Alice Sandom's Media Project
research and planning
Se7en - Title sequence
David Fincher (1995)
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This opening sequence to the thriller Se7en intorduces the film and shows the audience what they will be expecting later on. As most of the shots are close ups (CU) it creates intrigue and suspense, it also shows how the unknown character is putting detail into what he is plotting to do. The titles in this sequence are informal and have more than one layer to the words, they also jump suddenly around the page, this gives the scene an eerie feel and creates tension and excitement for the rest of the film.
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Catch me if You Can - title sequence
Steven Spielberg (2002)
In this title sequence, no characters are seen at all, there is no dialogue and nothing linking to the story has happened. However, the audience still understand the concept of the film by the title sequence. They have used a cartoon sequence to outline the story and to say who the actors are, and who directed the film. The music shows how it is a crime, although the use of primary colours shows how it is a lighter crime film.
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Casino Royale - Title sequence
Martin Campbell (2006)
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Similar to the title sequence of Catch me if You Can, the title sequence of Casino Royale has no footage from the film. However, this sequence comes after the first scene, sot he audience have already established the genre, but not the plot of the film. The titles revolve around the theme of gambling, which would reflect the name 'Casino Royale'. Thus, this makes the audience aware of the theme of the film, before seeing much of the film.
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The Matrix - Genre
The Wachowski Brothers (1999)
The genre is clearly seen in this scene from The Matrix. The two main characters are both wearing black, which connotes death. The scene is fast paced and shows the characters fighting with guns and with their powers, showing how the film is an action and also sci-fi. The fact that parts of the wall and surroundings are damaged further portray the genre, alongside the fact the audience are shown killing innocent people, also suggesting that this film isn't suitable for small children.
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Knocked Up - Genre
Judd Apatow (2007)
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Knocked Up portrays the comedy genre by the use of high key lighting to present a light and gentle atmosphere. The family in the film present an idyllic family life, which would appeal to audiences with their own family. The bright coloured costumes also show how it is a gentle film with little to no action, contrasting to The Matrix. The fact that this scene also doesn't have any music and is all dialogue makes the scene less tense as we can see the characters are not in a difficult position, therefore the tense feeling isn't reflected onto the audience. Therefore, I will take into consideration the fact that dialogue decreases tension when doing my own work.
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Gone - Genre
Heitor Dhalia (2012)
The close up shots (from 0-40 seconds) create tension as not much surrounding is seen which portrays the feeling of claustrophobia. This also focuses the audience on the action happening, rather than distracting them witht eh background. The close ups also show emotion in the characters and show how it is a tense film. Low key lighting is used in Gone to create a dark and eerie feel to the film and to further show the genre of thriller.
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Psycho - Shots
Alfred Hitchcock (1960)
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Alfred Hitchcock's famous shower scene shows immense tension and horror, due to the common close ups that show only the main focus of the shot. The close up of the woman screaming heightens the intensity of the scream, there is also a famous close up at the end showing her blood going down the drain which shows how she has now been killed. The shot of the drain then fades into a shot of her eye which shows how she has wasted down the drain and she is nothing anymore. Also the shot of her in the shower slightly to the right of the shot, then a shadow appears in the left hand side of the shot, leaving the audience in fear as the identity of the shadow is unknown.
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A Clockwork Orange - Shots
Stanley Kubrick (1971)
The opening to A Clockwork Orange is one very long shot, this gives the audience an insight into the insanity of the main characters as while the camera reveals more of the room it reveals more about their personality. The shot reveals explicit mannequins and blood on their white outfits while playing slow, eerie music. The long shot panning out from the main characters places them in the centre of the shot, and therefore the centre of the madness of their lives.
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The Usual Suspects - Shots
Bryan Singer (1995)
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The long, dragging shots show the conclusion of the film. the long zoom into the detective's face shows his slow realisation and then the shots speed up when the detective finds out that the character made up the story, this is effective as the audience feel tense as they want to know what the detective has realised. The zoom in on the mug shocks the audience as they enter the realisation of the plot twist. Then a fast pan shows the detective running urgently this speeds up the pace and puts the audience into a state of urgency.
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Casino Royale - Mise-en-scene
Martin Campbell (2006)
The fact that the background of the set can hardly be seen shows how the poker table and the people around it are the main focus, this is also highlighted by the fact most of the lighting is focused on the table, and the surroundings are darker; this engages the audience fully in the poker game and not on the surroundings. The lighting is slightly low to show the tension of the room and to show the dark side of the characters. The people in the room are obviously very wealthy, shown by their posh suits and elegant dresses, also the lighting has a slight golden effect to heighten the wealth.
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Sweeny Todd - Mise-en-scene
Tim Burton (2007)
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The low key lighting in Sweeny Todd portrays the darkness of the story and the callous behaviours of the characters. the dark setting also shows the depression and sadness of the village and the characters. The dark and messy costumes of the characters shows their rugged personalities and their social status, which is opposite to Casino Royale. The simple set design shows how the characters are less wealthy than the characters in Casino Royale, as they have less money to show off in expensive possessions.
