Introduction
The film Get Out, written and directed by Jordan Peele and released in 2017, is a psychological thriller and horror film. It narrates the story of Chris, a young African-American man who visits his white girlfriend’s family and encounters terrifying situations.
Main Body
The film is essentially a critique of racial exploitation, and one can argue that Peele’s style and themes shape the film as a social critique by utilizing auteur theory. The auteur theory is about a writer not being the ‘true’ author but rather a director (Grant, 2012). The film employs elements of mise-en-scene, editing, and narrative structure to convey themes of systemic racism.
Auteur theory facilitates the analysis of Get Out by focusing on Jordan Peele’s unique vision as a director; thus, his voice emerges strongly through his choices in storytelling, visual language, and social commentary. The film’s lighting techniques often juxtapose Chris’s black skin against starkly white backgrounds – it showcases racial tension (Peele, 2017). Sound design adds another layer to this tension; hence, the eerie score and ambient noises escalate during moments of racial confrontation. The editing, such as jump cuts and close-ups, creates a sense of disorientation that mirrors Chris’s experience of a hostile environment (Peele, 2017). Get Out has spurred essential conversations about systemic racism by inviting people to consider the covert mechanisms through which racial prejudices manifest.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Get Out utilizes a combination of mise-en-scene, editing, and narrative structure to confront the viewer with themes of systemic racism. Each of these film elements works in cohesion to showcase the social issue of systemic racism by elevating it from a mere plot point to a critique of American society. The film succeeds remarkably in addressing this issue effectively; therefore, addressing the topic of systemic racism remains necessary for society because it prompts critical discourse about inequality.
References
Grant, B. K. (2012). Film genre reader IV. University of Texas Press.
Peele, J. (2017). Get out [Film]. Universal Pictures.