Use Of Camera Movement In 'Layer Cake' and 'Essex Boys' and How It Affects The Audience

In ‘Layer Cake’ the camera continually moves during the opening which creates a sense of sophistication, it has this effect because the images merge into each other instead of cutting between them quickly and this smooth merging looks classy and refined. The two most used types of camera movements in the opening are tracking and panning. These two types are very similar to human eye and head movements and make the audience feel involved. The way the scenes merge could also make the impression of drugs as the camera doesn’t stay still and it moves from one thing to the next quickly like the camera has a lack of concentration and this simulates some of drugs effects. The camera merges into a scene of a shop that’s apparently selling drugs and the camera moves along the shelves and shows the different drugs like the audience is browsing through them, the main character is shown doing the same and it makes the audience feel connected to the man. The camera moves to outside the shop where the camera tracks the character from the front which gets all the British icons in the scene such as the zebra crossing which makes the British audience relate to the man because he is British so they feel more connected to him. The camera doesn’t follow the man inside the house but goes up from the outside and fazes through the blinds into the room, it gives the impression that the characters are letting the audience into their lives and showing them their secret, it creates a feeling of trust with the main character and makes the audience feel a part of the crime. The constantly moving camera shows that there is not only three walls, for example in some TV shows like “Friends” where a wall is missing so the audience just observe the lives of the characters, in Layer cakes the walls are present so the audience is included in the scene making them feel more involved, unlike the purely observational stance of “Friends”. The camera pulls away from the scene to show a police car which is used to merge into another scene in Amsterdam where another set of characters are introduced. The characters in this scene are shown in an observational manner; the camera doesn’t go very close and shows the background of Amsterdam which doesn’t relate to the audience so they don’t feel close to them like they do with the British man. The camera seems like it is keeping a distance to these characters so the audience feel the same. Back with the main characters there is a scene showing all of the middle men in the drug business and the camera moves around them but stays quite close which shows the respect the audience should have because they are close to the camera and therefore close to the audience so they should be trusted and respected. The camera seems to walk around the room and it shows everyone in the room as well as some of the props like the cocaine packages and money. The camera moves to stand in front of the main character on the other side of a small table filled with money and the camera pans down to show the money, this shows the audience how big a business that drug trading is and because the money is obviously used in illegal crime the audience feel further drawn in to the story and drug trade as a collaborator in the crime. In the tracking scene used after this the camera is in front of the main character and this gives the audience the impression of being on the same level as the character, rather than if the camera had been following the character. The primary use of camera movement in ‘Layer Cake’ is to involve the audience in the crime as much as possible and make them feel connected with the main character.



In ‘Essex Boys’ the camera switches between views in a room to make the audience feel involved, the camera mainly uses close up shots and switches between outside views of the scene and point-of-view-shots to make the audience feel connected to the main character. In the first scene the camera is still and shows the silhouette of a man, the audience are observing from afar so they can see what is happening but the voiceover draws the audience in while the camera remains stationary. The camera follows the main character and moves into the passenger seat beside him which makes the audience feel involved and the main character feels like a friend because he is explaining to the audience about himself so being next to the character in the passenger seat makes it seem like trust is being created with the audience and main character. The camera tracks the car with the two men inside and follows them into a tunnel which gives the audience the impression that they are being led into something, when the van pulls into the fish market the camera leaves the main character to follow the other man as he walks towards a third man, the camera shifts between the second and third mans point of view to show the audience that they are getting close to each other and to show the second mans intention of hurting the other. The camera pulls back when he starts beating the man up so simulate being either scared of disgusted, the camera looks at the main character a few times as though to see his reaction to the scene, this implies that the audience are on the main characters side and take his reactions into account before making a decision. The camera switches between the main character and passengers point of view to make the audience feel like a part of the conversation. The camera shows a still shot of the marshes and the second man throws the third into the marshes with the intention to leave him, the camera pans to the side as he walks past and shows that the camera was standing next to the main character, the audience would feel like they and the main character were both observers and make them feel connected as they are both witnessing a crime without saying anything which makes them both accomplices. When the main character takes the second man to a rich house the camera stays with the main character at first then moves to the second man which simulates a person walking to the other and looking at what the second man is looking at. The camera acts like a person in the way it moves, it could be related to a shy person as the camera at first remains with the main character like he is protecting it then becomes bolder to look around and see what is happening. This creates a sense of participation and involvement with the audience and creates a sense of trust and confidence with the main character.

In both films the camera is used to make the audience feel involved with the main character. In ‘Layer Cake’ the camera is used to go into the characters lives as a person as the voiceover makes it seem like the character is talking to the audience and telling them secrets of the trade which makes them feel like new recruits to the business and creates a mentor with in the main character but also a friend. In ‘Essex Boys’ the camera is also nearby or close to the main character which forms trust between the main character and audience, the voiceover makes the audience feel like friends with the main character and the camera movement makes the audience feel like they are in the same boat with the main character by witnessing crimes together and both being silent about it.