In addition, there were a couple logic issues that bothered me. Firstly, with the surveillance cameras that the boys used, there was never any discussion of using microphones, or whether the cameras themselves even contained the ability to record audio (I don’t believe that pinhole cameras have that ability, though I could be wrong.) Still, whenever the boys are watching the footage of the apartment tenants, they can hear exactly what is being said. Though I do suppose the audience takes for granted that the rooms are also wired for sound. However when one of the three actually ventures into a tenant’s room to check the cameras, he brings a walkie-talkie with him and talks into it, rather than relying on his friends being able to hear him through the camera’s microphone. Also, the first body is discovered initially by Justin in the middle of the night. The next morning, however, his father tells him that the police found that body several miles away, fifteen minutes before Justin says he saw it. This is something that isn’t really cleared up at the end of the movie, and has bothered me as far as the logic goes.
Visual Look
This film has a really interesting visual look. Owing to the nature of the story, a good majority of it is shot using high-angle, security camera type shots. These are, of course, shown in black-and-white in order to differentiate them from the rest of the film, and provide a lot of visual interest. It was also interesting to notice that some of the regular color shots were also shot from high angles. A similar thing was done in the film Anti-Trust, in which the director made a point of including a lot of high-angle security-camera type shots that fit with the theme of the movie.
In addition, there are quite a few handheld shots that appear to be point-of-view shots. Though some of them are a little bit shaky, they definitely add to the intensity of certain scenes. The great thing about these kinds of shots is that – along with the proper music – they do a lot to build up anticipation, and then often leave the viewer hanging when nothing happens.
The opening credits sequence was also very interesting, as it combined very suspenseful music with newspaper clippings of the “cult murder,” as well as surveillance footage of the cult itself. This does a lot to set the mood of the film and really draws the audience into its bizarre characters.
There was a small visual problem I noticed with a couple of the shots that appear to have been filmed with a fisheye lens and shot with a handheld camera. Though the fisheye added another element of visual interest, the shots had issues because the lens edges could actually be seen in the side of the frame. While this would not be an issue on a television (because of the Title Safe Area), this is an issue for any form of digital distribution or theatrical projection, as both show the viewing area all the way to the edge.
This can usually be a problem when an ultra-wide angle lens is being used, because, if the camera is zoomed all the way out, the lens edges will peek over into frame. The best way to correct for this is to zoom in on the image 5-10% in your editing program and re-letterbox the shots. (Some footage can go up to 15% without losing noticeable clarity, but this is pushing it.) Though these issues only happen a couple times within the film, it would still be a good idea to try to correct, especially with all the different ways people watch movies now.
Use of Audio
As in any suspense/mystery type movie, music plays a very important role in setting the mood. In the case of this film, the score definitely fulfills its role. There were some really intense moments on screen, and the audio really helped to enhance them. In addition, it helped to build up a lot of false tension – the building audio would make the audience think that something was about to happen, and then the audio would suddenly stop, leaving the viewer hanging. Today’s movie audience has become wise to the “tricks of the trade,” such as music that slowly builds up the tension. Leaving them hanging is a great trick to use – it kept me on my toes, at least.
The audio itself was quite good as well, and the dialogue was clear and easy to understand. I did notice that, for some reason, the audio of Justin’s father, Kurt, tended to echo occasionally. It’s possible that he just had one of those kind of voices, since I didn’t notice any such issues with any of the other characters.
