Research into four thriller openings- Stephen

4 thriller openings analysed:

Brighton Rock

In the beginning title sequence to Brighton Rock we are thrown straight to the ambience of a thriller genre, with appropriate ambient sounds. The non-diegetic sounds, as there are no characters on the screen apply to the scene of Brighton- fog horns and the faint sound of water running- which makes the viewer feel like they are already in the movie. Additionally, the title screens imagery- the studio’s name shrouded in fog- creates a visual effect which scares the viewer. Fog usually entitles a hidden mystery- an enigma- so why is there fog at the very beginning? Perhaps the studio is hiding something? This clever tactic could have been used to foreshadow a coming twist, something that the studio must have worked hard on. Additionally, this edited effect can be seen as an appropriate way to set the setting: A foggy town, shrouded in hidden mysteries and secrets. Finally, in the title screen again, we witness the name of the film show up- but it is being hidden by the fog; only being illuminated by a lighthouse. This further suggests the elusive shroud the film directors have made; where we will never see the full picture- the film will likely be told through restricted narration, always designed to shock us.

 

In the first scene in the sequence we see a dark coloured ocean; the setting of the film. The darkness here likely foretells us of the danger that the ocean brings. Through sound we hear the ocean waves and a soundtrack at a relatively high pitch, stereotypically used to create a chill through our body. This again foreshadows the coming danger of the ocean. In the next shot we have a long shot panning forward to a ringing phone; the décor of the room clearly shows its disuse and that no care has been taken to preserve it.  From the keys that are on the wall we can clearly see that there are a few missing; this not only shows the security that the residents want to feel but also the lack of organisation; both factor in to the film itself perfectly. Finally, the ringing of the phone can show us the urgency of the situation. As we get closer the sound gets louder, clearly a Foley sound for the best effect.  The next shot shows a close up of a gentleman in a phone box: he is panting rather loudly, thus; again, the sense of urgency is unveiled. The diegetic sound of the characters breathing chills the air; we question why he is breathing so raggedly.

As we here diegetic sound of the characters anger we cut away to a long shot; showing the characters’ situation. We get given the false illusion that the anger is caused by the rain- something we can both see and hear very clearly in the scene. This will later be used to shock the audience in some form. The shock applies seconds after, when we hear the character say “I need the boys round here” heavily implying a coming threat, further shown when we see two more characters emerge from the fog. This exposition is carefully played out, and the viewer will always check the fog throughout the film. There is a brief running scene, which stops as a character steps in the way of the man who was in the phone box. After a quick cut we notice him pulling out a switchblade; a prop iconic to the 40 and 50’s, when the film was set. The iconography used here allows the viewer to understand the character’s behaviours, as we can clearly tell they are all criminals. The character we are following panics; his breath goes out of synchronisation and, in turn, makes the viewer wonder what is going to happen- we can practically see the character’s death before it happens, and yet we are questioning if he will make it.

The character moves on to throw part of his costume at an oncoming male; the hat- one used by gangsters in the 50’s, was thrown off screen. This could, perhaps, signify the characters own hatred for the gang system he is in, and how much he wants to leave it. He goes on to taunt the oncoming characters with his jacket- making the viewer’s compare the criminals to bulls attacking a bullfighter. There is a turning point in the fight were we think that the main character disarms one of his attackers; further emphasised by the match-on-action- here we think that he will escape, it is this twist of fate that makes thrillers so enticing. This feature will be a great thing to add on to our thriller.

However, due to the archetype of thrillers- there has to be a shock death- our character is overpowered and, subsequently, killed. The other character, the one who killed the one we were following, had to keep the switch-blade lodged into the character’s throat; showing the strength of the character before he dies. We see weakness written on his face before he runs, leaving the character to die on the floor. As we look down on them we get the sense of power; how the other character that just ran up to the scene is stronger than the now deceased character. This new character is also the protagonist; and we can tell that just by his first appearance- the other characters don’t show much emotion; but just from the medium close up we can see raw emotion written on his face; additionally, due to this emotion, we can tell that there was a connection between them-leaving us to wonder how they were connected.

Throughout the scene there was no direct look at a light source, leaving the entire sequence foggy and dark; a perfect thriller combination. The costumes were also dark to reflect the mood as well.

