Get Off My Land - Short Film Analysis

'Get Off My Land' is a 2007 short drama film where a supposedly lost man and women encounter a land owner who becomes more sinister than he first seems towards the end of the short film. This short film explores themes of crime,murder and class as we see the conflict between the two men intensify, resulting in a unexpected end to the film as the conflict suddenly turns very serious.

I thought cinematographer George Steel successfully created meaning in the first establishing shot of the two 'lost' characters as we immediately realise due to the medium close up on the mans white shoes that he is completely out of his comfort zone in the muddy countryside environment, this shot was key in foreshadowing the confrontation soon to come between the farmer who wasn't out of his comfort zone at all, this made clear by his costume. I thought the amount of sound used throughout the short was successful in creating suspense, during the confrontation apart from the dialogue and the faint noise of the wind there was silence in between dialogue between the two characters, this continued until a loud diegetic sound is put in place as a gun is fired. I thought this was done in order to shock the audience as the loud gun shot clearly indicates the dramatic increase in the severity of the situation as the farmers true character is revealed through his actions. I thought the time of day the short film was shot in was also effective in symbolising the death which occurred as we see the sun going down in one shot as the 'landowner' walks away from the women, I think the disappearing sun possibly reflecting her emotions as she is experiencing the loss of her undisclosed partner. Finally the long wide angle shot at the end of the short showing the birds fleeing the trees could be viewed as slightly ironic as the character who originally wanted to flee the situation (like the birds fleeing from the sound of danger) has just been killed, her death amplified by the non diegetic gun shot put in place.