'The Godfather' Opening Sequence Analysis

'The Godfather' was produced in 1972 by director Francis Ford Cappola and stars actors such as Al Pacino and Marlon Brando.

The opening begins with a very slow jazz soundtrack, which is typical of thrillers. A plain black background, which connotes wealth, death, mystery, and evil, is contrasted with white writing, which has connotations of coldness, fear, reverence, and again, death. The writing simply says 'The Godfather' with puppet strings attached to the word 'father'. This symbolises the control that the godfather in the film has, and, as the audience will discover, how he controls people below him like a puppeteer controls his puppets.

The title disapears and the audience is left with a black screen, emphasising the connotations of the colour black, and also adding mystery and suspense - we don't know what will follow. A male voice-over begins in an italian accent with the line "I believe in America", suggesting where the film is set, and we fade in to see the man (Pacino) who is speaking. The camera begins with a close up as he talks to the camera and the camera zooms out very slowly whilst he tells us about his daughter's rape. This is a thriller signifier as we instantly know a web of crime and corruption will be involved in the narrative. The mise en scene at this point is all dark, with only the man's collar being the only colour of white, reflecting the title screen with white contrasting with black. As we zoom out, however, we discover with the technique of an over the shoulder shot, that the man is infact talking to someone else. The shot now reveals brown mise en scene - a wooden table, with a couple of papers on, making it seem to the audience like some kind of office. The camera stops zooming out, and Pacino begins to cry, and is given a drink by another man (presumably alcoholic) which shows the audience the flaws of the protagonist - his emotion for his daughter, and his drinking habit. This sequence also reveals that our first thought that there was only one person present was incorrect - there are at least three men present, but it is still unknown where this is set and who the men are. The camera then tracks to focus on a close up of the two men whispering to each other, but we are unable to hear what they say.

After this sequence, the camera's position changes to show, using a close-up, the second man that was introduced (Brando). We see that he too is dressed in a black suit, and also can see typical thriller mise en scene, consisting of slatted blinds. The camera moves location again to show the entire scene - revealing four male characters, all dressed in suits, all brown mise en scene, and the only light coming from the slats in the blinds. Another over -the -shoulder shot is used to focus upon Brando, this time as a mid shot, and a red flower can be noticed clipped to his suit, giving connotations of disguised danger. We also see him playing with a grey cat, making him appear powerful as he doesn't give his full attention. The cat connotes cunningness, independance and suspicion, whilst the grey colour has connotations of respect, strength and wisdom.

Throughout the sequence, a range of shot types are used. These vary from slow zooms outwards, which draw the viewer in, to over the shoulder shots which are an innovative way of depicting a conversation. They add variety for the audience, as well as being very effective.

The mise en scene is made up primarily of a brown palette, which represents wealth, fascism, and boldness. The brown palette is very typical of American Gangster thrillers, which hints to the audience the genre of the film. The lighting use is simplistic - only coming from the slatted blinds, and a small light to the right of the frame. The clothes the characters wear are suits, indication wealth, superiority and a kind of professionalism within them. It can be noted that the character played by Brando is the only one to wear a red flower, and also can be noted wearing a wedding ring, suggesting that he is a trustworthy man, even though he seems to be the leader of this group of men, who appear to believe they are above the law, as Brando asks Pacino why he went to the police first to sort out his daughter's rape, rather than him. This, teamed with their accents, make it seem to the audience like some kind of mafia.

Overall, I found this opening very effective, as it set the scene well, and engaged the audience using its fantastic camera work and mise en scene.

Thriller Sub-Genres

Thrillers are a wide genre which often encorporate other subgenres into the narrative. Thrillers are hybrids with a wide range of subgenres; ranging from crime, to western, to comedy. I have chosen to research into subgenres of thriller in order to get a wider, better understanding of it.

Action thriller - Action thrillers generically contain a lot of violence, guns, and explosions. The subgenre often brings a in race against time aspect, and also includes chases which are the obvious action. The subgenre has a key antagonist, with notable action thriller films including : 'James Bond' films and 'The Transporter'.


