I have been set the task to analyze the opening sequences to a thriller. I chose to analyze the thriller Leon because i have seen this film and i feel that this opening relates to the narrative in a big way.
The opening to Leon creates tension and creates meaning which relates to the narrative. As the film opens you can hear non- diagetic music been played, the music is orchestral which builds up tension before any picture is being shown in the frame. The orchestral music makes the audience aware of the genre of the film as this type of music is generally played in Thrillers. An establishing shot is used to set the scene. The establishing shot expresses the setting to the audience which is a field of trees. The camera is titled downwards and is tracking fast through trees. The tilt shot gives the audience perspective of the surroundings below. The shot is then quickly reversed and titled upwards this immediately changes the audiences view as they see many buildings which the audience is able to identify as New York. The title of the film Leon then fills out the entire frame.
The scene is then jump cut and transforms into a long shot which is used to show the change of setting, the camera is till panning but now it seems to be panning through the streets of New York. The makes the audience aware of the setting and sets the narrative. Yellow taxi cars are shown in the frame which also familiarizes the audience that the setting is New York. The non-diagetic orchestral music is still being played throughout the opening sequence which builds up tension as it becomes louder as the camera tracks. Zoom is now used to make the audience aware of the sigh post that says "Welcome To Little Italy" this suggests to the audience that the characters or protagonist maybe be Italian. The camera movment then changes in the left direction into a zoom which zooms inside a shop the creates the audiences attention as they want to see whats inside. No characters have been shown yet and no dialogue has been used but the audience is already gripped and interested. The silence in this opening is used to create suspense, this familiarizes the audience with the particular genre of the film as many thrillers use silence to grip the audience.
A close up shot is used to introduce the fist character into the opening sequence. Mise-en-scene is used to create meaning and narrative into the opening, for example a glass of milk is placed on a table with the characters hands. This suggests to the audience that the character is strong because they drink milk. The non-diegetic music has stopped being placed making the scene intense. A extreme close up shot is used to show the glasses worn by the character, this allows the facial expressions to be hidden by the character as glasses can be seen as a shield. Dialogue is now used as the two characters exchange words, the characters are speaking in Italian which suggests they are from Italy. Shot reverse shot is now used to bring tension into the conversation as the audience can now see the characters relation to one and other. The lighting is very dark in the frame suggesting something illegal is taking place. The lighting used in this scene makes the thriller genre clear to the audience as the setting is now very dark and dull with very few props on show. Dialogue is then used to set the narrative, for example the character says "lets get to business" which suggests the male works for him.
Mise-en-scene is now used to introduce the protagonist character, for example a photograph of a male is now shown to the protagonist. Shot reverse shot is still used between the two characters to show their current relationship. The protagonist's expressions and feelings are still hidden by the glasses which makes the other character uneasy as he is unaware of the answer he will receive when asking "are you free next Tuesday" suggesting to the audience a job needs to be done. The protagonist accepts he is free on Tuesday. The glass of milk is then drunk by the character suggesting the character needs to build hes strength up which builds up the narrative. A close up show of the photograph is shown to the audience just before it is taken and the character leaves. This makes the audience aware that the character is a hitman and has been set a job to complete. This then makes the audience aware of the genre of the film as the narrative has now been set and explained to the audience.
