Boyz in the Hood - Analysis

Boyz in the Hood analysis

Camera
Frame- The camera uses a long shot in the opening scene which shows the run down state of the neighborhood the film is set in.
Angles- The camera remains at the level of the children, with them in the centre, showing they are the important subjects and the focus of the scene.
Movement- Through most of the scene focusing on the children, the camera follows them with a camera on a tripod (e.g. not hand held, so smooth movement)

Mise en Scene
Costume- The costumes for every actor are stereotypical 90s American clothing (bright colours and double denim), which is accurate as it was filmed and set in the late 1990s.
Lighting- Natural lighting is used throughout the opening of Boyz in the Hood.
Actors- Young actors are primarily used, to show the contrast between the innocence they should have would it not be for the fact that they are discussing shootings, murder and using profanity.
Makeup- No makeup on the children as realistically they would not be wearing makeup in real life, however the teacher and mother appear to be wearing light makeup.
Props- The children have school bags and lunchboxes, and the main young boy has a pencil which he is drawing with in class.
Setting- Neighborhood streets, a school classroom and a family home.

Sound
Music- Synthesized sounds are added here and there, alongside low, minor key strings when the children see what is presumably a crime scene.
Onscreen/offscreen- Offscreen, some dialogue can be heard between two presumably black males who seem to be planning some kind of attack - then shooting can be heard. After that, the voice of a young boy cries "They shot my brother, they shot my brother!"
Voiceover- There is no voiceover
Dialogue- The offscreen dialogue consisted of two males muttering about how they were going to "get" someone, then a young boy crying "they shot my brother, they shot my brother". Dialogue followed between the four children, the teacher and the main boy, and the teacher and his mother.

Editing
Screentime- The children have the most screen time throughout the opening, which adds to the juxtaposition of the film being about gang violence next to the children who should be innocent and not exposed to this type of crime.
Transitions- The image of old blood on the floor fades into the children's drawings of death and crime scenes, which is likely intended as disturbing imagery. Other shots simply switch from one to the otherwith no fade effect.
Order of narrative- Firstly the blank screen with factual text on it is shown, stating that: "One out of every twenty-one Black American males will be murdered in their lifetime... Most will die at the hands of another Black male".
We are then shown four children walking to school, who stop along the way to explore a crime scene.
The film moves on to a classroom scene, where a fight breaks out between two of the boys, which ends in a scene where one of their mothers is called.
Pace- The pace for this opening is fairly slow and calm, however, this changes once the two young boys start fighting. The angles and shots begin to change more frequently, making the pace faster.
Special effects- There are no obvious special effects used in this film opening.