Conspiracy thriller - The key aspect to conspiracy thrillers is a conflict in which the protagonist encounters an enemy whose true extent is only known by them. Thrillers including 'Three Days of the Condor' and 'JFK' fit well into this genre.

Crime thriller - These films tend to focus on the criminals rather than the authorities, and are made up of action surrounding crimes or failed crime plots, including crimes such as murders, robberies and shootings. Examples include 'The Godfather', 'Reservoir Dogs', and 'The Asphalt Jungle'.

Disaster thriller - This hybrid features a main conflict of some kind of natural disaster, such as an earthquake, volcano eruption or flood. The 1974 film 'Earthquake' is a good example of this genre.

Drama thriller - These tend to be slower paced and involve a much more character development and plot twists than typical thrillers. Some examples are: 'The Illusionist',and 'The Prestige'.

Erotic thriller - Since the 1980s this genre has been on the rise, taking aspects from both genre. One key erotic thrillers is 'Fatal Attraction'.

Horror thriller - These films are based on the theme of fear; for both the characters and the audience. These films tend to be from the point of view of the soon to be victim, making the audience directly feel the fear. Recent examples include the 'Saw' series and '28 Days Later'.

Legal thriller - These involve narratives in which lawyers have to confront their enemies both inside and outside the courtroom in order to let 'good' prevail.

Medical thriller - Films such as 'Awake' are involved in this genre. The protagonist tends to feature as a doctor trying to solve an expanding medical problem.

Political thriller - The film 'Agency' encapsulated this genre, which features plots etc within the government, and the protagonist working with or against these and trying to ensure the stability of the government.

Psychological thriller - Numerous Hitchcock films fit into this genre, as well as films including 'The Talented Mr Ripley'. The conflict between the main characters exists mentally, emotionally and psychologically as opposed to being based around physical feelings.

Spy thriller - These tend to be based around some kind of government agent who is required to fight against threats such as terrorists. The 'Bourne' series is a good example of the genre.

Supernatural thriller - Supernatural thrillers are based around conflict between the protagonist and some form of creature with paranormal force or powers. It encorporates some aspects of basic horrors, but does not focus on the theme of fear. 'Torchwood' is a television series which fitted this genre.

Techno-thriller - Techno-thrillers typically focus on the military, but essentially just technology, which needs to be understood in detail in order to follow the narrative.

After researching these subgenres, my group and I held a discussion in which we chose to focus our thriller on being an action-thriller, as we intend to use signifiers such as chases, guns etc.

(list of thriller genres from www.wikipedia.org)

Thriller Openings- (Miller's Crossing, Layer Cake, Essex Boys)

In order to get more inspiration for my own thriller opening, I looked at the openings to a couple more typical thriller films.

Miller's Crossing

Firstly, I looked at the opening of the Coen Brother's 1990 thriller - Miller's Crossing. The film begins with diagetic typical noises of being in a bar, whilst we see, in a close up, a glass being filled up with ice and a, presumably, alcoholic drink. The camera then pans with the glass onto a table, whilst a man in a suit talks into the camera. We see classic american gangster brown mise en scene, aswell as slatted blinds. We are shown a man sat to the side, making him appear laid back and powerful. The camera starts as a long shot, and then, to add variety, uses a mid shot of the same area to zoom in and get closer to the action. Evidence of shallow focus is used through out the shot, which then changes to an effective worm's eye view of trees, which pans down and follows as we see a hat fall on to the grass, which is extremely simple yet effective. The hat connotes upper class masculinity, proper-ness, the era the film is set and manners, however the way in which it is blowing away suggests that these characteristics are forgotten and pushed aside throughout the film.

During the opening credits, the mise en scene is excellent. The brown suits that the male characters wear, teamed with the crystal glass tumblers and brown mise en scene all add up to create an excellent depiction of typical american gangster thrillers. The lighting and setting reflects the naturalistic, realistic effect that the director is trying to create for the audience. The camera work is stylish, which compliments the overall style of the piece.

