JCutts - Mood Board

J.Cork - Analyzing An Opening Sequence

I have chosen to analyze the opening of “The Borne Identity” (Greengrass, 2002). It is an example of a thriller film, that is in the same kind of style that we will aspire to achieve, when we are creating our own film opening.

Genre

1. The films belongs to the action/adventure thriller genre.
2. The audience’s expectations for this genre are upheld by the opening sequence because they are immediately subjected to strange occurrences, such as the dead body floating in the water. The dark shots of the sea in the rain are also typical of this genre, as they connote bad things happening, this is an example of pathetic fallacy being used within the film. However the audience would not be wrong to expect an action scene, filled with violence and shooting in the opening sequence. In this way the film’s opening does not conform to the audience’s expectations of the genre.
3. Within the opening sequence of this film, the audience is not actually introduced to any of the main characters. This is done so that suspense can be created, as the audience are wondering who the dead body is, and how what they are seeing will relate to the rest of the film.

Film Language

1. Mise-en-scene is used to convey meaning within the opening sequence in many different ways. One of these is that the shots are very dark. The film opens with an establishing shot of a fishing boat in the middle of the sea. The wether is very stormy and there is think cloud cover making the scene very dark. This makes the audience feel that something bad/dangerous is doing to happen, as it always does when the weather is very bad. Another way that mise-en-scene is used in the opening is to show that the people on the fishing boat are friendly men. When we see them playing cards their body language is friendly and we see that they are having a laugh with one another. This is needed so that when they find the man in the water later on in the scene, we know hat they will treat the man well.
2. Camera techniques are also used to show various things in the opening of this film. One of the things that they are used for is to show the severity of the storm. The camera seems to be using a wide-angle lens so that the audience can see just how big the storm is, and show how rough the seas are. The camera is also positioned under the water when we first see the outline of the body under the water. This shot is framed so that there is lots of water all around the body (its a LS), and this gives the impression that the man is very small in comparison to the sea that he is drifting in. We also get a shot-reaction shot when the man first spots the floating body, and we see that his face is shocked an worried about what he has seen. This again help the audience understand that the men on the fishing boat are friendly, and they are trying to help the man who was floating in the sea.
3. The soundtrack backs up the images that the audience are seeing . At the start of the film when we are seeing the shots of the huge storm, there is a high pitched, but mellow string sound. This is accompanied by the dietetic sound of the wind and waves, and together they make the audience feel like something bad is about to happen. This music picks up with the introduction of a drum beat, this coincides with the man waking up and immediately threatening the man who has just saved his life by taking bullets out of his skin. This helps give the audience an incite into the man who has woken up, as the fast paced music connotes that the man is dangerous, and this backs up the fact that the audience has just seen him with his hands around the doctors neck.
4. There is much to learn about the characters through dialogue and non-verbal language. We get to see that the man is very vulnerable when he first wakes up, as he cannot remember who he is, and when he is talking and shouting at the man you can tell that he is nervous and slightly self conscious, as he doesn't know how to treat the man that was actually helping him. Through dialogue we also learn that the men on the fishing boat are not English, as when they are playing cards they are shouting and joking in a foreign language. The doctor can however also speak very good English, and this suggests that they have been educated. Non-verbal language is also used to show the audience specific character details. An example of this is when the man grabs the doctor who is trying to help him, around the throat. This immediately tells the audience that this man id dangerous, and that he has been trained to fight. Another very significant example of non-verbal language in the opening sequence is when the doctor and the man shake hands as he is getting off of the boat. This shows that the man is not always aggressive and really does appreciate what the doctor did for him. This shows another side to that man, that is not all about violence and confusion.
5. Visual techniques??

Narrative

1. Narrative organized and structured?
2. The audience is positioned as if they were actually on the fishing boat and in the same room as all of the men. A specific example of this is when the doctor is helping the man. During this scene the audience sees what is happening from the p.o.v of the doctor and so we are being positioned with him. This creates a preferred reading within the opening sequence that sides with the doctor rather than the man.
3. There are not many techniques of identification and alienation used in the opening sequence of this film. However one that is used is the fact that we do not see the face of the floating man until the doctor is treating him on the boat, and this acts to alienate him from the audience. Another way that the man is alienated is by the opening undershot that we see of him, floating in the sea. Undershot’s generally connote extreme danger or something sinister, and as this particular undershot is very dark, it helps to alienate the audience from the man even more.

A technique that is used to help the audience identify with the men on the boat is the high angle shot of them all playing cards, and having a laugh with one another. This shows that they are friendly men, and the audience is able to relate to what they are doing.

1. The major theme in the opening narrative is one of mystery. The opening sequence is about finding the man in the water and helping him recover. However this is done in a way that does not allow the audience to know the complete picture, and this is why their is an air of mystery about it.
2. Tension is created by a combination of the soundtrack, and images that connote trouble and danger. This draws the audience in and makes them engage with the plot and characters.

