Over - Forcing Active Viewing

Over is a greatly original and intriguing short film to say the least. The lack of intimate shots, expositional dialogue and use of incredibly slow pacing forces the audience to be an active viewer, as they try to piece together the few scraps of information we are given piece by piece.




Almost exclusively, long shots are used throughout the short to create a distance between the spectator and the scene of the accident, along side slow pacing providing the audience with a generous amount of time to look around the frame and try to figure out what is going to happen before it actually does. The reversed structure builds an element of suspense as the viewer anticipates the event, more and more happening up until the moment.




One aspect that I found particularly interesting, was the combination of camerawork and structure, as the camera moves to the right throughout, contradicted by the backwards moving storyline, creating a disorientating and confusing atmosphere for the audience. Considering the majority of people watching this short will lead left-to-right, and understand the conventions of a story moving forward being to the right, the reversed narrative directly contrasts this idea, leaving an unsettling feeling in the air. We feel as if we are waiting for the inevitable, watching people pass by completely oblivious to the body, and the police deal with the situation very quickly.


The use of mise-en-scene to suggest characteristics about the victim misleads the audience into believing they are going to attempt to steal a car. The real shock comes when the conventions on the peaceful, steady long shots is broken by a sudden climax as a body falls onto the car out of nowhere. A plane flies overhead. Using the information provided, the audience come to assumptions that they find unlikely (the body dropped out of the plane). However, sinister music and objective, serious text appears on the screen explaining the events of an immigrant falling out of the landing gear hole in the plane, instantly changing the tone of the film.


I thoroughly enjoyed the way this film forced the viewer to take information in the frame and try to  create the story unfolding themselves, whilst they anticipate the climax in great tension. I feel that this short may influence my own short film via the contradicting use of micro-elements and forcing of active viewing.