You Me At Six opening titles ' bite my tongue'

You me at six analysis from courtneymedia

I have learnt that film titles need to mean something to the film. They Have to go with the story If not they aren't very good titles. Analysing this film has helped my production of my own film because the idea of the film itself is simple to edit but also a very powerful. It gives you all you need to know within the first few minutes of a film without leaving questions like ' who was that?'.

Three Synopses.

Synopsis 1 – A boy named Max in a therapy room is complaining that he hates his life to his therapist. He’s saying how he wishes something new and exciting would come into his life. The next day a beautiful pale girl with long dark hair joins their high school. He never believed in love at first sight until he saw her for the first time. She was in one of the schools music rooms playing her favourite instruments the keyboard. The girls name was called Megan. But sadly she falls in love with Max’s best friend James. James is mad about gaming. Max secretly betrays his best friend and ends up breaking them up. Eventually Max and Megan end up together.

 

Synopsis 2 – ‘Everything is temporary’

Four friends named; Tay, Matt, Cameron and Ash are all best friends; their dream is to be in a successful rock band. They are all in dead end jobs for example Tay works in a hairdresser (singer, Matt is still in college (drummer) Cameron is the guitarist who works in a cleaners. Then you have Ash who works in an office all day he is keyboardist. They play one gig at a local pub and get scouted by a major record label. They then travel all around the UK. Their record label then goes bust. Their dream is over. They all end up back at their dead end jobs. A few months later they then decide to play another gig in a nearby city. They then get scouted again and get offered a record deal and become a famous rock band.

 

Synopsis 3 – A group of friends are off to a music festival. Their Sat Nav looses signal and takes them into the completely wrong direction. They end up in the middle of nowhere. They then go off to explore the woods around them; a whole different type of species then meets them. At first both species don’t get on as expected. Their families don’t know they are missing, as they believe they are at the music festival. The group of friends then befriend the different species. They learn about their culture and how they live then group of friends then decide they are never going back.

 

 

The synopsis I have chosen is Synopsis 2.

 

Pretty Woman. Romantic Comedy. (characterisation)

The opening begins with an establishing shot of a fancy party. This shows us that the characters within this scene are on the upper scale of the social ladder. They are rich they can afford to spend money on caters and expensive wine without even giving it a second thought.

"No matter what they say it's all about money." This was a piece of narrative throughout the party. This also backs up the idea that the characters in this scene only care about money and believe that money is the only thing you need in life.

The first introduction on any of the characters we see is a magician. He' s playing around with money for the magic trick.

This shows us that they have more money then anyone even enough to play with. They show the magic trick by using as a close up this indicates to the audience that the hand movement within the trick is important. It foreshadows the film. "Penny for the ear, how much for the rest?" This is a foreshadow of the rest of the film. This is the first piece of narrative which gives away what the film  plot could possibly be about.

After that theres a pan shot of the party. Everyone at the party seems to be talking about Edward Lewis. It makes the audience think " who's Edward Lewis?" "Why is he so important?". This then indicates that the reason why they are talking about Edward Lewis is because he is indeed the main character throughout this film. Once everyone stops talking about Edward Lewis there is then a motivated edit so that we see him in the next frame. There is then a phone conversation where we hear Edward Splitting up with his girlfriend over the phone.

 He doesn't even seem bothered. This indicates to us that he's used to splitting up with girls. He used to things in his life not being temporary so that's why he's learnt not to get attached.

This then opens up a main key feature within the film that he's free and single and he has an unemotional gap. There is then a tilt shot of him looking down at the party this suggests that even though all of the people at the party are upper class, he still has the hierarchy within his social group. His face is emotionless this conforms that he really is just an unemotional person.

After that Edward see's an old girlfriend of his. They talk about how she recently just got married, the girl then says " I mean I couldn't wait for you" This then confirms to the audience that he is an attractive person who has had many break ups.

This refers back to Edward being used to things being temporary in his life. All of a sudden Edward then decides to leave the party and shoot off we know this by people at the party saying casually "he's left". His best friend then goes out to see what's got into Edward but doesn't get an answer. Edward completely ignores his friend and demands his keys. This confirms to us that Edward does not listen to anyone. When Edward does go into his car, his friend states "Do you even know how to drive it?". This then shows off how rich Edward is considering he has a personal driver.

Once Edward is driving off their is the opening credits where in the background is different photos of Beverly Hills and Hollywood, these images are to show that he's come from the higher end of the spectrum and how he's slowly driving into the poorer end of the spectrum.















Once we reach the down town of Hollywood it gets made extremely obvious that we are no longer in the richer part as there are plenty of shops with thick metal shutters this indicates that there is a lot of crime around that area.

 Crime is usually associated with poorer areas. There is then ambulance sirens which shows that there is a high population and a high accident intake.

There is then a shot off a ' Hotel' sign. Not all the lights are working which shows that the hotel it's self is a run down hotel and probably not a very nice hotel to stay at. The only lights working on the hotel are 'HO' which is a directors joke which could indicate Prostitutes.