Representation & Ideology

1. The only social group that is portrayed in this opening sequence is that of foreigners. We see these people as they are on the fishing boat that picks the floating man out of the water. The men on the boat are shown to be happy, kind men because we see them laughing and joking with one another, and they also help the floating man. This is done be creating a preferred reading within the text, by using techniques such as full lighting on the men’s faces so that you can see them. Another way to create this preferred reading is to make the actors have very open body language so that they do not look dangerous or suspicious in any way.
2. The only values that are evident in this opening sequence are the ones that the fisherman have to save the man who is floating. It would have been very easy for them to simply ignore the floating body, as it already looked dead, however they didn't do this and it lead to the mans life being saved.
3. ?
4. ?

Media Audiences

1. The target audience for this film is predominantly men between the ages of 15 and 50. This is because the film contains lots of action sequences that would not really appeal to the elderly or man women.
2. The probable audience reading of the text is that the audience feel like the fisherman have done the right thing by helping the floating man. They are also probably shocked by the mans violent reaction when he finally wakes up, however they will soon come to feel sorry for him as they realise that he is very venerable.

The other possible readings for the opening sequence are that the fishermen are doing the wrong thing by helping the floating man, as they do not know who he is. They could also retain their probable initial opinion, of the floating man being violent, because of his actions as soon as he woke up. This would mean that they would not want the man to succeed throughout the rest of the film.

1. As a British teenager, my interpretation of the text is that the fishermen did the right thing by helping the floating man. However I was not that shocked when he awoke and was immediately violent, I think this is because I have become slightly desensitized to violence though the media’s portrayals, and also the fact that I am a 16 year old boy. I did however empathize with the man when it became evident that he was very vulnerable, I think this might be due to my background where I do not come into contact with many venerable people, and so this was quite a hard hitting image for me.

Institutional Context

1. The bankable star that was used in this film was Matt Damon. This would have been important to the production company, because in 2002 Damon had already had several box office hits including ‘Good Will Hunting’ and ‘Saving Private Ryan’. This would have make the production company more confident that the film would do well because Damon is a very good actor, and people know this so they are likely to go and see the film.
2. This film is an industrial film, as it was produced in conjunction with Warner Brothers who are one of the biggest film studio’s in the world.
3. Some of the strategies that were used to market this film we putting the bankable star on the poster along with Matt Damon’s name in large text. This would emphasize the fact that Damon appeared in the film and would draw an audience. Matt Damon also did many press interviews and went on television chat shows, in an attempt to get the film talked about and to ensure that it received enough column inches. Money was also invested in making a website for the film that was user interactive, and that contained film trailers, photos, and behind the scenes interviews.
4. ?

GD Mood Board

J.Cork - Thriller Mood Board

JCutts - Genre Analysis

Q1
Our Chosen genre for our two minute opening is Thriller. This allows us to share a range of ideas as this genre is broken down into a range of other genres. Each has different audience expectations and features we would need to look into if considering using that film genre.

Psychological- This sub genre shows characteristics of crime, drama, mystery and horror all incorporated. It is also one of the hardest to pull off successfully. This will usually include a protagonist or victim and will show their psychological path to solving some sort of mystery. This can be emphasized through horror or gore.

Legal- This is where the main character often has a job inside the law world. For example a Lawyer. They will try to find a way to overcome a ''Bad guy'' by ways such as ; A loop hole in the Action- This is often where the main character will have a weakness of sort description and will have to work with a certain time period in an ''All Or Nothing'' Situation. These can be very effective films if exploited in the correct way.


Crime - This will usually include some sort of organised crime where the ''good guys'' are working outside the law in order to achieve something good .

For our film I think we mostly look into an action/crime with an element of psychological all incorporated. So i choose one film from each category , I felt this would be an effective way to look into idea's and certain expectations of that specific Sub-genre.

Crime- Sherlock Holmes (Ritchie, 2009)

Action- James Bond; Casino Royale (Campbell 2006)

Psychological- The Butterfly Effect (Bress, 2004)
Q2
Sherlock Holmes (Ritchie, 2009): This is based on the classical novel, Sherlock Holmes. It shows a detective working outside the law to solve case and convicts or villain. How he does it remains a mystery until the very end. Clues are given along the way in order for the viewer to guess of how he actually solved the crime. Some are linked to how he done, some are there purely to misguide us. This adds to the intelligence to the plot of the film.

James Bond; Casino Royale (Campbell 2006): This is a typical James Bond film where again he works outside the law for justice with many distractions and weakness’ along the way EG a girl.
The Butterfly Effect (Bress 2004): This film is a psychological thriller, based on a theory. It explores it through different ways and is only revealed towards at the end. Throughout the film it is searching for a loophole and trying to find a way round it, putting you in the POV and through the eyes of the main character.

Q3

Typically a thriller includes some sort of race for something or someone or a ''cat and mouse'' scenario. There is also usually a weakness or distraction along the way to complicate things.

