Analysis of an Opening - 'The Untouchables' and 'The Dark Knight'

The Untouchables

'The Untouchables' begins with intoducing the main antagonist of the film - Al Capone. This is done to establish right from the start that there is an element of threat, and that threat has power.

From the first shot of the opening scene, this power and money is shown through his luxurious house and his many servants. The scene takes place while he is shaving, again showing his immense power by the way he is so laid back in an interview. He knows that whatever he says the press will make it sound good, and that is read power.

The opening shot is a birds-eye view shot of Al Capone being shaved. The camera is at an angle that shows Capone the right way up, while looking down on the rest of the room. This reflects Capone’s power, as the camera will go out of its way to show Capone in the right way. The birds-eye view shot is also called the ‘God Shot’ as it shots the world from the perspective of God looking down on the scene. By using this technique for this scene it is as if Al Capone is looking back up at God, and it puts them on the same level. Another reason for this shot is to reflect the grandeur of the room, and thus excelling the grandeur of the person who owns it.  As the camera comes down it rotates slightly, to frame Capone better. It didn’t do this at the beginning as the room had to be framed correctly. But in addition to this, the camera work does look very grand and impressive.

An interesting point in relation to the cinematography is that there are only 3 shots and 6 cuts in the entire opening. Most of the time the camera is strictly focused on Capone, and only cuts to very short clips of the people he is talking to a few times. Clearly this is to centralize Capone as the main antagonist of the film, and not to let the audience get distracted from him. Also it  once again shows his absolute power in the scene, where the camera is captivated by him.

But the technicalities behind this scene are not as important as what happens in the scene itself. De Palma doesn't want the audience distracted by clever tricks or visual effects, he wants the scene to focus on Capone, and he wants Capone to have the power, not the camera.

So with the technicalities of the scene stripped away, Brian De Palma is giving a clear message to the audience that the scene is about Capone. Capone is introduced as a business man, or a man who is very high in society, yet the audience knows that he is not as good as he sounds. The audience knows that Al Capone was a ruthless gangster in 1920's America, and with this in mind the scene is given a new meaning. Capone says he's a businessman with good intentions, but we know that he's a gangster with selfish motives. This adds a lot of depth to the scene, there are layers which the audience has to look through, and this draws them in. Even if they did not know that Capone was a gangster, there are various hints throughout the scene, such as when the man shaving him accidentally cuts him and then suddenly looks terrified that his life might be at risk. Also the newspaper reporters claim that he uses violence, and Capone admits that in the neighbourhood he grew up in violence had been the way of doing things. These hints show his true character, and make it blatantly obvious that despite his attempts to cover up, in the end he is the antagonist of the film. This sets up the film very neatly, by showing the antagonist, his power, his personality and draws the audience in through their wonder at how someone could overcome such a powerful man.

The Dark Knight

'The Dark Knight' opens with an action sequence, which immediately grabs the audience's attention and obeys the conventions of an action/crime drama. In the build up to the release of 'The Dark Knight' there was a tremendous amount of advertising and publicity, from Harvey Dent elections to real live recruitment into the Joker's 'army' via cellphones hidden in cakes. After this intensive advertising campaign the filmmakers knew that they had to deliver, and so to start off with a large scale action scene was the best way to go about this. The audience get what they expect, and are immediately drawn in. Another strength of this opening is the introduction of the main antagonist. This is an area which the director holds back on, as he knows that fans of the Batman comics will be very excited to see how the joker is portrayed. He lets them see an action sequence to keep them happy, but then he makes the characters talk about the Joker without revealing him to keep them guessing. For the people who are not fans of the comic, Nolan presents them with an enigma as to who the Joker is. This keeps them interested as they want to know who he is, why he is associated with the robbery, and what sort of a villain he will turn out to be.

The opening shot is an establishing shot of Gotham City, and the audience knows straight away that it is a big budget film. This shot swoops in on a skyscraper to centralise the audience's focus on on building and then one windowpane, as it shatters open from the inside by some sort of explosion. From one shot the audience is aware of many things: it is a high budget film, it is an action film, it takes place in a rich city and something big is about to happen. What 'is about to happen' is the bank robbery which commences immediately.

