What is a Thriller?

As we will be creating opening sequences to our own thrillers, it is useful for us to know exactly what a thriller is. It is difficult to state a clear definition of a thriller because thrillers cross over many genres. Some of these genres include horror, political, sic-fi, crime and many others. Sometimes these genres can combine with one another to make something called a hybrid. Thriller revolves around anticipation and suspense. The aim of Thrillers is to keep the audience alert and on the edge of their seats. The protagonist in these films is set against a problem - an escape, a mission, or a mystery. 

Some of my favourite thrillers include Argo (political thriller), Pulp Fiction (crime/drama thriller) and Vantage Point (political thriller).

As you can see, I personally am fond of political thrillers as they create a interesting environment for dramatic conflict and in no other genre is status utilised so well. This may explain why my first idea and the idea we have thus far chosen to go with is also a political thriller. 

'The Shining' Opening Sequence Analysis

The sequence opens with the display of the Warner Brothers trademark. This is a hugely established corporation and a pioneer of modern cinema. This immediately adds credibility to the production. Next we have an establishing helicopter shot that lets the audience know where the story is taking place. This shot hovers over a lake with a small island in the middle. This echoes the theme of isolation that will later resonate in the movie. Also, this shot and others in the rest of the sequence make it quite clear that we are in the middle of nowhere, disconnected from civilisation. After this we move to a birds eye view. It is in this shot in which we first notice the car. However, because of the height of the shot the car looks minuscule. This therefore reinforces the idea of loneliness in comparison to the great size of their surroundings that we cans see. It communicates to the audience that whoever is in this car is vulnerable. I feel one of the main purposes of this sequence is to establish the fact that someone is making a long journey into obscurity. The place and reason for this journey is not established to the audience which obviously leaves them questioning as to who is in the vehicle and why they are making a clear effort to travel to this secluded place. To establish something simple yet leave important and interesting information is a device for intriguing the audience and a wise decision from a seasoned director such as Kubrick. We then see further helicopter shots where the camera is brought up in closer to the featured car. The car is a light shade of blue, which isn't a colour which conveys anything particularly sinister. This is in fact a theme that runs through the entire sequence. The surroundings though they may seem vastly secluded are very picturesque and beautiful, and not at all lacking in vibrant colours. The shots though they are moving, do not seem threatening and the cutting between them is smooth. However, the element that really makes this sequence is the soundtrack. The ominous and dark music completely changes the complexity if the sequence and instils unrest in the viewer. If you were to watch the sequence on mute you wouldn't guess it was a horror movie but the music gives a strong impression that something sinister is about to occur. Rolling credits then start to appear on screen in a slightly chilling blue. The font is completely simple and to a contemporary audience this may seem dated but me must not forget that this is a movie made over 30 years ago. The font size and screen time is the same for the title of the movie and the name of it's star Jack Nicholson. This suggests that they value his performance and are using his name to help market the film. This is by no means a ordinary horror film opening sequence but through his use of music and camera work Kubrick manages to unsettle the audience while also hitting at some of the themes of the oncoming film.

'The Shining' Opening Sequence

'Dont Look Now' Opening Sequence Analysis

Another opening sequence we analysed in class was 'Don't Look Now', a horror film made in 1972 by Nicolas Roeg. This is a very well made opening sequence that naturally creates unrest within the audience most notably with its editing. We were told to focus upon the editorial elements of the trailer.

The sequence opens with a shot of a lake that is being rained upon. This holds for a matter of second before than zooming in close to the water and lets the title appear. There is nothing particularly interesting about this water meaning the only reason for keeping it on screen fro so long would be that it will later become significant in the film. We then experience a cross fade to a shot of what appears to be some window blinds with sun leaking through them. This accompanied by only the humming of an unseen man. This creates an element of enigma as the audience don't know where they are and who the man they can here is. It leaves us asking questions on seconds into the trailer. This then cuts to the same setting as we saw the lake. However, it is no longer raining heavily communicating that it is now a different day. Here we see a small girl wearing a red jacket. The colour red immediately gives connotations of danger and may also relate to the fairy tale of Red Riding Hood essentially based around a young girl being lost and in danger. We also see what is assumed to be the girls brother playing separately on his bike. A white horse also runs across the girl. This gives a theme of purity and is perhaps something that would be ridden on the way to heaven. There is also a shot in which e see the girl and her house in the background. This demonstrates to the audience how far she actually is from a responsible adult further conveying how she is in a dangerous situation as she is playing near water unattended. However, these signs are juxtaposed by the non-diegetic music we hear which is light and very similar to a lullaby. On its own this music would be pleasant but when paired with the footage it certainly creates a feeling of unrest amongst the audience as if something scary is imminent.