Tension is built up through a use of sound ; this can be high paced drum sounds , could sometimes connote a heartbeat or pulse . Another way is through scenes or high tension use a fast cutting rate which could sometimes allow the viewer trying to take in what every shot is trying to tell them , leading them to wonder the significance. I feel a technique we should use that all successful Thrillers do is let the viewer's imagination do the majority of the work. We can help by giving clues and half answering things that may not be clear at this point in the film, which will give a sense of mystery and hence leading the viewer to try and work out for themselves the problem.

Q4
For an Action we should use normal looking character but believable enough to go through the action scenes...

A villain would typically have some sort of iconic feature, EG a scar or eye patch etc....

Q5

Two most commonly associated locations with a Thriller are;

Urban...

Or, Country/ Woodland area....

Iconography for a crime type thriller could be...

Police Tape.
Dead Body.
Q7
In crime thrillers in the past it was much more obvious or who was the villain and who was the ''good guy''. In more modern thrillers it is a lot more subtle and therefore allows a certain tension and keeps it more believable for the viewer.
In our Film i think the characters should be shown and expressed to the audience through actions, sound and clue's as opposed to simple dress wear.
Q8
Connotations of light and colour are something we have thought about a lot in our film beginning. Less light creates mystery and an instant tension and for that I feel it should be used in our filming. Simple connotations could be for instant red is seen as death or danger; where as a light blue would be seen as quite peaceful with little tension. We had a discussion about using both in different scenes to create a contrast and sense of enigma.
Q9
Here are some fonts I thought we could maybe use for our film opening credits etc...

J.Cork - Genre Analysis

Q1)

The genre that I have chosen to research is thriller. Within the thriller genre there are many other sub-genres that exist. These sub-genres are all slightly different as they focus on specific areas, here are examples of some of the sub-genres that exist within thriller:

1. Action - often against the clock, feature many fight/action scenes, and there is an obvious villain the cause carnage throughout.
2. Spy - the hero is often a government agent who is sent on a mission to track down a villain, and halt their evil plans.
3. Legal - the hero is often a lawyer who must overcome many obstacles to win their case when it previously looked like they had no chance of winning. They usually have to overcome threats on their lives, and face persecution from people who are against what they are doing.
4. Crime - these thrillers offer accounts of successful or unsuccessful crimes, and what the criminals had to do to plan the crime, and the way in which the police attempted to stop them. These types of thrillers normally engage the audience, as the plot often features many twists and turns, requiring the audience to think about what is happening.

I think that we will probably follow the conventions of the crime sub-genre, because it will enable us to create suspense, jeopardy and mystery within our film. Some films that are in this sub-genre that haves styles that I would like to emulate are Taken (Morel, 2008), Se7en (Fincher, 1995), and Reservoir Dogs (Tarantino, 1992).

Q2)

Se7en

he film uses some very interesting techniques that I think we could use when filming our film. On of these is the lack of dialogue throughout the opening scenes. This creates a sense of mystery surrounding the characters, and leaves the pictures and soundtrack to portray feelings to the audience.

Taken

When the man is on the phone to the kidnappers in this film, the technique of fading to black and then fading back to the mans face is used repeatedly during the phone call. There is also a sound bride used so that we can still hear what the man is saying even when it has faded to black. This emphasises the short sentences the man is saying to the kidnappers and helps to show the man’s power and anger. I think that this is an extremely effective technique that we could use when we make our film.

Reservoir Dogs

At the very start of the film there is a sound bridge over the opening credits that leads to the opening conversation. There is also a handy cam shot that circles around a table with six men sitting around it. This is an incredibly effective shot because it allows you to see who is speaking, but at the same time the audience is able to see everyone who is present. The fact that this is a handy-cam shot also means that the audience is able to feel as if they are actually walking around the table. Narration is also used later in the film, and this allows additional details to be given to the audience, without them actually seeing anything happen. I think that we could use narration in our film because if it is used in the correct way I think it could create a feeling of unease and tension at will fit in well with the thriller genre.

Q3)

The typical narrative in a thriller film is that someone is trying to catch someone else for one reason or another. We are doing a crime thriller however and so the typical narrative is that the police are trying to catch a criminal/killer.

Suspense could be created in the opening of a crime thriller by showing little parts of the overall narrative, that offer clues as to what is going to happen later in the film. For example you might see the actually crime happening or just being planned by the killer. This will create suspense and tension, as the audience will be left wondering who the killer is and why they acted how they did. The soundtrack is also very important when creating suspense in such a short amount of time. Eerie noises are often used, as are gun shots and loud/intense drum beats, amongst other things.

