Comparing two thriller opening sequences

The two thriller opening sequences i am going to compare are the Bourne identity and jaws.

The Bourne identity was created by Doug Liman and released in 2002. The bourne identity is about a man named Jason Bourne, who is picked up by a fishing boat. Left without any memory and injury from being shot Jason races to escape from assassins and recover his memory loss from amnesia.

Jaws was released in the year of 1975 and created by Steven Spielburg. This film is about an enormous great white shark that is terrorising a small village. The head chef policeman, a shark expert and a fisherman set out to destroy the beast.

Both of these films use the sea within the opening sequence, however they use it in different ways. Jaws uses it as a location establishment as the film is based within the sea and on the beach. This therefore helps the viewers to understand that the film is about a shark as a young women is pulled underwater and eaten alive. Creating tension as we know that its out there but when dont know when it'l strike.
Where as The Bourne Identity uses the location of the sea to inform the audience that the man character is in the water. We are introduced to him as believing he is dead floating within the sea. However we then realise he was alive and shot, making him seem suspisious against the innocent fishermen who saved him. The main character comes across as very strong and violent but also very confused as he didnt know where he was or that he had been shot. Therefore there is no prime location within the film The Bourne Identity as it is about a man running away and trying to descover who is really is,by he is travelling around the world.
At the beginning of the films they both start with credits and the title, allowing the viewer to know who created the film and what its called. However Jaws contains many detailed credits at the beginning of the film. The Bourne Identity on the other hand doesn't start straight away with the credits it focuses more on introducing the viewers to the main character and the scene. It contains very few credits and shows them apart. During this there is music playing in the background, this music is the main theme tune for the film. Jaws's sound track has a deep loud sound of der dum and gets faster to create tension. Where as the Bourne Identity starts very quiet with the music and then begings building up to the theme tune with a quick faster paced tune. This is because at first we see Bourne floating within the sea, and then are introduced to the fisherman spotting Bourne. This then building up the tension and panic of the scene as they try to save him.

These Two films are based on different types of characters, Jaws is about a shark who is murdering innocent people, in order to survive. Its a natural instinked for a shark to hunt for its pray. As a consequence we believe that the Shark is evil and must be stopped, we think this because of the way its potrayed. Where as Bourne is in fact the victim and doesnt mean to kill people. However we then find out that during his past he was trainned to kill innocent people as it was his mission. But after the accident he is then hunted down becuse he couldnt face killing a man with his family around him which was his mission. Therefore he ends up being the victuim as his boss wants him dead, giving him no choice but to kill the assassins as its him or them.

The use of mise en scene was very diferent from each other. This is because The Bourne Identity contained the use of guns and a secret bank code within his skin, therefore contributing to the action and mystery sub genres. Bourne was dressed in a wetsuit and kitted up with a life vest and fancy equipment, from this we know he wasn't a normal person. As no one would be left in the sea like that. Jaws on the other hand didn't have any props that defined the genre of the film as the main character doesn't have any props. However both of these films are located within the sea during the opening sequence. As well as containing dark lighting to make the scene more intense and mysterious. As we hadn't actually seen the shark and couldn't see Bourne's face at the begining, making the audience interested in what they look like.

Both of these films contain a group of people enjoying them selves, safe and happy. As in The Bourne Identity we are introduced to a group of fishermen drinking and playing cards, this helps the scene become more exciting as they find Bourne floating. The music also builds up, creating a more interesting and intense scene. Jaws uses a group of teenagaers having a beach party with a bomb fire and drink around them. The scene then becomes more dramatic as the music and scene changes making the viewer on edge waiting for something to happen.

In conclusion i have found out that these two thriller films contain similar opening conventions. As they are both based within a similar location as well as containing a murderer as the main character. The theme music isnt the same but is still very important within both the films as it makes the audience become familiar with that theme music. For example within Jaws when we hear the theme music we know the shark is going to strike. Its the same within The Bourne Identity as we know that there is going to be some type of action scene as Bourne is fighting his way to freedom. Therefore showing that thrillers are usually produced similar to each other, from introducing the main characters to establishing the main location.