JM- Analysing an opening sequence

Directed by Ruben Fleishcer 2009

Directed by M.Night Shyamalan 2002

Directed by Zack Snyder

Genre – 'Signs'

• This film is included in the Horror Genre, the audience can identify this easily within the opening sequence through the typical horror conventions such as the use of prolonged silences to create an uneasy atmosphere although there is little actually happening on screen. Another typical horror convention used within the Signs opening sequence is the motivated cut.
• In my opinion the audience’s generic expectations of the horror text are fulfilled through the use of devices which are iconic to the genre. There are a variety of conventions used such as the large difference in the pans included within the sequence, the Camera pans are either very slow or extremely fast which is a common notion of Horror texts.
• The ‘Signs’ opening sticks to the traditional characteristics of the horror genre by the use of numerous iconic conventions, unlike many modern horrors that are beginning to challenge the traditional conventions of the horror genre.  

Film language – ‘Signs’

• A sense of uneasiness of the scene is immediately created through the use of Mise-en-scene from the very beginning of the title sequence. The lighting of the sequence begins constantly dark giving the audience the impression that something is not as it should be.
• The camera shot size is primarily medium throughout the opening, this continuous sized shot gives the impression that the characters are being looked upon from something. This effect further creates uneasiness to the audience.
• The first piece of dialogue in the sequence is a girl screaming, a typical horror convention, which shocks the audience. There is no soundtrack played other the sequence at any point, but the use of selective sound has been used on numerous occasion, for example the birds and dogs calling. The lack of dialogue and the use of selective sound creates confusion and therefore anchor the images.
• The audience particularly gains information on the two children through the little dialogue given to the two children. The little girl asking her father a question shows her to be innocent. Whereas the boy continuing on his own thoughts rather than answer his father, alongside his eyes stuck to the image in front of him represents the boy to be intelligent, and therefore the audience sympathises with both children.
• The sequence begins with the camera panning backwards from a view down upon the garden, however the camera soon reveilles that the image was looking out from a window and establishes the setting of a farm house.

Narrative – 'Dawn of the Dead'

• The narrative is established through the use of a Montage including numerous Television new stories which begin to hint to the audience the plot of the film. Moreover a voiceover is also used in the opening to reveal to the audience the Zombie nature of the film.
• The audience on this occasion is not placed with a character due to that no protagonist characters are shown within the opening. However the audience can is made to relate to the sequence by the use of the Television News Stories emphasising that the plot, although fiction, has the possibility of happening.
• Identification of the narrative has been highlighted in the use of the text on screen. The key convention of horror has been utilised in the Dawn of the Dead opening by the Voice over establishing the story as well as leaving mystery causing an eagerness in the audience to continue to watch the film. Non Diegetic music alienates the opening due to the major key and upbeat track; this however may have been used to enhance the horror of the images on screen through the contrast of the major key music and gore images.
• It is made clear to the audience that the film is based upon the Zombie Horror genre through the hints shown within the opening sequence. Furthermore the audience are likely to expect gore horror which has been implied in the montage.
•  Tension is gradually increased as the sequence progresses by the ending of dialogue, used to shock the audience, and introduction of major key music.  

Representation & Ideology ‘Signs’

• Watching the sequence it may be received that the American Dream family are being represented throughout, this has been done primarily through the setting, a large house alongside a large garden. However the director challenged the American dream family through the Horror Genre.
• The setting of the sequence quickly informs the audience that the characters live simple lives and the sequence represents this way of life.
• It is evident that the director has not attempted to challenge the typical horror conventions throughout the sequence. Instead ‘Shyamalan’ has stuck to the common methods used within horror production.

Media Audiences – 'Zombieland'

• ‘Zombieland’ opening sequence is targeted at the core audience of 15-25 year olds; this is also shown through the films certificate age of 15. I believe they have chosen this audience as the opening sequence contains modern twists on the generic expectations of horror by mixing the horror genre with elements of comedy.  
• I feel the most probable audience reading of ‘Zombieland’ opening is to take a mixture of an element of horror combined with comedy. For example that although the Zombies can be scary it is easy to overcome them through comedy. However there remains a possible audience reading of complete horror for the Zombies.
• I personally take the probable audience reading of a mixture between Horror and Comedy from the opening. I am specifically part of the films target audience and therefore the opening plays to my interests and male gender. My evaluation I believe will be a common reading of the ‘Zombieland’ opening as the probable reading is fairly obvious.

