http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwpCg4v-ZY8 don't know if this is really a thriller but I couldn't find anything else so this will have to do sorry. Camerawork and Editing
Point of View
The first shot after the titles is pan shot of some houses to try and set the scene, it then tracks in towards a house then tracks up to the window to show that is where the main character lives.
It then cuts to a birds eye view of a book almost like a Point of View shot. Next we cut to an Extreme close up of the main characters glasses the fact its an extreme close up of his glasses make the audience see the reflection of the book content in his glasses. then cut back to another point of view shot of the book to emphise the fact he's looking at it and shows it is obviously very important to him. There is a mid close up of him so we can see his facial expression and the audience can see how the book has made him feel.
We then see Harry talking to his bird and there are mid shots of them cutting from one to the other a few time.
It then cuts to what appears to be downstairs and there is a shot mid close up of a cake in perfect condition and then there is a tilt up to a mid close up of the women who is making the cake to show to the audience she is probably a perfectionist and may have signs of OCD.
We cut to a two shot of Harry and the women, as we see Harry walk through the door and has entered the kitchen.
2 shot
There is slight tracking shot then a pan round so you see an over the shoulder shot, you can see Harry's shoulder and then two people.
It then cuts to a medium shot of Harry and it is a shallow depth of field as the women in the background is out of focus and Harry is in focus to show the audience that Harry is the one that they should focus on.
There is soon a medium long shot of two males which also makes it a 2 shot. Then as they walk forwards the camera tracks back to follow them, as the boy walks away and out of th shot there is an over the shoulder shot, the shoulders of Harry and the man is a being shown.
Then another 2 shot of the women and her son.
Then as the tracking and panning shots following the characters around. When all the characters come together except Harry there is a medium long shot, group shot.
Then there is a medium long shot of Harry. Then make to the group shot and the last shot of the clip is back to the medium long shot of Harry.
Mise en Scene
Lighting shows where character lives
The beginning of the clip is quite dark with a few hints of lights here and there to set the scene of a rows of houses, when we track in closer we can see a few houses but only ones got a light on to make it stand out and make the audience aware that that is where the main character lives.
The prop of the book shows that it might be significant and important to the main character as he looks at it with care.
The lighting in Harry's room although its on as seen from the tracking shot outside the window and we can also see by seeing the lamp in the corner of his desk, his room is quite dark and dingy. From what little you can see of the room it seems fairly simple as his wall colour is a dark green, he seems to have a small bed with just plain white covers a desk and a lamp and he is wearing a scruffy, faded blue jumper and scruffy brown trousers, this shows the audience he might not be allowed to have his own style to the room and does not have the money to pay for nice equipment and bright lighting.
This is a contrast to the kitchen scene as the lighting seems very bright and there is a nice cake that is perfect to in take and the women is wearing a nice salmon pink dress and purl necklace, her hair is neat and she has red lipstick on.
We can slightly see the dinner table and what we can see of it is it has a big, fancy candle stick on it, and some wine glasses.
Then when we first see the other two males they are sorting out one another ties and are wearing suits to show there is an important event taking place soon and also showing that other than Harry they might be the antagonists as they seem to be fairly wealthy or middle class citizens but are not sharing this wealth with Harry as they are all in nice clothing and have nice things except Harry.
contrast in costume
We see pictures around the rooms all of them being family pictures all smiley and cheerful and there are a few pictures of the boy that's not Harry blown up big, but none of the pictures have Harry in them. This also to show they might be the antagonists as they leave Harry out of everything and clearly forget about him.
The families facial expressions when talking to Harry always seem to be moody and frowns and always seem to look angry and annoyed at Harry, but appear to be nice and simile towards each other, again to show the might be the antagonists as Harry has done nothing wrong.
The women also seems to be wearing an apron as she has made the food to show is domestic and homely and everything has to look nice and perfect, unlike Harry's room.
Harry facial expression continuously seems to be quite sad and upset throughout the clip to show that he feels like he doesn't belong and is unhappy about have to be living there.
Sound
The beginning is the Harry Potter theme tune which is a non diagetic sound and this carries on until we cut to the kitchen when we see a close upb of the cake when it stops.
But over the top of it we can here the diagetics sounds of the paper crinkling as he turns the page in his book which could possibly be a foley sound.
His bird screeching and flapping which could possibly be foley sounds depending on weather or not they could get the bird to make that noise at that time. Because the bird makes a noise it makes Harry use diologe as he starts to talk to his bird which we can here clearly.
We then here a deep voice shouting which is slightly muffled so the audience can tell its supposed to be coming from a different room in the house.
When we cut to the cake and the soundtrack has stopped we here the diagetic sound of the women humming as she bakes which is a very stereotypical housewife thing to do.
We here the sound of a door opening as Harry enters the kitchen and then there is some more diologe.
As the man pats his son on the shoulder we here a patting sound and as the boy bumps into Harry we here another patting sound but this time loader and sharper to show more force, then another patting sound when the boy reaches in for the cake and his mum hits his hand to get im of all of them obviously exaggerated and therefore foley.
As the man calls over the rest of his family we here the footsteps of them walking towards him one of which being high heels to show the women is wearing heels again to make the audience aware that an important occasions is taking place or else she wouldnt be wearing high heels in the comfort of her own home.
Also as soon as he calls his family over to him another non diagetic sound picks up which is played quietly underneath the diologe and it appears to be some light violin sounds, then when they all just stare at Harry the music becomes slightly harsher violin sounds to show that they are picking on him and to make the audience aware of the tension between the family and Harry on screen. Then when we cut to Harry and here his diologe in reply to what the man has just said it cuts out so we can focus on what he's saying.
Then we go back to the tense music playing underneath the diologe of the man to show he's being horrible to Harry again and there is more tension starting to build between them.
The first shot is a tracking shot of the city buildings to set the scene, it gets closer into a certain building and there is an medium close up of this building windows to make the audience wander what the significance of that building is and if anythings going to happen, then suddenly one of the window smashes.
It then cuts to the inside of the building and shows whats just happened so the audience are aware of how the building window smashed.
After that we cut to a completely different place still in the city but this time by a road, there is another tracking shot this time of the back of a mans head, the fact we can't see his face makes the audience want to know who he is and why we can't see his face, tracks but slightly tilts down and we track to a medium long shot so we can see his bag, mask that's in his hand and his leg then a car pulls up and we see him walking into the car which makes it into long shot.
It cuts again to inside the building, there is a slight
Birds eye view zip wire
tracking shot to out the broken window and then a tilt down so the audience get a feel for the height of the building at full scale.
Then it cuts to a birds eye view of the guys on the zip over, and again looks down at the floor at a higher angle than the previous shot to make the audience feel even nervous as they wander if there going to make it across. The camera then pans slightly to watch and follow the two guys going along the zip wire.
After that it cuts to the two guys landing the zip wire and landing on to the other building.
