No.22
No.22 is a 15-second scene that holds a lot of visual information, but it's simply Wendy walking a food cart down a hallway connected to The Lobby and styled like The Gold Room.
American History/Culture
Wendy (the wife) as a servant.
Wendy relates to her family primarily through food.
Black & White Photos
These blocks of photos signify the history of guests, already established as wealthy.
Domestic abuse
Wendy as a servant, and reflects her in No.15 “Pink and gold are my favorite colors!”
She can be around her favorite things but not enjoy those things. Or to be around them, she must be working.
The Maze:
Color:
I. The Gold Room and adjacent hallway have the same color palette as The Living Quarters (Pink, Yellow, Tan).
Wendy wears a pastel blue plaid robe. The blue matches the exterior hallways of The Living Quarters.
II. The red couches and the black chair rail. See: Black & Red
Light:
There is a sharp distinction between the artificial light of the Gold Room Hallway and the cold light of morning in the Lobby.
This begins the visual communication of light as indicator, and that indication is reality.
Mirrors
Mirrors break up the blocks of black and white photos and they are themselves doubled. This speaks to showing reality, and in Wendy’s specific case, her “needing to see and refusal to see”. See also: Denial
Doubling
The hallway holds multiple doubles: the mirrors, the couches, the blocks of black and white photos.
Ghost Story:
The blocks of black and white photos foreshadow ghosts. Seeing the blocks of black and white photos prepares the viewer for No.53 and A93.
Cabin Fever:
This is akin to “normal life” for the Torrances, albeit grander.
The camera is fixed as Wendy walks towards it. It transitions through the wall and follows behind her as she walks down the Lobby.
The scene starts out in a hallway styled similar to The Gold Room and the Lobby.
The hallway’s furnishings clash horribly. The pink carpet, the pink wall paper, the gold curtains reflect the colors of the Living Quarters, where the red couches and the black chair rail reflect future scenes where black and red are prominent.
Animals and violence are used as decoration: pheasant feathers serve as centerpieces and the chandeliers are bear traps.
As the scene crosses into the Lobby, checkerboard imagery is created with the banding and the designs on the floor. The designs are a mixture of Native American insignia and art deco styling, again speaking to the visual conflict of cultures.
Wendy
The only sound is the soft clack of the cart’s wheels on the floor.