7&8&9 Thriller Anaylsis Opening Sequences

Thriller Analysis

 When watching both Limitless and Flight plan I noticed there were both similarities and differences when it came to analysing the opening sequences to these films.

 

 

When watching the opening sequence to limitless I noticed that a lot of media language was used. In the opening sequence, the director uses all areas of media language to emphasis the events that had occurred.

At the beginning of the opening sequence there are uses of non diegetic sound. We hear quick, sudden banging noises on the screen whilst the titles of the companies and directors were being presented. The quick sudden bangs we heard were there to leave the audience asking questions such as who's making the bangs we hear or what is happening for those noises to be happening. The director chose this noise to bring tension and suspense to the opening sequence. We aren't quite sure what the bangs are until we see a man get shot next door and hear aggressive dialogue being used. We also hear non diegetic sound when we hear chainsaws outside the metal door that is being banged on, this is suggesting that the group outside the room is very egger and angry to get into the room.

Another use of media language that was used was cinematography, there was a lot of close ups and wide shots used during the short clip, the director uses wide shots because the close ups show facial expressions but not pacific props and that's where the wide shots come in, they are used to show us the location and props in the scene. The props and location presented on screen was a upper class hotel room with packed boxes scattered around the room. There were also a lot of high angle shots being used especially when it came to finding out who the man was who was talking before we saw his face.

When we first see the man we see him hanging off a tall building, this suggests he is a wealthy man who is trying to hide from a group who were banging on the door at the beginning. This again raises questions of why was he up there in the first place.

Another use of media language that were used was mis en scene. The director put the man in a suit, this is suggesting he is a smart wealthy man. This raises the question of why is a rich man standing on top of a building? We also see a composition with the lighting. When the man is onto of the building half of his face is high key lighting and the other half is low key lighting, this maybe a metaphor for his behaviour. He could be a good man but also have a sinister side.

 

The opening sequence makes the audience feel concerned and scared for the main character as we see him standing at the edge of a tall building.

 

 



 

When watching the opening sequence to Flightplan i noticed that all areas of media language were used within. At the beginning of the opening sequence there was a wide shot of the train, we also see the train station which is dull with low key lighting involved, i noticed that the only colour within this scene is the actual train this could signify that it is her sense of hope but she then decided to not get on the train, this raises questions as to why she did not get on the train. The train station is also empty, this could be a metaphor for how she is feeling.

 

There are loads of uses of cinematography within the opening sequence, there are extreme close ups used to show the characters facial expressions and the way they feel. In the middle of the scene we see a panoamic shot when the character is inside the house with her child as i watched this it made me feel concerned and worried as it seems like she is being watched from the outside. There are also uses of low angle and high angle shots as well as an aerial shot, this is used  to emphasise how small she is feeling compared to the rest of the world, as if she is being swallowed up, low angle shots are used to give the audience a sense of confusion, to show how powerless the main character is.

 

Through the opening sequence you see the main character have flash backs of her dead husband, the reason i noticed he was dead was because of the close ups of the coffin along with his face and the uses of non diegetic sounds that i heard when he walked with the main character, the sound of wind brushed past her fragile body as they both walked up the train station stairs. During the opening sequence there is amazing editing skills used when there is a high angle shot being used and the director puts plane shaped lights going round in the same motion as the high angle shot.

 

At the beginning  of the opening sequence a male character uses dialogue which isn't english, this signify's that the main character is in a differnet country, which lets us know she feels lost and out of her comfort zone which then leads to her feeling isolated. Through the opening sequence i noticed that the weather was raining, this could be emphasising sympathetic fallacy and how she is feeling, which is lonely and scared. Continuty is also created

 

In this opening sequence the directior chooses to mess with time, this is a usual convention used by thriller film and therefore this is a similarty to the film limitless as at the beginning of limitless you see him at the edge of the building meaning thats at the end of the film.  At the beginning of both films we can not see the main characters face but can hear voice overs using dialogue to describe what is going on. Both films make the audience feel worried and scared of what the characters are facing, both themes of the films are uncertainty, death and mystery, which intrege you to watch on. Both characters in the opening sequences are threatened and in danger which are all things that a convention of a thriller has. I also noticed there are titles and subtitles in each film which is a similarty.

 

When watching the opening sequence to Fight Club i noticed that all areas of media language had been involved.

 

 



 

Throughout the opening sequence eveything in mis en scene is in a dull like colour, this suggests to the audience that his normal life is dull and uneventful compared to the beginning of the scene where he is tide up with a gun in his mouth and his face is bloody and bruised.  At the start of the opening sequence there is an extreme close up of a gun being pointed at someone's face, this automatically brings suspense and tension to the whole film, following a close up of the main characters facial expression from having the gun being put into his mouth, as well as a suspense diegetic sound track then leading to the main characters voice over. All throughout the scene the main character uses a monotonous tone of voice which signifies what he feels when doing his daily routine.  

 

There is then fast pace editing leading to the actual start of the film, this gives the audience an idea of what the film is leading up to. I have noticed that the gun is a connotation of a thriller film as in most thrillers guns are involved. Similarities of this film to the other two are that all the main characters are in some kind of danger and mess with time in some way whether its having flashbacks or fast forwarding to the end of the film.