Q4)

In crime dramas there are usually two main characters, they are:

The Detective…

And the Criminal…

Q5)

A crime drama is usualy set in one of two places, they are:

An Urban City…

Or in a Woodland Area…

Q6)

The iconography associated with a crime thriller is things like:

Handcuffs…

Guns…

Dead bodies…

Jail cells…

Q7)

There are not specific conventions of costume within crime thrillers. However the stereotypical costume of a detective and criminal are as below:

This is an image of a stereotypical detective who is wearing a trench coat and hat. However in many modern day urban crime thrillers the detective simply wears a suit or normal clothes.

This is a balaclava and it is very iconic of criminal. However, this is hardly ever worn in modern crime thrillers, as the criminal is usually just a normal man, and so he wears normal clothing.

Q8)

A lack of light is often used to create tension and suspense in crime thrillers. This is because it creates silhouettes and the effect of only half seeing a persons face. This effect can be seen below:

The camera can also have colour washes put over the shots during post production. Different colours can be used to connote different things, some examples of this can be seen below:

This is the man's face in black and white. This gives an artistic impression of the man, and makes him look like a normal person.

Red = Danger

The red filter that has been put over this image makes the man look more sinister and evil. This filter is likely to be used in a sinister, horror scene, that is designed to scare the audience.

Blue= Cool/Kind

This blue filter makes the man look kind and almost emotional. This filter is likely to be used in an emotional, sad scene, rather than an action scene.

Q9)

Here are some examples of fonts that would not look out of place in the opening title sequence of a crime thriller:

Thriller Rough Typewriter

Thriller MPOK Hand

Thriller Northwood High

Thriller Frakturika

GD Genre Analysis - Thriller

• Our chosen genre is Thriller in particular a crime thriller, A thriller tries to excite and encapture the audience by using fast paces, frequent action, high suspense and a typical hero trying to stop the enemy villain. For these heroes and villains they tend to conform to certain conventions e.g. a hero will always be courageous and rather selfless, whereas a villain will be self involved but still have traits of courage maybe, but not to match the hero. withing the genre of Thriller there are many sub-genres examples of these are crime thrillers, action thrillers, conspiracy thrillers, drama thrillers, disaster thriller, erotic thriller, legal thriller, medical thriller, political thriller, psychological thriller, spy thriller, techno thriller and religious thriller.
  
• Some films that may fit into the category of a crime thriller are The Killing (Kubrick, 1956), Seven (Fincher, 1995), Reservoir Dogs (Tarantino, 1992), Inside Man (Lee, 2006) and Law Abiding Citizen (Gray, 2009)

all of which are from different time periods and general subjects but each conforming to some typical characterstics of thrillers. Law Abiding Citizen (Gray, 2009) i found one of my favourites due to the intesity of the film and how very clever the storyline is which keeps hold of you the whole way through and this is done using typical techniques.

2.

• With Law Abiding Citizen (Gray, 2009) part of the story consists of the man being convicted of murder being very clever and twisting words that the law states so that he cannot get convicted for the crimes until he wants to and also uses a quote "dont make deals with murderers" which we liked the idea of so are using a quote in our film as something memorable and relevent making it seem clever.
  
• For Seven (Fincher, 1995) the opening scene seems to be very basic yet has several different cuts and clever angles and then a flash to the crime scene going from calm to surreal, from this we hope to make a contrast of calm to surreal and also use some interesting and subtle cuts and angles.


• With Resevoir Dogs (Tarantino, 1992) the characters present are the anti-hero type where they may be on the wrong side of the law however you are sided with them and they are typical gangster style characters in smart suits and slick hair something which may be involved in our storyline but not our 2 minutes opening.

3. The typical narrative that comes with this genre is ultimately the hero/es fight, struggle or think cleverly their way to get their goal and to end up beating the villain and along the way creating lots of tention and twists in the story and maybe some corruption. Then generally the 'good guy' will come out on top. To keep enigma or suspense within thrillers a clever way in which they do this is buy adding in twists, but also you tend to find that some peice of information in particular is kept concealed whether its a person or what they have done and this attracts the audience to keep watching to find out how they do it.

4. Within crime thrillers there tend to be conventinal characters which are heroes and villains. An archetypal hero for this genre would be maybe a hard boiled detective, who has lots of courage and is rather selfless in the way he acts, they usually are males and tend to always have some sort of weakness. A good example of this is 'Marlowe' (Humphrey Bogart) for 'The Big Sleep' (Hawks, 1946) seen below:

The archetypal villain on the other hand will be very self involved and out to possibly harm others for their own benefit and often be corrupt and possibly mentally unstable. They will try to bring down the hero and attack the heroes weaknesses. However some villains do show aspects of courage in order to do some of the things they do yet usually come out defeated. A good example of a villain from this genre is 'Norman Stansfield' (Gary Oldman) in 'Leon' (Besson, 1994) who can be seen below:

Stock Characters may also be used and these arte characters which are typically found in the genre but not the main characters for example the family of the officer or romantic interest, the detectives assisstant or the villains sidekick. An example of this is 'Nick Rice's' (Jamie Foxx) family who are used at one point as a way of getting to him as they are his one weakness.