Cuts again to to the car that the guy got into, and there is a group shot in the car to show there is more than just one person in the car, there is shallow depth of field so the guy in the front is in focus but the things outside the car window, the guy in the back and the guy driving are out of focus so the audience watch what the guy in focus is doing.
You see a long shot of them getting out the car and start to run to show the audience there in a rush to get somewhere. You see them run towards a building and run to the door and open it, the next shot is of them inside the building and you see them walking through the door on the other side which shows good match on action (continuity).
There is a medium long shot of a man in his office and you can see in the corner of the shot you can see the 3 guys walking through the hall and knocking over the security from outside the office window.
One of the guys who was on the roof is now walking through a door comes to a safe and the camera pans round from the guy to the safe so the audience can see that he's gone to a safe.
Then cuts again to the first floor, then back to the safe, then to the first floor picking up the pace so it is moving from one setting to the other faster each time.
In the shot of first floor there are many shallow depth of field shots as the antagonist guys are in focus and the background of the office setting is out of focus so the audience are mainly focusing on what the antagonist is doing.
We see one of the antagonists fall to the floor a medium shot into an extreme long shot of the man from the office and we can see he's shot one of the antagonists.
We then cut again to the safe but the guy is joined by one of the guys who was on the first floor and there is a 2 shot, which show cross cutting as the two settings that were being shown have joined.
Then a long shot of a antagonist running through the open safe. have a mid close up of him taking all the money.
We see an extreme long shot of the antagonists being hit but a school bus that has just burst through the first floor door.
Mise en scene
The guy who broke the window is holding a gun to show the audience how the widow broke and he's wearing a white mask with blue and red around the eyes, the fact that he's wearing a mask and discising him face shows he doesn't want people to know who he is and is trying to hide his identity to show he's probably the antagonist and is going to do something bad.
When we cut to the back of the man by the road we can see he is holding a mask like the guys in the building, this is exaggerated by tracking in towards it showing that he too is an antagonist.
The fact they use the zip wire instead of just going into that building shows there not allowed to be there again to show that something bad is going to happen.
The man in the office is surrounded by a desk, computers, telephones and paper to make it seem more office like and believable to set the scene of an office. The man in the office is wearing a white shirt and brown suit and a red tie tied neatly all the way up to show he is a business man, and he is wearing glasses that is often associated to being clever and you have to be a fairly clever person to work in an office.
When we see the women behind the desk her facial expression seems to be scared and her body language is taken a back to show shes in shock and is trying to edge away from him by learning back and her hands are up as if shes trying to surrender.
surrender body language
The man who was in the office the antagonists ran past is watching what is going on and his facial expression looks unimpressed but quite calm in contrast to the other characters who were behind the desks who seemed very frightened and panicky and he shoots the antagonist which shows he might be the protagonist as he is trying to protect the company and his colleges but at the same time it might make the audience wander if he actually is a protagonist as we might wander what a business man is doing with a gun in his office.
The idea of the guns being used to show there turning against each other is used again when the antagonist who was on the first floor shoots the antagonist in the safe. once the antagonist runs through the safe he puts a lot of money in his bag, the use of the money sets up the whole storyline and the hole reasoning for why the masked antagonists have done this and why they seem to be turning against one other as the money has made then feel power and greed and brings out the main themes of the clip.
a yellow school bus crashes through the office door, this puts the audience in a state of shock and wander what has just happening as it is quite unusual and unexpected.
The lighting when the characters are outside appears to be natural light, inside the building is also very light as it gives of the idea it is a very well lit high mantince office.
Sound
At the begining the non diagectic sound seems to be very quiet, constant and monotone almost like a sort of beeping noise.
when the window smashes you can here the diagetic sound of the glass braking which is most likely foley sounds.
The non diagect sound then still keep the same monotone sound but has a drum beat is being overplayed with it to give it a tense atmosphere and to make the audience aware that something bad has just happened.
The antagonist picks up the equipent and fires the zip wire u can here every movement he makes, which is exadurated so it is foley and also diagetic.
When the car arrives to pick the other antagonist up we can here the diagetic sound of the wheels of the car screeching as it brakes.
As he gets in the car a bigger noise is being played which could be an electric guitar, to make it seem even more tense to the audience.
as the camera tilts down to show the height of the building from where they were there is whooshing noise to make the audience almost feel like there going to fall as it sound sort of like a non diagetic version of the wind in a way.
When antagonists reach half way of the zip wire there are two very loud booms in the non diagectic sounds to build to the tense atmosphere as it makes the audience know something really bad is going to happen soon and want know whats going to happen.
We then here the diagetic sound of crunching of the stones as they land again exaggerated to show it likely to be a foley sound.
We here the diagetic sound of the door opening followed by footsteps then a a few gun shots going of foley sounds as probably couldn't use a real gun.
You then here some diagetic sounds of screaming and shouting as people start to panic.
You here the digetic sound of the drill gong through the safe again probally foley.As the drill through the safe goes through we here the diagetic sound of the spark a quick pinging noise and then the antagonist grunting as he is shot backwards by the spark. The reeling of the wheel as the safe opens.
Sound of paper as he collects up the money.
Lastly the final crash of the of when the bus comes through the door and the sound of glass smashing.
It starts of with an extreme long shot of a girl so you can see what her whole body is doing.
It then cuts to a medium long shot of her feet and are many panning shots follwing her as she moves, so you can see in full detail how she is gracefully moving around and using the space shes in, you can also see she is on point so she must be a very well trained ballet dancer. The camera stays in the same place as the girl slowly sits down and there is still a medium long shot.
It then sharply cuts to an extreme long shot from the back of her head and it is shallow depth of feild so the girl is out of focus to show something bad might happen to her soon. The camera starts tracking towards her but is a bit shaky to show its a handhelp camera as if to show a point of veiw like someone is stalking her.
Point of Veiw shot
There a man appears as if from nowhere and there is an over the shoulder shot of him he is in focus but the girl is still out of focus, as its an over the shoulder shot we don't see his face yet which makes the audience want to know who he is, why he's appeared from no where and is creeping up behind her, which all creates tension.
The girl then stands up and the camera pans round so we see the front of her face and start to see a hint of his face too, it also makes him seem like the antagonist.
The camera then spins around them and does about three rotations, this breaks the 180 degree rule but it is used to show disoreantation and make the audience confused and wander why this is happening and whats going on.
The camera then seems to stay roughly in the same place but at the very end of the clip
although at the very end girl gets on point and walks into the distance so the camera doesnt move but it turns into an extreme long shot.
Mise en Scene
Lighting (almost like a siluette)
The room is very dark almost pitch black but there is a bright, white light coming from the top left hand side which slowly appears to show the girl almost as a siluette and as she is dancing she dances in and out of the light.