Just within the opening sequence we are drawn into the narrative, and already establish some of the key themes the film intends to explore - gambling, deceit, loyalty and betrayal. From seeing this opening, I intend and hope to use a similar style of having simple yet effective shots, and also have learnt new, more interesting, camera techniques which will add variety.

Layer Cake

Another opening that I watched was Layer Cake. I found the opening to this film very effective and different to all the other thrillers I have watched and analysed so far. The film openings with a black screen, split down the middle, leaving the audience to guess what it is. As the camera pans down and zooms out, it is made clear it is the back of a van, which then explodes; creating drama for the audience, and hooking them into the action. I found this a brilliant way to start a film - beginning with action straight away. The shots following the explosion are slowed down in speed and show the chaos that has been created. The camera then pans and we enter a new scene of hippies smoking and taking drugs. The mise en scene is very stereotypical of hippies and the 60s and 70s, making it seem more realistic for us. The camera pans to follow a girl only wearing pants, showing the girl as a kind of femme fatale- sexual yet dangerous, and changes into a scene in a typical prison, where the same hippies can be seen as prisoners which icreases the continuity of the shots and helps the narrative structure. The camera pans again and we see a man walk down an aisle filled up of FCUK products, which change as he walks down the aisle, adding a modern, stylish feel to it. We follow this man, assuming he is the male protagonist who is also doing the voiceover which engages the audience and helps to build the narrative, and watch him buy something, and then walk in to an 'every day' looking house. Here we see him with 'Clark' weighing and boxing up cocaine, in a dark, dingy room which looks surprisingly clean and medical.

Throughout the piece, we see naturalistic setting, with suitable mise en scene in each setting, for example in the scene with Clark boxing up cocaine, there is a lot of white, clean, sterilised looking mise en scene, aswell as characters wearing surgical masks, which creates a very medical modern look to the film. We also see suitable lighting in each setting, with the prison being brightly lit showing how modern it is, whilst the hippies' room is dingy and smoky, giving us the impression that they are stereotypically smoking cannabis. The shots are extremely well done; showing the action using panning shots, whilst the voice-over first person male narrator is very successful in engaging the audience.

The whole sequence uses brilliant editing which makes it appear to be done all in one shot. The editing also gives the opening a very stylish feel, which i hope to capture in my opening. I also enjoyed the voiceover, and hope that I will also encorporate this into my production. I also liked the credits that the opening used, as they were inobtrusive as they were written in small writing and were incorporated into the action.

Essex Boys

I also watched the opening of the British thriller Essex Boys, which is based on a true story. The film begins in the pitch black, and then we hear the diegetic sound of a garage door opening. Light from outside the garage shines into the shot, creating chirascuro lighting, as a tribute to the old black and white film noirs. The garage creates a very claustrophobic atmosphere, making the audience feel trapped, and we see the male protagonist pushing aside spiderwebs, which are a very gothic element, yet not out of the ordinary. We follow the protagonist get into the car using close ups, long shots and panning and tracking, and view him driving out of the garage as if we are the passenger, making the audience feel engaged with the action and helping us relate more to the protagonist. Throughout the sequence there is an internal monologue in an essex accent which sets the scene. We follow the protagonist in his car, and see the thriller convention of rain lashed streets, and also a lack of colour through out the scene, which makes it appear to be noir monochrome lighting - another tribute to the classic film noirs of the 1940s. We continue with a point of view shot and enter a tunnel, another enclosed claustrophobic space which appears like the barrell of a gun, giving an indication of the kind of ideas the director is planning to portray throughout the film.

I really enjoyed this opening, because I thought it appeared very realistic, and was easy to engage with. I felt that many people would be able to relate to the protagonist, and also would like to see common, everyday settings. I thought that the chirascuro lighting and claustrophobic settings were highly effective, and would like to use these ideas in my own production.