5. The typical settings for these films are generally inside the city with an urban backdrop where its easy to hide and find clues yet can be disorientating and exciting. Another setting could be a police station or office and even a 'lair' where the villain resides. A typical office can be seen below:

6. The iconography i would exspect in this genre would be something like a gun maybe for a detective, a chalk body outline, an important document, a police badge, a murder weapon and some death usually.

7. As for costume the most obvious thing is a suit detectives wear them, lawyers wear them and even gangsers wear them so they are definately something that would be involved in a crime thriller. As for other people costume can just be casual clothing to represent the murderer whos just a civillian. Another costume that comes to mind is a police uniform. An example of a typical suited 'Nick Rice' (Jamie Foxx) can be seen below:

8. With lighting this can be used in different ways with a crime genre. For example with 'The Big Sleep' (Hawks, 1946) this was a film noir film where clever use of shadow is used to help create mood and mystery which is good for hiding a character when black is used as you cannot see the persons face maybe because it is in shadow something which we may use. However with modern day thriller black is also used maybe for suspense as it connotes danger with the lack of visibility but lighting tends to just be gloomy and maybe only bright with a flash involved. An example of a film noir shot can be seen below:

9. A common font used within this genre is the typewriter style one and one which we are strongly considering using, an example can be seen below

Group - Possible Quotes...

We spoke About using a good one liner quote today maybe in the voice over, heres a few we may want to look at;
1- ''An Eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind''- Mahatma Gandhi
2- ''Seeing Is Beliving'' - John 20: 19-31
3- ''Never Trust the teller. Trust the Tale'' - D H Lawrence
4- ''There never was a good war, or a good peace''- Benjamin Franklin
5- '' Truth is immortal, Error is mortal'' Mary Baker Eddy
6- '' In England, Justice is open to all, Like the Rits Hotel'' - Sir James Mathews
7- ''Never Let your sense of moral get in the way of doing what's right''- Isaac Asimov
8-''A minute's success , pays the failure of years'' - Robert Browning
9-''Justice is Revenge''- Saad Hariri

Iv numbered them so just let me know what ones you like

JC Analysis Of The Opening Sequence To Pulp Fiction

The opening starts with a black screen with nothing but a white font in the centre of the screen. It gives the definition of the word 'Pulp' And is written in the style of what it would be in a dictionary.

A sound bridge skips from the writting to a CU of the television, all that is in shot is the screen. On the screen is a child's cartoon hence connoting a child i watching it which gives us the view of a POV that we are like the child watching the television. It stays in this for a good 10 Seconds which is enough time for the view to become curious of what is going on , and a slight tension of what is happening .

This is followed by a sound bridge of a women voice. Followed by a LS ad establishing shot in which we see his mother and the ''special visitor''. It then cuts to a mid POV shot of the mum looking at her son sitting down watching the tele we saw earlier in the scene. He then turns off the television and turns to face the visitor, this connotes a god obediant child. There is also the non-digetic sound of birds 'tweeting' setting a happy ,friendly enviroment.

When she introduces him as '' He worked with daddy'' We realise or are lead to believe that for some reason his dad is no longer with us. When introduced we still see him from this long shot in the POV of the little boy, the man is standing on a step which automatically gives him a sense of importance.

The camera stays in the POV shot , as the man walks closer towards the boy with an older the shoulder shot of the mum in the background but slightly out of focus. We are positioned to clearly be taking notice of the man. He begins to tell a story of or about the boys father which seems to be a quite sad story. This could be seen a a quite subtle 'wildtrack' or asynchronous soundtrack.

It then cuts to a reaction shot and close up of the boys face. We see his confusion which gives the viewer a reason to start thinking and looking for clues to what this man's significance actually is.

What I Have Learnt:
From this i have learnt that despite this film being a very good thriller, this begining does not connote the expectations of a Thriller. It has very few cuts and therefore doesnt give much tension to the viewer. However another perspective or view could be that the story is something that doesnt quite seem right and it seems a bit to wierd or ''perfect'' to be true. The birds singing and the perfect American house and Childs behaviour is almost something to be suspicious of. Despite this maybe not being the best opening to a Thriller I feel that the sense of leaving the viewer guesing that something isn't quite right and therefor aiding the viewer to do most of the work in their head rather than on screen is a clever technique the group should look into possibly using for our Film Begining.

GD Technical Analysis of 'Leon' (Besson, 1994)

Shot by Shot Analysis

The scene starts with what seems to be a camera on top of a vehicle travelling through a very urban area in New York with credits of people invloved in the film in each corner of the screen in a basic white font, Theres a jump cut to another area of the city but going down another street the camera pans up and zooms to a sign which reads "Welcome to Little Italy". The camera then cuts to the front of a little restaurant presumably in 'Little Italy' the shop is called "Supreme Macaroni" the italian theme can commonly be associated with the Mafia so this connotes that kind of theme. The camera tracks into the darkness of the shop most likely on a crane due to the flow of the movement.

