Sofia's Thriller Openings

The Usual Suspects

· The close up of the matches and the fire represents the genre straight away.

·The non - diegetic music creates tension and builds suspense which makes the audience feel anxious about what is to come.

·This character to the right is the villain, we know this because he is wearing dark clothes which convey danger and death. He is also creating the fire with the cigarette causing the audience to feel a sense of discomfort with this character.

oA medium shot is used to show a dead body on the floor surrounded by fire. Fire represents danger and fear in this scene. It also lights up the scene and makes it much more interesting to watch because the shots before have all used dark lighting.

 There is a panning shot leading to a man on the balcony. However, we can not see his face so he has no identity making him mysterious. There is a long shot to follow the man down the stairs which leads us to the male character we have seen earlier in the scene. Footsteps are used because this is a typical convention for a thriller.

• The medium close up used in this shot shows the man we have soon before with the mysterious figure. However, the figure is not in focus which causes the audience to feel confused about the villain really is.

· We can see the fire in the background which lights up the surroundings. But the lighting on the two characters is dark and dull.

· The audience can hear the figures voice so we are aware of the characters gender.

· A gun is a typical representation of crime and thriller. Guns are dangerous weapons which can inflict large amounts of pain on a person which makes the audience fear this character.

· As the character lifts the gun, pointing at the other male character, the non-diegetic sound builds by more instruments, such as strings, being used to create an eerie atmosphere. I really like this technique because it links the gun with the backing music which causes the viewer to feel more tense.

· Acousmatic sound is used in the next shot because we can hear the sound but not see the source which it came from. The effect is that it confuses the audience and creates a cliff hanger as to who pulled the trigger.

· The pace of shots increases once the trigger has been pulled to increase the viewer’s heart rate.

· Slow motion is used when the dark figure walks away and drops the cigarette. I think that the slow motion technique is a great way to represent thriller and to enhance the mystery that follow this unidentified character.

· The last shot is a medium long shot of two characters facing an officer. The two characters are facing away from the camera and are in dark lighting. However, the police officer is in bright light to show his importance and to create a hierarchy within the scene.

Todorov’s theory is not used in this scene because it cannot be used in chronological order. However, this theory can be used within the storyline.

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

· The scene begins with a package being opened with a knife. Straight away we see conventions of the thriller genre which include a knife and a mysterious package. The man is wearing gloves which shows that he is hiding something and he knows what he is doing.

·  The male character is surrounded by darkness so that the audience can focus on his facial expressions. His face is lit up with bright lights to attract attention.

· The non diegetic music used has a slow tempo and is mainly string instruments to ensure that the audience

are feeling tense and anxious.

· The close up of the frame shows the importance of it and that it will be very significant further in the scene. The darkness surrounding the frame connotes danger which may cause disruption to the equilibrium. Within the scene we can also see the hands of the man holding the frame showing that he has great power and dominance.

· An extreme close up shot is used to state the place that the package is from which is Hong Kong. The music builds at this point to build a

tense atmosphere around this object.

· Close up shots of the man's face shows his facial expressions to create a pers
onal connection with the viewer and it displays that he is unaware and weary of this mysterious object.

· In addition, this long shot of the male character demonstrates his authority because he is surrounded by a big desk which connotes wealth and business. There is bright lighting coming through the windows which reflects off his face and the desk to create brightness around the character, again showing his domineering characteristics.

· However, there is a tracking shot moving backwards which suggests that the character is weak. Also, he is crying in the scene which is the first time we see his true emotions. String instruments are used to create a sinister and unearthly scene.

· The next shot is juxtaposing the previous shot. The music has now increased in speed and many more instruments have been used to increase the tension. The figure is unidentified due to wearing a dark hoodie which is a typical costume for a character to wear in a thriller. The only lighting used is on the walls surrounding the character which creates shadows. Only dark, dull colours are used in this scene to ensure that the audience feel a sense of fear and uncertainty.

Drive

The scene opens with a voice over of a male character which gives us a good insight and introduction to the film. There is a panning shot around the room which reveals a figure of a  man with his back to the camera. This creates a mysterious atmosphere and makes the viewer feel unsettled.


The next shot is a medium close up of a suitcase but we do not know what is inside which causes the audience to ask questions. Also, top lighting is used to make the suitcase glow in the scene which draws our attention to it. The surroundings are dark and gloomy implying that the case is significant within this thriller. Voice over is still being used to create a connection between the male character and the suitcase.  Voice overs create a different perspective and can make things more easy to understand. It makes viewers think about how the story has developed and what it is like to have this different view other than seeing it visually. 