Institutional context ‘Dawn of the Dead’

• Director Zack Snyder has used a Star within the opening however not as would be expected in a horror film. Non Diegetic sound has been emplaced into the sequence as it progresses, the music is by the famous musician ‘Johnny Cash’. This is an important use of a Star as the music helped create a buzz factor for the films release as well as the lyrics anchoring the images.
• The Studio that produced the film was Strike Entertainment and therefore the film is an ‘industrial film’.
• The Dawn of the Dead 2004 is a remake of the original Dawn of the Dead (Romero, 1978) and the buzz factor created around a remake was used to market the film. Furthermore the use of the typical Trailer, poster etc were used.

• The institutional context is clearly apparent in the opening sequence of the film through the detailed costume on the Zombies and the CGI (Computer Generated Imagery) used to further produce realistic Zombie Characters

MM - Analysing an opening sequence

Saw 2 - Darren Lynn Bousman - 2005

This film has some good techniques, for example the fast cutting rate towards the end, and the use of the flicking light bulb. Furthermore i think most of the footage we could do ourselves.

The Teeth of the Night - Stephen Cafiero - 2008 http://www.watchthetitles.com/articles/0065-The_Teeth_Of_The_Night

This french film opening is very unique, we may not use the same sort of style exactly, but i think it is good to get more variety, to broaden our horizon. Also more ideas is better instead of just a couple.

Two Eyes Staring - Elbert van Strien - 2010 http://www.watchthetitles.com/articles/00174-Two_Eyes_Staring

This opening sequence is simple but very effective. The music and images are subtle but powerful which are quite easily done. I think we could use some of the techniques from this openings in our own.

Genre – Saw 2 - Darren Lynn Bousman

1. This film belongs to the sub genre called suspense, horror. We can tell this as many horror conventions are used such as disjointed images, the titles being in and out of focus, and dull lighting.
2. The audience’s generic expectations of the text are fulfilled as the mood is set straight away, and suspense conventions are used right at the start of the opening sequence.
3. The opening scene conforms to the characteristics of the genre because there isn’t any humour used and by using simple horror conventions.

Film Language – The Teeth of the Night - Stephen Cafiero

1. Mise-en-scene conveys meaning in this sequence by the use of shadows, the moon, bats, and dark trees, which nowadays are not so scary. The Film is a comedy horror, so its not a tradition horror its supposed to be more funny than scary.
   
2. As this film is an animation the camera does not move during the opening sequence, which is an interesting technique and is not widely seen. However this means they cannot influence the audience by camera techniques, they will have to contract the audience with sound mise-en-scene and editing.
3. The opening scene does not anchor the images, the theme of the images as they are quite dark, this is used as the film is a comedy horror. And the soundtrack is in major key and up beat, which does not go with the images. It contrasts between horror and comedy well.
   

4. There is no dialogue from the characters in the opening, but there are many

expressions on the characters faces, showing a scared and frighten look which goes with the genre of the film.

5. Animation is used through out the opening scene; personally I think it is an interesting technique and when used well can be very effective. It is used well in this sequence and it introduces the film very well and gives the audience a sense of what to expect.

Narrative – Saw 2 - Darren Lynn Bousman

1. The narrative in this clip is in real time and no compression is used but a montage is used which makes it look like the time is moving faster but it isn’t. Towards the end of the sequence a stopwatch is put on which also sets the time to real time.
2. The audience are positioned in a few places through out the clip. At the start of the sequence the audience is seeing out of the characters eyes, but later in the clip we are looking at the character. We are still with the character and experiencing what he is going through.
3. We sympathise with the main character, who is being tortured as he acts innocent during the sequence. And the audience are made to feel against the character 'Jig Saw', the man with the mask. However as 'Jig Saw' explains why he is torturing him, we have to think again about if the main character is good or bad.
4. The major themes in this sequence are gore and horror, which is shown in the beginning of the clip. Another major theme is suspense, in whether he will get the key out of his eye in time or not.
5. Tension is build during the stopwatch ticking, and whether he can get the trap of in time. The tension is maintained as the clock goes on for a whole minute as he desperately tired to get the eye, but was unable to push himself to that limit.