We then cut to indoors where we see a man and woman indoors. The woman is sat by the fireplace reading while the man is examining slide on a projector. The man and woman despite appearing to be a couple are not presented as having a strong relationship. The are not sitting at all close to one another, the woman is shown with her back shown to the man for a very long period of time and the director has also avoided using two shots with them both in the frame to give the impression they are not close.

Over the next minute or so the director chooses to cut between the two scenes as we see the couple talking and the girl playing with a ball outside. At one point when returning to the girl the director chooses to use a shot where we only see the girl reflected through the water. This means that it looks as though she is in the water, this foreshadows what is to come. There is also an interesting and repetitive use of match cuts, where actions in the two settings are mirrored. For example, the fatally throws her ball in to the water before cutting to the man throwing his cigarette packet to the women. The young boy runs over some glass on his bike just as we see the man accidently drop his glass and spill water over his slide. This gives the impression to the audience that there is perhaps a link between the two places. The fact that the boy runs over some class also offers him a distraction meaning he will unaware of any danger that his sister may find herself in.

After spilling water on his slide we then see a close up of the previously focused upon red figure start to run and stain the slide. This running red liquid of course connotes blood but also relates to the girl outside. The audience may have previously questioned early whether the red figure in the slide is in fact the girl. It was made clear that the director wanted us to focus on the figure earlier in the sequence as we saw and eye line match as the camera panned so the figure filed the frame. After seeing this, the man appears to have a supernatural epiphany as we see how he believes his daughter to be in danger. He then precedes to walk out of the house to find her. We see a shot of the little girl falling into the water. The fall is in slow motion and is very stylized. The man continues to run towards the lake as he sees what has happened. He then dives into the water to save her. It is here when we return to slow motion to see the man lift the girl out of the water. Once again this is very stylized as the lighting is darker. The director actually breaks the 30 degree rule here as he makes cuts between short distances of the man. However, I perceive this to be intentional as it disorientates the audience in the climactic moment of the sequence. We then see the man exclaim a colossal 'NO!. Unfortunately to a modern audience this is quite amusing because of the way this has been mocked and stereotyped since the film was made. This does remove some of the seriousness but tom its original audience it would have been quite effective. Furthermore, the curvature of he girl around the mans body strongly resembles the curve that the red stain ahs taken on the slide further emphasising the link between the girl and the ambiguous figure.

'Dont Look Now' Opening Title

First Production Meeting

In today's lesson we as a class were allocated a entire hour long period to hold our first production meeting, after having been split into our groups for our upcoming Thriller projects. I was put in a group with Arabella and Brandon respectively. In the lesson we were instructed to discuss ideas for our videos and if possible result in choosing one. 

We initially decided that it would be best to give each member of the group time to deliver all four of their own ideas, from a task that was given to us the previous week. Doing this allowed us to try and visualise each sequence from the description of the group member. Firstly, a good idea should engage and appeal to us. It is only after that we should ponder the logistics of the idea and whether it is feasible. A balance between these two is good. After hearing all twelve ideas we realised we would have to narrow them down in some way. We initially decided to do this by narrowing down the sixteen to three different ideas that we all agreed that we liked. These were;

1. My political thriller idea in which a president of Russia is poisoned mid-speech and consequently dies on the spot.
2. A sequence in which a girl is followed on her way home by a stalker, we see the shots through the eyes of the stalker.
3. A film based around the life of a troubled teenager where in the opening sequence he is jumped and severely beaten up by a group of bullies, only to return home to parents who barley acknowledge this and tell him to stop being so weak.

We could see that these ideas are all completely different yet despite this all feasible in terms of shooting. Next came the task of choosing our final idea. Neither of us could decide upon an idea conclusively so we thought that the most simple, diplomatic way to solve this was by creating a pros and cons list for each idea. This offered a visual clarity on what was good and bad about each idea. 

1. Pros - This is an idea that immediately looks fresh and original compared to others. It hasn't been done before and has a very unsettling and dramatic element to it.               