The next shot answers the enigma of what the explosion was, but then it raises more questions. It shows us that there are two men in the building who blew out one windowpane in order to fire a grapple hook across to the adjacent building, but then why are the men wearing clown masks? And why are they so determined to get across to the opposite building? Nolan can't help but add to the enigmas!

As the scene goes on, more enigmas are introduced, but more are created. The conversation about who the Joker is adds enigmas, as does the scene where the bank manager yells 'do you know who you're stealing from? You guys are dead'. Yet enigmas are solved as we find out that the characters are robbing a bank, and want to kill each other off in order to have a larger portion of the share. This is all presented very cleverly, as it presents the enigmas subtly without detracting from the fun of the action, or making the audience feel too confused.

The conventions of the action genre are made very clear through many aspects, such as the use of guns, the exploding window, and the bus going through the wall, but I think that what really brings out the action is the musical score. This was composed by acclaimed film composer Hans Zimmer. The music is very subtle, without any definitive melody, but just a bass undercurrent that hangs over the images and pushes the action forwards. What is very impressive is the way the sound levels go up and down according to whether there is dialogue, or action or whatever else is going on. The movement is immaculate, and unless examined closely is very hard to pick up on, but nevertheless adds another dimension to the scene. There are, of course, a few moments where the music picks up a bit and adds even more to the scene, such as at 1:40 when the men are going across the grapple, there are three hits on some form of drum, bringing out the danger which the men are putting themselves in, in order to heighten the drama.

'The Dark Knight' opening is very different to the opening to 'The Untouchables' as 'The Dark Knight' relies more on the idea that actions speak louder then words when it comes to presenting an antagonist. On the other hand 'The Untouchables' shows the antagonist speaking, but it is based on the idea of a lying, deceitful antagonist, and the audience are shown what he is like, not by what he says, but by following the opposite of what he says. Both of these openings present equal enigmas. In 'The Dark Knight' the audience is not shown the antagonist, but they learn things about him, whereas in 'The Untouchables' they are shown the antagonist, but they are shown almost nothing about him, and they have to read between the lines. It is very interesting seeing how this works, as it defies the belief that to learn about a character you have to see them. Despite them both being very good openings, I think that the opening to 'The Dark Knight' is more iconic and memorable, as the action is fast paced and exciting, whereas 'The Untouchables' starts slightly low-key, but it builds up the pace. Both of course did very well, and you can't complain with that!

Analysis of an Opening - 'Quantum of Solace' and 'Sherlock Holmes (2009)'

Quantum of Solace

The latest film in the James Bond franchise - Quantum of Solace - opens the way James Bond films have traditionally opened...with an action sequence. Starting a film with an action sequence immediately draws in the audience, and sets up the film as an action film from the outset. If done well this is an almost foolproof way to draw in audiences, as it is exciting and shows the film to be fast paced.

The first thing that sets up the opening scene is the music. The music is very low-pitched and tense, creating suspence and letting the audience know that something is about to happen. There is an establishing shot of a mountain tunnel road by a lake, with the camera panning towards the road, probably taken using a helicopter. This shot keeps reoccuring for the first thirty seconds, intercutting with shots of cars in the tunnel. The cinematography is in a very dark style, using the light from the tunnel windows to reveal only the parts of the shot which the cinematographer wanted to show, and the lights travel across the shot to reflect the movement of the vehicles. The lighting also allows the subjects to fade in and out of shot naturally, without the use of cheap fade effects. By only revealing only small parts of the action at a time more and more suspense is built up, as the audience wants to see the scene as a whole. There is a shot of a magazine being loaded into a rifle, building the suspence even more by showing there is an element of danger and violence.There is also a shot of James Bond's eyes, revealing the main character to be in the danger, and we know he is not the one holding the gun as James Bond traditionally uses a Walther PPK.
Finally the establishing shot gets close to the tunnel, and the music suddenly stops, to expose the viceral, hardened sound of the cars engines and machine gun fire, and the fast paced action sequence.
The editing is fast paced, shots lasting only a fraction of a second to reflect the pace of the sequence.

