5 Thriller openings (Rory Harris)

The Departed

Camera work

• Shaky camera and long shots of a fight creates disorientation for the spectator and almost puts them in this fight.

• I’m sure it’s actual footage from the time that the film is set, which makes a good establishing shot as we immediately tell the time the film is set.

• Shots of police, the fights and people crammed into buses with broken glass gets the spectator asking questions

• Slow tracking of, who I assume is the protagonist of the film, walking in what appears to be a garage adds more mystery as spectators get a restricted view of him

• The shot I chose this clip for. A very good use of shallow depth of field when the protagonist is at the store, as the camera is focused on the boy sitting at the counter but the character is actually talking about the woman behind the counter. Adds a bit of confusion as spectators may not realise until the word “lady is mentioned”. Or at least I didn’t realise.

• Finally, the most noticeable camera technique used is the way the protagonist face is never shown. It’s always hidden in darkness despite being in quite a bright town


Mise en scene
• 1:12 In some sort of dark garage to start with which seems odd and raises questions

• 1:53 -1:57 we get a brief look at the character from behind and see a pair of shades and his watch which are both fairly decent. This makes the garage scene even stranger.

Editing

• Lots of cuts with the vintage films adding a bit of confusion

• A couple of long tracking shots in the middle
• Gets fast paced again when he’s ordering for the boy, showing that he means business and no one questions him and it happens quickly

Sound

• Parallel soundtrack to fit the time is set in

• With the vintage videos it starts off with sound, then the sound it cut off when the narration starts and comes back at one moment for the chanting of protesters.

 

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No Country for Old Men

Camera work

• Starts with some long shots of a barren landscape at sunrise, which is good for setting the scene of isolation

• Slow pan as a man is arrested building suspense.

• Again, hiding the face of the character adding the sense of mystery

Mise en scene

• The long shots of the barren land start of with low key lighting which gives the intro a dark atmosphere. However it is then lost as the sun chases the darkness away

• More mystery and confusion added as the police man places a oxygen tank onto the passenger seat. Making the spectator ask questions

Editing
• Cuts are few and far between making the viewer anxious and adding a bit of suspense
• Cuts are parallel to the narration at the start

Sound

• No soundtrack adding to this feel of isolation

• Narrator almost sounds like he’s talking to you as if he knows you, creating a bond with him.

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The Prestige

Camera work

• Starts off with a slow tracking shot in some woods which then reveals a whole bunch of top hats on the floor, instantly creating mystery and confusion

• You then have a shot of some birds in their pens and Michael Caine picking one which I thought created a claustrophobic feel. Especially with the shot at 1:09 which give the size of these cages

• Next is a shot of the magician as he starts his performance which is quite creepy given all the darkness used

• At 1:56 we have the close up of the old man just staring at the character that has gone down below the stage. This creates tension as spectators don’t know what this man might do or is doing

Mise en scene

• Outfits immediately establish when the film is set and what sort of class spectators are doing as there isn’t much of an establishing shot

• Dark lighting and the flashing lightning of the magic act create confusion and mystery

Editing

• The parallel editing between Michael Caine showing the simple magic act and the Magician doing his full scale act is very good as a link between the two scenes

• The increased pace of cuts when the magician drowns adds to the disorientation

Sound

• The narration describing the acts as they happen helps spectators understand what is happening

• The soundtrack just cutting out when the magician falls through the trap door is very good for making spectators step back and think “Oh my god, what’s happened?”



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Reservoir dogs

Camera Work

• High angel above the table as an establishing shot as we can see everyone and establish the time and kind of people this film is based around

• Slow motion tracking shot again to build up a bit of tension as this is our first shot to see all characters in size and because of the speed of shot

• Slow motion close up on characters face so spectators can make opinions about them and starts raising questions about the characters

Mise en scene
• Suits add the gangster feel and makes spectators already scared of them.
• Big black shades on some characters add to the mystery

Editing
• Long cuts so spectators have plenty of time to look at the characters
• Parallel editing to the soundtrack

Sound
• Contrapuntal soundtrack as it doesn’t match the kind of characters but does match the era of the film

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Disappearance of Alice Creed

Camera work
• Establishing shots work very well (i.e. the tracking in the car park and dump)
• The wobbly wheel on the shopping trolley adds a slight creepiness
• The depth of field shifting for each item the characters pick up
• Slow tracking/pan shots of the flat makes spectators anxious
• The characters working in perfect tangent, again adds to the creepiness

Mise en scene
• The remote locations create an isolated feel, in turn creating suspense and tension.
• The normality of it all. The characters acting as if this is an everyday thing, the normal locations and weapons they choose defiantly creates a fear for the characters

Editing
• Quite a lot of cuts building even more tension as it appears to happen so quickly
• The changing of pace from many cuts when stealing the car, to few cuts when examine the flat for the first time slightly disorientates.