The camera then cuts to inside the restaurant with an ECU of someones (Leon's) hands at the bottom of a glass of milk which helps build a character image. Theres then a matched cut to an ECU of one side of Leon's darkened glasses which helps create a mysterious and distorted image of who you are watching making the viewing more intense.There is then an ECU of the man sitting opposite him lighting a cigarette creating the same affect for him and also making a more real environment, the camera pans up slightly to an ECU of the mans eye still keeping that mysterious edge. There is then a cut to an over the shoulder point of view shot which is a close up of Leon's face yet the mans hand is in the way so still his face is not fully seen. Cut to an ECU of the mans eye again moving in response to what Leon says the camera moves slightly following the mans movement of smoking the cigarette but still at an ECU so his full face is not seen. At this point it is evident that some sort of deal for an assassination is going on. Cuts to an ECU of the man stubbing out his cigarette which tells the audience the deal is about to start and you should listen carefully.Cut to a close up of the mans mouth who says "Lets talk business" another signal to the audience. Cut to an ECU of the table and the man slides a picture of a man in front of Leon the picture being significant as you know this is a character to look out for and helps create an interest into how Leon is going to deal with him. Cut to and ECU of both Leons eyes but with the darkened glasses on which not only hides his face but his emotions too creating the typical assassin image of a cold hearted killer who doesnt care. It also shows him studying the photo as you can see the reflection. Cut to a close up of the mans eye which moves to look at Leon at an important moment when he tells him what the objective is. Cut to another ECU of the photo to reiterate they are talking about him as he says "but this guy" and that you should watch out for him. Cut to another ECU of the mans eye still keeping the mystery of who they are. Cut to an ECU of Leon's glasses again keeping his calmness and agreeing with the mans proposal. Cut to the ECU of the hands and glass of milk which he then picks up. ut to ECU of mans eye watching him drink the milk as you can hear him doing so, cuts back to ECU of Leons eyes with glass in view this time, then finally back to ECU of the one hand on the table and he puts the glass down suggesting his leaving and a move to the 'mission'.
Cut to an ECU of the picture being dragged off by Leon and the back to ECU of glasses still with the mysteriousness and calmness.

The camera then cuts to a new scene of a high angle shot of the man in the picture walking down a corridor with his guards. Preparing the audience for something to happen and also the guards being seen as an obstacle for Leon and helps add to the thrill of how he will do it. Cut to the old man by the elevato who says "nice to see you again Mr Jones" as he walks past but gets no reply creatin a negative view of the man in the photo and siding the audience with Leon. Cut to low angle mid shot of another guard watching the CCTV and the photo man looking up at it creating another problem for Leon to overcome. The man walks to the door and it cuts to outside the door behind the photo man and is opened by the man previously watching the CCTV. This shows how you cannot get in through the front without being spotted, A challenge. The camera follows the man into the room who talks to another man before cutting again. That is the end of the first two minutes.

The Soundtrack

At the beginning there is some music played as it goes through the streets which involves strings and some sort of woodwind instrument its quite soft and may help to create a mysterious mood as it sounds almost oriental. Diegetic sounds of cars etc is also present. As you go into the restaurant the music volume increases as it goes into the blackness and then fades out once inside to leave just diegetic so as the characters can set up some sort of narrative. Throughout most of this scene its wuiet with just dialect and digetic sounds the dialect setting what the beginning of the story will be. Toward the end as Leon puts the glass down the sound is emphasised i think this is used to set up for a change in scene and him to go into action. Then some bass drums come in to raise tension as it moves into the next scene with a sound bridge. The drums and bells used help create a tense and dramatic feeling and when the phot man enters the room a synthetic 'charge up' sound is used to help establish this place as the area of action.

What Have I Learnt?

From this analysis i can see that for the genre of thriller keeping a sense of mystery about the characters can help to build tension and 'hook' the audience as they wish to learn more about this chracter and eventually empathise with him. Soundtrack is also extremely useful as it can help create a mood and signal what kind of theme the scene will be having. Furthermore there is a large amount of cuts that you would not realise just watching it without thinking yet each one has a meaning and helps you to understand the story as it goes along something we will have to take into account when filming our opening sequence to a thriller.

Heres the link for the sequence: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoCo5ltLvJg

J.Cork - Analysis Of The Opening Sequence Of 'Se7en'

The Opening Sequence Shot-by-Shot

It opens with an establishing shot of a dark room with black man sitting up in his bed reading, with only his bedside lamp on. He puts his book down on his bed and then He takes is glasses off and it cuts to a CU of his hand placing them on his bedside table. There is then a camera tilt shot from him putting them down to him starting a metronome that is also on his bedside table, this shot is held for about three seconds.

