The first film I have decided to analyse is Shutter Island (2010)It is a hybrid of mystery and thriller. I have decided to analyse this because one of its main themes is insanity which gives it the sub-genre of psychological thriller. This is one of my ideas for my opening sequence. It is also rated 15 which suggests there is some content which is unsuitable for younger children which is also similar to my ideas.

From the very first shot we can tell that the character is on a journey over sea’s and from the title we can tell they are on the way to an island. We see that the character is a police officer from his badge and the expression on his face gives us the impression he doesn’t like the idea of where they are going or how they are travelling. We also get the impression that it is a police boat as there are a lot of handcuffs hanging from the ceiling. This does however give a sinister feeling to the shot and gives the impression of torture. This is the first glimpse of “thriller” in the film. We can deduce from this that the narrative is set in the middle of the sea – Boston Harbour Islands to be exact and it is set in 1954 which was prime to bedlams.

This is the first glimpse we have of Shutter Island, the stormy clouds in the background gives the island an eerie feel and the fact that it is all dark adds to the sinister atmosphere of the location. The view we get of the dock gives us a first real look at the location of the film and we can see that it is vast, empty and seemingly disturbing.We also gather from the show of the marshal badge that there is an investigation taking place on the island which will be the main narrative.

The first glimpse of the character we get is when he is being sick. This gives us the impression he is weak and vulnerable. It then goes to a shot of him looking in the mirror after throwing up. The fact that we have seen his face first shows that he is likely to be the main character of the film. The camera angle used is a medium shot which gives us a full view of his face as well as some of his costume. We can see a tie and suit which suggests he is an important business man of sorts. However his first dialogue is “pull yourself together Teddy” this tells us his name as well as the fact he is worried and panicking about something that is soon to happen.

The genre is established in Shutter Island in a few distinctive ways. The whole of the opening sequence has a blue coloured lighting effect which could represent cold but usually represents the sea. This is unconventional for Thrillers as they have more of low key lighting but it does however go with the setting. Also the storm clouds make the whole situation darker and more mysterious, the shot of the waves shows them churning which suggests speed which could represent the urgency of the situation which is a common issue in Thrillers.

I have learnt from this film is that a way to introduce the character is for the first shot to not show their face but another part of their body, this adds mystery and suspense to know the characters identity.I have learnt that when introducing the narrative, to start with subtle hints about the main narrative and that they become more frequent as the story goes on.To establish the genre I have to have the right atmosphere and to do that I should follow Neale’s theory of repetition and change – a successful film will change and repeat certain conventions. The challenging makes the idea original and the repetition makes the genre recognisable.

Propp’s character theory is slightly relevant in the opening sequence since we obviously have the protagonist and sidekick in the film. There is not yet and antagonist nor “princess” so we can not be sure how far the theory is relevant.Toderov’s narrative theory is quite relatable as the has obviously been a disequilibrium if law enforcement has been called in and for there to be disequilibrium there had to be an initial equilibrium. It is obvious that there will be a form of action being taken but it is unsure if there will be a different equilibrium at the end.

Levi-Strauss’s theory of binary opposites is the most relevant and obvious. There is one main binary opposite in the plot is sanity vs. insanity which is common in psychological thrillers. There could also be a vague good vs. evil which is also conventional.Steve Neale’s theory has also been followed as there have been some conventions featured but others have been challenged. For example the lighting, in thrillers the lighting is normally low key but the majority of the film has a bluish tone which isn’t conventional for the genre.

I found the use of the blue toned lighting interesting and surprising as they are unconventional. However I think it was a clever technique to use as it goes with the setting of the story. Because the lighting in Thrillers is usually lo key the opposite light blue tone of the shots didn’t feel like it would make an impact when actually it did.

In my production I might use the idea of introducing the character in a way that keeps their identity hidden, even for just one shot to create the tension and suspense of finding out who they are. I feel like this would be an interesting way of introducing my main character as my idea involves her identity remaining hidden for the first shot.

The second film I have decided to analyse is Orphan (2009)It is a hybrid of mystery, horror and thriller. This is once again a psychological thriller but also vague aspects of religious thriller and has the same rating as my idea.I have also chosen to analyse this because some of the ideas in it are similar ones to my own idea. Also the opening starts with a dream/flashback which shows it in a non-linear narrative and that is an idea that I want to research further.

From the blurry opening image we can assume that the events are a dream. We understand that the woman is in labour but as she is being wheeled away towards the clinic we see a trail of blood following her, from this we can understand that she has most probably lost the baby. The whole opening sequence revolves around the losing of her baby, giving us an idea that the narrative will be surrounding this women and possibly her children.

Our assumptions are proved correct when we see the same woman from the hospital wake up in bed. We then find out that this is a memory from when she lifts her shirt and we see the scar on her stomach. The opening ends with her in therapy talking about the dream and they are also talking about how the woman and her husband are going to an orphanage that day to look to adopt a child. This sets up the narrative of the orphan coming home and the events that follow.