When she sits down the white light is directly above her they then both walk in and out of the light and the light almost like the man trying to luer he into the darkness as he dances alot in the dark but the girl is trying to get into the light as she holds out her hand and reaches towards the light but then the man grabs her other hand and pulls her back into the darkness, this shows a contrast between light and dark which suggests a line between good and evil.
The girl is wearing white tights, ballet shoes and a flowing white dress which comes down to her shins, it is white to show her innocents and purety and suggests she might be the protagonist, and it a flowing so it moves around while she dances and poofs out around her when she sits down on the floor her hair is up in a neat bun and tied up by a which flower, her make up is plain and simple and her skin is pale.
The floor is very clean, and shinny and you can see the reflection of the light, and her dress and feet on the floor in the shot of her feet.
The guy who is behind her is wearing all black and has big black eye makeup he then puts his arms out and spins his arms begin to turn into wings as he suddenly grows feathers and his whole face bacomes black and black horn grow on his head all to show he is dark and evil and suggests hes probally the antagonist.
Contrast of costume
Towards the end the girls flowing white dress turns into a starpless white tu tu dress made of feathers and there are feathers in her hair too, to show she has been transformed into a swan.
At the end of the clip she walks of into the light that has become alot brighter and bigger, then the light that fades down and it is all dark again.
Most of the shots are Medium long shots so you can see there facial expressions the girls was calm and relaxed but then when the man appears it changes to scared and longing and at the very end she looks very sad. The medium long shot also helps show the body language of the arms
The way she moves her arms at the begining is soft and baletic like and moved with persision.
Sound
There is absolutly no diologe in this opening, and the only diagetic sound you can here throughout the opening one deep breath when the man stands behind the girl, it is a big, deep breath to show shes scared.
We can also here the sound of the wings flaping when the man spins and transforms so you can see and her that he is changing into feathers but he obviously doesnt have actual wings in real life so this diagetic sound is probally foley.
The rest of the clip is all non diagetic sounds it is a classical soundtrack to show it is a classical ballet that is being shown in the clip. The non diagectic soound at the begining is soft and calm sounds and our string instuments and is fairly slow paced.
Then as she sits down there there is an overlap of percusion instruments such as a drum beat and a symbol to show the audience that something bad is about to happened and to create tension.
As the man has his arms up above the girls which as also up and they move there arms in unison together but with the mans slightly above there is a drum beat which goes in time with the movements, almost like he is contolling her like a puppet.
After the man has transformed from his black shirt and trousers into feathers, full black face and black horns the pace of the music changes into fast paced to show the dance has suddenly got fanatic, disorentated and distorted as the man has distured the peaceful scene and shows the audience that the man must be the antagonist as the non diagetic sounds all became fast and frantic as soon as he entered the space.
As he leaves and the girl is left on her own the near the end the non diagetic sounds dies down, becomes less frantic and goes back to a slow pace before fading down completly to show that the atmosphere has become calmer as the antagonist has left the scene.
This video shows a simple example example of shot reverse shot, shot reverse shot is when we have an over the shoulder shot of a character and the other character is in the shot the camera then moves (keeping to the 180 degree rule) to the an over the shoulder shot of the person who was just in focus so you can then see the person whos shoulder you just saw's face being the main focus and is then moved back again to the original shot (again keeping to the 180 degree rule). The shot reverse shot is often used to show two characters in a convosation.
This is our shot reverse shot's
This is our first part of the shot reverse shot where we see Amy O's facial expressions and see the back of my head so it is also an over the shoulder shot
This is the second part of the shot reverse shot because this time we see my facial expressions and the back of Amy O's head again also making it an over the shoulder shot.
Then we reach the final part of our shot reverse shot as we come back to Amy O's facial expression and the back of my head again so we finish with the begining shot again, and because you see the back of my head it also makes it an over the shoulder shot.
I think that our shot reverse shot was good and went well but we could have worked more on our framing in the shots as there is quite alot of spare space and the audience can see alot of pointless background such as the wire and folded up table ect and this is unnesesary as it doesnt benit our story line. Infact it probally should look something like this:
Waves crashing shallow depth of feild this would slightly confused and wander why the forground waves are in focus and the backgorund waves are out of focus.
Close up shows pain and tired
There is a close up of Leonardo's characters face to show his facial expression and so you can see his face is cut and he is is pain and tired.
Extreme long shot of palace or temple type buliding.We then cut to inside a buliding which we assume was the palace or temple type building we saw in the pervious shot
The camera is placed outside the open door overlooking the inside of the room there is then a tracking shot with slowly starts to come in through the door.
There is shallow depth of feild when we have an over the shoulder shot of Leonard's character of his shoulder is in focus but the chinese mans out of focus but then is quickly bought into focus so we can see his reaction to Leonardo's character.
Leonardo's character is eatting and his head is down but as the chinese guy is talking to him he slowly looks u and the camera tilts to follow his so we can constantly see his face.
After an extreme close up of Leonardo's characters watch we cut to a completly new scene
cut to new scene of explosion
where we can see an explosion take place for a few seconds with makes the audience wander why it cut to that and then cut back so quickly and what suggnificants that has to the scene thats taking place.
A guy looks out his window and the next shot is looking at the explosion happening again but this time through the window as if a point of veiw shot.
Then the last shot is an extreme close up of someone elses watch which links to one of the pervious shots to show repetition and make the audience wander what is the significance of time.
Mise en Scene
There are kids in the scene which is completly out of place
Kids out of place
and quite confusing as there are men walking round with guns and it seems to be set in china and the kids arent chinese and makes the audience wander what there doing there and will it be explained later.
The room we cut to after the beach is lit by lots of lantens above which suggests the room should be brightly lit but it is actually fairly dark to give the scene a tense atmosphere.
There is a long dinning table which is obviously very clean as you can see the reflection from the lights above in it to show the man who owns this place is very rich and a wealthy man.
There is a mid close up shot of a gun and a spinning top and the subtitles read he was carrying nothing but this, meaning these props suggest importance and
Suggnificance of props
might be significant during the rest of the film. Then a while later there is a medium long shot of the chinese man spinning the spinning top and it spins for a while again showing importance and suggnificants.
We cut to the next scene which seems to be later on in the day as they have changed clothes and our both wearing suits again showing the fact the chinese guy has a lot of money and obviously alot of power to as he can afford alot of fancy suits.
Leonado's character looks at his watch showing he's might be running out of time.
Sound
The non diagetic sound at the very begining are big and booming sounds and sound as if it may be percussion instruments like a drum and a symbol to give a tense atmosphere and create tension.
Then the diagetic sounds such as the waves crashing which are very likely to be foley sounds as it would be quite hard to be able to record and here the actual waves being filmed.
There is one of the children screaming playfully which again is probally foley as you never see the front of the children you only see the back of there head so the girl playing her probally never even screams.
There is some diologe at the begginging its in chinese with English subtitles but then goes into English.
Then the sound of the explosion again likely to be foley
Then towards the end the music is still tense but has changed to possibly some string instruments.
