Unknown

Unknown is an action/mystery thriller. It is about a Martin Harris who is awaken from coma only to find out his identity has been taken. No-one not even his wife, Elizabeth is ready to believe him. He is now on a mission to set the facts straight, and prove who he is with a help of Gina a cab driver. Who was involved in the accident which lead to the car crashing down into the river resulting in Martin going into coma.
The film was released in 2011. The director is James Collet-Sara. Cast: Liam Neeson played as Martin Harris, Diana Kugar  played as Gina  and January Jones played as Elizabeth Harris.

Why is it a thriller?? 
Unknown does have an protagonist which is the character Martin Harris, however this is not clear from the very beginning.  It also does not have a clear villain from the start as we only see men which are after Martin but they are just the hired killers. Not the main villain, the main antagonist unfolds during the middle. Unknown has the elements of suspense and tension, red herrings, its fast paced, includes a lot of action and has a lot of unanswered questions which makes it more mysterious and intriguing for the viewer.


















Key Scene of Tension: 
Hospital Scene- in this scene Martin is abducted by this unknown guy, he is injected with something that made him weak. In this scene the villain kills the nurse as she was trying to get in his way, this builds the suspense as it shows he is a very dangerous and Martin is not in safe hands. Then when Martin tries to escape suspense builds up as he tries to reach for the scissors as the man was distracted with something else for a minute. The use of fast editing built the adrenaline as he tried to reach for the scissors, it kept the audience on the edge of their seats. This scene also captured the audience eyes, as the audience wants to see if he makes it in time. Kept the audience engaged. The use of the close ups captured the feelings and emotions on the characters face, it emphasized what could potentially happen by reading their facial expressions. It also put the audience in the characters shoes as they could understand the feelings portrayed by the character. The non diegetic sound was effective as it kept the pace going, and the disorientating sound maintained the tension.

Flat Scene- In this scene there was a lot of action. Again it was fast paced and suspense which was maintained throughout. Martin came to Gina's apartment as he didn't have a place to stay. The two people who were appointed to kill him found him and that's when the action started. It was very intense and engaging, again it kept the audience interested as they want to know who wins this mini battle. The beginning when the guy nearly injected Gina, increasing the adrenaline as the audience wouldn't want her to die so early, but Martin got there in time to save her. There was parts in the action which thrilled the audience such as, when Martin poked his finger in the guys eyes, which gave a very disturbing effect and created goosebumps, as it was not expected. The tension increased throughout the whole scene. Parts that would have made the audience gasp or intrigued was when Gina nearly got caught by the other guy but managed to escape it. To the end when suddenly she comes in and saves Martin from dying as she inject the guy just in time. This particular part was filled with suspense. Also the part when he was in the bathroom taking an shower and suspense build as the antagonists were approaching the bathroom, as he open the door the music started. Tension built but only to find out Martin wasn't there. This then relieved the tension of the audience but again parts like this kept the audience engaged and entertained.

Club Scene- This scene was very effective for tension as it created a very alarming and threatening feeling from the loud booming sound track from the club (diegetic). These loud sounds are very distracting and sensitive to ear. It leads to a person becoming unaware of their surroundings as they are unable to pick up on the small things, due to them being disturbed by the music. This is quite dangerous especially for the character Martin as people want to get to him so he can be killed. Therefore it is necessary he is alarmed and careful at all times. The use of the closeups allows his worry and tension to be read through his facial expressions, the audience can then know what it feels like. The scene was very misty and dark so its very unclear to see, which creates tension and danger as your unaware of what could be coming.

Car Chase Scene- This scene played a major part of building suspense and tension in the film. The whole scene was very fast paced and snappy therefore forcing the viewers eyes to be strictly focused on the screen, as they wouldn't want to miss a single thing. The diegetic sounds of the cars constantly coming by alerts the audience, keeping them engaged. The sudden beeps of cars alarms and thrills the audience as you don't know, what could come his way or what angle a car could hit Martins car as it was a very busy road. The non diegetic sounds maintained the dramatic effect throughout the scene, as when Martin gets close to danger such as being hit the sound increases causing an adrenaline effect. The constant change from low to high non diegetic sound caused the audience to feel the tension rising and had that, big impact on making the scene look and feel so thrilling. The sound engaged the audience to the scene, caused them to feel a concern towards Martin, as they don't want him to die so soon, as he has to figure out the mystery behind his identity. There was about 80-100 cuts just in that 1 minute 60 seconds scene. Every new little action such as changing the gear or looking out had a new cut, which made the audience feel like they are a part of that scene too. Its almost as if they include themselves in the film. There was a lot of negative connotations through the use of the lighting colour. It was very murky, misty and dark which gave an ominous feeling. The car lights was a very light yellow, again creating an sinister, ominous effect. The camera angels varied in this scene from close ups to over the shoulder, low angle, wide shots, point of view, long shots. All which flowed in one piece. The low angle was effective as it made Martin look powerful, and strong. Through the point of view we could see what Martin sees as viewers, we put ourselves in his position and therefore know how it feels. It engages the audience to the characters position, Martin.

Red Herring:
One of the main red herring used in Unknown was Prince Shalla. Audience were led to believe he was the one being targeted and the one who's going to be assassinated for their advantage when in fact that was false. He had nothing to do with that. He was just used as a cover. 