Sound
• Diegetic sounds amplified to help spectators understand (i.e. the airplane at the start so spectators know it’s at an airport)
• Tense soundtrack building tension.

http://www.spike.com/video/disappearance-of/3423777

5 Thriller openings - Brendan Oosterbaan

Inception

Camera-work: Extreme close ups of his face to show emotion and have the audience guess what he has gone through. Extreme close up and use of shallow depth of field on the spinner to show significance and to direct the audience’s attention. Identity of Chinese man hidden until he speaks, creating mystery.

 Editing: Fast cuts between his face and the children playing showing that only he can see them. Children seem hazy which may suggest flashback/dream/unreal.

 Mise en scene: Food doesn't look appetizing and shows he is eating desperately, gun of significance because it is his only possession besides the spinner, emphasises importance of the spinner. Lighting is dark in the room to suggest mystery over the man’s identity.

 Sound: Enhanced Foley's used with sound of the waves – diejetic sound. Kids laughing with contrapuntal music playing over it.

Shutter Island

  Camera-work: Close-ups of his face to show his sickness and emotion. A lot of 2 shots to show they're closeness and understanding of each other. Shallow depth of field used on the chains to direct audiences attention to them. 

    Editing: Slow cuts from his face in the mirror then him looking out to sea to have the audience believe everything is fine. Low white balance in the flashback to show warm colours and how this was a happy time for him. 

     Mise en scene: Chains are a typical sign of dark and bad places such as a prison so in this extract they are very ominous. We are given a blank screen with the sound of water first which has the audience wondering what going to come out of the mist. 

Sound: There is use of enhanced Foley's with the water which gives the water significance and directs the audience to it. The music is very contrapuntal to the speech he says and enhances what he says, it is quite comical. The chains clanking is also an enhanced Foley which foreshadows the events to come. The soundtrack used sounds a lot like a fog horn to reinforce the fact that they are on a boat. The music changes to a more happy tone with the flashback which makes it parallel sound. 

V for Vendetta

      Camera-work: A slow zoom from the TV to emphasise what is being said. Point of view shot when he puts on the mask to show how he is concealing his identity which keeps the audience in the dark about his appearance. Shallow depth of field shot used on the clock and the note to direct the audiences attention to them. Also a close up of him putting on his knives and cape which again emphasises them.

         Editing: Parallel editing between him and her to show their likeness and how there paths will cross. There are fast cuts between the two - cross-cutting - to show how there meeting is drawing nearer. 

Mise en scene: Same lighting on both settings to emphasise their similarity. Both 'getting ready to go out' emphasized by her make-up and his clothes, mask and weapons. Very contrasting props. 

Sound: The TV is always on in the background and is diverting the audience towards it as it is the loudest sound, with soundtrack, music, and Foley's with it. The Foley's are enhanced while the TV is on and off. It is enhanced more when it is off as there are no more distractions. 

Reservoir Dogs

Camera-work: Pan to see all characters which establishes the audience. Zoom up of each face again to introduce characters. 

Editing: Slow cuts so not to confuse the audience. Easy to follow, audience's attention directed on the speech.

Mise en scene: Coffee and cigars emphasized to show they are relaxed, perhaps lulling the audience into a false sense of security. Props and lighting suggest it is breakfast time but they are all wearing suits, contrasts. They are also talking about very contrasting things to what a stereotypical suit wearer might talk about. 

Sound: Voice-over credits to introduce us.Each character speaks so we get a sense of who's who and what their character is like. Lots of speech to emphasise this. The speech is comical which is contrasting to the events that will follow. 

Angels and demons

Camera-work: Extreme close-up with shallow depth of field on the ring to direct attention form the audience. Close-ups of all the tools he is going to use which will show the audience exactly what is going to happen to the ring. Tilt to show masses of people which would give the audience an idea of the scale of the disaster. 

Editing: Fast cuts to show all the tools would suggest to the audience that the breaking of the ring is a lengthy process with lots of tools. Slow motion is used to emphasise the movements of breaking the ring. 

Mise en scene: Tools are very significant to the breaking of the ring as they are well lit up. The clothes chosen are very religious to set the scene of where it is set. 

Sound: Voice-over throughout to introduce the audience to the film and to fill in what is happening. Enhanced Foley's of the breaking ring to direct the audiences attention. Parallel soundtrack to the setting which is very religious. When the TV crews are shown, the voice-over changes to a more fuzzy tone to suggest that it is a television recording. 

