Opening sequence analysis 2
Through the use of cinematography, the director has conveyed certain things to the audience. A close up of an unknown female characters face is shown, evident fear and terror is shown in this shot, and the close up helps to show this clearly. Within this shot you can see the character shaking out of fear as well; this creates a tense atmosphere for the audience. A worm’s view shot has been chosen by the director, it shows a man shoe and trouser leg walking, and this establishes another character in the movie.
The aspects of mise-en-scene that have been used in this one and a half minute clip helps to build enigma and information regarding the characters. The unknown female character is positioned lying on her back, make-up has been used to show her face almost completely covered in blood, this shows to the audience that this character is a typical venerable female.
This plays along with the audiences expectations of females playing roles within thriller movies. Clothing props have been used to show the unknown male characters feet walking, his shoes are very smart and his trousers seem to be ones you would wear with a suit. The smartness of his clothing compared to the females show a difference in authority in this scene. Another prop has been used to establish more of the plot, a handkerchief is used by the male character to wipe blood of her face, while this is happening the female does not move, this may be because of the pain she is in. This allows the audience to see the clear antagonist and protagonist of the film. The handkerchief has the name ‘Bill’ sewn on to it, this also shows that the main character is one of the two in the clip.
A juxta-position of shots is put together in this clip to help create tensions and establish the character roles. A part of the ‘Classic Hollywood Style’ editing technique used has been used here, eye line match. A shot of the female character is shown of her looking at something, this then jumps to a clip of the male character walking and then a shot is shown of the female again. By using this technique it reinstates to the audience the vulnerability of the female. Once she sees the man foot the look of fear in her expression is increased rapidly but she does not move, this shows to the audience again that she must be in great pain as she is obviously scared but does not move.
The sound which has been added to this opening sequence gives the most away to the audience, in my opinion. Heavy breathing and whimpering is heard coming from the female character, which again shows that she is in pain. The digetic sounds of footsteps are also heard, these are in line with the heavy breathing, and this shows the audience that the female character is scared of the person who is walking. The sound of creaking floor boards could show that they are in an old house or building, nothing further is added to uncovering the setting. The first line of digetic dialogue comes from the male character ‘do you find me sadistic’? This sentence along with the way it is spoken shows that is it a rhetorical question, it shows that he is the person who hurt the female. The question is rhetorical as the female character would believe that the man is indeed a sadist. He continues the one- way conversation with ‘I hope you are aware enough to know that there is nothing sadistic in my actions’. This sentence shows that what he has done to the women, he either doesn’t believe he done nothing wrong or did not enjoy it. The antagonist is clearly establishes within this opening sequence. The sequence ends with a sound of a gun reloading in pace with the females breathing, it is then pulled and the women is shot in the head.
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