Analysis of film posters

Film posters have been used in the advertising of films since the earliest public exhibitions of films, and since then they have been fighting for our attention. Film posters have to be noticable enough to catch our attention, if only for a split second. They need to grab our attention, then hold it long enough for us to digest the information they contain. Graphic designers are constantly working to make the most noticable, most eye catching, and most attention holding poster. Film posters can be seen wherever we are - buses, magazines, billboards etc, it is hard to escape them, but the majority may not even register with us, despite the amount of money spent on them. Thousands and millions of pounds are spent on film posters, with, according to the OCR Media Studies textbook, 50% of the money pumped into a production going on promotion rather what is seen on screen.

I am going to look at 2 different film posters advertising thrillers and analyse them in order to discover how different companies advertise and attract their target audience.

Firstly I chose to analyse the film poster for the 1960 Hitchcock classic - 'Psycho'.

The poster is quite attention grabbing; only using a few colours - blue, yellow, red, black and white makes it stand out and draws attention. Obviously these colours have been picked for a reason, as red connotes feelings of anger, danger, passion, masculinity and power. In this poster the colour red is used to tint the males, which gives a suggestion of the image that Hitchcock will put across to his audience in the film. The graphic designer has chosen to tint the female and title in the poster as yellow, which connotes feminity, dishonesty, cowardice, hope and deceit, which straight away suggests how Hitchcock intends to portray females and his film in general to the public. It should also be noted that studies have shown that a yellow and red cloth enrages animals, which can suggest even further the ideas that will be shown in the movie. The blue background suggests truth, peace, harmony, strength, and calmness. It is obvious here that the film will cover up these feelings, just like in the poster, and replace them with much more negative feelings - those that red and yellow connote.

The characters shown in the poster are also used to attract audiences to the film. This is clear because the woman is shown as a clear femme fatale; wearing only underwear, but still looking attractive to the male audience. On the other hand, a male character is also shown without a top on, which is used to attract the female audience, and also to act as a role model and someone to connect to for the males.

The layout of the poster uses photos which look roughly cut and stuck down, which can reflect the uncertain and confusing narrative viewers of the film will be faced with. This layout also uses diagonals to attract and draw attention to the poster, and the point of the picture of the woman points downwards, highlighting the director's name.

The writing used on the poster is large, white, thin font, which gives the impression that it is modern (which it would have been at the time the posters would have been used). The font used for the title, 'Pyscho', is in capitals, is bold and yellow in colour, and looks as if it has been ripped and then stuck back together. This draws alot of attention to the title, and helps it to stick in our minds.

The other film poster I am going to analyse is the poster used to advertise "Wanted", a British thriller directed by Bekmambetov.

Straight away the audience's eyes are drawn in towards the guns, which are highlighted by the lighting, and symbolise death, anger, power and masculinity. The guns look modern which also gives us an idea of the kind of era the film will be set in. It should also be noted that, in the foreground, it is a woman who is holding the gun, which, especially with her tattoos, make her seem alot more masculine but still enables her to have the danger aspect which makes her similar to femme fatales; typical of thriller films. Looking closely at her tattoos, we can see "XIII", roman numerals for 13, which can be linked to North American gang culture, where members of the white supremacist gang, the Aryan Circle, use "13" as their symbol. The fact that she has the word "tear" written boldly on her arm could also link back to American gang culture, where tears are drawn to represent the number of people a person has killed. The word also obviously makes links to unhappiness. Her other tattoo is of different patterns of the numbers 0 and 1, which suggests it could be written in binary code, again linking to the modernism that will be expected to be seen in this film.

Despite seeing the woman in the foreground looking maculine and strong in her powerful stance, we can see behind her a man holding two guns; one pointing towards her and one pointing in our direction. This suggests that the man still holds more power than the female character. The background for the two characters is flat land below, making them seem superior to everyone below on the ground. It also makes them seem stronger and kind of Godly ; looking down on the world, with laws not applying to them. The whole poster is tinted with yellow, meaning the two colours are primarily yellow and black. The yellow aspect connotes hazards, intelligence, dishonesty, greed deceit and death. The colour yellow also used to be used to symbolise the devil. The black within the photo adds feelings of modernity, power, mystery, evil, death, unhappiness and unarchism, which can be reflected in the ideas that the poster suggests.