 This point of view shot shows that the male character is wealthy because he is driving a expensive car which you can see from the interior. Also, he is wearing gloves which signifies danger and is a common representation of the thriller genre. We can not hear anything in this scene only the quiet sound of the cars engine which causes us to feel anxious and tense at this point. It is filmed in the night time because many fear the dark so audience members can sense danger. We finally see the main character with a low angle shot of him driving the car. Low lighting is used to light up his face to show his importance.

The audience are manipulated into thinking that the male character is dangerous and a villain. However, we quickly change our mind when we see that he is only buying a car and the suitcase was filled with money. The long shot shows two characters in a garage where cars are stored. We finally see the male character from previous shots. He looks well dressed and confident in himself causing the audience to possibly feel uncomfortable.

The Sixth Sense

This thriller film opens with a close up of a light bulb surrounded by darkness. I think this is really effective because it is an unusual way to open a film. It does not include any characters, only a bulb. The audience may feel slightly disorientated or confused as there is nothing of importance in the scene. Diegetic sound is used when someone opens the door and walks down the stairs. This is effective because we focus on the character rather than the instruments being used in non dietetic music.

Here we are given more context and can see more of the settings with a medium shot of the stairs and some of the room.
The next shot shows the female character who is dressed as a typical female, in a dress and in heels. Shadows are created which links to the light bulb but also contributes to the enigma of the scene.

This next shot is really clever because the lighting creates a silhouette that connotes  darkness and gloom. The female character looks uncertain and fearful. We are able to hear her breathing cause the audience to feel tense and to increase out heart rate like the character.
The long shot used in the next shot shows the females body language changing. She looks week and vulnerable. The stairs are closer to the camera showing that she is able to escape from danger if she needs to. She then realises the steps are there and runs which shows that she was unable to face her fears. Her weakness and insignificance holds her back which many viewers my be able to relate to. This crates more of an interest in the scene because we want to know what she ran way from.
Todorov's theory can be used in this opening scene because there is a disruption and recognition of equilibrium which creates a clear thriller narrative.

The Dark Knight Rises 

The film opens with an extreme long shot of a plane flying through mountains which the audience follows. We can hear diegetic music such as the plane flying but also non diegetic music is being used which builds the tension and suspense. However, the audience are unaware of the significance of the plane until the next shot where there is a medium close up of a man sitting in a seat in the plane. He looks scared and desperate to escape from the madness.

This next scene is a medium shot which gives us more of an insight of what is happening. We see that the man in the blue shirt is in control and there is a clear hierarchy of importance. The other characters are kneeling on the floor, blindfolded. They show weakness and desperation whereas the characters standing up show strength and confidence. The main character standing is holding a gun which is synonymous of danger and the thriller genre.
In the screen shot on the right a close up of the main character proves to the audience that he is extremely powerful and dangerous. We feel intimidated by his control and actions against the man he is holding out of the plane.

The opening sequence is disrupted by a black figure who we know nothing about. The male in the blue shirt begins to show his uncertainty when slowly moving closer to the unidentified figure. He does not seem as strong as he was before.

This close up shows that the male character in the blue is not in control anymore. The lighting is bright and reflects off the character to show his face clearly. It also shows that he has a very important role in this thriller film. The Dark Knight Rises opening sequence is really effective because it presents action immediately to put the audience on the edge of their seats. Also, the uses of guns and blindfolds represents the thriller genre and creates an enigma that will be carried on throughout the film.

Prisoners

The opening sequence begins with a long shot of a car and the rain falling heavily. Rain and thunder are negative connotations because they can be dangerous. The car does not have much lighting on it whereas the building in front of it is brightly lit up so our attention is drawn to it. A tracking shot is used to slowly zoom into the back of a character who is sheltered from the rain. We believe that the car belongs to this man. He is wearing black and seems to be comfortable in his own skin. For quite a few seconds we do not see the male characters face but we do see the waitresses face. But when we finally see his face he does not have much expression which causes the audience to feel a sense of discomfort around this character who seems to be significant. 

I believe this medium shot to the left is very clever because it still has a sense of the unknown because the character and car are in darkness but we know who the character is and we know some of his features. This is a great idea for a thriller opening and will keep it in mind for the planning of my own work. 

There is a voice over of an officer which shows that the male character is of importance and has a successful job in the police force. He then picks up a device to respond to the voice over which creates a connection between the characters. A silhouette is created by the brightness being strongest in front of the character. The rest of the surroundings are not in focus so we can concentrate on the diegetic sound.

The miserable weather and darkness leads the audience to a crime scene making them feel a part of the film which helps to entertain and intrigue the viewers.

Police cars are used as a convention of the thriller genre. Also, the sirens are a diegetic sound that everyone knows. The sound of sirens conveys fear and threat.

Todorov's theory can be applied to this opening sequence because we  are aware of the state of the equilibrium and the disruption caused which is trying to be resolved by the main character and police.