Mise en Scene

Hey, and welcome to my blog. For my mise en scene analysis today, I've selected the episode 'Pine Barrens" from the television show 'The Sopranos'. This episode offers a humorous break from the usually violent typical The Sopranos episode, while still maintaining a level of seriousness and advancing the plot. Elements of the location, setting, lighting, and costume make this episode easily my favorite out of all 7 seasons of the show. Unique visuals and hilarious one-liners make this, in my opinion, one of the best episodes of television in history.

To begin, let's look at the location. The location of this episode is in the New Jersey Pine Barrens, hence the episode title, also known as the Pinelands. This is a giant cluster of dense pine forests in south New Jersey. In this episode, our characters from North Jersey are stuck in these Pinelands. This creates a sense that they are far from home, and a sort of sense of urgency to find their way out. It conveys an easiness in the character that also translates to the watcher.

Next, lets take a look at the lighting. This episode combines a vast majority of high-point lighting, with later shots utilizing low-point lighting. This switch from high-point to low-point lighting illustrates the passing of time and the switch from day to night. Christopher and Paulie being in the van together is portrayed with dull, eerie blues and deep blacks. Overall, the lighting adds on to the urgent mood of the entire episode, with Paulie even drinking a ketchup packet out of fear of starving.

To continue, let's talk about the setting. As  I already talked about, the location is a secluded, enormous forest far from home. Also, they become lost in the forest in the morning, and are there until very late in the night. They are also looking for a vicious criminal that they have just tried slaughtering, so there is obviously evident danger in the area. Most importantly, the weather is practically a blizzard. Chris and Paulie are seen to be trying to fight this extreme cold throughout the episode.

Lastly, of course I have to talk about their costumes. Chris and Paulie are depicted wearing their usual leather jackets, one tan one black. Neither of their outfits particularly stand out against the white snow and brown trees. This adds to the fear, as they know they will be hard to spot. Later on in the episode, they sport bloodied and disheveled looks after trying to survive in the forest for so long. Later on when Bobby and Tony go to save them, Bobby wears a high-visibility vest and camouflage to be better spotted by Chris and Paulie. Instead, his ridiculous outfit just provides a laugh for the characters, and the audience as well.