Representation & Ideology – Two Eyes Staring - Elbert van Strien

1. The costume, soundtrack, and typography all contribute to a sophisticated and upper class theme to the sequence. The soundtrack is of classical music and the titles are in an old fashioned writing which both give the upper class feeling.
2. From this sequence it shows that the lifestyle is quite luxurious, and they are quite wealthy. The main indictor of this is the costumes that the girls in the clip wear, they are not seen a lot, but they are shown as being wealthy.
3. I do not think the sequence shows the audience clearly that the film is a horror, but it is very interesting and unique. The opening is not however a ‘spoof’, like for example ‘Scary Movie’.

Media Audiences – The Teeth of the Night - Stephen Cafiero

1. I think the target audience for this film would be male and females aged 10-19, as the film is a spoof and is not scary but had comedy in as well.
2. I think the most probable reading of the clip, is that its not trying to be scary, as they have made it an animation. The first thing that comes across is that it is not a horror, or it is for younger years.
3. Personally as a British teenager I take the probable reading that the film is a comedy horror. I think most other people will also take the same reading. I do not think that many people will watch the sequence I think that is it not a comedy horror.

Institutional Context – Saw 2 - Darren Lynn Bousman

1. The director has not used a star actor/actress in the opening sequence. However the character ‘Jig Saw’ the character with the mask is very iconic which sets a theme and makes the audience more interested. In addition a lot of merchandise can we produced due to the character.
2. A studio called Twisted Pictures Evolution Entertainment, which is an independent studio, meaning the budget would have been fairly low, produced the film. However the soundtrack is owner by Warner Bros.
3. As the film is a sequel, the studio didn’t have to use much marketing, compared with a film that isn’t a sequel. Furthermore a lot of the audience had already seen the first film. But they still had to put out a trailer and market it as usual to gain a bigger and wider audience and they also used posters.

Group Work - Genre Presentation

Copy of Group 3 Genre Presentation on Prezi

This is a Presentation of the research which our group has done.

JM- Zombieland Opening Sequence

This is an opening sequence to a Zombie horror film which contains techniques which could be used by us. I was interested mostly however in the Costumes of the Zombies, they look achievable by a micro-budget film production such as us.

JM - Genre research

This scene contains some interesting techniques used when Harry feints, our plans could include some of the methods used within this scene specifically 2:35 seconds onwards. I was unable to Embed this Clip as the Youtube upload has restricted embedding the clip to external sources.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Directed by Alfonso Cuarón

MM - 'Harry Brown' film clip

CB- Taxi Driver (1976)

Genre: Thriller
Director: M. Scorsese
Although this film is not a horror, but a thriller, I feel that some of the techniques used, such as the blurred lights, are techniques that could be used in our film opening to portray the unclear narrative and slightly fearful.

Group Work- Horror Timeline

 Frankenstein (Dawley, 1910) – This was one of the first horror films to be made. The film was made in the US by Edison Studious and consisted of 16-minute (one-reel) version.

The Phantom of the Opera (Julian,1925) – This was based upon a character within Gaston Leroux’s novel. The film is seen to be one of first costume horror classics of the 20^th century.  Furthermore this original film has lead to many theatrical performance and film remakes.

Dracula (Browning, 1931) - Universal Studios produced a film version of Lugosi's 1927 Broadway stage success about a blood-sucking, menacing vampire named Dracula. This horror film is also one of the most famous as it has lead to many remakes, furthermore according to the Guinness Book of world records the character Dracula has been used in films more than any other.

 

The Mummy (Fisher, 1959) – The original Mummy film proved to be a successful topic for films under British films company Hammer Studios.

Night of the Living Dead (Romero, 1968) -  this naturalistic, documentary-style film inaugurated an entire horror subgenre (zombie films with flesh-stalking cannibals), shot in stark and grainy black and white, the film was remade in a 3-D version Night of the Living Dead 3D (Broadstreet, 2006).  

Halloween (Carpenter, 1978) - This film became particularly famous for its soundtrack and similarly to other classics has lead to numerous remakes.

Scream (Craven, 1996) - surprising horror hit-spoof that helped to reinvigorate films in the genre in the late 90s, with a whopping domestic box-office gross of $103 million. It rejuvenated the slasher film in subsequent years by self-reflectively honouring various stalking/slasher films in the character of a slasher dressed as the Grim Reaper.

