The two boys are walking with their backs turned away from the
camera. On each side, telephone poles are apparent with the telephone poles on
the right being slightly taller. The top left, top right, and bottom right
portions of the shot are close to complete darkness and only the center and
bottom left of the shot are visible.
This scene in the movie was profound to me because of the
implications that it held. Remember, this was right after the boys had found
out and witnessed their father making a fool out of himself in front of his
boss. The boys had always thought their father was the best, he was their role
model, and this shot exemplifies the feeling of defeat. The darkness around the
shot, for me, signified the loneliness that the boys felt and in a way the boys
only had each other in the world; the boys always stuck with each other as was
shown by the older brother coming to his brother's aid in the first encounter
with the local bullies. The younger brother always followed his older brother too.
Interestingly, the brightest point of the shot was the boy's hats. For me, it
reminded me that the boys always used their heads in hard situations, getting
the errand boy to beat up their bully, skipping out of school to avoid getting
beat up, getting themselves invited to the home movie showing by trading the
egg. The boy's heads were highlighted, for me, and it shows that they will find
a way out of their own misery and loneliness.