       Cons - We have a lack of adults at our disposal for shooting meaning that show of the audience during he speech would become difficult.

2. Pros - In terms of logistics, this sequence is easy to shoot with no foreseen complications.

       Cons - It lacks originality in it's story line. It is predictable and will have been done before.

3. Pros - It is a scene that could visually be really interesting and could be shot in various ways using quick cuts and slow motion.

       Cons - It hasn't been entirely thought out, especially in relation to the rest of the film. 

When looking over the pros and cons as a group we could clearly see that no idea was without its faults. So in the end it came down to a vote based on which idea we found most exciting and interesting as individuals. Through this process, we settled on idea one as it was something we all felt was unique and could be effective if done well. This vote was conclusive with every member of the group voting for the first idea. When telling Adam, our teacher, the news he was less confident being more of a fan of idea three as he was weary of the potential filming issues with idea one. However, as a group we all felt we were capable of the challenge and decided to do number one. Of course, we are still in very early stages of production and this decision may be subject to change but it is reassuring to know that we have other ideas to fall back on. Thus far, I am happy with the way the group have worked in concordance with making the best possible sequence being each persons priority.

Initial Thriller Ideas

As we are now embarking on our Thriller opening sequences we were told to invent ideas for four film ideas in their entirety and then explain what the opening sequence for that film would be. These ideas not only had to be creative but also feasible for what we could achieve in only one day.

1. It is a political thriller. The plot is based around an independent anti-government organisation who reek havoc by anonymously assassinating various world leaders in order to gain power. We follow a highly specialist police team faced with there most difficult challenge ever to identify and capture the organisation before the world is left without power or direction.

The title sequence will be set in a public speaking/conference room (theatre) that is lit strategically so that the size is not obvious. This is to make it appear bigger than it is. In the centre of the stage there is a podium and there is a row of photographers crouched in front of an audience of government officials and senators. On the back wall is a Russian embassy flag. There are several establishing shots before an adult emerges wearing a suit. He is suggested to be the prime minister of Russia and proceeds to give a speech in which he gesticulates heavily. No diegetic sound is heard but there is some classical music playing over the top which contrasts what is about to occur. We see various different shots going close to his face and from behind him facing the audience. Mid way through his speech the prime minister goes to take a sip from some water on the podium. Only seconds later this appears to have an immediate effect on him. We experiment with extreme close ups of the way his facial expression changes as well as those in the audience. We then have a shot with the camera on the floor as we see the prime minister fall to the floor in slow motion and then his mouth starts to foam and purple veins emerge from his head. His eyes remain open in a piercing look as he is now dead. The music stops at the same time as the screen goes black to create a sudden and definite end before the title of the film appears on screen from a fade.

2. The film follows the life of a man who as a child was declared medically insane and a danger to society after committing a horrific crime as a teenager. We follow his struggle through a young criminals institute and then the challenge he faces after rehabilitating himself and becoming a successful scientist completing astounding work as well as starting a family of his own. It is the aim to challenge the resolve of the audience and create controversy as to whether they root for him or not as he is neglected by society for his past convictions despite do no harm any longer.

We see an establishing shot of an empty looking school later in the evening. We then have a pan across a mundane looking classroom to then see a teacher tied to a chair with his mouth gagged and a bloody gash to his head. As soon as the teacher comes into shot music starts, that is dark and murmuring. The camera then continues to pan round until we see in the corner of the room a boy (15) sharpening a pencil with a razor blade sitting on a chair staring intently at the teacher. He is sitting next to a tall lamp that is flashing on and off as it was used to smash round the teachers head. The boy is wearing head phones. There is a extreme close up to his face where he see his gaze. The teacher opens his eyes and begins to orientate himself at which point the boy removes his headphones making the sound decrease as we realise that the music was what he was listening to. He then walks around to the teacher and starts a monologue in which the audience learn that he is a very intelligent student who has massive scientific potential and enormous pressure from his farther. We learn from him that he is a reserved and shy boy who was wrongly put in detention. This amongst other things has caused him to snap which is why the teacher is in this position. After establishing the scene, his character and bringing the audience up to speed he then stabs the teacher in the chest and lets him die. The actual stab does not have to be seen. Then a cleaner walks past outside the room, sees what has happened and continues to run away in panic clearly going to tell someone. We see her run away in a over the shoulder shot of the boy before he then turns on himself to face the camera and expose his numb yet menacing expression. The screen then cuts to black.

