The film roommate is a 2011 film which was directed by Christian E. Chritiansen. It was released in cinemas in the united states on February 4th 2011 it was a remake of a film called single white female. It was distributed by film gems. The cinematography is by Phil Parmet, editied by Randy Bricker, studio vertigo entertainment, Budget $16 million and box office $ 40,424,438. The film the roommate is about a girl who enters college and has a new room mate who is really creepy she always follows her new friend spying on her every move and killing those she loves and tormenting them. The genre of the film is thriller. In the film the girl sara matthews tries to escape from the killings and tormenting and creepiness of her room mate rebecca who tries to keep sara all to her self.
The trailer to the film:
At firs the trailer starts off with happy music and daylight, people smiling and talking to each other being nice with texts flowing through with the clips but when it says there's only one you live with it starts to get a little creepy and you get a little scared but you dont suspect anything as everything as everyone is still happy and partying. Then at 52 seconds everything kicks off at night when sara comes home late at night and rebecca is sleeping. sara gets into bed and rebecca's eyes open and the creepy music starts where you can hear cold breathing. As an audience we feel scared and worried for sara always wanting to keep her safe and warn her of rebeccas weirdness and constant want for sara but towards rebecca we feel a rage, scared and isolation the feeling to keep away from her. We clips of rebeccas madness and what she is capable of keeping the audience in suspense and biting their nails off. The music gets up beat and is loud it uses bells and screaming if the characters. I felt suspense at the start of 52 seconds where everything began the main thrill for me was at 1:53 this just scared me.
The Lovely Bones is a film directed by Peter Jackson which was distributed by Dreamworks in 2009. The Lovely Bones is about a young girl aged 14, called Susie Salmon who was murdered and raped on her way home by her neighbour. The genre of this film is a thriller/ fantasy which shows the afterlife of Susie watching over her griefing family and her killer. This tragic film shows the desperation Susie's family have towards finding Susie's murder. Whilst Susie comes to terms of her death and afterlife, entering heaven and meeting the other victims which George Harvey has previously murdered.
This is the trailer of The Lovely Bones:
This trailer creates an atmosphere of sadness towards Susie's character and frustration and anger towards Susie's murderer. At the beginning of the trailer sad, calm, slow music is played which compliments Susie's character within the movie. A narration of Susie's voice is also heard throughout the trailer which suggest that Susie is the protagonist in the film, which causes the audience to become attached to her character and allowing them to create sympathy towards Susie and her family before watching the movie. The trailer also shows some of the special effects used in the movie which was used in order to create Susie's after life. However towards the end of the trailer the editing becomes more faster and the soundtrack changes as it becomes faster and louder as it creates tension towards Susie's murder. Towards the end of the trailer there's a moment when the soundtrack pauses this was when the camera was in a mid shot of George Harvey (Susie's murder) when he suspected that someone was upstairs in his house. This suggest that it was a crucial moment in the the film which created a high moment of tension.
Throughout the film there was many times when suspense was caused, the moments which i felt that suspense was at its highest was:
The place where Susie gets raped and murdered.
The picture above shows Susie just about to enter the secret location underground which her neighbour persuades her to be the first kid to see it. This picture is taken from the scene where Susie is walking across the corn field home on her way home, when she is approached by her neighbour. This scene causes tension because you can sense that something bad is going to happen to Susie as she is alone and outside is becoming dark. This tension was then caused to the night of Susie's death. Various different camera shots was used in this scene, two particular camera shots that stood out for me was the long shot of the corn field which showed the audience that there was no near escape for Susie and no one would be able to rescue her. Also whilst Susie was being approached to go into to the den a match cut shot was used which differed from her family at home to Susie on her way home. These two scenes linked as her family at home was waiting for Susie to come home.
Over the shoulder shot of Mr Salmon in Harvey's garden.