The sound design is very prominent over the next twenty seconds, as the sound is in place of a soundtrack, and has to hold the audiences interest. To do this every sound is boosted up, especially the sound of the cars engines and the machine gun fire, to bring out the main elements of the scene. An interesting part of the sound editing is when the lorry hits the wall of the tunnel, and instead of having the expected screeching of metal on concrete, the editor has put in a deep thudding noise to increase the proportions of the scene and give it a more 'epic' feel. If the sound of screeching had been added then it would have been unpleasant to the ear, as well as would have made the lorry seem lighter, and less of a  danger. On top of this he added the obvious glass shattering sound effect to the end of it to show the destruction that the crash had caused. Another triumph in the sound editing department is the way it makes the audience feel like it is in the scene. This is achieved through having the sound effect of the cars driving past at a fast pace, not just as they pass other cars, but as they pass the camera as well. Presuming this sound was recorded by a foley artist in post, it is probably intentional. Through this the audience is made to feel as if they are standing where the camera is positioned and they can hear the car driving past them. An example of this is at 1:26. This design is used to its full potential when heard through a surround sound system, as the sound of the car passing would go across the speakers in relation to the action, involving the audience to a new level.

Overall, 'Quantum of Solace' drags its audience in through a fast paced action scene, and by trying to get the audience as close to the action as possible. The close proximity camera work makes you feel closer to the action and more on edge, while the sound design heightens the proportions and helps to place the viewer in the scene.

Sherlock Holmes (2009)

Sherlock Holmes, as with Quantum of Solace, opens with an action sequence. It also begins by bringing the audience in through suspense and intrigue, through tense music, and darkened shots.

One of the parts of this opening that stands out are the institution logos at the beginning. These are done very stylistically, as they are designed to look like part of the pavement which the camera pans along. This is an excellent technique, as in many films the mood can be spoilt by the numerous company logos at the beginning, which detracts from the artistry and points towards the money. However in this case, the logos are presented as a part of the film, and are built into both the scene and the mood, to set the scene from the outset. By starting the music on the first logo, the audience is made aware that the film is starting at that point, and not after the logos, as if the logos were something that demanded attention as much as the rest of the film. The companies also benefit from this arrangement, as the audience would actually take notice of the logos if they were done in an interesting way, so it helps both the company and the film.

These logos are made in post-production, and through careful analysis a viewer can see the CG pavement mould into the live action pavement at 0:24, as at this moment you can see a distinct difference in the pavement, and the camera is steady. The pavement which had the logos on moulds into the live action pavement very neatly, and with a slight camera disturbance at the beginning of the live action sequence, the effect is sold. This shot is then held on right up to 0:51, giving the impression that the shot is in fact 51 seconds long, and the logos are part of it. Shots this long can be very rare in films, and are only used for particular effects. In this case, the camera follows the audiences curiosity, by catching up with the carriage, and revealing the people inside. The desired effect is to arouse the audience's intrigue, and make them start to think about who the people are, and why they are so important that the camera chooses to focus on them. This train of thought is stemmed from the mysterious music that is playing in the background, which enhances the scene, and automatically tells the viewer that what they're watching is unusual and mysterious. The camera then cuts to a shots of the two characters in the carriage loading their guns, foreshadowing violence.

After this a parrelel timeline comes into play, with Sherlock Holmes running through the streets of London. The two scenes inter-cut with one another to create a feeling of a lot going on, and as if the film is really comign alive. The cinematographer employs some creative techniques to heighten the drama of it, such as using dutch tilts to give it a very rushed look. An important shot in this opening sequence is at 1:22, when Shelock Holmes does a forward roll which ends with his face in a close up, to establish his character.