It then cuts to a long shot of the man lying in his bed from where his feet are, and then there is a very slow zoom towards his face. There is then a jump cut back to the ticking metronome, with all background detail being out of focus. It then cuts back to the previous shot of the slow zoom into the mans face but this time we are much closer in and we can only see his chest and face, the man tilts his head to the right, but shows no expression on his face. We then cut back to the metronome again, and watch it ticking for about five seconds seconds.

From this shot we cut to a completely black screen, which then cuts to a CU of the pages of a book, and in the background we see what appears to be a hand turning the pages, however this is not very clear because the depth of field is not long enough, and so the hand is out of focus. The opening credit then fades in to the bottom right corner. It is white ‘typewriter’ text in all capitals on the dark black/brown of the original shot of the book’s pages. This then cuts to a black screen with more credits in the top left, this time they are in a ‘handwritten‘ font, but still in white. These then fade out to a birds-eye view of a picture of a white and a black hand that are on sheets of paper on a table. This shot is obscured by a shadow over the right hand side of the screen. Another credit fades in over the top of this shadow, it is in the same ‘handwritten‘ font, and white colour. There is a recurring shadow over the pictures of the hands made by the blades of a fan that is spinning out of shot.

There is then a montage of three shots that we see for less than a second each. The first of these shot is a CU of what looks like a black mans thumb twisting a screw. The second shot is a CU of what looks to be a razor blade, and the third shot is another CU of some kind of mechanical clamp that is being wound up. This then cuts to black, and another credit appears in the same white ‘handwritten‘ style of font. This shot then flashes white/green and then reappears with the font now thicker, and slightly distorted. There is then another montage of three shots, of CU’s of a black mans fingers holding a razor blade, and cutting dead/rough skin of his fingertips. This then cuts to another black screen with a credits name again appearing in the same white ‘handwritten‘ font. The font again becomes distorted before it cuts to the same hands dipping a tea bag into some water, we then see the water turning brown as the powder infuses its self into the water.

It then cuts to a black screen with the films name appearing in the top right corner, in an all small, white, all capital ‘typewriter‘ front. The text then flashes into the centre of the frame and becomes much bigger so that it is very easily read, and then flashes back into it original size and position. There is then a fade in of a CU of the cover of a book/file behind the title, and then the title fades away, as we see the black mans hands open the book. He now has bandages on the ends of his fingers.

As the book opens its pages act as a screen wipe, which reveals the pages of yet another book, but this time the shot is very dark and it is hard to be sure what they are for definite. Another credit appears just right of centre in the white ‘handwritten‘ font. There is then a jump cut to a shot looking across the surface of a sheet of paper with a pen writing on it. The pen and hand are then distorted as if we have double vision, where we can see everything twice at the same time. There is then handwritten black text overlaid on this shot, so that we can still see the pen writing in the background. This then cuts to a red screen, with black symbols appearing, which then cuts to a black screen showing another credit in the ‘handwritten‘ font.

This then cuts to a birds-eye view of a black mans hand with a pair of scissors cutting out a picture. This then cuts to another black screen showing another credit in the usual style. There is then a montage of four shots of the hands holding different pieces of paper, this montage lasts about three seconds all together. This then cuts to another black screen showing two more credits in a the same ‘handwritten‘ white font. The text flashes and becomes distorted before the it fades out to reveal the hands holding a photo of the face of a dead woman. This then quickly cuts to a book with pages filled with handwritten text, and then there is another cut to a black screen showing three more credits in the usual font and colour, they again become distorted.

There is then a cut to an ECU of the mans finger tip smudging some words he has just written. This then cuts to a CU of a marker pen obscuring some of the words in a newspaper article, witch then quickly cuts back to on of the first shots that we saw, of a book with a hand that is out of focus turning the pages. It then cuts back to a black screen showing more credits in the usual way. From here there is a cut back to the marker pen drawing over words in a new article, only this time we see it from a different angle. It then cuts back to another black screen showing more credits, but this time in the top right corner there is a black and white photo of a young boy’s face, and the marker pen is drawing over his eye’s. To the left of this picture there is the word ‘WRONG‘ in a white handwritten font, but it is very big and looks as if it has been done out of anger. There is then a jump cut, and the only thing that has changed is that now all of the boys face has been covered up by the marker pen.

The Soundtrack

Throughout the opening sequence there is no dialogue or narration of any kind, yet the audience are still very intrigued and drawn into the film, this is because of the soundtrack that creates suspense and encourages the audience to try and think why they are seeing all of the images.