The character we are first introduced to is the main protagonist of the film. At first we don’t see her face as the whole image is blurry, preventing us from knowing her identity straight away. We can tell she is an important character from the fact that she comes into focus before her husband, letting us know it is likely that the plot will revolve around her. We then see that she is vulnerable from her position when she wakes up and goes into the bathroom, the fact she is crouched makes her look small and afraid.

The Thriller Genre is established with both the title and content of the opening sequence. The title flashes from traditional font to a more scratched style with finger prints suggesting that there is a darker side to story than what is originally thought. There is also a lot of blood in the opening dream/memory which is a conventional prop as well as setting the narrative up well. Also the music used for the small part of the opening adds tensions and effect for the audience which is conventional for the Thriller genre..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPmQ1Ah39u4

(start at 16 seconds)

I learnt from this film that using a non-linear narrative is a useful and clever way to introduce the film and a way to do this is through a dream which could also be a memoryI also when signifying the main character make sure that they are the first in focus if with other people in the shot and a way to introduce the characters is to have them blurred before bringing them into focus as they get closer to the character.I learnt that a successful way to establish the genre is through the sound. The right music or sound effects can build tension and suspense putting the audience on the edge of their seats which is exactly what Thrillers are supposed to do.

Altman’s theory is relevant in the opening sequence of Orphan because there are clear semantic elements as we know who the main character is and where the film will be mainly set. There are also some syntactic elements as we have a rough idea of the narrative and we know that the woman and man are married so we know their relationship.Toderov’s theory of narrative is relevant as the loss of their child is obviously the disequilibrium and them wanting to adopt a child would class as the characters taking action. However it is unclear from the opening if there will be a different equilibrium or not.

I found the use of revealing that the dream was actually an altered memory interesting as it makes the audience wonder what exactly happened as well as introducing the narrative and helps understand future events in relation to past experiences.

In my production I may have a non -linear narrative in the form of a flashback or dream to introduce the story in an interesting way. I may also use the use of the blurring for the characters and then have the focus return on the main character first if there are other characters in the frame. This will draw the audience’s attention to who the main character of the plot is.

The third and final film that I have decided to analyse is Gothika (2003) It is a hybrid of Horror and Thriller. I have decided to analyse this film because the main Binary Opposite is Sanity vs. Insanity as well as focusing on neither the antagonist or protagonist but a background character. The film also has a false but linear narrative which is why it is a psychological thriller.

The Narrative of the story is mainly introduced through the setting of the film which is a prison for the mentally unstable. This can be seen as a mental patient named Chloe is being spoken to by a psychiatrist which automatically allows us to understand that the Binary Opposite in the film is most likely to be insanity vs. insanity. The cold and hostile environment lets us know how the inmates are held and the conditions they live in.

We can also see from these shots that the psychiatrist is very interested in Chloe even though everything she says is disregarded by her patient with fits of rage. All of this gives us the impression that the narrative will focus on the psychiatrist and her investigation on Chloe and how she came to kill her step-father and go mentally insane. This however is a false narrative that the creators have tricked us into believing will happen.

The character we are first introduced to is one of the mental patients- she is neither the protagonist or antagonist which is quite unconventional, but she is still an important character. She seems to be unkempt and seems to be in an almost drunken state from her features. Her mood changes from serious to amused constantly which is the first hint of her insanity as well as the first idea of what the character is like. This film also uses the blur before putting her face into focus.

The Thriller Genre is established in Gothika in distinctive ways. One of which is low key lighting which casts dark shadows across Chloe’s face, creating a sense of darkness and mystery. Another is the music in the background, it is metallic and almost eerie, leaving the audience anticipating a large event. There are also a lot of questions that are implied (and some are answered) . These all add to the mystery of the film in the what, how and why Chloe is in the mental prison and how this will effect the narrative. These are all conventions of the Thriller genre.

I learnt from this film that a successful way to establish the genre is through the setting and sounds. The eerie music builds suspense and tension which is needed in a Thriller genre. Also by leaving questions unanswered is a good way to introduce the narrative as the audience understands what the narrative is going to answer. However the narrative that the audience assumes is actually a false narrative as the actual story line doesn’t focus on what is assumed.An interesting way to introduce the character is to have them blurred at first with their voice telling a story and then having their face come into focus.

Levi-Strauss’s theory of binary opposites is probably the most relevant to the film as we can obviously tell by the setting that the film will be a battle between sanity and insanity. This is common in most thriller films. Another could also be good vs. evil.Neale’s theory is semi-relevant as there are many conventions in the opening sequence of Gothika as there is the low key lighting and cold setting however there are no challenges in the first five minutes so the theory is only partly relevant to this film.

I found the fact that the first character we see isn’t the main protagonist or antagonist but a background character interesting. This suggests that she would play a big part in the narrative even if you wouldn’t class her as a main character.

I plan on using the binary opposition of sanity vs. insanity for my production because I feel I could go for many different narratives and story lines with different forms of the two. I also plan on having my setting seem cold and isolated by using low key lighting which is conventionally used in Thrillers.