This is the 180 degree rule you can see that the camera (blue) only stays on one side of the imaginary line (red) and you have to stick to eathier one of the sides and that side only other wise it would confuse the audience as the character would appear on different sides each time for example the person would appear on the left in one shot and then might appear on the right hand side in the next shot which would look really odd, and confusing so you have to stick to one side.
There is an extreme close up of the girls eyes half close and looking quite tired, then there is a close up of her hand holding a bar, it’s fairly disorientated and weird as extreme close ups are rarely used.
There is a worm’s eye view of the sky and a branch that is spinning because it’s a Point of View of the girl who is lying down spinning on a roundabout and also relates to the idea of disorientation.
After that there's a bird’s eye view of the girl spinning on the roundabout and a tracking shot going out until you can see the women pushing her around and this helps to establish the setting that there in a park
There is a mid close up of the man, women and child all smiling which is odd as it’s a thriller and might be misleading, seems too good to be true and lets the audience believe something dramatics going to happen soon.
When we then cut to the Kitchen scene we can see a medium long shot this is a good sized shot to have as we can see a family picture slightly out of focus, so its shallow depth of field and we can also see the women standing by the sink in focus so the audience know that’s what they should really be watching.
In the bedroom scene when the woman is walking around the room sutally 'trying to look for her daughter' there is a pan shot following her walking to the doors.
There is also a shot reverse shot of the girl and her mum talking when there both and the bed talking to each other.
We cut to another room where there’s shallow depth of field the man looking into the microscope is in focus and the women who appears to be his wife is out of focus as we need to establish that she’s walked in the room but at the same time he needs to be the main focus.
There's a medium long shot of the women in the bath so you can see the women’s facial
Candles give an eerie atmosphere
expression looking fairly upset and not everything is quite right you can also see the bath and a few candles which gives it an eerie atmosphere.
A medium long shot is then used where you see the man turning round and the other side of the bed and see him looking around to show the audience he's discovered his wife’s not in the bed with him.
The next shot is a slight tracking shot following behind the man as he walks through the corridor, and then a long shot of the hallway and an open door as if it’s from the man’s Point of View and makes the audience think something’s wrong.
Mise en Scene
There is the prop of the a china doll that the girl is holding in here hand which shows she is very attached to this doll as she has taken a china doll with her to the park which is unusual as it could
Doll shows attachment
easily break in an environment like a park and on a roundabout, the roundabout is another effective prop as it helps showing the setting is in a park, the doll then appears again in the bedroom scene when her mum gives it to her to go to bed with which again is odd as a china doll is an unusual toy to sleep with and a soft toy is normally used which again shows her attachment to it.
In the park you can tell it is autumn as the tree in the worms eye view has no leaves on it and you can only see the branches. There are brown, crispy leaves all over the floor, and the characters are all wearing coats and long trousers to show its cold weather, this relates to the fact it’s a thriller as it’s not a lovely, bright and sunny day.
In the Kitchen scene we can see a family picture slightly out of focus and her standing by the sink in
Pills and family picture
focus so we see her as she picks up a glass filled with red wine and then takes a pill which shouldn’t really be taken with alcohol and then once she’s taken the pill she downs the wine very fast to give the audience the impression that it is not quite a happy family as the picture suggests.
In the bedroom scene the women’s body language is her putting her hands on her hips and her facial expression seem confused and she’s looking around as if looking for someone and then we find out she’s playing hide and seek with her daughter with links to the title but obviously later the title relates to a much darker theme.
There is a slight flashback which only lasts a millisecond which makes the audience wander what just happened and want to know how that’s going to link in, we can tell it’s a flashback as the lighting changes to a dark yellowy colour which is different to the rest of the lighting which appears to be natural light.
Time shows early morning
The man looks at a clock that displays the time as 2.06 which means it is very early in the morning and suggests the man has found it hard to sleep as might be worried about something.
Sound
The non diagetic sounds at the beginning is a light sounding track, sounds like a piano which goes well with the spinning of the roundabout as it is a slow tune and the music is slow and isn’t up-tempo and it is also quite tense and builds suspense and tension.
You can here it diagetic sound of the roundabout squeeking which is quite exadurated so most likely foley.
There is then some diagetic sounds of laughing of the girl to show she’s having fun which is odd as it’s a thriller but makes the audience think something dramatic will happen soon.
There is little dialogue other than a bit between the mother and daughter before the girl went to bed.
Other things worth mentioning
It is not yet obvious who is the antagonist and who is the protagonist and is only discovered near the end of the film which means the audience are in the dark nearly the whole way through the film so the film is restricted narration but especially at the beginning with is good as it creates enigma and will put the audience in a state of shock by the end of the film.
This is our very final preliminary film. I think its fair to say that we're all quite pleased with it, we all put lots of time into both the filming and editing process and the end result is one we all can be confident with. I think the setting was perfect for such a sequence - dark and unassuming which produced quite a dark atmosphere, emphasising the hostility and lack of emotion exchanged between the two characters.
I'm glad we managed to fill the 3 main targets of the preliminary - we followed the 180 degree rule by always having the camera on the right hand side of the characters. We followed match on action by using the same clothing - and when the bag was placed down, it stays in the same place throughout the transition - and we also managed to follow a shot reverse shot of the two characters speaking to one and other.
There were problems that we encountered - I think overall the lighting could have been used more effectively to be more emotive and really differentiate the antagonist from the protagonist. I also think that by filming more shots than we did, we would have been able to fine tune some shots that weren't quite ideal. Finally I think its important that we don't rewind to view shots we have just filmed, as this can get quite confusing as to whereabouts we are on the tape. These problems can all be overcome by the use of better lighting equipment, the use of a better camera (the camera we used before captured the color really well, but we could not use these shots because everyone was wearing different clothing), and just by general practice and experience.
I think we did the 180 degree went well as we continuesly kept the camera to the right hand side and never put it on the other side.
Shot reverse shot I thought was quite good as when we had diologe the camera was focused on the person talking so we could see there reactions to the other person and then we went to the next persons diologe and then back again.
We did have a two shot which would we all thought was fine but then Andrew said that didnt really count but we could just get away with it so that was fine.
What we could have possibly done was had a shot of the person who wasnt talking so we could see there reaction to what the other person is saying.
The match on action was a bit of a bigger issue as we shot quite a lot and then when we came back to it we forgot some of the thing we were wearing so we couldn't continue as it wouldnt look the same so therefore we had to start again but we manged to get a lot more done the second time round which was good and helped us in the long run.
There was also a shot when Amy O walks through the door and the light was turned off but then when we came to editting when she walked back out of the door the light was swiched on but luckly when we watched it the whole way through we saw there was a problem and as we filmed the same shot at least 3 or 4 times each shot we did we managed to find another shot of her walking out the door with the light turned off.
