Clip from thriller film Obsessed

The two main settings for this scene are the bedroom and hall in Sharon and Derek’s house. Homes have connotations of comfort and security, but in this scene the fact that Lisa is on Sharon’s bed breaks these feelings of comfort. This is shown from the start of the scene as Sharon enters her house with caution as she can hear noises upstairs, which she does not expect in her family home. The fact that Lisa lying on Sharon’s bed also violates her expectancies of comfort in her home because it is inappropriate.

As the scene progresses to the bedroom, Lisa further shows inappropriate actions as she opens a bottle of champagne for her and Derek and lays flowers along the bed. This contrasts with the connotations that champagne and flowers usually suggests as it is twisted from the typical romance as she obsesses over Derek, rather than feels romance and love towards him. Furthermore, as the flowers are dropped in slow motion – it reveals the twisted delusional love that is shown throughout the film. This abnormal romance scene is abruptly stopped as Sharon guardedly walks up the stairs so she is not heard by Lisa. This shows non-verbal communication as you can tell by her face that she is worried about who is in her house. Meanwhile, a montage is switching between Sharon approaching the bedroom and Lisa in Derek’s clothes on their bed. Lisa’s clothing amplifies her obsession as she gently strokes Derek’s T-Shirt, which reveals her desire for possession. The wide shot of Lisa lying in bed waiting for Derek to arrive is taken from a high angle, which is similar to the shot from the film ‘American Beauty’ where a man has a fantasy of having sex with a girl he is obsessed with. This is similar to ‘Obsessed’ as Lisa is lying down waiting for Derek to come home to her.

The scene gathers tension as Sharon enters the bedroom and the two characters have short threatening conversation about the possession of Derek. The camera focuses on both characters faces to show the suspense between them. As they begin to get violent the editing increases to suggest how intense the fight is. There are lots of low angle shots of Lisa fighting over Sharon which suggests that at the start of the fight Lisa is winning. She also attacks Sharon with a lampstand, and when Sharon backs into the bathroom we are reminded of the film ‘Shining’ as Sharon’s face is shown in a close up at the bathroom door reminding the audience of Jack Nicholson’s character in the shining. The setting of the bathroom also contrasts with the security and comfort there should be for Sharon as she is in her own home, but feels threatened. The scene is further complicated as the husband rings home to find the two characters fighting, which deepens intenseness. The editing shots are at a fast pace from shot to shot as the drama increases, which makes the audience anxious as the two characters are progressively violent. By the end of the scene Sharon is aggressive and angry towards Lisa as she tries to gain possession of her family, and head buts her.

My scene ends with Sharon headbutting Lisa which suggests she has now got the up hand and is ready to continue the fight until she wins.