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Scripta Alumni - Uniandrade, n. 13, 2015.
SCENE ANALYSIS: WELLES' AND PARKER'S DEPICITIONS OF IAGO'S
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Scripta Alumni - Uniandrade, n. 13, 2015.
Figure 2: Deep focus shot (WELLES, 1952)
The technique of deep focus cinematography has been the subject of massive discussion by film theorists and filmmakers, including André Bazin in the essay The evolution of the language of cinema. He believes that "shooting in depth is not just a more economical, a simpler, and at the same time a more subtle way of getting the most out of a scene, (...) it also affects the relationships in the minds of the spectators to the image" (BAZIN, 1992, p. 163). According to Bazin, the interpretation and understanding of the whole sequence will be highly influenced by this flow in the image that does not necessarily make use of editing (p. 163). Therefore, the deep focus in this particular scene in Welles' film is not just a matter of shot economy, but a way to intensify Iago's cold and focused strategies that reveal his evil character.
The scene continues with the interaction between Iago and Cassio as the lieutenant comes toward him. Now both are in the foreground in a medium shot (see fig. 3). Iago is with his back turned to the camera while the audience can see his plan successfully unfolding as Cassio accepts to drink. Iago knows this will be Cassio's downfall and this apparent merry and harmless situation will turn into a tragic event involving all characters in the story.
Figure 3: Cassio succumbs to Iago's plan (WELLES, 1952)
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Scripta Alumni - Uniandrade, n. 13, 2015.
By using deep focus cinematography, Welles combines the moment when Iago convinces Roderigo to scheme against Cassio, the coming of his next target, and the accomplishment of Iago's intentions in convincing Cassio to drink. The deep focus shot enhances the lack of scruples portrayed by the character Iago and highlights the many faces he can adopt during the story. Therefore, this sequence is not merely a management of foreground, middle ground, and background action, but a way of intensifying Iago's cold strategies as a manipulator.
The interaction of these three characters is captured and portrayed in a very different manner in Parker's Othello, focusing especially on the mise-en-scene aspects of setting and proximity of figures. The strategy of speaking to Roderigo and convincing Cassio is separated into two smaller sequences of shots in different places.
The initial shot of this sequence is a chariot in which a couple is having sex and Roderigo (Michael Maloney) is sitting under it. The whole conversation will happen under the chariot, which is an interesting choice of setting that highlights a sexual environment.
The visual focus on the sexual desire and act might symbolize the mood in which Roderigo can be found at that moment and which Iago will take advantage of it for his plans. Soon after, Iago comes crawling towards Roderigo to start the process of persuasion.
The proximity of both characters calls attention when Iago gets extremely close to Roderigo as he tries to convince him (see fig. 4). Giannetti points out that the proxemic patterns of characters in a scene are of vital importance in the understanding of connections. He describes proxemic patterns as "the relationships of organisms within a given space" (GIANNETTI, 2002, p. 77) and separates into four major patterns: intimate, personal, social, and public distances. Iago and Roderigo are definitely at an intimate distance, which ranges from skin contact to eighteen inches. The intimate distance is reserved for physical involvement, displays of love and affection, and depending on the situation and conversation, it might be considered intrusive (p. 77). In this case, Iago is clearly invading Roderigo's space and appealing to a sexual reminder that touches his desire for Desdemona. As Roderigo is already desolated and has been drinking, he becomes an easy target for Iago, who claims to have a close friendship with him.
Figure 4: Iago and Roderigo's physical proximity (PARKER, 1995)
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Scripta Alumni - Uniandrade, n. 13, 2015.
After this conversation, the movie changes the setting to the weapons room with Cassio (Nathaniel Parker), Iago and Roderigo. The choice of having this scene in the armor room is quite valuable in the sense of matching the feeling of danger and risk of the situation with threatening weapons around them. Then, Iago proceeds to convince the lieutenant to drink some wine in celebration. Cassio and Iago stay close to the head of the table in a medium shot as Roderigo appears in the background (see fig. 5). This shot also makes use of image layers, but in a different way.
The main action is happening in the foreground as Iago hands over the wine cup to Cassio. In the background, the figure of Roderigo is extremely important to the following events in the movie because he is the one who will raise havoc. At that moment Roderigo appears blurred, as if not made to be noticeable especially by Cassio, yet perceivable by the audience who is aware of the schemes.
Figure 5: Iago convinces Cassio to drink (PARKER, 1995)
By separating the conversations with Roderigo and Cassio, Parker fragments the impact of Iago's plotting and diminishes his fast-paced ability to change faces that constitute noticeable characteristics in Welles' Othello. However, the splitting of the sequence into two different settings gives a sense of more time devoted between actions and highlights a careful devotion and effort to the plans that are going to be executed. Both movies make use of cinematic techniques to show peculiarities of characters without having to necessarily express them solely with words.
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Scripta Alumni - Uniandrade, n. 13, 2015.