 

As with Quantum of Solace, sound design is very important in creating the effect of mystery and intrigue. At 1:12 there is a crow sound effect, which is typical of the horror genre. Despite it not being a horror film, the crow still adds intrigue to the scene, and makes the audience sense an impending danger. At 0:24 there is also a sound of a horse whinnying, and matched with the crow at 1:24 creates a feeling of danger through the natural sounds of animals sensing the danger. Sound design is used differently than in Quantum of Solace, as in Sherlock Holmes it is used for mystery, whereas in Quantum of Solace it is relied on a lot more as there isn't music. 

 

Overall, Sherlock Holmes's opening pulls in the audience through the mystery of it, whereas Quantum of Solace pulls in the audence through a fast paced, high budget action sequence.

The 180 Degree Rule

 

The 180 Degree Rule dictates that when filming, the camera should not cross to the opposite side of a scene. If this rule is violated, it disorientates the viewer, and causes the action to look disjointed, as if the scene has switched around. However this rule can be violated for effect, as in The Lord of the Rings when Gollum is talking to himself. In order to create a feeling of multiple personalities, the camera crosses the line to make it looks as if he is talking to himself, yet in the scene he is in the same position. At the beginning of the scene the viewer can see the camera cross the line, so this helps orientate the viewer, and then once it gains the audience's trust, it violates the rule for effect.

Analysis of an Opening - 'The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford' and 'American Beauty'

The opening to Jesse James introduces the main character to the audience; establishing the character as the main focus of the film. The first few shots are time lapses of clouds, indicating a passing of time, and the music has a 'clock ticking' feel to it to further this effect.  This also develops an uneasiness that eventually builds up to the inevitable climax that is given in the title of the film. After these brief few shots we are shown a man rocking in a chair, deep in thought. During this shot there is a blur around the edge of the frame, created by placing several wide angle lenses in front of the cameras. These combinations of lenses are called 'Deakinizers' after the cinematographer Roger Deakins who worked on the film and invented the technique especially for 'Jesse James'. He did this to create the feel of an 'old time camera', not to be nostalgic but to be evocative and bring across the feeling of a time that's passed.

A narrator guides the audience through the first few shots to introduce them to the lead character in the film. It starts off by describing him as a normal man, and then slowly starts making him seem more mysterious and elusive, finally culminating in the narrator revealing that he has committed 17 murders and numerous bank robberies. This brings the audience into the film through the mystery of it. They'll want to know who the man is, why he has killed so many people, why he leads a double life, and most importantly, what will happen to him next that requires a film to be made about him. This final point is what will ultimately cause the audience to carry on watching, and determine the success of the film.

Another character based opening with narration is the 1999 Best Picture American Beauty, except this time the narration is not by an external narrator, but by the character himself after his death. We know this as he says 'by the end of this year I will be dead'. This leaves the audience solely in the hands of the narrator, realising that he knows what is going to happen at the end, showing him as an omniscient force, and as if he's looking down on us. With this in mind, the narrator is able to lead the audience through his day and the audience believes him. The impact this has is again one of intrigue and mystery. The narrator claims he will die within a year, yet his life seems so absurdly ordinary that his imminent death seems out of place. The audience are presented with where the character is at the beginning, and where he is at the end, but not the middle, and this is the main ploy to drag the audience in: they want to know what the middle is, and they want to know how so much changed so quickly.

This differs from the opening to 'Jesse James' as in 'American Beauty' the narrator tells the audience their opinion, whereas in 'Jesse James' the audience is presented with facts. 'Jesse James' is a biopic, and therefore this is more appropriate, as one of the aims of the film is to inform about the last few months of Jesse James's life. However 'American Beauty' is a fictional drama, and this different approach is taken to invite the audience into the films setting. It establishes the characters and the community very quickly. Another distinct difference between the two is the fact that in 'American Beauty' it is the main character speaking, whereas in 'Jesse James' it is an external voice. This once again grounds Jesse James in reality, while drags the audience into the world in which 'American Beauty' is set. The voice in Jesse James is academic, and as if it has studied the subject and knows what it's talking about, whereas the voice in American Beauty talks from personal experience.

Both films have very strong openings, which establish character and setting through a narrator, and both of them make good use of mystery and intrigue. The audience hooks onto this mystery and it is what pulls them in, causing both films to have very strong openings.