Film and TV would be incredibly boring without the combination
of camera movement, editing, sound and mise en scene. If even just one of them
is missing it is immediately noticeable. We have been looking at how all these
aspects work together to create a successful film opening title sequence.
other transitions: dissolve, fade-in, fade-out, wipe,
superimposition, long take, short take, slow motion, ellipsis and expansion of
time, post-production, visual effects
• Jack Nicholson as Jack Torrance • Shelley Duvall as Wendy Torrance • Danny Lloyd as Danny Torrance • Scatman Crothers as Dick Hallorann • Barry Nelson as Stuart Ullman • Philip Stone as Delbert Grady • Joe Turkel as Lloyd • Anne Jackson as Doctor • Tony Burton as Larry Durkin • Barry Dennen as Bill Watson
Year: 1980
Studio: Warner Brothers
Director: Stanley Kubrick
The title sequence opens
with a wide shot of a beautiful valley, with still water and mountains on
either side. If it weren’t for the immediate dark, booming, non-diegetic
soundtrack the scenery would be pleasant but because of this juxtaposition we
are instead filled with unease because the music makes us constantly question
whether something is about to happen. The camera movements add to this uncomfortable
feeling because it is an aerial shot moving rapidly toward a little island but
then veers to the right and just keeps going which as an audience member makes
you feel uneven and unbalanced because you automatically think the camera will
straighten up but it doesn’t. The shot then dissolves into an incredibly high
birds eye view of a road and the camera follows a little yellow car from
behind. The fact that the camera stays behind for a while gives the shot a
stalker effect and adds intrigue because we start to believe that whoever in
the car must be the main characters and the constantly building soundtrack
combined with the scenery of the car driving very close to a cliff, makes us
feel nervous for them.
When the titles come up it is a bit of a surprise and our
attention is drawn to them as they are in the centre of the screen and contrast
the background and the atmosphere that has been built up because they are very
simple and bright blue. However this has an interesting effect because just as
out focus is drawn to the names in the titles the camera moves in on the car and
then moves past it which confuses the audience because it starts to make them
doubt whether the car had any importance at all. After the main title ‘the
shining’ appears the car comes back into shot and the music builds with
screaming and bizarre noises joining in. Throughout this we watch as the people
in the car drive deeper into the mountains, further and further away from
humanity and help. When the camera cuts to the hotel you can’t even see it at
first because it blends in so well with the mountain but once you do spot it
you can’t unsee it. The eerie screaming in the background intensifies as the
camera moves around so that we can take in the sheer size of the hotel. The
audience begins to fill with dread as the realisation of just how isolated the
hotel is begins to sink in.
The brass instrument playing a minor key with the
weird noises on top as the soundtrack would mean that sitting in a cinema you
would be able to feel the bass vibrations through the floor, this in
combination with the camera movements, height of the camera and movement of the
titles all creates a sick feeling and plays on possible fears the audience
might have (height, fear of falling, isolation etc) which sets up the perfect
atmosphere for the film because subconsciously the audience is already afraid
and on edge.
Se7en
Cast:
Brad
Pitt as Detective David Mills
Morgan Freeman as Detective Lieutenant William Somerset
Gwyneth Paltrow as Tracy Mills
Kevin Spacey as John Doe
R. Lee Ermey as Police Captain
Year: 1995
Studio: New Line Cinema
Director: David Fincher
The opening
title sequence of ‘Se7en’ starts with an eerie non-diegetic soundtrack that has
almost hospital like sounds creating the rhythm with various different obscure
noises over the top, it is steady throughout, repetitive and monotonous which
eventually makes your head feel uncomfortable and all you want is for the sound
to stop. The first shot is a short close up of book pages which then cuts to a
black screen that has the titles on, written in scratchy handwriting text that
jumps around, but they stay on the screen long enough to be able to read them
so the jolty effect is successful and adds to the eerie atmosphere. We then cut
to a close up of someone’s hands holding a razor and cutting off bits of their
skin. This is also an introduction to a character, although we don’t know who
they are we can tell a lot from just that image of their hands. The dryness
suggests they work with their hands, maybe they are a bit old, perhaps they
work with chemicals that dry out their hands or hard labour that causes them to
become calloused. We then see as the person’s hands reach for a notebook while
they have plasters on their fingertips and there is a close up shot of the
writing inside the book. It is very close together and there is a lot of
writing with very little space between it suggesting this person is obsessive and
has a busy mind that they struggle to control.
