Funeral Scene Comparison

The first funeral scene follows a traditional service. The audience is encouraged to be against this on first viewing as it goes against Ben's and Leslie's ideology and because we have followed Ben throughout the film and have empathised with his struggles and, by proxy, agree with him. One way this conforms to a traditional and stereotypical funeral is the costume of the people attending. Everyone except for the Priest is wearing Black, which is associated with death and more specifically being in mourning. This highlights their ordinary lifestyles and outlook on life, how death is something to be sad about, a complete contrast to Ben's beliefs. This contrast is displayed when Ben and his children walk in with bright, vibrant, colourful clothing, a demonstration of their unconventional and extraordinary ideologies, highlighted when the guests of the funeral look and gasp at what they're wearing. The scene furthermore enforces their contrast with sound. The funeral hall is silent for the entire scene until Ben arrives and there is the sound of crowds chattering and gasps, symbolising the chaotic nature of Ben's life being brought into the "real world"

The second funeral is a showcase of Ben's less traditional and more bizarre ideology. For example, the funeral is set outside near the ocean, a setting that creates a peaceful and happy tone for the scene because it is in nature, where the family initially started from, creating the feeling that they are home. The framing of the scene, putting the children in the foreground of the shot and the blurred ocean in the background allows the scene to maintain a warm and undisturbed nature, possibly a binary opposition to the undisturbed order of society before Ben came: the sparkling sea in the background gives it a magical, tranquil feeling but also the children are still the emotional centre of the scene. The shots of the scene are almost all composed on close ups, displaying the character's happiness and thus, encouraging the audience to feel the same way: seeing them happy allows the audience to feel happy, transgressing the stereotypical feelings that would be felt at a funeral. The angelic performance of Sweet Child O' Mine reinforces the idyllic nature of the scene. However the core text of the scene could be seen as morbid without these elements. As the song goes on, the song gets more energetic, Ben and the children start dancing around the fire as Leslie's body burns in the centre, perhaps symbolising her importance to their lives. Without the music or certain shot types, this may be mistaken to be something satanic, like they've sacrificed someone and their worshipping them, furthermore highlighting her significance to them. It is not depicted that way but the core text is there.