Mr Salmon is Susie's father, Mr Salmon shortly went to visit Harvey after he developed the last camera role of Susie's photo's. After looking at the pictures he had suspected that Harvey may have killed his daughter. When Mr Salmon was helping Harvey out in the garden this was a moment when a lot of tension was caused as Mr Salmon eyes contact was fixed onto Harvey as he was trying to look into Harvey eyes and trying to read his body language. However Harvey was trying to avoid the eye contact with Mr Salmon as he was guilty of murdering his daughter this was shown through his body language as he looked uncomfortable of looking at Mr Salmon. This was then followed by Harvey slowly walking to his house and locking the door and Mr Salmon banging on the door for Harvey to open it. An non digetic sound effect was used when Mr Salmon was banging on the door questioning what Harvey had done to his daughter.
Susie's sister in Harvey's house.
This is the part of the film where i feel that tension is at highest. I feel that this is the moment when the most tension is created as Susie's sister is trespassing in Harvey's house to find evidence which would suspect that Harvey is Susie's murder. Tension was created when Susie's sister was upstairs where she found a book of Susie, under the floorboards. The climax of tension is when Susie tried to quietly place the floorboard back down without Harvey hearing downstairs. However Harvey heard which caused drama to happen as Susie's sister had to escape by the window. At this moment the editing of this scene became a lot faster and a fast soundtrack was used to compliment the action taking place in this scene. It caused suspension as you was worried and curious if Susie's sister was going to get caught or not.
Special effects:
These pictures shows the different type of editing used to produce
the special effects used in this movie. These special effects were created to show the afterlife of Susie Salmon. The use of these special effects were clear to the the audience when reality and Susie's afterlife was taking place. As the lighting of the scenes in reality tended to be darker as the scenes in Susie's afterlife appeared to much brighter.
Comparing to the original Collatoral:
First of all our version of Collatoral didn't show all aspects of the original film as we didn't start with an over the shoulder shot. This was because we didn't have enough people to be in the crowd. Also when the confrontation between the two main characters was happening we didn't do an over the shoulder shot of them both, instead we did a medium shot. We also didn't end our scene with the main character putting something in his pocket this was because we didn't refer back to the story board. Lastly we included our own interpretation of the ending of the film as in the original the characters did not shake hands.
Comparing to our first remake:
As group we feel that our version of Collatoral is much better than our first remake as the editing of our film now flows more smoothly and it is not as jumpy. Also when filming we used the the 5 second rule which allowed us to have longer scenes and making it easier to cut unnecessary parts.
Evaluation:
However when editing we realised that parts of our filming went wrong as we made some errors which was only discovered when editing. These were when Nhadia and Danriet bumped into each other, they were on opposite sides than the direction they were walking in the scene before which would cause confusion to the person watching it. Another error we made was was that we didn't allow the characters to walk into a clear space when filming.
This is the opening to Toy Story 1, Toy story is an franchise which is an computer animated film which began in 1995. Toy Story is distributed by Walts Disney Pictures. Toy story is an popular PG movie directed by John Lasseter and produced by Ralph Guggenheim&Bonnie Arnold.
Title sequence of an film opening:
First of all, at the beginning of any movie the distributor is shown. The distributor of Toy story is Walt Disney.
Walt Disney ^
The setting of Andy's bedroom is introduced.
Secondly the location of where the film is set or where most of the action is taken place is shown at the very beginning of an movie. In this case Toy story main setting is Andy's bedroom.
^Example of credits.
^Title of the movie.
The title of the film is then introduced, followed by mentioning the people who create the movie for example the producer, director, who the music is written or sang by e.c.t. This can be shown after or before the duration of the movie title being shown. In Toy Story it is shown after.
When the above is taking place music is usual played. In Toy story a known song written and sang by 'Randy Newman- you got a friend in me' was used in the beginning of Toy Story.
^Introduction to story line
The final sequence of an film opening is creating an engaging story line to follow through to the end of the film. I believe that the most important part of an movie is the beginning, as if it isn't engaging in the beginning it will loose the audience focus. Also because the beginning is the build up towards the climax.
The film that I'am going to analyse is the thriller film Se7en (1995) by David Fincher.
