‘Pitch Black Heist’, directed by John Maclean, is a typical heist-genre short film, but with an important twist. Professional thieves Liam (Liam Cunningham) and Michael (Michael Fassbender) meet for a routine heist-job, cracking a safe and stealing it’s contents. The catch? A light activated alarm system, meaning the men must complete the entire heist in complete darkness. The film has all the makings of an engaging short film; well-timed comedy, compelling editing and cinematography, and an unexpected twist that completed a fantastic film.
Editing:
The entire film is colourless, adopting a greyscale look. The nature of the film and the subliminal idea of a battle between light and dark, means that the use of a black-and-white effect subtly has a massive impact on the audience, continuously leaving that idea of losing all sight in the pitch black heist. If the film was vibrant and colourful, the impending darkness would not be as daunting as the black-and-white effect which means there is continuously darkness in the film, whether that comes through the dark clothing they wear, or the shady areas the thieves occupy during the film. Using the dark and lonely pub as an example; the two characters are always the focal point of each shot. This is because most of the time, the surroundings are so dark that there is nothing else in the scene that needs much attention. It draws more attention to the characters – most importantly their mannerisms and behaviour- which helps us to understand the characters and their point of views. This can help us make sense of the ending of the film, which is a big plot twist that would be hard to follow without the understandings we have of these characters.
Mise-en-scene:
The props used in Pitch Black Heist are useful indications within the plot as to what is happening or what is going to happen. For example, the heist genre is immediately established in the opening shot. As the camera pans through the makeshift floor plan, it reaches a box with the word safe on it, indicating the main goal of the heist. It shows that this is the target and that the whole film is a build-up to reaching this safe. This is a typical convention of a heist genre, although due to the other elements of the film I think this film is not that simple, and has more of a hybrid genre to it. Another example where props are important is one of the key hints towards the narrative twist at the end of the film. When Liam and Michael are practicing walking through the safe, the first shot begins with them walking towards the camera. At first they are slightly out of focus and the wall behind clearly shows a large sign reading “no smoking”. Although the audience wouldn’t know it yet, it’s a big hint towards the ending in which Michael sets off the alarm and leaves Liam to stuck with the safe. It’s a small hint but it hints at a massive part of the story, so after watching the film more than once it is an interesting easter egg hidden within the film. This sort of foreshadowing hint is something I would like to try and incorporate into my own short film.
Cinematography:
The film uses lots of Long shots displaying both Michael and Liam to help to create a connection between the two characters, despite the opposites shown through their personalities. It helps to link the two characters together, hinting that their could be something more between them, other than just their connection in the heist. Also, the shots usually show some distance between the characters, indicating that the two are not close which helps to establish that they are both so different but still seem to be connected an some unknown way. One key shot that shows this difference between them is when the pair are sat at the pub for the first time. Cunningham’s character is pictured on the left, laid back and relaxed. This is the opposite to Fassbender’s character, who is sat forward and clearly quite tense. This shot suggests apprehension, and further hints at the opposites between the characters.
During the actual heist, cinematography becomes irrelevant, yet it still has important implications. Due to the nature of the heist, the screen goes completely black, placing all the attention onto the sounds of the characters navigating the room, along with their voices. It creates tension as the audience question whether they will prevail successful. The audience cannot sit back and watch what’s happening, they have to pay attention to the character’s voices to understand where they are. When Michael lights his cigarette, the shot showing Michael’s face hidden behind the cigarette is dark and sinister, reinforcing the idea of Michael’s darkness. This contrasts to the shot of Liam in the torchlight, helplessly scrambling into the surrounding furniture. It creates sympathy towards the character, despite the fact having earlier heard about what he did as a father.
Performance:
Michael and Liam are the two main characters, and other than one character who is pretty irrelevant for most of the film (Isaac the heist planner) they are the central focus of this film. Michael and Liam are pretty much opposites to each other, and this is shown in their mannerisms and characteristics. In the very first introduction to the characters we are shown how different they act. The camera has Michael to one side of the frame and Liam who enters the frame a few seconds after. Liam acts friendly, trying to make small talk and introducing himself. This is the opposite to Michael, who is cold, and stern. He shows no interaction with Liam, as if Liam was not even there. This has an important impact on the audience, as within the first minute, we are already suggested that Liam is a likeable character, who we can align with, whereas Michael is more mysterious and not as instantly likeable. However, his mystery is intriguing to the audience, meaning he isn’t just cast aside for his distant behaviours, but in fact more closely monitored, as the audience wish to understand more about him.
The mystery behind Michael’s character is furthered later on in the film, when the two stand outside and have a (very) brief personal conversation. Liam says to Michael: “2 whole days we’ve been rehearsing the only thing I know about you is you’re called Michael.” Michael explains to him his depressing past. He describes it harshly to Liam, with a tone of resentment in his voice. It’s obvious that Michael has a hatred for his father due to his actions against him and his mum. This is a reference which becomes important in solving the final twist in the film. With the knowledge that Michael hated his father, we know understand Michael’s motives for turning on Liam. Having an insight into Michael’s past, however small it is, makes the final twist more effective.
As the film goes on, Michael becomes more comfortable around Liam, and we see a side of him we wouldn’t have expected to see considering what he was like in the beginning of the film. There is a short sequence in which he lip syncs to a light-hearted song as he struts through the pub. A connection begins to form between the two characters, as Liam joins in with the singing. The connection seems to be surprisingly natural, hinting at wider connection between the pair.
Sound:
The film opens to a quick sequence which shows the practice layout of the office which Liam and Michael use to practice navigating towards the safe. This scene is cut to the soft background music, which gives a peaceful opening to the film, which contrasts with the harsh topic of thieving. The title is given a more harsh sounds, as a hard note is struck as each word of the tile appears. As the music ends, we are left with a shot of the fake safe, displaying the goal of the entire film. The shot lingers for a few seconds, and on one final loud note, it immediately cuts to black. This contrasts the relaxed atmosphere with a more tense one.
Narrative Structure:
‘Pitch Black Heist’ seems like a fairly normal, non-linear narrative, which makes the final twist even more creative. A narrative like ‘Pitch Black Heist’ that includes a twist has to be able to make the audience not see the twist coming. John Maclean does this perfectly, as the structure almost hints at it, but also makes it completely unexpected. I enjoy the idea of pulling an audience in then turning their perception on its head with a big reveal at the end of the film.
Film Studies - Sam Barrett 
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