Saw (Wan, 2004) – The saw franchise is distributed by Lions Gate Entertainment that consists of seven films and two video games. Furthermore it is considered to be one of the foremost successful films franchises to that date.

Group-Genre Discussion

CB
Personally I think that we should do a horror film opening. As from viewing 'Amityville Horror' and other horror film openings, there are many techniques under sound, camera, mise-en-scene and editing, for example the lighting on 'Amityville Horror which we could easily include. However i think we could also include some other interesting thriller tecniques to give it a mysterious effect.

CB-Genre Analysis 1-'Lord of War'

'Lord Of War'
Genre: Thriller
Director: A. Niccol

Camera Techniques: Following the journey of a bullet, a very unique camera technique set behind the creation of a bullett, showing the sub-genre of the film-crime, and also the main character and different locations. However this camera technique is able to show typical camera shots such as the low angle of the smart looking officer, giving a powerful purpose to his position.

Editing: There is only one cut in the opening title sequence, an interesting technique allowing the titles to fit in continuosly with the title openings, and also giving a continous mood to the journey of a bullet.

Sound: The non-deigetic sountrack, 'For What Its Worth' by 'Buffalo Springfield', matching the mood of the opening, a calm and uncaring theme, implying the characters' viewpoint of his business, and suggesting genre of thriller. The digetic dialogue from Nicholas Cage suggests his sinister view on the world, war and his business. Also the use of 'breaking the fourth wall' when Nicholas Cage speaks directly to the audience is an interesting technique used.

Mise-en-Scene: The mise-en-scene is very interesting as it follows the creation of a bullet, allowing the audience to see the sub-genre of war and how it is all started through a single bullet. The costume of Nicholas Cage is a smart business like suit with a briefcase in a war-torn area, showing his dominance over these places and giving a strong view of his sinister business-minded chracter. Furthermore through the opening scene it further evidences the genre of thriller and crime in a huge weapon industry as seen through the use of continously changing locations and different types of characters met.

MM - Genre Research 1

Se7en - David Fincher - 1995

Sub Genre - Crime - Thriller

Camera techniques - some of the shots are in shallow focus - 0.03 on video, and many close ups through out the sequence so the audience can see the detail, and feel involved. The main character's face is never seen in the opening, this gives a mysterious feature to the opening.

Editing - varied cutting rate, normally quite fast - 0.11-0.13 on video. Jump cuts are used in the sequence to show that he is doing everything quickly. Montage and disjointed images are used through out the sequence showing a unconventional theme to the film. Furthermore dissolving flashes and fading in and out techniques are used to support the weird theme of the film.

Sound - repetitive and sinister non-diegetic music sets the tone of the film. Increases in volume as the credits go on. There is no dialogue giving it a mysterious effect and you do not know what the character sounds like.

Mise-en-scene - font, hand written, contributes to the unique feeling of the film. Muted sepia with flashes of red portraying blood. Many props are used in the sequence pens, razor blades, writing, collecting evidence, books; this shows the film to have a detective theme, with a twist.

Narrative - Not a conventional opening, sequence shows that it is a detective film with a menacing twist.

JM - Genre research 1

Below are the links to YouTube of some previous Horror films which in my opinion grabbed the attention of their audiences from the beginning. They are also helping me get some useful tips and ideas for my film opening soon to come. I apologise for not being able to embed the video on this occasion, but the user that uploaded the video has restricted the video.

Amityville Horror - Opening Sequence

Director: Andrew Douglas 2005
Genre: Horror 
Rated: 18

Warning: Contains graphic scenes from the beginning.

Camera- The majority of shots on the protagonist character are close ups. The close ups show the audience the facial expressions clearly. The actors non-verbal language represents the character to be disturbed meaning the audience is immediately suspicious of the character.

Editing - The cutting rate is quite fast. The cutting rate is often used to represent the mood of a specific situation. For example on this occasion the fast cutting rate represents  the high stressed situation of the man.

Sound- Diegetic sound  has been used with the Thunder and continuous wind have been placed into the scene, furthermore the sounds have been increased in volume, this is a common technique within Horror films. 

Mise en scene  Throughout the opening sequence there are continuous flashing lights in a darkly lit rooms. This means that the audience can only see the character for very short periods of time, meaning the audience is constantly wondering what is happening.  Furthermore it gives the impression of uncertainty towards the audience.