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The Shining - Sequences
Stanley Kubrick (1980)
The sequence of this scene shows Jack breaking into the bathroom where his wife Wendy is hiding from him. The sequence of shots, starting at 14 seconds, begins with Jack walking up to the bathroom door, it is a mid-shot tracking his movements, this makes the audience feel more involved in the moment, thus heightening the tension. The next shot shows his wife attempting to escape, then another shot shows Jack much closer to the door. This makes the audience scared on behalf of Wendy, as they feel she may not escape in time.
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The Matrix Reloaded - Sequences
The Wachowski Brothers (2003)
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The sequence up to 14 seconds shows the car exiting the building, just before a chase scene occurs. The first shot is of a red siren going off, which signifies danger, thus this shot opens the chase scene so the audience immediately know the characters are doing something they shouldn't. The next shot shows the car coming out of a garage, and shows some of the surroundings (XLS). The next shot is the same, although shows much less of the surroundings and focuses mainly on the car. The shot makes it clear that the car is in the air which shocks the audience as it is obvious the car is going fast, which can be dangerous. There are lots of fast shots of the car exiting the garage which introduce the chase scene which will also include fast paced shots.
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V For Vendetta - Sequences
James McTeigue (2005)
The sequence of V setting off the dominoes begins with a close up of the villain beginning the domino trail. This portrays him setting off the anarchy showed in the parallel editing between the dominoes and anarchy further emphasises that it was V that begun it all when he started the dominoes. The shots change between shaky shots of anarchy dispersing on the streets, to still camera shots showing the dispersion of dominoes, therefore showing the link bewteen the two. The birds eye view shot at 19 seconds shows the dominoes forming a 'V' in red, all the previous shots on the dominoes were close ups so what they were forming was unknown. James McTeigue chose to first show the audience what the dominoes were forming by using a birds eye view as it is clearly showing the growth in power of V as the letter becomes more prominent.
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The Open Door (short) - Similar Texts
Dan Allen (2011)
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This short film is of the thriller genre - similar to what my work will be. The shaky camera makes it feel more realistic and the audience therefore feels more involved, thus more thrilling. The low key lighting toward the climax of the film creates a more tense feel as the darkness increases the fear of what might be there. Therefore, in my work I will have low key lighting to portray the thriller genre and make the antagonist appear more villainous.
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The Godfather - Similar texts
Francis Ford Coppola (1972)
In this scene from The Godfather Francis Ford Coppola uses parallel editing to show two events happening at once. This is something I would like to use in my own work. The use of parallel editing creates tension and interest in a scene where it may be bland. It can be used where the two events complement each other and make them both more exciting.
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Paranormal Activity - Similar Texts
Oren Peli (2004)
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Paranormal Activity explores demons possessing humans. This theme reflects what will happen in my work, however in my work it will not be apparent, only hinted. That way the audience are intrigued and therefore want to carry on watching the film. Paranormal Activity is a popular film as it is all filmed on a home camera, therefore it looks more realistic and hence more scary. The theme is also popular as it is frightening and also intriguing, however our character won't be possessed but will have grown telekinetic powers.
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Audience
From these user ratings, found from IMDB, the clear demographic this films targeted were males aged 18-29. This demographic is very similar to that of my own film, Wounded, so therefore these films are generally very popular with this audience. It is clear that males were more interested in this film by the amounts of votes given, as males in general voted 605,512 times more than females. Similarly, people aged 18-29 voted 342,147 times more than people aged 44+, therefore showing younger adults are more involved in this film, and together, gave the film an overall rating of 9.2 on IMDB. Males under 18 rated the film the highest out of everyone (average 9.4) this could be because - as the certificate is an 18 for the film - they would have found the violence and gore exciting, more so than the older generation who wouldn't be so used to seeing this amount of violence in films.
'With performances, style and substance to savour, this shows how it is possible to smash box office records without being mindless.' (Kim Newman, EmpireOnline)
Knocked Up, overall, was rated much lower than The Godfather, this could be because it was a comedy film, which the audience don't take as seriously as crime drama films (genres of The Godfather), so they would therefore rate it lower. Males under 18, similarly to viewers of The Godfather, rated the film highest out of other demographics as 7.4. This could be due to the slap-stick humour and the fact the film is based on characters only slightly older than them, so they may be able to relate to them more than females aged 45+, who rated the film lowest of 6.2.
'Apatow pulls off the considerable trick of making us feel protective, even parental towards these people. The happy hum stayed with me hours after the credits had ceased to roll.' (Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian)
Sweeney todd: the demon barber of fleet streetS shown in the box office results, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street had a budget of $50million, much larger than either of The Godfather or Knocked Up due to the elaborate sets and effects used to elicit the correct response from the audience.
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Contrastingly to both The Godfather and Knocked Up, Sweeney Todd gained the highest votes from females under 18, as it shows in the user ratings. The musical aspect of this film brings in a more feminine audience, despite the horror and gore elements, together the female under 18's voted an average of 8.3. Therefore, these combined beats conventions of usual horror or musical films as these genres are not usually put together. The demographics who usually rated the film lowest were people of the older audiences (45+) voting it an average of 6.9. This may be because of the slap-stick humour which is generally more relatable to people of a younger generation.