The conventions of film openings seen in seven (stylized in some publications as 'Se7en') are:
Firstly the film starts off with the name of the distribution company. The name of the Distribution company is the first thing the audience sees before the actual film title. The Distribution company is then followed by the name of the Production company.
After the production company is shown the director of the film, David Fincher's name appears with a creepy drawing of hands, already telling the audience the genre of the movie and what they could except.
The Character's names is a common convention that is always excepted to come up in an opening of a film and Se7en does no different. The first character name is Brad Pitt and this suggests to the audience that he is the main character and the one character that is going to be mostly shown on camera. Another gruesome hand is shown after his name to build even more tension and threaten the audience.
The title of the film appears in a small font size with large caps and white colour lettering as the previous titles. At some point the text of the film name was flashing like a light bulb.
Editing & Music:
In terms of editing the type of editing used in Se7en during the title scene where the names were introduced was very jumpy and fast movement slightly going all over the place yet very fascinating to watch as a audience because it has immediently got their attention. The music is a very fast pace electronic and upbeat soundtrack which sounds like a few instruments is playing along with it. This sets the mood of the audience.
Mise En Scene:
Finally the ending of the film opening consists of buildings that has the day Monday written in block Capital letters with white colour. This specific shot may have a specific meaning that would later be shown in the film. Buildings are usually from cities so this prop has given the audience an idea of where the location and setting for Se7en is.
The film I'll be focusing on is the Dark Knight (2008):
The opening of the Dark Knight holds many conventions, which are typical for a thriller. It begins with a very slow pace mysterious yet edgy music/soundtrack, which introduces you to the movie, but also you can tell straight away what kind of genre it will be. This also builds up tension for the people watching, as they don't know what to expect.
As the production company and cast are listed, the music starts to speed up rapidly and has more of a harder beat.
You can tell that the lighting is very dark as to match the genre and type of music being played, quick cuts are used a lot during the title sequence for example when listing the actors/tresses, for the audience it feels like as the camera is jumping they are moving with it to so maybe this was to make them feel more involved.
As the title sequence comes to an end the title of the movie is shown, the screen fades to black and the music also slowly fades away as the scene begins.
1. What Thomas Sutcliffe means is that when an audience is watching a film they should be fully focused on only that. The film should be so incising that it grabs their attention straight away and are eager to want to watch more.
2. Some of the risks of instant arousal are you might have to answer them later, immediate action is good however later during the film you will have less to offer which might disappoint the audience and this also might mean the story line won't be as strong as expected.
3. Reasons for this is because at the start of a movie, you want the audience to feel engaged and like they're beginning to understand the plot, but you also don't want to give too much away, you want them to be curious and to want to find out more not for them to feel bored as the film is less likely to get good responses.
4. Critic Stanley Kauffmann describes the classic opening being shot in New York with a close up of a building, you are then lead through a window, pass the receptionist and there you find your actor. I believe this opening works because it introduces the audience to the location/setting first then what is to happen next so the actor and where he is and so on.
5. The title sequence of 'Seven' by Kyle Cooper was so effective because it is very straightforward and starts the plot as soon as it starts, this also helps to expand the audiences imagination.
6.Orson Welles wanted to make his film without any credits or opening music. This is because he didn’t want the audience to have time to prepare and be introduced to the movie and plot like usual. But because this was rarely done, Universal Studios were more worried as to if people would warm to it or not.
7. 'A favourite trick of film noir' is a very interesting tequnique where the ending of the film is placed in the beginning instead.
8. The opening of The Shining creates suspense as the audience follow the car which is acting as the predator and the camera's different uses helps this to come across to the audience.
On our first lesson we were introduced to a health and safty tutorial to the JVC camcorder where were told how to use the camcorder and what would happen if there were any damages done to the camcorder and the fee we woould have to pay. Firtly we were told how to and where to slot the battery in and where to slot the memory card in. We were also told how fit the camera onto the tripod, how to open the lens and how to turn on the camcorder. This led to us doing a paractical where as a group we tried to set up the camera and slot the battery and memory stick in our selves. Dan giving us the tutorial on how to work the camcorder was very helpful as it gave us a headstart on how to work when we do independant work. We all had to sign a contract and use our media cards where by it would allow us to use the camcorder.
we were also given warnings such as, if we break the camcorder we will have to pay for it, always carry a spare battery and if any teacher sees any misbehaving with the camcorder we will not be able to use it.