Europa Report

The first scene we get of Europa Report is filled with props; yet with no person. What the directors achieved here is a sense of emptiness; where the astronauts are alone except for their machines. This sense of loneliness enthrals the viewer, questioning the character’s sanity and, above all else, they receive an emotional connection with the characters.  The room is brightly lit; signifying that there are no hidden mysteries aboard the space craft; and so we wonder where the disruption of the plot occurs. Right here we are left wondering, at the very start, how the characters are going to be impacted by the plot. The after-editing is also a vital point in this scene, we are watching through a camera- we aren’t truly in the scene. This effect gives the impression that we are safe; yet they are not. We can see their story, yet they aren’t the ones telling it. We are effectively told at the very beginning that the characters will all die. The camera angle also gives the viewer the impression of weakness upon the character; the first whom we see. We are looking directly down at him; a show of weakness. Are they truly weak when we first see the characters? We are left wondering a lot at the very beginning. Finally, the diegetic sound of the character climbing the ladder is the only thing we hear- giving a sense of isolation, something that nobody wants to feel. We are left feeling emotionally attached to all the characters- even though we have only met one of them. There is a sudden cut again, revealing the character disappearing. We get a sense of emergence the moment it happens, questioning what had just happened. This could foreshadow technical problems later in the film, giving us viewers even more to fear. We are relieved to hear a voice over, diegetic, of one of the characters saying “hey buddy.”

With this sound bridge, we then cut to a different camera altogether; to what we can say is the ‘living quarters.’ It is here we see a dynamic use of setting and props; one of the characters, the only one to have spoken thus far, is wrapped in a blanket- isolated from his crew mates, perhaps he doesn’t get along with the others? Adding on this further, it tells us of the characters personality- he’s gentle and kind and the others respect that, they leave him alone. Perhaps it’s not out of spite, but out of kindness, that he is left alone. The blanket blocks our view of what he is holding; but we can hear clearly his diegetic voice speaking into it- we can tell by the tone of his voice that he is speaking to a child; this gives us even more emotional baggage. The viewers are left with raw emotion; they do not want anything bad to happen to this film- which gives the shock and suspense that thrillers truly need- we already know what will happen; we just wish for a different explanation as to what happens. The hair of this character is also a bit wild; as if he’s not slept for a while, giving us a sense of grief at what he must be feeling.

The 'Living Quarters'

Going further on the décor of the setting, we see pictures in a different bunk bed, making the characters relate-able at missing their family. Making a character relate-able means that we understand that character, and we automatically feel connected to them. In a thriller this shows that the character will likely meet an unfortunate end in an attempt to stir up the audience’s emotions.  From the composition of the camera we also see two more characters, whom seem to be happily involved in whatever they are doing- we can’t see due to the composition of the camera. This gives us a chance to imagine what the pair are looking at, something which can be very powerful in a thriller, and something that would work very well in our own thriller opening.

As we cut to the outside of the spaceship we see our first glimpse of darkness, and, with just the sun in the far distance, the surroundings seem to be entirely empty- shrouded in its own darkness. The isolation felt at this moment stirs emotions- we are fearful of the world, yet alone the solar system. We are fearful for the characters- and the darkness and emptiness enthrals us to become scared. The voice over of the male character’s voice brings light humour to the situation; “I think I sleep better up here away from her snoring.” The humour adds an almost unwanted sense of safety and protection, which causes us to be at ease with the situation- when the shock scenes arrive they will definitely shock the audience.

Super 8

Through the opening credits we hear a joyful sounding orchestra playing, which suddenly turns to a single string playing through the rest- this signifies a happy start that turned wrong; in the opening shot we see a “days since last accident” sign which is slowly taken down and replaced. We understand that the music changed for this reason, someone has passed away in this accident.

Cutting to a new scene reveals a snow covered house with a teenager sitting on a swing chair. From the composition of the shot we can clearly see that the teenager feels isolated from the world around him; he’s been left alone when there’s clearly plenty of people inside the house- as seen from the amount of cars parked around the house. Additionally, we can see the snow covered setting- reflecting the teenagers frozen heart; left alone to thaw it out himself. This is a perfect use of pathetic-falasey, where the snow is metaphorically the teenagers frozen heart. We can see, even from the Long Shot, his body language- slouched down and avoiding looking up, as if not wanting to see anyone if they try to talk to him.  We are drawn emotionally towards this character; we do not want him to suffer any more. The single note soundtrack continues playing through this shot, emphasising on the solidarity that the teenager feels and the fear that will come later in the film.