The font used to advertise the film is big, bold, sans serif, and a similar shade of yellow to the colour used on the poster. It easily grabs attention and the word, "wanted", sticks in our minds. The only other script used on the poster is in the same style as the title and simply tells us the date the film comes out.

By looking at these two film posters I have learnt how graphic designers intend to catch our attention, and how much these posters really tell the audience about the films.

Conventions of Thriller

During the Media course so far, I have learnt about the thriller genre and key conventions of this genre. I have learnt about these conventions by watching different thriller films and have used them to help create an effective opening of a thriller for my coursework.

One key signifier of a thriller is to have a narrative based on crime. One example of this is in the film noir thriller, "Third Man". This has crime as the basis of the narrative as we discover that Lime, who leads the authorities to believe he is dead, has been effectively murdering children as he has been diluting the penicillin which they have been prescribed. We have encorporated this convention of the genre into our thriller, as our plot is based around a drugs scam.

Another convention of thrillers is that the resolutions to the crime are often ambiguous. There is a clear example of this at the end of 'Chinatown' as Gittes, the detective is arrested, whilst we see Katherine being taken away by Cross, meaning we never know if Cross gets away with his crimes. In our thriller plot synopsis we intend the film in a similar way, with the main protagonist being shot, and the audience never knowing if anyone ends up paying for their crimes.

Thrillers also include the aspect of the protagonist being disempowered and drawn into a web of intrigue by the antagonist. This is key in "Third Man" as Holly Martens, the protagonist, is obviously drawn into the intrigue and is completely out of his depth. If we were to make our entire thriller, this would be vital in our plot as we see the protagonist getting caught up in a downwards spiral of drugs and gangs.

In thrillers, ther protagonist is often flawed, for example in "Pulp Fiction" Jules, a hitman with a brutal past, redeems himself by turning to the fundamentalist church. The flawed protagonist is often presented in thrillers as a male with an obvious drinking and/or smoking habit. The protagonist within our thriller will be flawed as he works in the underworld of the city - in the drugs trade.

Extraordinary events in ordinary situations often occur in thrillers, with an example of this being in "No Country for Old Men" when Moss, who is out hunting, stumbles upon several cars full of dead bodies and $2 million. Our thriller synopsis doesn't really include this convention, although the fact that small-time drug dealers get lucky and end up in control of a big drugs deal could be classed as this.

Themes of voyeurism are also very common within thrillers, as the majority include several scenes of focusing souly on a scene or character, giving the impression that we are watching the action. A good example of this is in the opening of "Psycho". Our opening aims to include this theme within it.

Another convention of thrillers is the fact that elements of mise-en-scene reflect the protagonist’s emotional state. This is clear in a scene from "Vertigo" as the spiralling staircase represents Scottie's state of mind. The dark rainy stylised streets shown within "Sin City" connotes corruption in the characters, aswell as reflecting their emotions. We hope that our thriller opening we create can show examples of this, by using staircases and dark settings to show the characters' emotional states.

Thrillers often begin and / or end with the protagonist in peril. This is clear within the television series "Spooks" where the characters are often endangered and agents are often killed. In our thriller, we begin with a chase scene involving the protagonist, and end with a gun pointed to the protagonists' head.

Another feature of thrillers which we have chosen to encorporate is the presence of femme fatales, glamorous, seductive and dangerous women. "Double Indemnity" is a good example of this, as is "The Black Dahlia".

We also hope to embrace the convention of blur between good and evil in making our thriller, and think that our narrative will easily be able to show this. A good example of this is "Pulp Fiction" with the protagonists killing multiple people, even an innocent bystander, yet saving and stopping a shooting at the end of the narrative.

Twisting and convoluted narratives are also a convention of thriller genre films. The narrative within "Chinatown" reflects this, as does the majority of thrillers, including the good example "Double Indemnity" in which the narrative loops round, and features a lot of flash backs, which reflect the the character's state of mind and the twisted morality the protagonist has.

