The Bunker and the state of Sam and Dean's relationship (picspam)

[ash48]

I've been thinking about the Men of Letters bunker and how it's gone from a place that represented a warm, comforting space to a claustrophobic, cold one.

I love the way the cinematic choices reflect the state of Sam and Dean's relationship.



When the bunker was first introduced it was mostly filmed as an open space with lots of warms colours - oranges, browns and yellow. It was a place full of wonder, lots of books, warming light and comforting whisky. It had a feeling of home.

(8.13) The bunker hasn't changed, in terms of the set, but the way its been filmed has. There's been a focus on lines and bars and the colour has changed also. The warm colours are not used as much, instead we see more grey and steel blue. (9.14) Sam behind those swords and ghost!Kevin behind those bars are such great shot choices. Absolutely love these shots. I initially thought they just looked cool, but I think they are definitive attempts to create a locked in (or even locked out) feel. Even as early as 9.04 (Slumber Part), we begin to see some changes. More corridors, stainless steal in the kitchen and that fabulous shot of the shadow lines. (9.04 (top left) and 9.14), The room where Sam and Dean have their first major confrontation is a perfect set choice. The concrete is very noticeable and Dean looks anything but comfortable on that tiny stool attached to the table. The room feels closed in and small (in comparison to that great hall we've seen them eat before). I feel like it's quite oppressive and it's here that the bunker starts to feel less like home and more like a claustrophobic prison. (9.13, 9.14, 9.04) We've also seen more corridors (navigating the twists and turns) and the kitchen is full of cold steel. Dean's room has changed also. When we were first introduced to his room he was seen taking a pride in setting it up - hanging weapons on the wall. Later, the weapons no longer on the wall. I also love that low angle of Dean on the bed. We see lots of that cold, concrete floor. And Dean seems almost hemmed in by the bed. (8.14) (9.14) As hard as it is to watch the boys at such horrible odds with each other, at least we can appreciate what Jerry Wanek (Production Designer) and the production team are doing to emphasis the strain in the relationship.

Comments

[de-nugis.livejournal.com]

That is cool.

I saw some meta, probably somewhere on Tumblr because I can't remember where and Tumblr is a formless void, suggesting that the bunker might actually be vital in Sam and Dean eventually being able to work through this stuff, because for the first time in their lives, really, they have some kind of happy medium between complete separation and no distance whatsoever. They've never been able to give a conflict space in this way before, where they can retreat to separate rooms without retreating to separate states. It's an interesting take, I think, though I'm not sure the writers are going there, but it is true that the current situation is actually less claustrophobic in a lot of ways than shared car and shared motel room 24/7.

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Oh that sounds great! And it's a good point. It's a different space from anything they've been in before so it might play a part in them resolving their conflict. And even though it's a bigger space than the car or a hotel room, it still feels like they are somewhat confined - even if they can retreat to separate rooms

The bunker may not be the reason why they are fighting or even why they might come back together, but I think they have definitely made choices in the way they've chosen to film it to reflect their situation (well, I hope. I'd hate if it was an accident…).

[amnisias.livejournal.com]

I love that idea - it's so true. They now have the physical space to avoid each other but still occupy the same space. They can take the time to 'work through' stuff in drips and drops, or avoid addressing it, but still work toghether. I'm always amazed at how much thought goes into a 'silly sci-fi' show like this from set decoration and pops department to make dynamics and tensions visible in the set.