Breaking Down The Scene | The Break-Up
(Reed, US, 2006)
This shot accurately portrays The Break-Up's whole narrative. Behind the nice aesthetics, there's many layers to uncover, making it one of my favourite shots in the film.
In this scene, Gary Grobowski and Brooke Meyers, played by Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Aniston, are speaking to their realtor about potentially needing to sell their apartment due to their break-up. The framing in this scene follows the rule of thirds and nicely distances the two characters, representing their separation at this time. At some points in the scene, even the realtor who sits opposite them, manages to fit himself into the gap between them. Brooke's closed-off body language with Gary's more slouched demeaner furthers that tension. He's glancing at her through his peripheral vision as if he is more open to discussion while she rightly, looks straight ahead, after being wrongly treated by him.
Another great thing about this scene is the colour. Red and blue is distinctly split down in the middle. Gary is usually seen in red tone's throughout the film, representing his selfishness and flaws while Brooke's character is rarely scene in such harsh coloured tones. A great thing about this shot is how even the props are evenly split down the middle to form two separate colour palettes. From the messy red painting on Gary's side to the fresh, purple flowers and white mugs on Brookes', we can possibly form a more sympathetic outlook on Brooke, even with her shut off performance. It distinguishes the characters effectively.
The props both in front and behind the couch are not only used to further distance the characters but they represent what the argument is even about. The house was clean before Brooke got tired of putting in all the work and the bed sheets in the back hint at the characters not feeling "at home" any longer, changing their living space to accommodate for their separation. Most of the items in this scene also seem like they belong to Brooke. She is the one who enjoys art, and from previous scenes it doesn't seem believable that Gary would make the effort of buying nice tableware or would be able to take care of flowers. The only possession Gary has is the bed sheets near the window which cause more disruption to the scene and feel out of place, much like his body language.
With most of the film being set in the apartment, the relationship needs to be effectively reflected in the environment the characters live in and I believe this is achieved here. The partition between the two characters in the shot can be seen in many ways, from the colour to the shadows, and the design intentionally reflects the plot of the film and the character's disconnection.