Swordfish

This is the trailer to movie as I was unable to get the opening scenes to the movie, but I analysed the first couple of minutes.

When Dominic Sena was directing this movie, the screen writer Skip Woods, must have initially been thinking how can we trick the audience the best. When I watched this movie as the the audience and not as an analyse, I felt that this movie had a very powerful and intense opening. It opens with the iconic man who was John Travolta, this immediately will catch many fans to watch the movie. The lighting is very dark which can indicate to the audience that its night time and its dark, but also that he is in a closed environment. When he speaks the camera is close and the audience hasn't established the setting and they can only guess where they are. I thought that they were in a hide out of some sort and he was being a critic to a movie by what he was saying. We don't hear much, we hear him speaking and we hear non diegetic sounds. The non diegetic sounds are creepy and uncomfortable. But the audience stay entranced. We can see that John Travolta has the power as there are men around him and he is in the chair. He is the only important person speaking as he is the only character where any characteristics are revealed. When we find out about other characters we also establish setting as he is leaving and we discover he is in a cafe and its light outside. We also discover he is talking to the police, which indicates he is the antagonist in the story. As he walks away there is a change of scene and the audience can feel slightly confused but yet, after listening to what he was saying we can relate as we watch that what he was saying was coming to reality. We realise the seriousness of the situation as he walks outside and we see the vast number of police officers at the scene. This is done with a point of view shot and he looks round.

For me, I found this a very important and powerful opening and I think that it was very effect in grabbing the audiences attention. The audience are left wondering what was going to happen and I feel that the director, Dominic Sena used the different camera shots well to hide the truth behind the story. But also Skip Wood, created a very good script and it is discrete and is well presented.

Bourne Ultimatum

I was unable to access the movie, so I choose to put up the trailer however, I analysed the first two minutes of the movie.

There are no opening titles, it just says the Bourne Ultimatum. It opens up and it sets the scene for us by having an establishing shot where it tells us the country which we are in. We can hear diegetic sounds which include trains and police cars. Immediately following this establishing shot we are introduced to the character. He is the icon in this movie, as this is a trilogy we are able to understand his character already and have understandings about his characteristics. There are many point of view shots where we see what he sees and the camera is following him. Doug Liman choose to do this on purpose because we are able stay along side the main characters. From the opening the audience has many questions, which is the theory of Charles Derry. Doug Liman has purposely created these enigma codes so that the audience have to stay to watch the rest of the movie and to stay on the edge of the seat.

Silence of the Lambs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3X4owjfOrCo


From the first moments of Silence of the Lamb, Jonathan Demme the directed, we as the audience are able to establish the genre of the movie. We are able to see from the setting which is a assault course in a forest, with gloomy weather conditions which we can associate with the genre of thriller. He uses long shots so the audience can establish where they are and have a better understanding of the area. By tracking and following, Jonathan Demme, has made it seem like it is a hand held camera so that the audience feels as though they are running and tracking the girl which we are first introduced to. The music in the opening is orchestral and is calm, but yet at the same time it builds tension. This tension is built for the audience to feel on the edge of their seat and feel slightly uncomfortable. There is alot of feeling in the music and it creates an eery feeling. The first character which we meet is a young woman, and we can see by her expression that she is focus and determined. We run by the sides of her and we see that she is fit and healthy and she cares. This is good for the audience as they are able to understand the character without her speaking. It is clear to the audience that she is our main character also and that we will be watching the movie along side her.

Results

evaluation

Evaluation of Thriller Opening

Title cover - Swordfish

The frontcover shows all the main characters, this immediately attracts the audience because there are many famous people in this film. The title of the film is very different to the front cover which can confuse the audience which will cause them to want to watch it. The title of the film is in big letters and is bold and stands out. It is above the characters and the names of the all the main characters on the the front as well. The picture is very important. It is in black and white, and it creates an eery feeling and the feeling of being alone. This resembles the genre and this can persuade the audience to watch the movie. The position of the actors can be interpreted as they are a gang. This can be the icon in this movie as it is very relatable and the audience can understand. The gang are posed so that they are united and this gives them the feeling of power leaving the audience along and vunerable. The audienced feel interested and wants them to watch the movie. The background shows that they are in a hide out or in a secret place which responds to the title and where there is writing that says "password accepted". This can cause the audience to want to find out more causing them to watch th movie again. The review of the movie also persuades people to buy and watch the movie because it is a known newspaper which means people are more convinced to watch the movie.

Film Cover - Silence of the Lambs

The colours of the cover indicate that the movie is dark and it for tells that the genre of the film. The dark colours, black white and grey, highlight the bright colour yellow of the strange animal on the front. The icon in the front of the dvd is an unknown animal. It can present the audience as curious and interested and can capture the audiences attention from before opening the and starting to watch the movie. This acts an enigma code which will intrigue the audience to watch the movie. In the background you see the main character in the background but she is dark and not in colour. However, the close up is of her face and highlighting the eye. This can be interepted as something that she sees. She is famous as well and this can convince people to watch the movie as she is a good actor. The writing is thin and white which highlights the title and this creates a creepy and eery feeling. This resembles the genre and the feeling of being uneasy and on the edge.