Film Noirs

Last week I watched a film noir - 'Double Indemnity', which i thought was brilliant. It included many thriller signifiers, and the black and white filming added to the dark mise en scene and plot, and helped to create striking images as well as chirascuro lighting.

I found the opening of 'Double Indemnity' excellent, with just a silhouette of a man struggling to walk on crutches getting closer and closer to this screen. The image stuck in my mind, wondering what significance the crutches had to the film, and adding to the mystery i felt. This mystery continued as the credits stopped, and the camera used a mixture of pans and mid and long shots to follow a dark shadowy figure in a long coat and hat through the street and into a building. The audience is left wondering who the man is, where he is going and why, and suddenly light appears and he sits down, to begin narrating in a room which looks like an old fashioned office with venetian blinds, lots of brown wooden furniture and old telephone to indicate the era.

The mise en scene used in the opening of this is realistic and contemporary of the era in which it is set. There are venetian blinds which create a drammatic effect as light comes pouring through in strips, reminding the audience of bars in prison cells; instantly giving the suggestion that crime will play a large part in the narrative. The streets are very dark, with only light from street lights, giving the impression that he is trapped in darkness and is isolated, alone. His outfit - a long coat and a hat, removes his identity, and surrounds his character with mystery and intrigue, drawing the audience in to find out who he is. The lighting is naturalistic, especially as the director uses lighting from realistic props - street lamps and windows.

The camera work is very effective, as there is a variety in use of close ups, long shots, as well as varying use of pans, tracking and zooms. This helps to keep the audience entertained and engaged. Due to the time that the film was made, editing does not play a large role in the piece, which I think makes it effective as it is simple and not over-edited.

The film is narrated by the male protagonist as a confession of his crime, and uses flash backs to tell and show the twisting turning narrative , before cutting back to the protagonist in the office as he is found, post confession, and we are left on a cliff hanger of what happens to him in the end - if he dies, if he is sent to prison, or if he is allowed to walk free.

Typically of film noirs, 'Double Indemnity''s story is based around a hard hearted diillusioned male character and, very strongly in 'Double Indemnity', a beautiful promiscuous amoral femme fatale. As the femme fatale is murdered by the protagonist in this film, it fits in well with the view that this was typical because women during the war were given new independence and better job earning power, they would suffer on the screen of these 1940s films. 'Double Indemnity' also includes the key features of shadowy images, and anti hero, themes of manipulation, crime, murder, deperation, and moral corruption. This film, among other typical noirs focus on the inhumane and dark side of life and love.

More on Thrillers - (Sin City and Silence of the Lambs)

Recently I have been watching more thrillers in order to gain more ideas for my own thriller opening. Throughtout the past month or so, I have watched 'Silence of the Lambs', Hitchcock's 'The Birds', 'Sin City', 'Chinatown', and we are just beginning to watch 'Layercake' directed by Matthew Vaugn in lessons.

Out of these films, I have most enjoyed and been influenced by 'Silence of the Lambs' and 'Sin City', as these have many thriller signifiers, eg claustrophobia and spiralling narratives of mystery and intrigue.

Sin City
I found the opening of 'Sin City' brilliant, as the mystery is straight away highlighted to the audience. The opening started in an urban city on the balcony of a sky scraper, straight away adding danger and loneliness due to the height of the building. The audience are straight away drawn to a seductive femma fatale in a red dress, which connotes feelings of both danger and passion, and the camera pans in whilst an internal monologue, which adds a more personal feel for the audience which helps to engage, is spoken over the top of slow jazz and diegetic sirens, showing that crime is rife in the city. We can see that despite the urban setting, it is very bleak, and the darkness and rain are very styalised in order to emphasise the thriller signifiers.

The mise en scene in the piece has been edited to be black and white, like the influential thrillers from the 1940s. The only mise en scene which is coloured is the femme fatale's red lips and red dress, which emphasises the idea that she is dangerous yet sexual. The other mise en scene and settings which are used in the sequence are modern, and plain, in order to make the gun, the red colour of the woman, the chirascuro lighting and the flash of green we see in the femme fatale's eyes stand out and make an impact on the viewer.

