True Blood ... Season 1, Episode 1 (2008) - Mise-En-Scene

In week three of our screenings, we were shown the first episode of the first season of a TV programme called “True Blood”. “True Blood” is an American television drama series that premiered their first season on September 7^th, 2008 and ended on November 23^rd, 2008. This programme consists of 12 episodes that runs around 55 minutes each in length. The story is set two years after vampires have made their existence known to humans in the fictional town of Bon Temps in Louisiana. Mise-en-scene has been used really well within this “True Blood” episode. The costume, characters, make-up, the setting/location and the props made a really big impact on how the episode looked like.

Characters:

The characters used in “True Blood” all have their own personalities. Their personalities are reflected through the way they dress etc… The characters we see through this episode is Sookie, Jason, Bill, Sam, Tara and Lafayette.

Sookie Stackhouse:

Sookie is the sweet, innocent main character in “True Blood”. She works as a waitress with Sam, Lafayette and Arlene at Merlotte’s Bar. She is a girl that is very different and unique from the rest of the characters in this programme because of her telepathic abilities.

Jason Stackhouse:

Jason is Sookie’s brother who works as a labourer on a road crew. He is also the charmer and ladies’ man of this season of “True Blood”. Jason is suspected of being a serial killer as his sexual partners have began to die, one after the other.

Bill Compton:

Bill is another central character in “True Blood” as well as Sookie. Bill is a vampire who also happens to be Sookie’s love interest.

Sam Merlotte:

Sam is the owner of Merlotte’s bar and resturant as well as a close friend to Sookie, and he also has a crush on her. Even though Sam is a shapeshifter and can change into any animal he wishes to, he prefers to shapeshift into a light-coloured boarder collie. Sam also feels the urge to shapeshift on nights of a full moon even though he dislikes vampires; he has a deeper hatred for werewolves.

Tara Thornton:

Tara is Sookie’s bestfriend who used to work at Super Save-A-Bunch, but after quitting her job there, she begins bartending for Sam at Merlotte’s bar with Sookie. She is the outspoken type who is not afraid to speak her mind.

Lafayette Reynolds:

Lafayette is Tara’s cousin who also works at Merlotte’s bar as a cook and he is also a hustler. We also see him working with Jason in one scene during the episode. He is also the type that makes jokes to lighten up the mood.

Costume and Make-Up:

The costumes used very effectively throughout this episode of “True Blood”. We see both Sookie in her work uniform for most of this episode. Sookie is dressed in a tight white t-shirt and shorts, later on we also see Sookie in a white bikini top when she is sunbathing in her grandmother’s garden. Sookie is a character that is sexualized, but the colour white also shows purity and innocence. We also see the men in this episode wearing caps and check shirts; a clear example of this is Sam and Bill. The make up we see on Sookie is kept really simple, however the make up on Bill is whiter and it gives him more of a dark look.

Setting/Location:

“True Blood” is set in fictional town of Bon Temps in Louisiana. Throughout this episode the main locations we see it being set in Merlotte’s Bar, Merlotte Bars parking lot, the forest, countryside, and Sookie’s grandmothers house. One thing that surprised me that I thought contradicted a vampire story was that there were no graveyards to be seen in this first episode of

the season. Sookie’s grandmothers house also has the mysterious feel to it, like it belongs to a witch or something immortal. 

Props:

The props that have been used within this episode play a big part in the way it looks and the message it gives to the audience the right message about the genre and the type of show it is. We see the ‘Vampire Drainers’ using a sliver chain to drain out vampire’s blood. As we see Sookie trying to save Bill from the ‘Vampire Drainers’ in the parking lot, she is holding a knife in her hand threatening them. We also keep seeing trucks being used as vehicles within the episode.

Lighting:

The lighting we see in the first episode of “True Blood” is dark. The only time we see natural lighting is when we see Sookie sunbathing outside in her grandmother’s garden and when Jason is at work with Lafayette and others when he gets arrested. During the night scenes we usually see in the Bar’s parking lot is only lit from the light coming the moon. The dark lighting throughout the film gives the audience the sense of darkness, fear and many more emotions.

Overall, I think that the mise-en-scene has been used very well during this episode of “True Blood”. Alan Bell has thought through what needs to be included in the set of this episode. I have learned that it is very important to include everything in mise-en-scene to fully help create and tell a story to the audience.