3. A drama/thriller based on the life of a middle aged heart surgeon who is enduring a tricky divorce and starts to have a midlife crisis with quite extreme anxiety issues. He then gets caught up in quite a public court case after losing a patient due to improper surgery caused by his excessive shaking and nerves. Will he or won’t he be convicted of manslaughter?

The scene will be a flash-forward to the event where he loses a patient. It will be set in an operating theatre and lighting will be specifically used to darken most of the background meaning that minimal medical props are needed. The lighting will be bright and impactful to covey not only the sterile environment but the high intensity of the situation. The majority of the shots will be based around the man in attempt to avoid the patient as of course there are limits in terms of prosthetics and make up.  We will see an extreme close up of the man as sweat drips down his brow as e is becoming stressed and starting to shake mid surgery. The beeping of a heart monitor will be a constant throughout the scene. This beeping will suddenly alter because of a jerk from the man. We will then get reactions shots from other nurses as they tell him to stop operating and let someone take over. He snaps back a refusal as he wasn’t to prove he is ok. The beeping then changes to a long constant to show the patient is dead. We have a close up on the monitor to show this.

4. This is a crime thriller based around one of the world’s most successful assassins. The assassin is characterised by the fact that he has only one hand. Over the course of the film we follow his journey to understand that despite being paid to kill he is an good man simply making a living, who has a family and kids who believe he is a well-paid banker. The assassin of course makes enemies and these enemy’s put his family in danger and put him to the test.

This is a far more traditional opening sequence where effectively nothing is revealed, similar to Se7en. The sequence displays various different mini scenes in which miscellaneous people suddenly are killed. Their murderer is never revealed and is seen at most in a shadow. The only thing we ever see of him are his hands, or hand more specifically. Many of the shots are POV to put the audience in the assassins shoes and give the sequence and edgy archaic feel. The music throughout is highly paced and not overly morbid, yet it does have dark undertones.

 

Coursework Defined

Video

Preliminary exercise: Continuity task involving filming and editing a character opening a door, crossing a room and sitting down in a chair opposite another character, with whom she/he then exchanges a couple of lines of dialogue. This task should demonstrate match on action, shot/reverse shot and the 180-degree rule.

Main task: the titles and opening of a new fiction film, to last a maximum of two minutes.

All video and audio material must be original, produced by the candidate(s), with the exception of music or audio effects from a copyright-free source. Both preliminary and main tasks may be done individually or as a group. Maximum four members to a group.

Preliminary Task

Second Edit

This week we had our second chance to edit in the suite. We would once again be working on our preliminary task. At the start of the lesson we were instructed that we would only have this lesson to complete the task and if not then we would have to leave as much or as little that we had completed. This added a certain element of pressure to the lesson as everybody wanted a finished film.

We immediately separated into our groups in which we had been working with for about four weeks now. We then set about loading up our half edited videos and 'checking out' them from the schools hard drive as we had learnt the week before. Similarly to the second time we filmed, the entire process ran far smoother this time as we had done it all before and there wasn't anything more we had to learn at this stage. 

While continually swapping in order to allow everyone a chance to edit, we set about cutting together the rest of our preliminary task. This was more simple straight from the start as our footage was already categorised into our 'rush bin' and 'log bin'. We sped through the remainder of our footage problem free,  only stopping to consult one another on editorial decisions which we could all agree made the most sense. These including being quite specific in what shots to cut from and too to gain the right mix between making them appear seamless yet also not to keep reusing the same shots therefore lowering the interest. 

However, just only 20 minutes before the end of the lesson when we were in the process of inserting our last clip we realised we had a problem. In our film our storyline was based around a completely ambiguous argument in which I storm out. The audience then realises that the argument was based around Phoebe not being able to turn on the projector on the ceiling. However, we realised that we didn't have a transition shot from her watching me leave the room and then trying to turn the projector on. This left us with a jump cut that just looked unsettling for the audience as there was no showing how she got there. Looking through all our footage we realised there wasn't much we could do to compensate for this. We couldn't even revert to the wide as we shot the scene and the end shot on different takes. After discussing this with Matt, the only thing he could suggest is that we zoom in on Phoebe's over the shoulder shot as she watches me leave meaning that she is longer in the mise en scene. Therefore this gives her a theoretical chance to change her position and try to reach the button. This helps the audience piece the action together meaning we can include the projector shot so that our film was not completely lacking in meaning. However, this did also mean that the shot we zoomed in on was left extremely blurry compared to the others. We were not at all happy with this but it was the best thing we could do with the footage we had.