Our Preliminary Film

My Thriller Research - Stephen Neal

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo:

 The man in the room:

• The dark colours in the room give a sinister feel

• Slow tracking shots in and out.
• Focus on the knife and meticulous opening of letters – makes the letter opener seem sinister – the light reflecting off it gives the impression its sharp, dangerous.

o Maybe this relates to the package?

o Adds suspense to the scene.

• The light comes from outside the room making the room dark. This gives the impression something sinister will happen within the room.

o Half his face is hidden in shadows – mystery about the man.

o The package changes his expression from neutral to severely upset, great change in the mood – great for film.

 Makes the audience ask why
• A photo appears at the end
o Black and white – old
o Why? More mystery
• Quiet parallel music.

The Girls Travel:
• We never see her face, builds suspense
• Always going through dark areas, heading toward the light but never quite there until the end. – Nice idea for the film?


Se7en:

Books:
• They always come back to the book
o Why? Add mystery
o What relevance do the books have? Why words?
• We’re never given more than a few seconds of film – not very useful for our production as we need to show more.
• The angles are always changing, disorientating the audience, confusing them – very powerful effect.
• Underlying crime idea, removing fingerprints with a sinister razor, cutting words out.
• Lots of dark areas never showing much, framing half the shot.
• There is a lot of writing but we can never see what is being written – why? What is being hidden? This would be great if we could incorporate it into our film.
• Distressing music and pictures – distressed suggestions? Would be great in our film to make the audience ask why and what will happen!

Colour:

• Black

o Colours out words, why?

o Colours out pictures, again why?

o More criminal undertones

o Stereotypically an evil colour, can be used in the film easily

• Red

o Blood, anger, passion – mixed with the music and pictures it has a worrying effect on the audience.

Acting:

• Meticulous actions, perfectionist – knows what they are doing, have they done it before? It raises many questions. – could be usable in the film?

Other:
• One shot is split, one on top and one underneath, distracts and disorients the viewer again. – Not really feasible in our film but great if we could put it in, parallel acting maybe?



Jaws:

(blogger cant find the video so i included a link instead)
The Jaw's Clip

Opening Bonfire:
• Slow tracking - adds suspense, it makes the audience want to move the film forward faster. Easily put into our film, would look good with the correct low key lighting.
• Shadowed scene with lots of people, the audience knows something bad will happen but whom too, it makes them ask questions.
• The music changes dramatically from water to the beach –parallel music turns to contrapuntal music for a thriller scene.
• They are safe in the light of the fire, outside in the darkness the shark strikes – would be great to use the lighting to give this subtly impression in our film.

Toward the water:
• The couple head toward the water but the female gets further and further away, lost in the darkness, almost foreboding her future – the opening gap could be used in our film to show the detachment of the character.
• Tracking and panning along with their running
• It links back to the very beginning water scene with the tense music and “shark eye” objective view.

 

In the water:
• The camera shots are either close up to shows her fear, or long shots to show her small size in the water making her seem weak.

• Quickening cuts until she disappears, make it more distressing, confusing and thrilling.

• The thriller music comes back and adds suspense

o She goes under many times but always comes back – puts the spectator on the edge of their seat as they ask “will she / wont she survive”
 This could be good for our film?



Pulp Fiction:

(Explicit language & racism within the clip!)

• The very beginning of the opening involves a caption involves a comment explaining the word “pulp” – it sets the tone as quite dark due to the description of the word. – it looks really good and could be used if we had reason to within our film as it could be used to add mystery as to why we have chosen that word and what may happen in the rest of the film.
• The black and white contrast of the words emphasises on the meaning of the words.
• The next part shows a couple mid conversation – instantly raises mystery about who they are and why they are talking.
• Unlike the other examples the characters are in a light environment, only closed by the effect of the chairs keeping them enclosed.

• The sound of the gun hitting the table is very loud compared to the other noises, it shocks the audience.
• The Female acts in a strange way, the close-ups on her face show her facial expressions to the audience. – Her hair is slightly wild as well, indicates her personality.
• The table matches her hair, quite messy and out of place.
• The crime setting features in this as well, as with most thrillers – could be integrated with our film?
• There are some more slow tracking shots and Over The Shoulder shots – they feature in all the clips I’ve looked at so far – Must use these in our film to build suspense.
• Long cuts, drag the scene out making the audience anxious.

Goodfellas:

Only watched until 4:00 on the film timer.



In the car:
• The sounds with the text match that of the filmed scene in the car.
• Very little light around the car, and a dark car. – Normally associated with evil and crime, sets the tone of the thriller.
• Suspicious noise, described as a flat – generates more shock when it is a man.
• Very long without cuts, not great for our film.
• The audience asks why these men are together and what are they doing?

