feel like your in hell.
• Every time something new is introduced the carriage goes dark: This is to build suspense and makes us feel unsettled. It also shows that each thing is a possible threat.
• Poster says “HELL” in red.- Red is the same colour of blood. Red is also associated with danger as is the bold letters. It is also a form of dramatic irony.
• The metal bars, gates and locks. - Implies that Jacob is imprisoned or trapped. Again makes us feel claustrophobic.
• You can’t see through the windows- This creates tension as you don’t know what is there or where you are.
• Shadows- These create more dark areas and give the feeling that something is lurking or following Jacob. This makes the audience feel uneasy that something will jump out.

  
  

  Sound:
• Every time it goes dark the train squeals louder, almost like a scream. This is an uncanny as this normal sound is made out to be much more terrifying and irritating that makes the audience feel unsettled. It also created tension as we can’t see what’s happening or were anything is.
• General squeaky sounds of the train- makes the audience feel uneasy.
• Jacob's footsteps emphasises how lonely he is. The echoing footsteps in the background however create tension as they show how he may not be alone.
• Repetitive background sound- raises tension

  
  

  Camera Movements/Shots/Angles:
• Low angled wide shots of Jacob (establishing shot) - shows his isolation from the world and his loneliness.
• Shot through class of Jacob- shows how unaware he is of his surroundings. As the audience is placed on the train with him it makes us feel uneasy as it also looks like somebody is watching through the window.
• Extreme high angle from the stairs- shows how powerless and small Jacob is. Also makes Jacob look like he’s caged in.
• Multiple tilted angles- These are abnormal and make the audience feel unsettled as they make the shot uncanny.
• Pans across the train- shows the audience all the props and gives us an establishing shot of the train.
• Upwards tilt on the tramp/demons body- unveils him, creates mystery and tension as we wait for it to be shown to us.
• The camera slowly follows Jacob- makes the audience feel unsettled as it’s as if something’s following Jacob and we can’t see what it is.
• Shaky point of view shot- shows fear in Jacob and creates realism.

  
  Editing:
• Slow cuts until the train almost hits him.
• Zoom on Jacob- establishes that it’s dawned on him that he’s trapped. The chains, which represent hell and imprisonment, also do this.