So there was good continuity throughout the clip the bag was a good example of match on action as it seems to be in the same place the whole time even when we cut to a different shot which was good.
so all in all I think our pliminary went well as we didnt incounter any unsolverable problem.
The car is tracked as it weaves through the crowds, creating
great dramatic irony. When is the bomb going to explode?
Touch of Evil is a crime thriller film from 1958 directed by Orson Welles. It is particularly famous for its very lengthy opening shot lasting for 3 and a half minutes. The opening shot is so acclaimed because it manages to create a feeling of prolonged tension - we, as an audience, know full well that the bomb exploding is a complete inevitability - yet the characters don't, and the normal hubbub of the city creates a strong contrast to our knowledge that any second now we can expect a dramatic change in atmosphere - it is only a question of when, making the scene very unnerving. The tension just keeps on building throughout the scene as we don't really know when the bomb is going to explode. Also, the camera primarily tracks the movements of the two main characters yet the thought of the bomb is subliminally always there in the back of our minds. Maybe it would be a good idea to incorporate some sense of dramatic irony into our opening because it is a very good way of building tense for the viewer.
Mise-en-scene and Sound
The props and lively jazz music help depict normality
Both the Mise-en-scene and the sound are important in conveying across to the audience both a sense of time and setting. The props such as the man wheeling the cart across the road, the men directing traffic and the men and women on dates holding hands all create an atmosphere of a normal, social, working city in the nighttime. The joking, relaxed manner of the border officers also help to portray an ordinary night in a place that does not expect a bomb to go off anytime soon. The men and women also look quite sophisticated, as they are wearing elegant, expensive, formal clothing and driving in very glitzy, beautiful vehicles, showing that this is an upmarket, sophisticated kind of place. The jazz music from the background buildings is very lively, contrapuntal - it is a happy, lively, upbeat, so maybe giving the impression that people go here to enjoy themselves. We as an audience are in the knowledge that something terrible is just about to happen - and the dramatic irony portrayed helps convey a sense of agony for the viewer - we are completely powerless to help save the victims of the bomb. It also helps create contrast and emphasize the shock when the bomb does finally set off. The two main characters can be heard optimistically talking about their happiness, and also about their future together, again re-iterating this sense of irony that happiness is about to end very soon. Towards the end of the scene, the woman in the car exclaims that she can 'hear a clicking noise!', which bring our minds and our consciousness back to that of the bomb inside the car. It may also give a false sense of hope to their viewer, that maybe the people inside the car may just gt outside in time. Of course, they don't, showing that by the use of voice the scene is playing tricks with our minds. This also helps create a sense of irony, almost as if we could ask ourselves, 'If only they'd listened to her'.
Camerawork and Editing
The 'kiss of death' creates contrast and false sense of security
This sequence is unique from most opening scenes in that it is formed from just one take. I think the main reason for this lengthly shot is to convey a sense of realism - it makes the scene very believable when we are not distracted by cuts and transitions. The whole scene is filmed in real time which emphasises this feeling of just an everyday town. In most films, the 'disruption' comes within the middle part of the film, so we do expect such a big moment to occur right at the very beginning of the film.
I like how the camera is able to scan over the town - we can zoom in and out and tilt and pan to perfectly capture the scene. A wide range of shot types are used, including close ups, long shots, extreme long shots, that are elegantly blended in with each other to both establish the setting and to track the movements of the characters and the doomed car. The sequence begins with a close up of a man setting a bomb timer for precisely 3 minutes (this is perfectly timed, because it is exactly at 3 minutes into the film that the bomb goes off, so we do, if we are engaged enough, able to tell when the bomb will explode). The camera then cranes across to show the shadow of the man against the wall. This is a brilliant shot, because a shadow can connote multiple themes - secrecy, danger, mystery, evil, and it also helps emphasize his fast paced run across to the car. We then catch up with the man as he placed the bomb into the trunk of the car, and as the camera zooms out it reveals to the audience the doomed couple as they get into the car (their elegance and relaxed nature is contrasted with the quick, nervy start of the man at the beginning). Then camera then cranes over the top of the building and the 'liqour' sign, establishing the location and the setting to the audience. At about 1:25 seconds in the lead characters walk into shot and actually cross the path of the doomed car, creating a very tense moment, when the audience know full well the bomb could go off at any time. From then on the couple and the car move side by side, sometimes the car moves ahead and we as the audience think the couple will be safe, but then the couple catch up with the car and again we find ourselves in great anticipation as to the fate of the newlyweds. Welles is simple teasing with his audience, testing their emotions. I think the kiss at the end of the scene is symbolic of a 'kiss of death', and the emotion of death mixed with the emotion of love juxtaposes the scene, helping to engage the audience and make them feel a range of emotions. Maybe we could build up tension in our opening to reach a dramatic climax.
- Normality of mise-en-scene and background music helps build a sense of dramatic irony and suspense
- Long, continuous shot helps realism and shows link between characters
- The length of shot builds the tension gradually to a big climax
Opening 2 - Se7en
Introduction
Se7en is a 1995 thriller film directed by David Fincher. The title sequence is particularly famous for its use of jump cuts and overlays, mixed with very short, pacey shots of a person crafting some sort of journal, then combined with the edgy rock tune of Nine Ince Nails 'Closer to God', presenting a very exciting, fast paced, nervy, dark, avant-garde introduction that helps us identify the mood of the entire film, and find out what the character featured works with (pictures of crime scenes, mug shots). There is a great sense of subconsciousness (and the 'unknowing' throughout this scene), largely down to the fact that the shots are so quick, and are frequently jilted or overlayed with other shots, increasing our sense of disorientation - it doesn't allow us time to reflect and interpret.
Mise-en-scene
- The cutting of film strip
- Stiching - very carefully
- Writing, highlighting, perhaps a diary? - secrecy
- Bandages on hands - mysterious, suggests danger
- Focuses on hands - combat - no shot of face to identify with or see emotion
- Removal of dead skin
- Obsessive
- Meticoulous, Tedious
- Sensitive area - hands
Shots like these show some sort of detailed journal, connoting secrecy and obsession
The mise-en-scene in this opening sequence is very important in introducing the character and his world of work. The opening sequence begins with the camera focused on a blank book being surveyed over by a hand - first of all, any book or journal left blank may be associated with a diary, connoting a prevailing sense of secrecy, or maybe the art of being undercover. This is a very vague shot, and it is only when the sequence develops that we are able to see the true importance and the context of the book. The next significant shot shows a drawing of two seemingly broken hands on a piece of drawing paper. The lighting used in this shot is used in such a way to make it look as if the hands are reaching out of the darkness and into reality, making it a particularly discerning, mysterious shot. There are a fair few shots throughout the scene that show blood, gore, or the photographs of dead people, which may give clues as to this person's type of profession - a patholigst maybe? Or is he an antagonist? The next few shots are in quick succession and detail particularly on the use of hands and fingers of the character. He is shown writing, cutting, sticking, gluing, and generally adding to his journal featured in the opening shot. His movements and techniques seem very precise and controlled - maybe he is a professional - but they all feature fairly meticulous and tedious processes, such as dipping photos or writing reports, which may show that he is particularly dedicated to his work, or maybe even obsessive. The focus on hands instead of facial expression almost dehumanise this person - hands show very little emotion, so maybe he is the kind of person used to dealing with blood and gore on a daily basis The camera also shows several bandages and plasters on the man's hand, again connoting mystery and danger, and maybe a sense of hardship. Our hands are one of the most sensitive places of our skin so this emphasises a feeling of edginess or tension.
