In Fargo, why is the 180° rule broken during this scene?
In episode 3 of Fargo, titled "A Muddy Road", the 180° rule is broken during this particular scene, at about 43 minutes into the episode (according to HULU). I couldn't find a clip of the scene online. Sorry.
In the scene Gus, the cop from Duluth, is speaking to Molly at her father's diner. When Molly addresses Gus' daughter Greta, the new camera angle seems to break the 180° rule.
This moment occurs at precisely 43:43 minutes into the episode (once again according to HULU's timecode). I was always taught that the 180° rule is only ever broken when the director has very good reason which usually has to do with storytelling.
Does anyone know why this scene would be filmed in such a way?
Best Answer
Remember the 180 degree rule only applies WHEN breaking it results in disorienting the viewer. There are many scenarios where 'breaking' the rule does not result in disorientation, and therefore is not actually 'breaking' it.
A good example is any scene taking place in a car. If you've got both your characters in the driver and passenger seat, breaking the 180 rule is not going to cause any disorientation or confusion because we have the car itself giving us the visual layout of everything - this happens in the opening scene of Zodiac when the young couple are in their car at a 'lovers' lane'. The camera jumps from in front of them to behind in mid-conversation, but it works because they're in a car.
You'd actually be surprised how often the 180 degree 'rule' is broken in these regards.
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Why is the 180-degree rule broken?
If both characters appear to be looking in the same screen direction in their single shots, it means you've broken the 180-degree rule and your eyelines won't match. 4.What is the 180-degree rule and why is it important?
The 180 rule is a filmmaking technique that helps the audience keep track of where your characters are in a scene. When you have two people or two groups facing each other in the same shot, you have to establish a 180-degree angle, or a straight line, between them.What happens if break the 180-degree rule during a conversation?
A camera breaks the 180-degree rule if it crosses the imaginary line. By breaking the 180-degree rule, the camera captures a shot called a reverse angle. Reverse angles are disorientating for viewers.When a filmmaker violates so called 180 rule How can it make the audience feel?
The 180-degree rule enables the audience to visually connect with unseen movement happening around and behind the immediate subject and is particularly important in the narration of battle scenes.Fargo- World War was started by sandwich!
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Answer 2
There are three individuals involved in the conversation. This is actually a text book case of shifting action lines as described in the following video about the 180 degree rule:
The video explains that movement within a scene can cause the action line to shift and uses the example of a 3 person dialogue scene to explain. Since the scene you are talking about is in fact a 3 person dialogue scene, it actually uses the 180 degree exactly as it should. Notice that the changing camera angle ONLY occurs when Molly is addressing Greta. This is because the action line shifts from being between Gus and Molly to being between Greta and Molly. Its actually a really good example.
So ultimately I'd say the scene doesn't break the 180 degree rule because:
- It uses a shifting action line due to a three person conversation
- It doesn't disorient the viewer and in fact helps establish point of view.
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