The Hate U Give Essay

Introduction

The film ‘The Hate U Give,’ directed by George Tillman Jr is based on the 2017 novel written by Angie Thomas about a black teenage girl, Starr Carter, who witnesses her innocent childhood best friend's murder by the hands of a policeman. The scene I have chosen to study in this film is the protest scene. This scene shows Starr standing on top of a car and yelling to the police through a megaphone about how her friend, Khalil, was innocent and unjustly murdered. The film talks about topics such as police brutality, racism and social injustice black people face in America. There are a variety of film techniques used to show the viewer the effect of Khalil's murder, as well as the impact police brutality has on the real world.

Division

This is done by Starr wearing her bright white school uniform, which contrasts against the background and other characters around her, which are mostly darker colors like gray, black and navy. She stands out against the darkness of the protest around her, and this gives the viewer the suggestion of innocence, which is what school Starr presents herself at school as she doesnt want to be known as ‘the black girl from Garden Heights’. Starr is then given a shirt from her lawyer, and this shirt is pale blue and has Khalil's face on it. Starr puts it on over the top of her school uniform, this action symbolizes how the two versions of Starr are coming together to fight for Kahlil’s justice. This gives the audience the feeling of hope as this is the first time Starr has spoken up using her own face and voice. This works well with the use of angles and the division of frame to evoke emotion in the audience and shows us how Starr is being both versions of herself at once while standing up for herself against the police for the first time. We then watch Starr defending Kahlil and yelling at the police about how they had already shot so many people of color, so when would they realize enough is enough. This problem can be avoided in the same way it is in New Zealand, police don’t carry guns on them but have them in their cars, this reduces the percentage of police brutality

The violin adds a somber and emotional tone, giving the audience a feeling of hopelessness. The non - diegetic sound works well with costuming when Starr puts on her shirt as it builds up emotions for the viewer and helps us understand how Starr feels about the whole situation as well as working with the division of frame to create a sense of disconnection with the protesters and the police. Another example of non - diegetic sound is Starrs voiceover, in this we can hear Starr speak out about Khalil for the first time using her own face and voice. She stands on top of the car and we see her hesitation before speaking. She speaks calmly, almost like she's talking to a friend. This tells us that even though she is about to do possibly one of the scariest things she's ever done, she knows it's the right thing to do. This gives the watchers a sense of anxiety as Starr has never done something like this before and there are police only meters away from her. When non - diegetic sound is combined with the high and low angles it creates an insight into Starrs thoughts which creates a more emotional impact on the viewer. This relates to the overall theme of police brutality as we see how much Starrs normal life has turned into her being the face of the protest for her childhood best friend's murder. The film helps shed light on the racism and