Sound
- No diagetic sound
- Diagetic sound is that of the music. Music is discordant, works well with shots
- Music build up in tempo, no real words though
- Ends with 'You bring me closer to God' - gives clues to supernatural, spiritual
It is important to note that there is absolutely no diagetic sound in the opening sequence of this film. The sequence is overlayed with the music of Nine Inch Nails 'Closer to God', which works very well with the type of shots used. At the beginning of the song there are lots of drilling, whirring, twisting sounds which make it sound very disjointed and uncontrapuntal. There is a 'ticking clock' sound throughout which connotes to the audience a sense, perhaps, of being nervous, and of being under pressure.
Disjointed music emphasises edginess
There is also an underlying rhythm of the song that resembles a heartbeat, which could connote a sense of danger, or fear, because a heartbeat is at the very core of human life and therefore resonates very strongly in our perceptions of people 'living' (juxtaposed with the photos of people being dead). The music gradually builds up tempo, continually discordant, getting louder to fit with the increasing pace and disjointedness of the shots, until it reaches a climax of the words 'closer to God', which gives reference to a spiritual, religious term, a theme explored in great detail throughout the rest of the film. I think the use of music to emphasize or reflect whatever is in the shot is a very good way to build upon tension or create pace and edginess, so maybe we could incorporate this into our opening sequence too.
Camerawork
- Lots of extreme close ups
- Particular attention to book
- Some POV shots
- Moves very quickly - very ominous
The camera work in this sequence is crucial in setting the mood of the scene, and indeed for the rest of the film. A great deal of shots are either close ups or extreme close ups of this mysterious journal/scrap book, it is truly the centerpiece of this opening scene, and the man is simply a slave to its production. Because the shots so zoomed in and so close to the book, it makes it very difficult for us to focus, to take our time and fully interpret the shots we see. The close-up nature of the shots used shows clearly the meticulous and tedious processes of the man as he stitches together his journal. Many of the shots are POV shots, showing the journal from the man's point of view, allowing the audience to feel empathic and to put us 'in his shoes'.
Editing
- Very quick, pacey, disjointed - makes it difficult to take it all in
- Short length of time text is on screen makes it difficult to read it
- Lots of overlaying shots
- Camera moves very quickly, very unnerving, disjointed
- Sepia tone?
An example of one of Se7en's edgy, paceyjump cuts
I really like the editing used in se7en's opening sequence. There are frequent uses of jump cuts and overlays, and a great mix of slow and very quick, almost subliminal shots that make it very difficult for the audience to take in every shot. This makes for an incredibly pacey, edgy sequence that will leave the audience almost feeling exhausted by the time its finished. Because of this overwhelming disjointedness, the atmosphere becomes very dark, almost surreal, it just feels very unworldly and unnerving. The pace of the transitions accelerate, building up tension throughout the sequence, then climaxing when the words 'Closer to God' are spoken, which pays reference and drawing attention to arguably the most prevailing theme in the entire film.I also think that the editing used expresses distance over a period of time. Some shots appear quite light, some appear dark, so this emphasis used by the excessive cutting of shots may show that the man is spending a great deal of time over this scrap book, and therefore re-iterating this meticulous, obsessive nature he may have. The use of depth of field, with some things moving in and out of focus within one shot, adds to this feeling of the transition of time and unworldliness. I think we could perhaps use some of the effects in Se7en's opening sequence in our own thriller opener. I really like how it's very ominous and disjointed, because as a viewer it is very difficult to take it all in and therefore creates a lot of questions for us to ask, engaging the audience. Some of it is almost subliminal.
Opening 3 - Cape Fear
Introduction
Cape Fear is a thriller film from 1991 directed by Martin Scorsese. It features an excellent starting sequence that has almost a mystical, psychedelic feeling to it. It comprises of two main shots, with the first being very long and showing normal sea waves as they gradually transform into colorful, psychedelic patterns with fades of a human eye and a human body appearing and disappearing infrequently. The next shot is that of a girl in uniform, speaking in a narrative style as the camera zooms out from her, creating a slightly unworldly feel.
Mise-en-scene
- Waves/water - sets scene - connotations of drowning, being isolated?
- Waves turn into a sort of pattern - psychadelic?
- Womans is uniform, nurse-like - connotes health/death
- Crow - connotes sin, evil presence, fear
Crow connotes evil, screen is split between red/blue - which
could signify split emotions
The use of water is particularly important in mise-en-scene because water has many connotations. Perhaps the feeling of isolation, of being distant from normal civilization - or the feeling of being in danger of drowning, may all be conveyed in this particular shot. Around 40 seconds in appears a shot of a crow flying - again this has many connotations, as a crow can symbolize danger, or death, or sin and fear, or a theme of bad luck or bad health. As the sequence progresses the waves gradually turn into patterns of water, making it all seem very unworldly, and also somewhat uncomfortable. We can't predict what happens next as this seemingly calming water turns into a mysterious, unworldly pattern of psychedelic colour - this conveys a sense of distorted mind, maybe paying reference to mental instability? In the second part of the scene, the woman is uniform, almost as if she is some sort of nurse. A uniform may connote a sense of institutionalization - one of the main themes of the movie (prison), or a nurse's uniform may symbolize a need for health of security. The background behind the woman is very dark, most light is focused on her face and on her uniform, which helps outline her voice. The lighting however, does not seem completely natural, coupled with the fact that there is some sort of waterfall in the background, again pays homage to the previous sequence, showing that there must be some sort of connection between the two.
