Film still analysis

Alternativer Bildtext:

neighbor, and her white friend get harassed by a group of Afro-Americans. He pulls his car to the side and leaves the car confronting the Afro-American gang. They don't take him seriously and make fun of him. Walt reacts by pulling a finger gun on them and making them feel irritated. Shortly after, he reaches for a real gun and demands the Afro-Americans and Sue's friend to go away. He leaves the scenery with Sue sitting next to him in his car. The scene contains a tense atmosphere mainly caused by Walt's facial expressions and his finger gun. The dark greyish colours used in this still deliver a serious undertone. Additionally, the scene is undermined by a humorous absurdity because on one hand there is Walt trying to threat a dangerous group of people however on the other hand, he is practising it with a finger gun instead of a real pistol. Using an eye level- medium- and over the shoulder shot concentrates the focus on Walt and his action. Thanks to the medium shot the viewer is shown just the necessary without any distraction. The given still is a turning point in the life of the protagonist. It's the first time in the movie that Walt Kowalski cares for someone's wellbeing. In the beginning of his story he was a selfish and cold man, however in this scene he proves that he cares for others even though Sue Lor is just a neighbour. Resulting out of Walt's experience in the Korean War using violence as the only option to solve a problem he intends to avoid that by trying to work out the situation with only peaceful words. In the end he had to use his gun, nevertheless it was never his intention to hurt someone. To conclude, the scene reveals the beginning of Walt Kowalski's character transformation to a more open and empathetic neighbour and human being.