The type of camcorder we used was a JVC camcorder:
1. I think that what Thomas Sutcliffe is trying to say is that films nowadays need to be fascinating to watch and grab their audiences attention and therefore convince their audiences that it is worth the wait. Film makers will need to differentiate themselves and have a successful and interesting opening that will focus the audience.
2. According to the Director Jean Jacques Beineix the risk of 'instant arousal' is that you would get to the point where you do not know what to do next. Starting very strong with an immediate strong action and good acting is good in capturing the audience firstly however later on in the film you will not have much left to offer which will lead to a weak story line in the long term.
3. The opening must require enough information to open to the audience however a lot about the film should not be revealed as such and instead should rather seduce the viewers making them more curious to know more.
4. The critic Stanley Kauffmann describes the classic opening of an establishing shot set in New York City usually seen in the east of New York and captures the close up of the building then goes in the building through the window then passes the receptionists desk to a private office and there is the actor. This opening works because you were told where it was taken place,what the occupation of the hero was, everything was organised in place and the progress was rational and expected.
5. Kyle Coopers title sequence to the film seven is so effective because it gets to the audiences imagination because it outlines the film so straightforward.
6. Orson Welles wanted his film, A Touch Of Evil to be presented without title music and credit because he wanted the audience to not have time to prepare for themselves and just get them straight into the film to alert their attention.
7. "a favourite trick of film noir" is placing the end of the movie at the beginning instead. This clever technique helps to establish what the audience can look forward to as the opening already keeps them at a destination.
8. The opening of the film The Shining creates suspense because you could already see from the film that the camera has many elements for instance it uses a visualization with the car as it acts like a predator. On a second viewing there is a shot that is almost perfect giving it a stunning view but remains fixed on that tiny object telling us that the car is heading to the wrong direction.
Conventions of a film opening are methods that often use certain common conventions for conveying meaning through particular camera and editing to make it an effective film opening.
The Conventions Of Film Openings Consists Of:
The production company logo
The distribution company logo
The title of the movie
Cast names that are usually the main characters to show the audience that they are important & to also attract their attention more as the audience would want to see what role they give in the film.
The production and directors names
Mise en scene that shows appropriate props,setting,lightning etc
Music that sets the mood
In class we looked at a few film openings and this observation helped identify many conventions to a film opening and also helped giving me an idea for when me and my group get to film our own opening sequence.
An example is the film The Stepfather- 2009
I decided that the stepfather was a great option as it has a strong opening and includes all the things a film opening should have in films. It also really introduces the film to the viewers in a clear way.
Plot-
Michael (Penn Badgeley) returns home from military school to find his mum happily in love and living with her new boyfriend of six months. As the two men get to know each other Michael becomes more and more suspicious of the man who is always there with a helpful hand.
Here are a few shots borrowed from the opening-
Production company title-
The american movie production company 'Screen Gems' is firstly introduced styled differently as they have used text rather than logos being shown.
Title Name-
The title of the film 'the stepfather' appears written in text below left around a Caucasian man with thick glasses, thick beard, thick moustache and thick hair, glazing at his bathroom mirror.
Actor's Name-
'Dylan Walsh' is the name of the actor that plays David in the film who is the crazy serial killer and "America's most wanted "as he is the person that killed his wife and her three children. In this shot David is transforming himself in the bathroom.
He dyes his hair-
He shaves off his beard-
He changes his contact lenses that were brown and you can see that his eye colour is actually blue-
Name's of the Cast Selectors-
Mise En Scene-
Appropriate props used in the beginning of a film especially in a thriller film helps viewers to indicate who is the person that is the evil character and the one to watch out for that is going to continue to do more evil things as the film progresses. Before you get to see the shot of the dirty dishes in one sink and the weapons filled with blood in another the audience would have thought David was just an ordinary man despite him changing his appearance. The weapons in the sink gave it more of a hint that viewers should be suspicious of this guy.