The camera then takes us to an apartment it starts off with a girl in bed so we know we are now seeing the completely different side of the original spectrum. We've gone from a huge posh party to a run down apartment in Hollywood in only a matter of shots.

There are photos of the girl and a boyfriend. In the photo her boyfriends head is ripped off which indicates that he is an ex boyfriend. This also shows the audience that she's not very good with relationships herself just like Edward Lewis.

There is then a shot of her colour in her boots with a black pen this then also indicates the poor spectrum as her boots are old and she can't afford any new ones.

 She then goes out of her apartment door to where she sees a man. "I'm here to collect the rent money if you don't pay it you're out".

She then goes back into the apartment. By this point the audience must thing oh she's going to get her rent money. She then goes into the toilet system to get her rent money out to only find out that she has $1 to pay it.

This indicates that she is an honest character as she thought she had enough money as she's been saving to go and pay the rent. She then goes rushing out of her apartment through the window down the ladder. She seems to know this routine so well so it's obviously a regular occurrence.

She then goes into a bar to look for her flat mate to ask where all the rent money has gone. Her flat mate replies with " Drugs, I needed a little pick me up".  You can tell that she is a true respectful person as she is angry that her friend spent all of the rent money on drugs.

 It then takes us to a shot on the streets where the 2 house mates speak to another lady on the street and tells her to "get off their territory". This then indicates to us that they are in fact prostitutes. Which then links back to the"Penny for the ear, how much for the rest?" comment in the earlier part of the opening and the 'HO' comment earlier on in the opening. The other prostitute then says "But she's new here" Which gives us even more respect for that character as we know that she hasn't been doing this for very long.

While writing this essay I have learnt that the easiest way to learn about a character is by narrative and small images while using a transition towards another scene.

Prelimnary

My 180 degree action shot is used when someone opens the door. 

I have used match on action when the 2 characters walk into the main location of the shot.

I have used shot reverse shot by having the conversation.

I have kept continuity by the 2 main characters wearing exactly the same clothing in each scene.

Silence of the lambs film opening analysis.

An enigma code is a question that I posed by a film. 

For example one enigma code could be what’s the character’s name. An action code is the answer to the question. It’s what the film tells us. 

  It begins with a tracking shot and an establishing shot. This is to show the audience where the film is set and located. It gives us the bigger picture. We also get a glimpse of the main character within the first few minutes of the opening.

  

The showing of the female (the main character) tells an enigma code to the audience that she is just an everyday female. Doing ordinary things like exercise. As the female continues to run around the area that she is in, the audience then begins to learn more about her. She reveals an action code she isn't actually doing an everyday thing. This makes the audience become nervous about the character as they believed she was something

she wasn't.

There is then a long take of a female struggling over a net. This shows a characterization of her that she is strong and is determined to get over any obstacle in the way. 

There is a non-diegetic sound being played in the background. It is a calm soundtrack, but always slightly tenses up which makes the audience believe that she could possibly be in trouble. We are then greeted by a male wearing an ‘FBI’ hat.  He tells her that Agent Crawford wants to talk to her.

This then lets the audience learn more about her that she is actually training to be in the FBI and that all the exercise she previously done was just an everyday activity for a training FBI agent. While the female is running into the offices trying to find Agent Crawford we are greeted by another trainee FBI student. This is when we learn the female’s name. Her name is Clarice.

Clarice then reveals another action code. The fact that she has gone the same way as a sign saying ‘ behavioral science services’ tell us what Clarice is actually doing there. It no longer leaves us with an enigma code.The fact that Clarice is walking around offices while everyone else is dressed fancy is suits and dresses and she’s wearing basically gym uniform, gives off an action code that she isn't quite trained yet and there are more superior people then Clarice. 

 

There is then another establishing shot of Clarice going into an elevator with a group of men. This is juxtaposition to show how small Clarice really is, and how FBI is traditionally seen as a ‘male’ enrollment. So Clarice breaks the tradition. But also in the clip you see the Clarice is in front of the men which could also demonstrate that possibly she ends up with more power than they have. Also the men in this clip are wearing red clothing. The red clothing usually connotes a threat and normally blood. This could signify that males are the threat within this film and you should be wary of them.

There is then a close up of Clarice in his office. This scene shows off a characterization of her, the fact that she is nosy and always seems to be aware of the situation around her this is also shows that she has a serious interest in her job.

There are some enigma codes that comes to mind throughout this opening, they are:

Why is she running at the very beginning?

Who is Crawford?

Why doe she want to talk to her? Is she in trouble?

And who is Hannibal Lector?

While writing this essay I have learnt that in horror films they mainly use a close up shot off a character and this is to really identify the main expression of fear on their face.

Dawn Of The Dead - Sound Analysis

The first use of sound is a piece of non-diegetic sound. It's a high pitched screeching sound, it's used as the protagonist walks out to the ambulance. This creates a redherring because the audience expect something to happen when really it's just a paramedic doing his job.


