Nguyen W

One of the most distinguishing moments that established just how much tension there was between Bush Senior and Junior, was the moment when Junior brought home his brother Marvin drunk. His father was furious and a brawl nearly broke out. His mother immediately calls Jeb to prevent it. Jeb is almost never seen throughout the movie except for the moment when he held back Junior. However, he is constantly mentioned by George Senior. This creates more tension between him and Junior. This is one of two scenes that really bring out the emotions and reveals how George Junior feels about his father. Oliver Stone uses many visual techniques described in the article “Mise en Scéne.”
As soon as Bush enters the house drunk, his father comes down from the stairs. The camera shows the father elevated over Bush showing that he is the man of the house and has authority. The camera also comes very close to Bush Junior’s face showing intensity of the moment as well as the somewhat diagonal camera angle depicts Bush’s fury. The blackness surrounding the entire scene contributes in emphasizing this dark moment in Bush’s past with his father.
The other scene that reveals Bush is his dream scene with his father in the Oval Office. At last, Bush is president rather than his brother; yet his father is still disappointed with him. His father sits in the president’s chair to show he is still in charge of Bush's life. The father tries to brawl with his son saying that he can still take him after all these years. Bush senior says, "You wrecked it, you ruined it for us, the Bush name, 200 years of work for Jeb with this fiasco." His dream expresses the fact that subconsciously he will always be inferior to his younger brother, and his presidency is becoming a fiasco. His dream was slowly becoming a nightmare.
There are many interesting setups in this scene. The illuminating lights implies it is a dream. The single chair in the middle of the room isolates Bush, making him feel alone and abandon. There are very few objects inside the room creating an empty and isolating atmosphere. The scene is overwhelming for the audience because of the camera movement and creates such an intensity that Bush awakens from his slumber.