McGuffin:
In this film the McGuffin was Prince Shalla which was the concept of the 'world of food'. Easy unlimited supply of food to everyone. This only just provides the basis of the story however the audience is really only interested in the Liam Neeson and how he unfolds the mystery. The audience don't really pay attention to the basis of the story. That's only there to keep the narrative going and gives the narrative a point.
Liam Neeson Interview:
He liked the script because it goes back to Hitchcock and Noir films. Which both include thrilling factors, twists and confusions. Its a 'nail bitter' as you cant really figure out what will happen. Its hard to make assumptions with this film. Unknown differed from Hitchcock's North by North west as Unknown didn't have clear Protagonist and Antagonist from the very start, however both films had an element of mystery in it and lots of suspense.

Narratives That Apply To Unknown: 

Classic Hollywood Narratives- this narrative does apply to unknown as it includes the '3 Act Structure'. Which is firstly the problem that is introduced early in the movie, secondly the characters in this case Martin and Gina that work on solving the problem and lastly the end in which the problem is solved. So the first stage of Unknown, which was the problem that was introduced and this was that someone has taken his identity. Martin (Liam Neeson) and Gina (Diana Kugar) both worked together to solve this problem. Gina helps Martin by offering him a place to stay and from there she was involved with him. Lastly the problem was solved as he came to know about his real identity and why his place was taken in the first place. He fixed the things that could have potentially gone wrong and restored peace. By killing the villain at the end.

Todorov- this was about the 5 stages that is present in any film. Introduced in 1969. This narrative pattern goes through various stages:
1. A state of equilibrium (All as it should be)
2. A disruption of that order by an event
3. A recognition that the disorder has occurred
4. An attempt to repair the damage of the disruption
5. A new equilibrium has been reached
 How these stages occurred in Unknown...

1. A state of equilibrium- Martin and his wife Elizabeth Harris move into Berlin, both seem happy as a married couple, they go into a cab to reach to their hotel.

2. A disruption of that order by an event- Martin forgets his important suit case and so goes back to airport to get it. This is when a accident occurs leading him to go into a coma.

3. A recognition that the disorder has occurred- After waking up from his coma he finds out that someone has taken his identity. Not even his wife believes what he says.

4. An attempt to repair the damage of the disruption- From the help of Martins nurse, he goes to a guy that is very good at solving problems. He helps Martin to put the puzzle together. He helps him get information. Gina and Martin both went back to the airport where he left his suit case.

5. A new equilibrium has been reached- Martin solves the puzzle only to found out that 'Martin Harris' does not even exist. He in fact a hired assassin. He was on a task to kill Professor Bressler who developed a genetically modified breed of corn which is adequate enough to withstand threatening climates. Alleviating the worlds most common problem. So with his death and the advantage of his research, billion of dollars would fall into the wrong hands. This is why it was necessary for him to prevent that and start to make amends for all his wrong doings from the past. He is then unable to prevent the bomb but does succeed in saving millions and then him and Gina leave Berlin with a new identity. A fresh new start to a new life.

Roland Barthes-  which consisted of:

• The hermeneutic code (HER)- this is the part of the story where it is not fully explained and therefore becomes a puzzle and mystery to the audience. In unknown there was a lot of elements where it wasn't so clear for the audience to understand what happened. Such as the scene where the second (fake) 'Martin Harris' was introduced. Then the scenes where everyone was purposely not identifying or supporting the fact that he is the real Martin Harris. The confusion the character is going through comes across to the audience too, as they also try to figure out why this is happening.  
• The proairetic code (ACT)- this is applied to all the suspenseful and tension building scenes. Such as an action or event which implies that something else will occur. Makes the audience to guess what will occur. In unknown there was many action and tensed scenes. Such as the car chase scene, this was a very impactful scene as his life was in danger at many  points of that scene. Also the flat scene was very action packed and intense. This then led to another as they had to escape to save their lives. 
• The semantic code (SEM)- This refers to the connotation instead of the detonation. 
• The cultural code (REF)- this basically the foundation of the truth, you cannot challenge it. 

Levi Strauss-  Binary Opposites:

This theory was based on the understanding of the differences. He believed the human brain  automatically thought of the opposite to an concept or word. This could be hard to recognize in films. In unknown the binary opposites was the subordinate and dominate, bad vs the good. In this case Liam Neeson (Martin Harris) was the good guy and the subordinate, as he was less powerful due to the fact he was just alone. In comparison to the bad guy and dominate which was the fake Martin and Rodney Cole. Gina vs Elizabeth both two different women. One is much more richer and attractive the other caring and less powerful. 

Laura Mulvey- 

This was the theory of the 'male gaze'. Woman viewed as the male exotic desire and so they didn't have a big role played in the film. More like the shadow. This theory didn't apply to Unknown as one of the main character was played by a woman, Gina. She was seen throughout the film and played an important role as she helped Martin find his identity. She was also in some action sequences, she showed that woman aren't weak and are not their just for show, as she was very brave when she went to save Martin from being killed from the other guys. She used her car and killed Rodney just in time. Her clothing wasn't sensuous and attractive in fact rough, bulky and simple She didn't have much makeup on which made her look more natural and her hair was tied up which showed she's not the object of desire and is actually there to do something not sit around. The 2nd woman Elizabeth however was the opposite of Gina but then again her role did have importance, as she was part of the plan, and she have skills and was very smart. The use of the two different woman showed the audience woman are not just there to be the 'exotic desire of men'. Even though Gina was not 'attractive' she still managed to keep the audience engaged on her character and like her for her purity.