Then once the protagonist leaves her work place and is on the way home, there is a diegetic sound of a song called ' have a nice day'. This is ironic because the opposite is about to happen. But there is a television in the background which tells the audience that they've got an ordinary lifestyle. While they are in the shower the television turns to a news bulletin which makes the audience feel anxious as of what's happened because the main characters don't realise what's going on around them. The audience think that the characters might be in danger as they don't know what's happened. When the alarm clock is shown it is all silent then suddenly the time flicks which could mean that the time is of some importance. Once again there is a non-diegetic sound that is tense and slow which makes the audience drawn in and creates anticipation when the camera changes it's angle it creates a loud bang which makes the audience jump a little. This continues as the camera tracks into their bedroom, there is then a diegetic sound of a door opening which tells the audience that they are not alone and that they are in danger. The music then changes to a fast up beat sound track which creates tension for the audience. There is then a diegetic sound of his neck ripping once they pull the little girl off him. It shows off the horror genre within the film. There's then a ticking noise in the back ground which shows that she's running out of time and fighting against the clock it makes the audience feel nervous for the protagonist. The soundtrack then stops when she realises that her partner is dead and then the soundtrack starts again when she realises her partner has come back from the dead. Once she runs into the bathroom it then goes quiet which shows she's a little bit safer there however it then creates tension as the music starts back up again. There is then a sting when the ambulance hits the man over, which makes the audience jump. There is police and ambulance sirens in the background which signifies danger. There is then the same soundtrack playing throughout the scene until the opening titles appear.


While writing this essay I have learnt that sound is an important code throughout a film as it helps the audience identify the way and which the film is progressing and moving on.

Layer Cake film opening analysis.

Layer Cake opening scene analysis. The opening scene begins with an establishing shot it reveals to us a shot of a black car door. It then turns itself into a medium close up. There is a lot of black associated with this scene. This is to promote to the audience that there is many mysterious danger in Layer Cake. Black is associated with violence and death. This means that its foreshadowing events in which are bound to happen in the film itself.

There are then non-diegetic sounds used. It’s a voice over. The voice over starts once the car doors are shown. This then continues throughout the rest of the opening scene. Daniel Craig is the lead character in Layer Cake. This suggests to the audience that he is the voice over. I think this allows the audience to feel connected to the character considering he is letting the audience know everything from his point of view. I think that this is a clever way to start Layer Cake because it makes the audience trust Daniel Craig more; it makes them feel more connected with him so that if anything band happens to him throughout the film it’ll play on the audiences heart strings. There is then an explosion in the car which blows the doors open. Although we don’t see the rest of the car. This is shot in a certain way. They’ve used Chiaroscuro lighting. This made the explosion look more threatening. The explosion was also clever as it’s a thriller crime film it connotes corruption. There is then an explosion, it cuts to a flash back. (Cross cutting) of an armed robbery outside some buildings. The lighting for this scene was a very milky non- ambient light. The scene is set in slow motion. This then states to the audience that that it’s a flash back. The milky lighting denotates a fire considering there was an explosion. The film has a circular narrative setting which constantly keeps the film moving smoothly and makes it just as interesting. There is then a tracking shot of a street which then turns into a medium shot/close up of a women’s face. It’s effective as it shows the fear in her face of a victim of crime. This is a very significant shot as women are always portrayed as insignificant and weak in a thriller films as they are ‘dominated’ by men. There is a transition from the women’s head to a man’s head which then leads to a flash back. It’s a bright scene which includes non-ambient lighting which suggests a happier period in someone’s life. There’s then a tracking shot that follows a girl walking through a hallway. There is then another transition shot of the women walking to a man walking in a grey hallway. They are holding a baton which shows men being dominant. The non-diegetic lighting in this shot makes the tone of the mise en scene change from happy to angry.



I have learnt while writing this essay that for crime based films it's a good idea to go back into a flashback so that the audience know how they got into prison and what happened to them.

The Hunger Games film opening analysis PowerPoint.

Film opening home work from courtneymedia

Terminology.

Action Code - An action code was created by Barthe as one of his narrative media codes. It means that it allows the audience to interpret and identify what is next to come during a film.

Enigma Code - Is the code where it makes the audience ask questions.For example: If a character dies in a film we do find ourselves asking 'who died?' 'How did they die?' 'Did they get murdered?' 

The Hero - Seeking something. (Saves the day)

Agent Of Change - A character who inflicts danger and causes the current story line to change.

Equilibrium - It's all to do with Todorov's theory of equilibrium. So the episode starts and everything is balanced (equilibrium) then something happens, the disruption, then there is a resolution and then the equilibrium is restored. This theory is applied to the narrative and can be found in most common genres.  

Disequilibrium - When the film starts going down hill and the action starts to occur to make the film body.

Introduction to the task.

Preliminary Task: Continuity task involving filming and editing a character: - Opening a door. - Crossing a room and sitting sitting down onto a chair opposite the other character having a somewhat of a conversation. - They exchange a couple of lines of dialogue. - Must shows these camera angles and techniques: - Match on action. - Shot reverse shot. - 180 degree rule. Coursework: A 2 minute opening to a new fiction film with titles.