It’s certainly not vital to the plot to explain Sarah’s exact mental condition, and many films that deal with mental illness (Benny & Joon, Gothika, or Twelve Monkeys) don’t always make that identification; and in some cases, it’s often better not to do so (such as Me, Myself & Irene, which perpetuated the sterotype of schizophrenia and multiple personalities.) My biggest concern, however, is to make sure that mental illness is presented correctly and in a non-negative manner.
Visual Look
Lullabye has a very nice visual look. The opening credits were done with a montage of shots that showed the progression of Jack and Sarah’s relationship. There were also a number of really nice close-up shots, such as a beta fish in a bowl, the musical snow globe, a low-angle shot of the psychiatrist to display both him and his nameplate, and Jack and Sarah’s feet entwined together and sticking out of the sheets.
I noticed that many of the shots appeared to be handheld. They were well-done, not too shaky, and added a bit of visual interest. However, the moving images seemed to not always fit with the film’s serious nature. They worked out with the more humorous scenes, and perhaps the effect could even have been increased to add to Jack’s moments of paranoia, or of Sarah’s frantic behavior.
There were few lighting issues, although in many of the indoor scenes the lighting was very harsh, creating very broad shadows. If this was meant to create a mood, it does help a little bit, although mainly I think it’s more distracting than anything else. The shadows worked well in the psychiatrist’s office, especially in conjunction with a low-angle shot that made him look like a very imposing figure. Mostly, especially in Sarah and Jack’s apartment, the harsh lighting really ought to have been toned down in favor of a more softened look – especially since it is mostly a place of comfort for the two of them.
Also, at the end of the film, Sarah and her sister return to Sarah’s apartment, and during this scene Sarah picks up the musical snow globe that featured so prominently in the previous scenes between her and Jack. There had previously been a shot of a tag on the bottom of the snow globe that said, “Love, Jack,” and at the end of the movie when Sarah picked it up, there was a brief shot of the tag falling off. I would’ve liked to see a shot of Sarah picking up the tag and looking at it, perhaps as a way to hint at the fact that Jack might actually have been real.
Use of Audio
There was some great music in this film that really helped to set the scene. I also like the frequent appearance of the snow globe and its jewelry box-type music (which was perhaps an homage to Citizen Kane?). There were also some nice musical cues, such as at the beginning where the beeping of hospital machines melded into the sound coming from the snow globe.
The dialogue was easy to understand, and the audio levels were good as well – in fact I didn’t notice anything that needed improvement.
