Slide 2:SHADOW HEART. Genre: Western/Drama
Likes:
Monologue
Goes from establishing wide shot and fades into long shot gives dramatic effect to go with opening
Title zooms out
Pan shot gives us a good idea of the scenery
High angled over the shoulder shot makes father look like the boss as we then see boy does what he is told
Establishing wide shot to show us what type of people they are by the church type house
Use artificial sound for calming music to set the scene
Use ambient sound for footsteps, tress etc to make it realistic
Scene is set very well everything fits, music, clothes, colours, place Dislikes:
Boring credits
Not very gripping for an opening http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/shadowheart/
Slide 3:BOUNTY. Genre: Western/Novel/Adventure
Likes:
Starts with sudden eye catching low level shot
Mid-shot to focus on main action points rather than feet as they are not important in this part
Faded colours, old clothing, place good era and scene setter
Dramatic music go with scene
Dramatic opening to grasp us
Ambient lighting as beginning of film is not happy, also makes it seem more in olden times
Follow 180 degree rule
Dislikes:
One dramatic scene followed by another dramatic scene, each contain different characters, different plots becomes too much too soon.
http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/bounty/
Slide 4:MOULIN ROUGE. Genre: Drama/Music/Musical/Romance
Likes:
Titles and credits are shown in a way that relates to the movie
Someone singing a monologue makes you want to listen to the words
Exciting music that fits with film
Establishing wide shot with fast zoom into close ups of main places
Fade from picture to picture
Close up of main characters face to show us his emotions
Man typing monologue while words are being said, powerful words, make viewer want to watch on
Colour use: starts in black and white, then use some dull colours until they enter the main place which is full of colours; colour changes with mood/type of place being filmed
Very good opening!
http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/moulin_rouge/
Slide 5:Genre: Family/Comedy/Adventure/Animation
Likes:
Establishing wide shot and long shot to set immediate scene
Music goes with film
Title comes in after a little intro good as you see a funny bit first
Cute funny character straight away get people laughing and enjoying it
Tracking shots following the funny animals to get you into the scene
Dislikes:
No credits, some people like to know characters first
Would maybe be a little strange if you hadn't seen the first one as the characters aren't introduced very much
http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/ice_age_the_meltdown/
Slide 6:THE SIXTH SENSE. Genre: Drama/Mystery/Thriller
Likes:
Creepy music, dark, quiet, cold all set scene for type of film it will be
Close up of face so we can see how she feels
Establishing wide shot so we can see she is in a cellar; goes with genre
Low level shot of feet see she is scared so running adds to effect of being creepy
Dislikes:
Boring credits that drag on for over 2 minutes
Nothing really happens to draw you in in the first 5 minutes, with a scary film I would expect more dramatic or thrilling open and to get started quicker http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/the_sixth_sense/
Slide 7:Genre: Drama/Music/Romance
Likes:
Speaker in background while clips of break dancers being shown, shows and tells you straight away basics need to be known
Tracking shots to show us the kind of place it is set
Close up of faces to show how they feel towards what is happening/about to happen
Long shot of train
Dutch tilt during flip
Low level shot of feet, we can see lots of people, mainly office workers
Eye-catching dancing and music, very enticing opening
Dislikes:
Boring credits
Dance on train can be confusing, however makes you want to watch on to understand it http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/step_up_2_the_streets/
Slide 8:Genre: Drama/Romance
Likes:
Nice music and beautiful background during credits to get you in the mood for type of film it is
Establishing wide shot of lake with long shots and extreme long shots of man on boat
Long shot of house, to see surroundings
Over the should shot of women looking out onto lake
Dialogue from narrator while we see the man its supposed to be, effective way of getting important information across
Dislikes:
Nothing big happens in the beginning to draw you in, but for the type of film it is doesn’t particularly need one as wouldn’t fit
http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/the_notebook/
Slide 9:Genre: Comedy/Sport
Likes:
Tracking shot following man on advert, also uses edits such as wipe we can see it is an advert by these things
Catchy music that goes with genre
Credits run at the same time as film, not boring
Close up of hand turning key while engine makes bad noise, we can see he isn’t very rich has a bad car etc
Comparison on two people one rich one not rich, zoom out from posh expensive gym to rubbish gym next door to it
Point of view shot
Over the should conversation
Dislikes:
Nothing really funny happens straight away to entice you
http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/dodgeball_a_true_underdog_story/
Slide 10:Genre: Horror/Drama/Thriller/Mystery
Likes:
Creepy drawn picture; pathetic fallacy; drawing of house fades into real house; fog, old fashioned clothes; creepy people; old house; strange disappearance of servants. All of these are great scene and mood setters, they also fit with the genre and draw you in
Starts with women telling story with suitable background music and drawings
Credits are shown with the drawings so not boring
Goes from calming music to a women doing a startled scream makes you jump gets you nervous for the film
Dutch tilt while women in bed to add effect
Long shot of house to see creepy surroundings
Follows 180 degree rule
Dislikes:
Not much of an opening, have to listen very carefully to understand straight away
http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/the_others/
Slide 11:Genre: Sci-fi/Action/Drama/Thriller
Likes:
Lots of mid shots of people talking to the camera about the events this film is about, as if they are being interviewed, different and interesting.
