Film Techniques: Visual

Here are some notes on visual techniques employed by the film. These techniques have been employed to help represent the characters in certain ways and reinforces characterisation and historical viewpoints.

Visual Techniques
There is a lot of real footage used from the period itself (1997), intercut with both filmed footage in the context of The Queen's narrative, and 'fake' media footage used to splice in actors amongst the archival footage. For instance, the opening sequence features Tony Blair's election as new Prime Minister and portrays Michael Sheen as Blair in footage that has been staged and filmed in a manner similar to media reports of the election at the time - giving the impression that the Blair we see in the context of the film is the real Blair. It helps build authenticity, which is a big part of this film's modus operandi.

Real footage of Princess Diana is used in the lead-up to her death. The film recreates the sequence of events that immediately lead to her fatal car crash, filming Diana from over the shoulders of the paparazzi to highlight how obtrusive they have become in her life. The chase scene is noisy, glossy, closely-shot and full of bright lights - much like the media itself, and intercuts this uncomfortable recreation with both footage of Diana in happier times and of her objecting to intrusive cameras. The point of this is twofold... it juxtaposes the narrative of the film with real life footage in order to continue it's case for authenticity, and it also sheds light on Diana's complicated relationship with the media by showing her conflicting reactions to being filmed.

We also never actually see an actress portraying Princess Diana (apart from a single shot from behind that shows her getting into the car before the accident). This is a conscious decision that ensures the audience only has media footage as a visual reference for the 'character' within the narrative of the film. A large part of this is related to our collective memory of Princess Diana, the film seeks to retain more emotional resonance in relation to her due to the fact that this aspect of The Queen never features any false visual representation at all - we only have the real footage and our memory to work off when it comes to Diana. We also never really see her sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, although they are referred to throughout the film. This is another conscious decision that helps the film in terms of realism and authenticity.

The Queen herself is frequently framed as an almost godlike figure. Around the twenty minute mark there is a shot that starts out as a view of the top of a hallway filled with deer heads and the camera then pans down as the Queen walks through, calling to mind an omniscient presence that looks down upon her. It also makes reference to the history the Royal family shares with hunting, and their supposed dominion over nature. Most of the scenes featuring the Queen start out by framing her against a substantially large backdrop - whether it be a wide/long shot of her in big rooms or walking through castle grounds and royal estates. She is often filmed from above in these contexts, which highlights her connection to God as the fate-appointed head of State and Church. The scene where she finally cries is shown to us as out of focus or from behind, suggesting that such a thing is too much for mere mortals such as ourselves to be allowed to see. In contrast, Tony Blair is almost always shown in smaller, more claustrophobic rooms, and is often introduced to us in close-up or mid-shot.

Similarly, the scene that features Prince Charles viewing of Diana's body in France is shown distantly and through frosted windows. This continues the theme that the film's cameras can't or won't go to certain places due to the supposed holiness of the Royal family - it continues to set up a subconscious relationship between the audience and the Royal family that represents them naturally elite. Another technique used is the filming of all the Royal household scenes on 35mm film - a gauge of film used for widescreen cinema and professional still photography. In contrast, all the Blair-related scenes were shot on 16mm film - a less rich gauge of film used more for television and other common media.

Another visual technique is the construction of pivotal scenes such as Blair's televised reaction to Diana's death, or the Queen's funeral address, as a collage of media footage and people's reactions. The media is shown as a connecting force between characters, and it's notable that although the Queen and Blair often speak to each other throughout the film they only actually physically share two scenes together. Most of the times that they interact take place via the phone.

One scene (around the 52 minute mark) where Blair and the Queen converse over the phone during morning tea further highlights their differences: we're given static shots of the Queen and Philip framed as small figures in their parlour whilst Blair is depicted via a handheld camera in close-up. The hovering handheld camera-shots help represent the continuing balance of power between the two and the shaky tightrope that Blair walks in trying to put things to the Queen delicately. Meanwhile the Queen is aloof and intractable, as still as the scene that she is placed in. The tension is quite palpable thanks to the visual contrast.