I have been enrolled in an Intro to Film class this year and I have such a stronger appreciation for this form of art. We recently viewed The Gift and I have a few thoughts on the movie, its level of importance when it comes to elements like suspense, and why digging deeper into movies is important.

The film The Gift, directed by Joel Edgerton, is a mystery/thriller that stars Jason Bateman, Rebecca Hall, and Joel Edgerton himself. Bateman and Hall play a married couple, Simon and Robyn who recently move to California from Chicago. While shopping one day, then encounter Gordo - played by Edgerton - who was an acquaintance from Simon’s past. As the film develops, the couple’s lives began to swirl into a terrifying spin. As the storyline develops, a series of questionable, troubling events occur with Gordo through his many uninvited encounters and strange gifts that he leaves for Simon and Robyn. Slowly, Simon begins to get uncomfortable with what is going on with Gordo while Robyn does not think he means anything by it. This causes mild tension between her and her husband. As Robyn dives into what could be really going on, she discovers a dark secret about her Simon’s past and questions how well she truly knows her husband. After a while and continuous strange events, Simon tells Gordon to stay away from him and his wife in hopes of bringing this all to an end. Robyn soon discovers the secret, which was that Simon spread a lie that, in high school, Gordo was being molested by an older boy. This fabricated story ruined Gordo’s life when his father found out and almost beat him to death. As the end of the fiml approaches and Robyn finds out she is pregnant, the film takes an unsettling twist when she goes to deliver her baby. Gordo left “gifts” for Simon which expressed how he had a key to their house, had drugged Robyn, and may or may not have raped her, leaving the question who is actually the father of her baby. This sends Simon into devastation as he realizes that he might not only be losing his wife, but he might not be the father of their baby. The film ends leaving the viewers wondering who is truly the father.

Suspense, a major film element, plays a large, important role through The Gift. Suspense is the feeling of anxiousness about not knowing what is going to happen, but hoping that there will be some sort of resolution to what will occur. There are various examples of success throughout the film. The first main, direct form of suspense is when Robyn and Simon’ dog, Mr. Bojangles or Jangles, goes missing and they believe that Gordo is the one who stole him. One late night, Robyn thinks she hears something outside and goes to check on what it might be. The director works with dark lighting and certain framework that only allows the audience to see a little bit of the environment at a time. The camera bounces back and forth between Robyn and a dark hallway leading to a door going outside. All of a sudden, Jangles jumps up at the window. The suspense present here lets the viewer know that something is going to happen but does not let on exactly what it is, hooking the audience and keeping them wanting more. Another strong example of suspense is towards the end of the film when Gordon was at the hospital and Simon was home opening the “gifts” that was left by Gordo. When Simon opens the lst gift and watches the video, the audience is left wondering what they are going to see. The plot twist in the video is when Gordo is wearing a mask about to potentially rape Robyn, the suspense increases as the viewers wonder if he really follows through with what looks like is going to happen. This kind of suspense evokes an unsettling feeling in the viewers that they want to resolve, thus brushing against the feeling of hope that gives room for suspense to take place.

Suspense works best when building off of more suspense. To have underlying/background suspense throughout the film makes for effective suspenseful feelings from the viewer. Overall, the director did an exquisite job of controlling information that the characters knew about each other thus allowing the viewer to watch in anxious suspense.

Movies are an important part of today’s culture. As I have begun to dig deeper into certain elements of films, I have come across so many underlying meanings that can be used in daily life. There are mechanisms and techniques that allow viewers to look deeper into the art form. Do yourself a favor: grab some popcorn, pop on a movie, and think more in depth of what the directors and producers really want you to see. Give yourself a chance to open up and be affected by whatever message is being delivered. You will not regret it.