Gives lots of need to know information
Dislikes:
Unrealistic
Bring credits
Didn’t entice me, however may just be my taste
http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/district_9/
Slide 12:Genre: Drama/Romance/Sci-fi
Likes:
Dramatic opening, getting audience into film
Pathetic fallacy sets scene for car crash
Follows 180 degree rule
Close up of faces to show portray their emotions
Zoom into his face then out and round to car crash very effective
Long shot of lorry coming towards the skidding around making screeching, we know something is about to happen it gets you on the edge of your seat
Slight room pan show where he is
Strange confusing opening, however made me want to watch more to understand what it was all about
Dislikes:
No credits
A bit all over the place
http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/the_time_travelers_wife/
Slide 13:THE BOY IN THE STRIPPED PYJAMAS. Genre: War/Drama
Likes:
Quote is shown at the very beginning, strong words get you thinking
Credits don’t drag on
Era made out easily
Good backing music
High angle shot showing big stair case/big house, and servants making them look small in comparison as wealthy women walks up stairs getting closer to camera making her look more powerful
Camera follows a few boys through town whilst camera goes into different places so we get the idea of what it is like and the sort of people that live there
Tracking shots following many different things
Focuses more on one boy than the rest we know he is going to be a main character
Dislikes:
No speech or introduction until four minutes into the film, I think that it should maybe open a little earlier to grab audiences attention better
http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/the_boy_in_the_striped_pyjamas/
Slide 14:HALF-BLOOD PRINCE. AND THE Genre: Fantasy/Adventure/ Romance/Mystery
Likes:
Zooms through the title
Gets you into film straight away, quite dramatic
Starts with a close up of his face
Flashing effect of the cameras catches your eye straight away
Dull clouds fade into the dull buildings
Use of theme music
Dark to go with setting
Room pan so we know where it is
Point of view shot of the death eater as it is flying around the city
High level shot of city
Follows 180 degree rule
Dislikes:
Looks very computerised when bridge collapses not realistic.
http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/harry_potter_and_the_half-blood_prince/
Slide 15:GHOST TOWN. Genre: Fantasy/Comedy
Likes:
Music
Credits don’t bore us, most role with the film
The title is shown in a ghostly type way to fit with film
High level shot to show us busy city
Tracking shot following man, show us he is a big character get us to know him
The way he dies and the sort of characters fit very well with genre
Dislikes:
Nothing majorly funny happens, I think comedies should be making you laugh from the start
http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/ghost_town/
Slide 16:Genre: Romance/Action/Thriller
Likes:
Girl talking however in the background not while she is being filmed, I find this very effective and a good way of getting information across to viewers, it draws you into the story and helps you understand
Random yet eye catching filming at very beginning gets you interested
Story begins straight away
Title fits very well with film
Point of view shot
Flashes as cuts to the next part of film
Close ups of face to get across feelings and emotions of charaters
Establishing wide shot so we can see the kind of place she lives
Follows 180 degree rule
http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/twilight/
Slide 17:Genre: Crime/Drama/Romance
Likes:
Clever use of game show flicking back and forth to and from it, using flash and fade to blacks effect in between
First clip close up of face effective
The way questions come up on the side like questions on the game show
Sound of games show ticking away in the background
Artificial lighting, changes depending on what is being filmed
Follows 180 degree rule
Uses shot reverse shot
Use of flash backs
Canted shots to show us different angles of him and the different pain he is going through
Birds eye view shot, pan, high angle shot and point of view shot all on studio so we can see it in different ways
Very enticing opening
Dislikes:
Can be unclear, however it makes you want to watch on and understand http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/slumdog_millionaire/
Slide 18:Genre: Comedy/Drama/Romance
Likes:
Use of feather to take you into the story
Funny, likeable character always draws you in
Goes from him telling a story to us seeing his story
Although credits are very long, good filming and music during them
Low level shot of feet then tracking shot up him, so we get to se all of him and can judge what we want
Zooms into close up of his face, then turns into a close up of his face when he was a child, then zooms back out of his face and turns into a story from his childhood Dislikes:
Credits could be a little shorter
http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/forrest_gump/
Slide 19:Genre: Action/Thriller/Sci-fi
Likes:
Catchy well known song to start
Straight into action explosive opening
Focus’s on main character fighting
Different shots of city, high angle, low angle, tilted, sped up
Loud breathing
Shot reverse shot
Explosion to start of fighting music stops and shooting begins
Dark blurry during shooting adds effect
Flickers from shot to shot like that’s how it would feel if you were in there, confused, everywhere, dark
Again many different shot types used during fight scene help us see everything that’s going on
Dislikes:
Fighting goes on for a bit to long is all that happens in the beginning good for abit then gets boring
Camera and people are moving so much it is hard to keep track of them especially for the length of time it goes on for
http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/gamer/
Slide 20:Genre: Drama/Horror/Thriller
Likes:
Repetitive flashing between each image/change
Narrator while words come up with interesting facts that attracts to it
The tracking shots of all the different houses/places, gives the effect as if someone is in a car watching them and choosing
We can here the person on the phone but not see them, keeps us in suspense
Close up images of gun shot holes, blood, rose petals, knifes keeps you interested and on the edge of your seat
Women’s voice makes us want to watch on to see what happened
Women’s repetitive words
Good credits not boring on take a long time
We don’t know why the boys are walking into the house again keeping you intrigued
Very good opening!
Slide 21:Genre:
Likes:
Tells her story
Funny
Over the shoulder of her mum opening door
High angle shot from stairs of them both at door
Shot reverse shot
Freezes on close up of her face
Fades from one part to another
Dislikes:
Very boring for an opening
http://www.watch-movies-online.tv/movies/bridget_joness_diary/
Slide 22:I have now researched 20 films with different genres and different story lines, however as I will be doing a comedy for my piece of filming I am going to go into more depth and research a following 10 films with comedy as their genre. I think this will give me a better idea about how comedies open also what works with comedies openings and what doesn’t, this will give me good ideas for my opening sequence and help me develop a wider knowledge with opening sequences.