The short close up shots start
to build a sort of profile for the character as we get snippets of what they
are doing. We don’t get a positive feeling from the character and instead feel
uneasy and unsafe. The red flash of the red room tells us that this person has
pictures they don’t want anyone else to see. Which raises all sorts of
questions. The words that are noticeable to the audience are ‘fantasize’ ‘intercourse’
and ‘pregnancy’ which in combination with the shot of a little boys eyes being
drawn over and then his whole face being scribbles out creates a sense of dread
in the pit of the audiences stomach. We see a picture of someone having a brain
operation of sorts which is deeply disturbing. And we then watch as the person
sews up some pages and then cuts to an extreme close up of the word ‘GOD’ being
cut out from a dollar bill. The soundtrack then synchronises with the shot as
we hear a singer say the word ‘GOD’. The soundtrack speeds up as it goes along
and then comes to a very abrupt end which leaves the audience in a shocked state
for the opening of the film to start. Every shot in the title sequence doesn’t
stay on screen for very long. It is fast paced and slowly speeds up as the
soundtrack also speeds up, this creates a chaotic feeling but it is an
organised chaos because although the imagery is obscure and difficult to make
out it has a cumulative effect that tells us a lot about the character.
Comparison:
The two title
sequences have both got loads of aspects that are both similar and different
but create the same effect. For example they both share the repetitive bass to
the soundtrack with the obscure ominous sounds over the top to create a tense
atmosphere and in both we are sort of introduced to a character but not fully.
In the ‘Shining’ we get the impression that whoever is in the car is the main
character and although we don’t have any idea who they are we are already
nervous for them and what fate awaits them. In ‘Se7en’ we are introduced to a
character in a different way because we only see their hands but rather than
feeling nervous for the character we start to feel afraid of them because we
associate the images and jerky movement of the camera and words to the
character which therefore makes us believe them to be unpredictable and
dangerous.
The biggest difference between the two is the scenery and the pace of
the editing. In the shining the editing is a lot slower and we have time to
look at everything in the wide shots whereas in se7en the editing is much
faster and your eyes and brain have to work a lot harder to try and see everything
in each shot, all of the shots are close up as well which creates enigma
because we don’t know where we are, only the objects the character has. There
is more contrast in the shining with the beautiful scenery compared to the soundtrack
but in se7en the soundtrack runs in parallel with the images. I think both openings
lead the audience to assume that the narrative of the film will be dark,
frightening and tense – for both of the openings to have this in common I would
say that it is mostly due to the soundtrack as that is the one obvious
component that they have in common. I would consider both very successful, I
think se7en’s opening works better with the genre of thriller but I personally really
love when films have a lot of contrast between the visuals and sound because I
think it makes it more interesting to watch.
It's Caitlin. Read on for a little dive into my life.
I have been interested in acting since I was around 9 years old when my teacher organised a drama lesson for me without my knowledge. I was a very shy child so this was absolutely mortifying for me but after a few lessons I really came out of my shell and I fell in love with acting. I have mostly been based in theatre up until a year or so ago but the end goal is to act on screen. I thought that it would benefit me to learn about what goes on behind scenes because then not only will I be able to possibly work in those departments but it will help me to see how I need to adapt my acting to work on screen.
Media is a new subject for me as I haven't ever done it before nor have I ever really learned about the camera, sound and editing side of films which means that everything is very interesting and I am finding out loads that I never would have known before. I love thinking deeper into the story and symbolism within film because there is an endless amount of things you can dig up and find. While some of the time it is just head cannons that lead nowhere there are plenty of films that have a really deep meaning and hidden symbolism throughout like coraline, midsommer and inception.
I love that films transport you into a different world and distract you from our current reality. I really want to be a part of that but when I say distract I don't just mean they watch the film and then forget about it, I want to create and be in films that while they transport you they also make you think, think about the universe of the film or about the real world or about yourself, anything, just so long as they give you something to delve into, think about or gain insight to.
I don't really have a favourite genre of film and I like to dip in and out of different genres, but key aspects for me is I love films that are real and gritty, set in alternate universes, have the right amount of romance that has a slow burn effect, lots of emotion and a good couple of action scenes, so basically a mix of all the genres in one film!
Ok I'm done with the media based life info - now for the unimportant stuff:
I am a virgo sun, cancer moon and scorpio rising. So overall I am mostly a water sign and then earth but if we ignore that most of my signs are water I personally think I give more earth energy. Speaking of ... I love spirituality, it is a really big part of my life and is incredibly personal to me. I love to explore the way different cultures express spirituality and learn from them to shape my own experience. I have this little dream where I buy a nice big electric van and convert the back into my home and just travel the world with a couple of dogs and cats and whoever else I pick up on the way, with no care for money or the government or anything in the real world. Just me and my van. Although the van might become a problem when I want to travel overseas but it's just a dream so we will just pretend that it will all work out.
Basic get to know you questions:
Favourite song - it changes daily but 'Breezblocks' by alt-j will always be up there
Favourite movie - genuinley could never choose, but my guilty pleasure is the twilight films
Favourite colour - the colour of tropical oceans
Favourite food: sushi - the reason I am starting out pescatarian and building up to full veggie