In this close up of the teenager’s hands we see the redness of them, this make-up effect shows the coldness that he is feeling- both from the weather and from the death of someone close to him. We can tell that he is affected by a death due to the darkness of his clothes: mourning colours. From his body language here we see him gripping very tightly a locket, perhaps a gift from the now deceased person.  There is also subtle body movement of him swinging on the chair- perhaps reminiscing of his childhood when time was happier; looking back at the soundtrack we can also tell that his past was happier than the present. Panning up from the previous shot we get a close up of the teenagers face, revealing his depressed facial expression. We hear a brief off-screen sound; “I’m so worried for that boy” before cutting to a different shot with a sound bridge, the shot being of the people inside the house.

  

In this new shot we see two adults in focus- the pair are discussing the teenager outside, showing their concern for him. From this we can deduce that the boy outside has chosen to escape the other people, not seeking their comfort. The man, who doesn’t seem to be wearing typical black blazer mourning clothes- even in the cold weather-, seems to not be as distraught as the other characters. The lady looks out to the boy with sympathetic eyes, clearly expressed in her facial expression.  The colour inside the house is darker then outside, so one can assume that the mood is darker and tenser than outside; another reason the teenager must have sought solitude. Having the character being secluded in a form would create great sympathy for the character- something thrillers should always feature. This idea would be great in our opening, toying with our audiences feelings is something that would be great in our opening scene for our thriller.

After a brief conversation it is revealed that the teenager’s mother has passed away, and that the father is left on his own with him. Furthermore, in this diegetic sound we discover that the father needs to ‘step up,’ perhaps he wasn’t the decent father everyone needs- maybe that’s why the mood in the room is so dark, because the father hasn’t ever been a good dad to the teenager, and so everyone is tense about the new situation.

This has revealed a great set up to the plot, which expands further into the film. There’s clearly emotional attachments being made and broken in this opening scene; and this draws the viewer in to the film even more. Emotions are what make great films; hence the idea to play on our audience- and our characters- emotion in our thriller would be a good idea.

Bourne Ultimatum

In the opening sequence we hear a fast paced soundtrack, we are immediately excited and, in a way, thrilled. We are looking forward to a fast-paced action sequence. The effect of a hand-held camera creates a shaking effect, where we look down onto a road and are in the point of view of the running man. We are in a sense of excitement at this point, and the POV shot reinforces this. There is also diegetic sound of the man’s breathing throughout these shots- keeping  the enticement levels high.

We have a sound bridge that connects the previous shots to the coming shots; the sound of a police car chasing the man. This sound bridge enhances the thrill of the sequence due to the level of excitement, and adds a subtle level of irony due to the fact that the chase is happening on a bridge.

As we advance further into the scene we get a more detailed outlook into what is happening, it is obvious that the police are chasing this man down, and at the next shot we see that he has been wounded. We are enthralled with an enigma; we want to know why this man, most likely the antagonist, is wounded.  Additionally, the composition of this long shot implies that this man is weak, hence why we are placed above him in the camera angle.  We are left wondering for more; we want answers. Throughout this beginning sequence there are changes to hand-held cameras, increasing the effect that the unsteadiness has on the viewer- which each change it contributes to the excitement, and now panic. We are left panicking over what will happen; we don’t know whether or not this man is a protagonist or an antagonist- we are left wanting to find out who he is. This idea would be great to have in our thriller opening- creating an enigma for our audience.

In the first shot we see of this character (A medium shot) we can see his facial expression- one of extreme pain and contempt to his pursuers. His hair is shaved, which gives the impression of a thug. His clothing is dark- even darker than his settings at night. This is as much evidence as we can see that he is somewhat of an antagonist. The idea behind the elusiveness of this characters moral compass causes an enigma- we are left wondering throughout this opening whether or not this character is a good person. He is clearly masculine, but that doesn’t identify which aspect of nature he resides in. The director has clearly made a decision to remain elusive to this characters story, as to make the viewers watch more. This is certainly something that we wish to incorporate into our thriller opening; having one of our characters elusive and mysterious.