After all, this process is supposed to be a learning curve and everyone in the group learnt first hand the implications you can have if you don't cover all possibilities and get enough footage to help yourself with problems in post production. We completed our preliminary task which is the main thing and we will take this knowledge into future tasks so we don't make the same mistakes.

'Kill Bill' - Burial Scene

'Kill Bill' Burial Scene Analysis

This week we started to look at the implications and effect of sound. A great place to start is with a scene from Quentin Tarantino's action movie Kill Bill. In the scene main character Beatrix is hammered into a coffin fully conscious by her enemy played by Michael Madsen.

The scene starts with full light. We establish that Beatrix is within the coffin and incapable of releasing herself with a group of men nailing in the lid of the coffin. We see extreme close-ups of each nail as it is hammered in reinforcing the threatening nature of the situation. Throughout this section we hear a western genre, stylised whining sound. This old fashioned and classic sound is juxtaposed with the rather contemporary storyline. Not only is this use of music classic Tarantino as we can see in some other of his films such as Django but it may also connote that this is old style face off resembling one you would find in a Western, despite this being a full throttle action film. One notable part of this song is where it the tune goes down in the scale, possibly representing how she will soon be falling down into the earth. The song also has a undeniable sense of finality and grandeur. This could suggest how it is Beatrice's last defeat, and how her end is nigh.

Along with the close-ups of the nails we also hear the sound of the nails being suppressed into the wood of the coffin. This happily overpowers the music at certain points not allowing the audience to be distracted. The diegetic sound induces more reality into the scene and helps the audience to imagine this horrific situation. The light we can see within the mise on scene corresponds with the nails being hammered in. The light goes completely out when the last nail is hammered. Something else noticed is that the sound of the final nail is actually louder than those that preceded it. When combined with the cutting of light to total blackness and the instant stop of the music this has quite an impactful effect on the audience. It is not something they would necessarily see coming. It once again reinforces the idea of finality.

After this big moment the audience is left with complete darkness. Leaving the audience with a black frame is a dangerous move from a director, especially considering the amount of time this is for. Doing this runs the risk of loosing the audiences attention at what is a crucial part of the plot. With no visual stimulus the audience could become distracted remarkably quickly and are therefore not engrossed in the action. This means, that the sound is now relied upon to maintain interest. The worrying sound of the final nail and the halting of the music is met by a whimper by Beatrix. This then subsides leaving only her intense and heavy breathing. This solitary yet griping sound demonstrates to the audience how she is now alone and beyond help. In actual fact the lack of image increases the interest and focus of the audience. If an image were to be shown then realism would be sacrificed and the audience may even be questioning why we can see her if there is no source of light. The lighting makes the scene entirely realistic and the sound of her frantic struggle puts us there with her, we are forced to imagine this happening to ourselves. This naturally gives us a sense of chill and unrest. It works perfectly. It is bold decisions that only a few directors would take and it is this sort that makes Tarantino differ from the rest. In each of his films we can find at least one editorial, or scriptural decision that most would shy away from.

For a series of minutes following the initial shock we hear sounds which the audience can easily detect to be that of moving Beatrix's coffin and lowering her int the ground. At this point we still can't see her on screen yet because of the accuracy and detail of this sound, it is almost as if we can. We pair her cries with our own image of her being shaken by the unsympathetic transportation of her rivals. As an audience we listen with intent to try and decipher what is happening. Without an image the sound is the only element we have to arouse our focus. By this sound we are lead into a few moments of utter silence, before the crush of soil hits us as it does Beatrix. This is a strange moment often featured in horror films where the audience share the fear and shock with the characters. This reinforces how the director wants his audience to feel what Beatrix feels, at the same time that she feels it. This drop is then followed by further crashes of earth each time the impact and volume slightly decreasing as it would in reality. This also shows how step by step she is being further removed from life and therefore her chance of survival. Eventually, Beatrix turns of the light of her torch finally giving the audience something to look at. However, this is not something that has been missed.

This is a master class and perfect example of how sound can be manipulated in order to choreograph the way an audience will feel. Despite being in a packed cinema, I wouldn't be surprised if each member of the audience feel just as isolated as Beatrix when watching this scene.