The Prestige Analysis

The Prestige is a Fantasy Thriller about magicians who are in rivalry to succeed with the ultimate illusion. The sequence begins with the title instantly, with the picture in the background of a forest with lots of top hats. This definitely has to represent something in the film or be part of the film later on. This instantly gives the audience something to think about or ask questions about, which is an excellent start for the genre opening. After this a voice over is begun, explain magic tricks and how they are created and planned out. We see this scene, with what look likes a grandfather and granddaughter and then see a magician at the theatre. Throughout the sequence we switch  between either scenes in relation to what the voice over is saying. This then creates many questions of who these people are, what have they go to do with each other and what will happen because of this. There is relatively little music or soundtrack which is surprising as most sequences I have researched have a very deep and powerful soundtrack to emphasize whats happening. There is a slight orchestral background soundtrack which creates some sense of atmosphere and tells the audience something drastic will happen at the end of the sequence. At the end of the scene both magic tricks are done but the one in the theatre goes wrong and this is the climax of the opening sequence. It shocks the audience as they may not have been expecting something so dramatic in the opening sequence. As soon as the sequence ends suddenly the audience may be slightly puzzled and perplexed over what has happened. This is how the "thrill" is created and why the sequence works so well. I feel that the power of the narrative plays a very important part in the sequence and they way that it is scripted creates a very visual, dramatic opening scene.

Analysis of Se7en Opening Sequence

Se7en is a psychological thriller about two detectives, a rookie and a veteran, who are hunting a serial killer who has committed murders using the 7 deadly sins as his modus operandi.



The opening sequence for Se7en is very well thought out and created. The whole sequence is a montage of clips and pictures from what we gather as the murderer however it could also be the detectives. This instant
questioning creates the perfect start to the thriller film. We know before we watch the film that it is about the 7 deadly sins, so when watching the montage of clips we try to figure out what all the pictures and words relate to. Of course everything is meaningful which is why the clips have been used. The sound is very interesting in the sequence. Its as if the sound is also a montage of music and soundtracks very much like the clips. The sound makes a "screeching" noise often, prehaps to relate to screams of victims of the murderer, however we don't really know - only questions can be asked. The editing is very clever for the titles and credits. The font is creepy and jagged as if it has been scratched - this could relate to one of the murders?
 The titles also fit into the montage which helps with the fluency of the sequence.
In the main the way the sequence has been made is extremely clever. It is as if the montage relates to the murderers brain and how it works. We already think that someone has to be a "lunatic" if he was going to commit murders like this so we instantly know this is the murder and feel that the montage is whats happening in the murders mind. As well as this it creates millions of questions of what is happening and if looked at closely you can see hints of what is to come in the film. This is one of the most thought out and clever opening sequences I have seen throughout my research and I will try and use some of the ideas in my final sequence if possible.

Codes and Conventions of Action Thrillers

The Action genre is regularly used with Thrillers to create an very exciting, dramatic and heart racing film. The fact that there is a story line with twists and thrills throughout along with action packed fights, car chases and explosions seems to create the perfect "thrill".

One example of a Action Thriller is James Bond: Quantum of Solace. Being a Bond film, viewers are expected to see car chases, explosions and fights from the first minute of the scene, however the fact that the storyline is put together with such precision that the final piece of the puzzle is only placed and understood right at the very end.

The Opening sequence begins with an immediate establishment of the scene and location. The establishing shot then zooms in to the land where the action commences straight away. The fact that no titles or credits are shown straight away helps portay the action well as it shows it is suddenly getting straight into the plot and action sequence. After the shot is zoomed in enough, sound can be heard of the cars. This shows that it is an action genre as the cars come zooming past and the film begins quickly. The car chase begins, with us rarely seeing anyone driving other than James Bond who is the main character. The quick succession of shots with short shot duration tells us this is an action movie and the explosions and gun shots also add to the effect. Once Bond has escaped and stops, we find a man in the boot of the car. This is showing the Thriller side to the film at the end of the opening scene. We see the man, raise questions then the credits and titles begin. The way this is done entices us into the film well with a balance of action and questions thought about by the audience.

Another good example of a Action Thriller is Green Zone. This war based film begins fairly differently from that of Quantum of Solace. The credits begin immediately and the sound played over the top is that of air raid siren. This siren is used to create a sense of action and the radio played with it shows emergency and panic of troops. We then hear crashes and explosions in the background and reporters  commenting on how war has begun. Still at this point no location, characters or scene has been established until suddenly an explosion is heard and the film begins. From then on the audience will begin to ask questions of what is happening during the action packed sequence. The characters are seen trying to collect, what seems as important documents while others are panicking around them. What they are doing is not found out yet and this is what creates the "thriller" genre. The characters then flee and another big explosion is seen before the title is flashed on the screen. The film then fast forwards 4 weeks and other characters are brought into the film. The audience now has raised questions about these characters and will begin to wonder how they are connected to the characters seen right at the beginning of the film.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Qsfi8FbePU

Overall both of these Action/Thriller opening sequences start off immediately with lots of action, including explosions, car chases and fight scenes. Both also cause the audience to ask questions of the narrative and what is happening, however Green Zone definitely causes the audience to ask questions when the action is happening. Compared to Quantum of Solace where before the credits roll onto the screen a big question is raised. This is clever as it lets the audience have time to think throughout the title sequence, before revealing the answers after.