The extract in Marathon Man 'is it safe' where Mr Szell repeatedly questions Babe, immediately we are tense as the scene begins with a dark room, connotations of this are fear and vulnerability. The silence and communications between the two men that enter the room contributes to this feeling, we feel empathetic towards Babe as we are confused as to what is going on. The spotlight he is placed under increases anxiety levels as all focus is on him. The chair, towels, table are all props and objects which make us feel all the more unaware of the situation, like Babe we too are filled with tension to know what will happen. When Mr Szell enters the room, a familiar and recognisable antagonist, the power and controll he holds is even more exagerated as well as the fact that Babe is tied up; this too highlights his vulnerbility. The continuous silence up until Mr Szell questions "Is it safe?" participates to create high levels of tension/anxiety. Mid shots of the two guard men, shown in a shot reverse shot to Babe, shows expressions which illustrate who is the protagonist and who is the antagonist in this situation, this extremley identifys suspense as we do not know what will happen. Whilst Mr Szell asks a contiuous six times "Is it safe?" the shot reverse shots allow us to feel empathertic toward Babe, as he does not know what Szell is implying, but nor do we. Whilst Szell rolls out a dentistry kit we fear of what he might do to Babe. A close up shows Babes reluctancy whilst another man hold tight grip of his face. Mr Szells evil character is foreshadowed within his actions, however this is contradicted through his very calm persona in this extract. A final time Szell asks "Is it safe?" followed by a excruciating scream from Babe, this is where the suspense is ended with a rather dramatic shock, we as the audience feel his pain within his scream.
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