Car Stopped:
• They are in darkness again.
• Smart suite – expensive – suggests large crimes?
• Off screen sounds of banging from the boot, it adds mystery to the opening of the boot.

• The bladed props shine to emphasize them from the darkness. They’re also emphasised with the sound.

• The camera tracks into a close up of the protagonist to allow the audience to connect with his facial expression and what he says over the title credits.

Out the window:

• The cars, outfits and accent allow the audience to place the character and area which links to gangster life and was infamous for the criminal underground there.

• He observes the others outside, makes them appear weak to him. – Foreboding the future?

• Another black car with suited men – more crime suggestions.

• Slow cuts, builds suspense and apprehension about what will happen.

Thriller Openings Research: Marcus Pelham

44 Inch Chest:

CAM -

Close up on objects - still shots

Slow tracking shot - builds suspense

Close up on face

Shallow depth of field - draw emphasis on details

MeS -

Normal clothing - ask questions

Editing -

Slow cuts that fit to beat

Lots of cuts

Sound -

Contrapuntal sound

No dialogue

Types of character -

Normal characters

Themes -

Violence

Destruction

Crime

Mood/Atmosphere -

Anti-climax

Anxious - audience question event

Narrative structure -

Not sure - shift to ordinary setting

The Dark Knight:

CAM -

Long sweeping establishing shot - builds suspense as it focuses on one thing which smashes

MeS -

Masks blocking face

Guns

Editing -

Parallel editing

Sound -

Tense non-diegetic soundtrack

Emphasis on diagetic sounds ie. gunshot

Types of character -

Criminals

Themes -

Crime

Betrayal

Mood/Atmosphere -

Tense

Confusing

Sin City:

CAM -

Establishing shot shows from behind - ask questions about character

MeS -

Unique use of colour - focus on costume and makeup

Gun

Low-key lighting casts shadow on face

Editing -

Shot/reverse shot cutsdb

Sound -

Non diegetic soundtrack -voiceover

Types of character -

'Spy' stereotype

Upper class woman

Themes -

Murder

Love

Mood/Atmosphere -

Shock

Mystery

Locations

The Front Of The College:
We needed to use the front of the college when it was dark to make the film appear to have been at night therefore we had to film this last.

We wanted the rain effect so we had to be careful about the rain on the camera so we brought an umbrella and coat to cover it. Also we had to be careful   that we didn't slip in the rain or hit any other people walking around or moving things.

Reception:
We decided to use reception as it already has good lighting and a perfect layout for our scene as we need the reception office to show that the protagonist is a spy and is sneaking by.

The receptionist left and was fine to allow us to film in her absence. Our risks were that we could have run into other people when we were doing our tracing shots.

Corridors:
The corridor by reception and on the second floor will be used as we need the change in colour and we needed the elevator for our scenes. We used the second floor twice as it worked well with the film we were making.

We spoke to the cleaner and she helped by starting down the other end of the corridor. Opening doors could have been a risk of they swung into the camera or us.

Elevator:
We had to use this for a transition and to make the corridors look different as the protagonist had been in the lift.

There were a lot of risks with this though as we had to hold the elevator and keep going down and up in it to get the correct take. Also the fact that other people may have wanted to use the lift we had to stop filming and move out while they used the facility.

Office:
The cleaner allowed us to use the office and opened it for us so we worked in there with our camera.

The electrics in there were a possible risk if we had caught them or tripped on wires so we had to make sure they were stuck down and out of the way.

Stairwell:
This was used for another transition between settings with out protagonist.

We could have tripped up or down the stairs while acting and filming so to make it safer we stayed away from the edges and make our actor stick to the banister just in case he did slip or trip. To gain the height needed for the angle we borrowed some boxes from someone moving boxes for the hub theater and places three of them around and rested the tripod on that.

Editing

Editing was hard, there were sme problems with match on action as lining up the frames took a long time to do. Also got into some problems with uploading the clips in the first place but it worked in the end. Keeping to the 180 rule was easy though, we don't switch sides anywhere in the filming so it stays looking fluid not backwards anywhere. Putting the sound effects was good, we found a perfect bit of elevator music that lines up perfectly with our filming. Rory did a lot of work on the editing at home to do some of the security effects as he has some video software which he used to make the security parts look a lot more authentic and "real".

-Stephen

Our Storyboard

Locations

Pre-Christmas: scouted areas for filming and got most of it done in the week. Sadly we may have to re-film one bit due to a slight continuity error but we may not keep the scene anyway. We'll find out when we next do editing :).