Sound
- Big dramatic opening note, sets scene
- Music builds up to a climax, progressively louder
- Woman's voice is almost enchanted and very poetic, mysterious
The music in this opening sequence is brilliant because it manages to create lots of suspense, accompanying the shot sequence very precisely. Just after the opening 'Universal' sequence and just as the wave sequence begins sounds a single loud, edgy note, mainly consisting of violins, creating lots of dramatic tension and uneasiness - it is very unexpected and almost takes you by surprise. This really makes the audience pay attention to the scene, helping to engage them and be mystified by the accompanying shot sequence. The music gradually builds up getting louder and pacier, whilst the sounds get much fiercer and sharper, helping create and bolster tension and suspense and an overall feeling of 'danger'. The music is very rhythmical though, which may mirror the patterns of the waves and their ripples. The music is able to create an underlying feeling of danger and worry, its almost so overwhelming that you want it to stop, or at least quieten down. There is an absence of diagetic sound throughout the sequence which makes the gradual transition from normal waves to psychedelic patterns seem all the more mysterious. When the sequence cuts to the next scene of the woman, her voice is very calm and harmonic, which contrasts greatly with the discordant music in the first half of the sequence. Her voice is however fairly poetic - it is monotonic yet in an almost poetic, enchanted manner, which may play homage to the psychadelic/hypnotic manner of the patterns of waves in the first part of the sequence. She speaks slowly and softly which engages the audience, drawing you into each and every one of her words, while the underlying theme of 'water' (the waterfall) still trickles subconsciously into our minds in the background.
Camerwork
- Close up of eyes, shows fear, isolation, innocence
- Camera draws away from woman, reveals her location
The camerawork shows the crow in its full flight, which may symbolize that an evil force is in full, complete control. The second sequence begins with a close up of the woman's eyes (dissolved from the previous shot), which outline her emotions very clearly, as eyes are often the clearest way of showing someone's emotion. She seems innocent, yet maybe isolated. She looks directly at the camera as it zooms out, which helps keep our focus entirely on her face, also aided with the depth of field which focuses primarily on her instead of the vague background.
Editing
- Credit location matches with the waves
- Blue sea turns to red - evil
The main editing used in this sequence is the gradual fading of the waves as it slowly evolves into a psychadelic pattern. This type of effect evokes a feeling of mystery and the unknowing. The patterns are almost hypnotic, and the gradual change between the waves and the patterns may create a feeling a sense of a dreamlike, hypnotic, unworldly scenario for the audience. There are also overlays of people's eyes throughout the second half of the sequence onto the patterns, suggesting a link, or suggesting some sort of mental deficiency with these people. The girl's eyes act as a join between the waves and the girl talking, which help to link between the two parts of the sequence and showing there must be a connection between the two. The sea also gradually turns to red, showing, perhaps, that there is some some sort of evil presence prevailing, conquering innocence and the serenity of the rippling waves.
Opening 4 - Vertigo
Introduction
The intro from Alfred Hitchcock's thriller Vertigo starts from 2:51 and ends at 4:08. It shows a chase scene from which the protagonist, James Stewart, jumps onto a slanting roof and struggles to hold on. A police officer tries to save him but slips off of the tiled roof and falls spectacularly to his death.
Mise-en-scene
- Night-time setting - danger
- Roof top connotes danger, worry, - Vertigo established
- Outfits of criminal and police officer determines the protagonist and the antagonist
- The roof tiles fall - adds danger
- Introduces lead
The opening shot shows the roof top of a building with San Francisco, a major city with lots of tall, empowering skyscrapers, acting as a dramatic background. This allows firstly to set the scene of the film, yet secondly and most importantly to introduce the film's primary theme of 'Vertigo', or being scared of heights. From the first few seconds of this film, Hitchcock has immediately established a setting that the male lead character would feel very uncomfortable in (Scotty suffers from Vertigo, and the main plot of the film is how he overcomes this setback). Vertigo or, acrophobia, is not an uncommon fear, so as well as being worrying for Scotty, it may spark intense worry and suspense for members of the audience watching this film - if anything we are immediately able to sympathize and relate to Scotty because of this fear.
Next, the outfits of the police officer and the criminal quickly show who is the antagonist and who is the protagonist. The fact that Scotty runs with the cops (and not away from them), yet is not wearing their uniform , may show to the audience that he is a unique, special and hence lead character. The timing of the opening sequence is at night, and again the feeling of 'phobia' is again experimented with, reaching and digging at people's common fear of the dark, or nyctophobia. Phobias and the weakness of the mind are key elements of psychological thrillers, so both the fear of heights and the fear of the dark are vital in developing the genre of the film.
Sound
The sound used in the opening sequence is very fast paced and edgy, using violence and various string accompaniments to create a great sense of fear and anxiety, paying reference to the fear and anxiety Scotty may be feeling running on the rooftop of the building. The pace of the music mimics that of a quick heartbeat, which is something we almost always associated with excitable, anxious, or tense moments. There are many different instruments playing at the same time which makes it difficult and confusing to concentrate on the overall sound, mirroring the confusion and sense of disorientation associated with such phobias. There is little diagetic sound, apart from the sounds of policemen and robbers clambering onto buildings or roof tops tiles, which is fairly insignificant. There is however some dialogue, when Scotty almost falls and the police officer tries to save him, the 'Give me your hand' may symbolically reflect a 'hand of God', seeing as Scotty is so close to death. It may however, and more likely be, used simply to emphasize Scotty's guilt later on in the film, as he fails to offer his hands and, consequently the police officer falls to his death.
Camerawork
- First shot shows hands hanging on rail -gets us close to the action, establishes a ladder
- Panning shot shows full extent of the scene, shows how high the scene is, build tension gradually
- 'Vertigo' shot, creates a sense of whirling and dizziness
- Looking down enables us to realise how low down it is, and the fate of the police officer
- Long shot shows the San Francisco skyline, location
- Male lead is powerless, inferior, has to overcome flaws
The first shot in this sequence is of the top of the ladder, just at the point where the criminal raises his hands and clutches onto the railings. This brings the audience close to the action and, as the camera zooms out to a mid-shot, we're fairly quickly able work out the scenario of the scene - the usual cops v robbers type setting. The close up of the ladder also helps to establish the fact that we are on top of some sort of building, rather than on the ground (because why would you ever have a ladder leading up to ground level?). The panning shot is very long and gradual, enabling the audience to really take in the setting and the panoramic views of the San Francisco skyline. When Scotty is inches away from his death, Alfred Hitchcock introduces, for the first time in cinematic history, the 'Vertigo' shot (when the camera moves away manually from the object while zooming in). This helps to create a POV shot with great disorientation and unworldliness, mirroring the state Scotty's mind may be in in such an uncompromising, fearful situation. The dizzy, whirling sensation evoked from this 'Vertigo' shot perfectly captures the theme of the film and the psychological denotations that a fear of heights may have. When Scotty is just seconds from potential death, there is a close up of his face, where we are able to see the sweat on his forehead coupled with the great anger and anxiety in his eyes. Scotty, the lead character, is completely powerless, which both builds tension yet also develops to the audience a protagonist with a flawed character - as said before, one of the main elements of the film is Scotty overcoming his flaws.
