Enemy of the State- Home Learning

Enemy of the State, Tony Scott, 1998

The point of this sequence is to create suspense in the audience, to keep them interested and also to build tension within the shot. A way that tension is created is the use of close ups, mid-angle shots and cross cutting as it add emphasis to the particular shots. Furthermore they decided to use cross- cutting to show the characters inside and the bad guys outside to make the audience feel empathy for the men inside because we know what's going to happen and they are unaware.  Cross-cutting is also used to show the back and forth conversations between the characters. Moreover, music is another creative technique which has been used to help create suspense and make the audience question what's going to happen next?

This shot is an example of a close up used- this CU is significant because it shows the man putting something into the machine and it wouldn't of been shown if it wasn't valuable or important to the scene, thus helping to build suspense.

Below are pictures of significant CU's.

 The picture below is very significant in this sequence as it shows a picture of one of the characters and his family, thus creating sympathy. Moreover, it also makes the character seem more humane and relate able as even though he has "macho" job this clip shows his vulnerability as his family are obviously important to him.

I chose the section of the film that had a sequence of CU's, these CU's were really effective as it grabs the audiences attention as it intrigues them and helps to create suspense.

The editing used in the sequence suits the idea of a thriller movie. The short and swift close-ups, intense expressions and menacing music all supports the thriller theme and successfully creates tension and anticipation within the movie, which is the basic ingredients for a good thriller film.


At 2:16 There is a close-up of the padlock. From the shot after, it seems the two men will try to break open the padlock to get on the other side of the gate. The effect it has on the audience is the question of if the two men will try to break open the padlock, if so, how they will go about it.

At 2.20 there is an extreme close up of the gun. This, for the audience will make them wonder if he will break the padlock with the gun. Or whether he will use for protection for whatever he trying to do. If he is walking to somewhere that is not safe and the gun is for his protection. Or if he, himself is on other villainous side of the story.  

Finally at 2:24 - There is a close-up of the characters face, straight after a shot on the computer. This shows a concern on the face on the character for the audience because there is a clear link between the computer analysis and the concern on the characters' face. This close up helps create suspense as I the audience member want to know why that character is concerned and what that image means to him.


Overall, the editing of this sequence works well with the genre of  thriller due to the multiple close ups and cross cuts which create tension and build suspense which is crucial for any good thriller. The close ups and the backwards and forward motion of the editing between CU's and M S's guarantees that the audience wont miss anything and that they can see what the important parts are