For the first eleven seconds of the film we barley hear any sound at all. The only thing that is audible is a distant dog barking that is coming from outside the house. The man then turns on the metronome and from this point on we can hear its monotonous ticking, this sound reflects the image of the man who looks very bored lying in his bed. While the metronome is ticking we can still heat the dog barking and distant voices that are coming from outside the house. This part of the soundtrack makes the audience feel slightly uneasy, as we don’t know what is going on, and why everything is so quiet. Forty seconds into the film this abruptly changes to a thunder clap as the screen turns black and the opening credit appears, this evokes feelings of a storm, and that this might be reflected in what is going to happen in the story. The ticking of the metronome is replaced by a similar repetitive sound once the film has cut away from the images of the man in his bed. The sound that replaces it is that of symbol being lightly hit, however it is very quiet as there are also other layers of sound present at this point. We can also hear a banging drum sound that echo’s and an eerie high pitched string sound that combine to add drama and suspense to the images. This continues until the first montage when there is a high pitched saw sound over the top, that connotes the use of machinery, and this ties in with the images that can be seen. There are then other sounds added such as high pitched scratching and clicking, these also evoke the idea of machinery being used. Sounds like this continue to be frequently repeated throughout the opening sequence, and they are accompanied with the other layers of sound that could be heard from the beginning of the opening montage.

In the opening two minutes of the film the only diegetic sound that we hear is the mentions ticking of the metronome. Other than this all sound is non-diegetic, and this helps to create an air of mystery as the audience cannot be sure about what is going on. The lack of dialogue also helps to create this sense of mystery and suspense. It keeps the audience guessing as to what they are seeing actually means, and engages them to think about what is happening for themselves.

What Have I Learnt From This Analysis?

This analysis of the opening sequence of Se7en has show me the amount of different shots that are needed to make an effective opening sequence. In total there are about 56 cuts within the opening two minutes of the film. This suggests that there is a cut approximately every two seconds, however this is not true. The first 46 seconds of the film only has five cuts in, and this is because each one of the shots is held for a very long time, this helps give a feel of unease and boredom. It also means that there is an extremely fast cutting rate for the rest of the opening, and this is because it is full of the opening credits and various different montages.

This combination of shots that are dragged out of long periods of time with relatively no sound accompanying them, and the fast paced montage’s that have many different layers of sound act as a really effective way to hook the audience. The use of these two very different styles leaves the audience wondering what is happening, and what the significance of all the different things they are seeing is.

GD Conventions of a Horror Film

Horor films are films that try to engage the audiences emotion of fear, horror and terror.
Generally they will involve themes of death, mental illness or supernatural happenings and tend to have a main villain or villains.

Earlier films tend to be based on literacy such as 'Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde' nut since WW2 other sub genres have formed about insecurities of life. These are:

horror of personality e.g. 'Phsycho'
horror of armageddon e.g. 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers'
horror of the demonic e.g. 'The Exorcist'

Through the years from 1940 onwards however many other genres have been formed due do the taste of the audience and the constant facination to want more and more horrifying cinema.

Towards the end of the 60's the still going and popular gore-films emerged, introducing a sexual overtone when going into the 70's an example of a gore film is 'Two Thousand Maniacs!'

Also in the 70's films such as 'hills have eyes' and 'dawn of the dead' related to recent events such as vietnam and the consumer society. The 70's also brought about the very popular slasher genre such as 'Halloween' and 'Black Christmas' which bacame increasingly violent and consisting of a predatory villain with some sort of mental illness.

Some films then came to adopt a science fiction style and terrifying audience through creatures unknown and dangerous for example 'Alien'

Later in the 90's horro films were tend to be made almost ironic with teens in 'scream' tlaking of horror movies and typical 'splatter movies' such as 'Braindead' being made.

Within the 2000 period horror films have seen a return to a more restricted viewing at the cinema with older ratings which please horror fans.

Also a new genre has been made of 'graphic violence' from films such as the very successful 'Saw' and 'Wrong Turn' this very much being the audience wanting to see more and more gore and this genre has been labelled as 'splatterporn' as people when watching become facinated and enjoy the torure endured from films like 'Hostel'.

JC - Conventions Of A Thriller

The common thriller has a villain driven plot, whereby the villain sets obstacles for a hero to overcome. This hero is usually a 'hard man' who thrives on danger. These people are normally police officers, spies, and soldiers amongst other things. However in recent times it has become more common for everyday citizens, and women to be the heroes with in thriller's. This allows the audience to connect with the films plot and main characters in a much more personal way.

There are many other sub-genres within the thriller genre itself, these include:

1. Action - often against the clock, feature many fight/action scenes, and there is an obvious villain the cause carnage throughout.
2. Spy - the hero is often a government agent who is sent on a mission to track down a villain, and halt their evil plans.
3. Legal - the hero is often a lawyer who must overcome many obstacles to win their case when it previously looked like they had no chance of winning. They usually have to overcome threats on their lives, and face persecution from people who are against what they are doing.
4. Crime - these thrillers offer accounts of successful or unsuccessful crimes, and what the criminals had to do to plan the crime, and the way in which the police attempted to stop them. These types of thrillers normally engage the audience, as the plot often features many twists and turns, requiring the audience to think about what is happening.

Genre....

Out of the choices of
- Horror
- Teen Drama
- Thriller

I think thriller is the best catogory , going by film openings we have looked at and the range it gives us. I will upload some ideas shortly.