Editing
- Rule of Three - criminal and police officer make jump, we expect Stewart too, unexpected that he fails
- Panning shot is lengthly helping to establish location and scenario, builds up tension
The most prevalent use of editing in this sequence is when the cops and robbers attempt to jump onto the slanting roof. Hitchcock uses Rule of Three here - the camera is positioned in the same place, completely still, for around seconds, the effect being to draw comparison with the first cops successful jump and Scotty's failed one. We see the criminal jump clearly then we see the copper jump cleanly too, so we fully expect the male lead to do the same. However, he fails, which firstly introduces his phobia, and emphasises the fact that he is 'flawed' compared to his high-ability counterparts. The shot transitions increase particularly when Scotty is clinging on to the gutter of the building - we see him look down, then it switches to a POV 'Vertigo' shot, then we see him looking down, then the 'POV' shot is repeated. This helps build tension and give a clear indication of the dreadful scenario Scotty has found himself in. There is a reverse shot between the police-officer and Scotty, maybe to emphasize the police officer acting as Scotty's only reaming hope. It might be worth mentioning that Hitchcock follows the 180 degree rule perfectly throughout this sequence, but then, what else would you expect.
Opening 5 - Disappearance of Alice Creed
Introduction
The Disappearance of Alice Creed is a British thriller film released in 2009. The opening scene depicts two men as they collect tools to fortify and furnish an apartment and turn it into a prison for their hostage. The apartment is used to hide Alice Creed, the subject matter of the film, hence, the reason for the opening is to introduce the main setting of the film, introduce the audience to the two antagonists, and also establish the themes of secrecy and being 'locked away'. The opening sequence is very gripping and engaging because it manages to establish the characters and the setting in a very slick and stylish way, giving subtle yet frequent clues as to these people's manner and profession.
Mise-en-scene
- Normality of the shop, the car park - as if this could be any typical car park
- Clothing, basic, practical
- Room gets gradually darker - sets atmosphere
- Lighting, cloudy, but very typical weather - again shows mood and atmosphere
Already, at 16 seconds in the camera shows two men breaking into a Ford Transit. The audience is quickly able to establish that these two men are criminals - their cheap, practical clothing also conforms to this mindset - but we can also establish that they are fairly intelligent/experienced - one of the men acts as a lookout while the other successfully breaks in without causing the alarm to ring. Many of the next shots conform to this type of pattern, of filling a routine, a set of criteria - such as getting a numberplate from a scrapyard, or getting tools from a DIY store, and they are duly successful in achieving these goals. Because they do not speak, they obviously have no need to ask each other what to do, and therefore it seems that they have planned their task and routine out beforehand - these men are experienced, intelligent criminals, with almost an almost military style agenda. I think the weather also helps to establish the two characters by using pathetic phalacy - with the weather being quite grey and grim, it makes the two characters seem quite grim, emphasising a lack of emotion or facial expression. The overcast weather also has an effect on the lighting, making everything in the scene seem fairly emotionless and downbeat.
Aside from the characters, the apartment-turned-prison room gradually gets darker and more simplistic throughout the scene - gone are the furniture and ornaments that might have had personal value to someone, and in comes very basic furniture, with no windows, no lights, no ornaments, but just a bed - this dehumanizes the room, and sets the atmosphere of the room as being a very dark, lonesome, isolated place.
Sound
- Creaking of Sofa
- Squeaking of the trolley wheels, high-pitched
- Sound from the Staple-gun - emphasises the unison and the military precision between the two
- Gothic music, chello, dark resonance
The most important thing to mention about the sound is that there is no dialogue between the two characters. As said before, this shows that they know what they're doing - they're in control, they have an agenda, and hence they have no need to ask any questions or share phatic talk that would divert from the task in hand. This has the effect of making them sound fairly emotionless, however, with a lack of heart and basic humility. These people obviously do not care that they are creating a prison cell for a kidnapping, it is simply their job.
The sounds of the equipment are, in my opinion, over-emphasised, to make the audience really take notice of the unison between the pair - the curtains are pulled of at the same time, the staples shot in at the same time - the chewing, the sitting, the walking, it is all done simultaneously emphasising the precise, military order the two antagonists share. Finally, the music is of a cello, which creates quite a gothic, mysterious mood with dark resonance, perfect for this sequence because it is also quite mysterious, with dark undertones.
Camerawork
- Tracking and split framing, very precise movements of camera emphasise unison
- Low angle close up of trolley wheels - mystery - what are they collecting?
- Slow movements of camera introduce the apartment
- Zoom in to door, will it open?
Most of the shots are either tracking and panning, and they move very gradually and clearly to again emphasise a sense of unison, and maybe mirror the calm (yet emotionless) attitude of the two antagonists - steadycam would not have the same effect. Most of the shots follow a pattern of an extreme long shot, such as in the forest or in the car park, then moving in closer to find out and show the audience the purpose of that particularly task. This, again, could adhere to the military style and precision of the two antagonists (the close ups also emphasise the unison between the two - such as when they pull the curtains off, the camera is directly in the centre of the two). The camera shows multiple shots of the apartment to really introduce the audience to the main setting of the film, almost like an estate agent would to a prospective buyer. The camera work then zooms into the door, particularly to the door handle, creating tension and asking the audience multiple questions - will the door open? Who will open the door? Sometimes certain things are brought into focus by using depth of field - such as when the man reaches for the saw in the supermarket, the saw becomes focused while the background does not. This creates an effect of drawing the audience into the shot and, maybe also into the set, pointing specific objects out to them that will have an importance later in the sequence. Most of the two men are midshots at eye level, which means we can see them quite clearly in their situation, yet we are unable to focus on their facial expression, and we are neither inferior or superior to them - we are meaningless to them, emphasising their lack of humility and emotion.
Editing
- No dialogue
- Foley sounds seem emphasized
- A wide range of very lengthy shots mixed with quite quick cuts, makes you second guess, creates pace
The editing in this sequence uses a wide range of close ups, mid shots and long shots with varying degrees of speed (in terms of camera movement) and length. For instance, when they are fortifying the room the first few shots of the taking the curtains down, of stapling the sound-proof walls and taking the bed out are cut in fairly quick succession, yet they are then contrasted with the slow, calming nature of the shots of the empty room beforehand. This allows for the film to build and keep up pace, yet also makes the viewer second guess what it going to happen next. There are no fades are dissolves used, and especially no wipes - all transitions are simple cuts to mirror a simple, basic, precise task and, again, to mirror the military style agenda of these two antagonists.
Conclusion
Overall, after analysing these 5 film openings, I think there are lots of things to consider that we can incorporate into our own thriller opening. I particularly liked the Disappearance of Alice Creed because of its use of weather to convey emotion, its slick, smooth way of filming, its lack of dialogue and its multitude of interesting and believable settings. A Touch of Evil was also really quite good too, I thought it was amazing how the use of just one shot was able to build up so much tension and suspense.
Anyway, over the next week we will be planning our opening sequence and hopefully begin storyboarding. I'm quite excited about the ww2 bunker because there is also a crater very nearby which has a whole range of possibilities, however I think we should use a wide range of locations and not just the forest. I quite like the idea of introducing some sort of phobia too, a bit like in Vertigo.