Name Of The Music By-
The opening plays music that sets the mood for the viewers watching. The mood and tone is first used by a non diagetic instrument that gives you a cool and calm feeling and is then followed by the sound of Christmas music which is rather odd as Christmas music is usually used for more of a cheerful or happy scene and this scene does not follow upon that.
As a group we felt that are end product was not as successful as we wanted it to be. This is because we did not really plan as much as we could have and the story board we produced was not in detail. You can see this as the film was very jumpy and we didnt leave the 5 second intervals so the people acting did not know when to start and stop during the scenes. We found it difficult to edit our video because when filming the different shots the actors didnt know when being filmed so the production had parts which wasn't necessary parts of the remake. Because of that we had to do a lot of editing, thats why our film was reduced to 15 seconds. As a group we wasnt happy with our final cut so we have decided that we are going to make a new improved version adjusting the previous mistakes we made and developing our camera skills.
1. Thomas Sutcliffe is saying that films need to be interesting they need to be able to interest their audience and grab hold of their audiences attention for a very long time and make them want to watch the film without being distracted and making them want to watch more.
2. According to the Director Jean Jacques Beineix the risks of instant arousal are that you may have to answer them later, If you give everything at the beginning you will have nothing left to offer next which will lead the audience to an instant arousal which will have to be answered to.
3. What this means is that a good beginning must have enough information to captivate its audience but should also make sure they do not know all leaving them wanting to know more and wait not letting them go into arousal.
4. The critic Stanley Kauffmann describes the classic opening as being shot in New York city from the east and a close up of a building, then goes in the building through a window then passing the receptionist to a private office and there is the actor. This opening works because the audience are told where the thing is taking place, what the occupation of the hero is but more so the organisation of the world and how everything is in place and what is expected.
5. Kyle Coopers title sequence to the film seven is so effective because it outlines how the film is going to be straight away and waking up the audience showing that it feels like a movie. It becomes the first part of the movie.
6. Orson Welles wanted to presents his film a touch of evil without credits and a title music. He wanted to quickly introduce the audience into the film without giving them time to prepare themselves. However Universal Studios were more cautious and put in a credit and music
7. "a favourite trick of film noir" means putting the end at the beginning captivating the audience from the start leaving them to question their thoughts.
8. The film shining creates suspense because the car acts like a predator catching its prey.
The film opening that i will be analysing is called "Panic Room" a thriller made in 2002.
The conventions of this film opening is, firstly the production company which is "Columbia Pictures" which id presented at the beginning of the film. The music of the film is very gloomy and intense. The music is presented with the presenting of the cast which are displayed in big sharp white fonts across big high buildings which give the audience a feel of what the film may be about. The music is very eerie and starts of low and then high leaving the audience feeling intense and left with an idea of what the film may be about and what they may be expected to see.
This interesting shot shows a extreme close up of the back of Sasha's shoe. With this particular shot we had fun with positioning her shoe to that position in order to show a variety of shots that we can take.
This is a shot that shows a close up of Sasha's shoe. This has been captured well because you can see more detailing of the shoe.
This is a mid shot that focuses on one particular area. This has been framed well because you can see the area clearly and in terms of lightning the quality is very good.
This is a close up of shot that clearly captures the intensity of Sasha's emotions and facial expressions. This type of shot is very commonly used as it increases an emotional impact on a character.
- All movies in the beginning show the audience what production company distributed the film. In this case it is Fox who produced the film 'One hour photo'
One of the most common convections in thriller movies or any movies is the beginning credits. At the beginning of the Unknown, which is what I will be analysing, the production company 'Studio Babelsberg', the actors and generally the most important members of the production are listed. Usually this is accompanied with a soundtrack or image/scene of the actor/tress. I believe this is to set the scene of the woman but also to introduce it to the audience. The soundtrack often sets the mood of the movie.