The post-production editing to make everything black and white apart from the woman's dress, lips, and for a split second, eyes, is very effective, and although this would be hard to do in my own opening, i think would be excellent. I also really like the internal monologue over the top, although i think that this would be hard to be effective and sound good if I were to include this. As the man and woman kiss, the picture changes effect and becomes almost monochromatic. We see the woman representing sexuality, vunerability and danger, whilst the man creates security; typical for thrillers. The opening ends as the man shoots the woman. The fact that we dont know who these people are, or what they are doing simply adds to the thriller signifier of mystery, and drawing the audience in.

Silence of the Lambs
I found the idea of having a woman detective and protaganist in 'Silence of the Lambs' very interesting and effective, although obviously it removed two key ideas of thrillers - the male protaganist and the femme fatale. Although I like this different idea, i don't think it shows thriller signifiers aswell. However, my favourite shot from this film was Hannibal Lector locked up in a small cell inside a large room. Both of these barriers made a feeling of claustrophobia; necessary in thrillers, and the metal bars surrounding Dr Lector increased the feelings of crime. Later, we see Hannibal Lector kill two people in here, and then mysteriously vanish, to be found hiding on top of the lift. The shot down from the lift shaft onto Lector on top of the lift uses ideas of enclosed spaces, having no way out, and a high angle shot, which makes us undermine Lector, as we start to believe he will get caught.

When I make my own thriller opening, I hope to include lots of enclosed spaces to create claustrophobia, and also open with something exciting in order to appeal to the audience. I hope to use fitting non-diagetic music, perhaps slow jazz like in 'Sin City', to suggest sleaziness, the underbelly of the city and to pay tribute to the film noir movies that this music was common in. I am tempted to maybe audition some people to see if their voices suit an internal monologue, although I'm not sure how effective that will be. Hopefully I will also be able to use some good post-production editing to make the opening interesting, and will perhaps use fast-paced editing, like the editing used in the robbery at the begining of 'Layer Cake', as this gives the film a fast paced, action kind of feel.

Exploring narrative in Chinatown

In film, narrative is the story and plot that the film shows and also the way that it is told. A simple narrative structure is – beginning, event, climax, and resolution. Although a lot of successful films use this structure, thrillers normally have a more complex and twisting narrative to appeal more to the audience.

The complex narratives within thriller films differ. Some use twists within the plot in order to engage the viewer, whilst others use cliff-hangers to leave the audience on edge and thinking about the film. Thrillers are also often presented from the point of view of a character within the film which presents things in a different light, as this is normally from the male protagonist’s point of view.

Thriller narratives all have some key features. These include mystery, romance, secrets, suspense, and mistrust. The narrative also often focuses on good vs. evil, and a sense of crime and corruption.

Chinatown is a good example of a thriller and thriller narrative. The film is shown from the perspective of JJ Gittes, the male protagonist in the film, which means the audience sees things from his perspective, and therefore viewing him as the ‘good guy’. Like with a lot of thrillers, the protagonist has flaws – he drinks and he smokes, which is a key thriller signifier.

The narrative of Chinatown is full of twists, turns and spirals. Examples of twists within the narrative include – the woman pretending to be Evelyn Mulwray in order to spy on Hollis Mulwray, and Katherine being both Evelyn’s daughter and sister. These twists add to the mystery within the narrative, which is a key feature within thrillers. Mystery is a key factor in the narrative of Chinatown, as the entire plot is built around the mystery regarding the intricate water scandal, the murder of Mulwray, and less important mysteries, such as the mysterious phonecall to Evelyn. These mysteries also tie in with the thriller signifier of crime and corruption, with the murder being a prime example of this within the film. Seeing as JJ Gittes is a private investigator, these key thriller narrative examples are inevitable, as is the theme of chases and pursuits. There are two key pursuits within Chinatown; the first is when JJ Gittes breaks into land to try and investigate the water situations, and the second is right at the end of the film, where Evelyn and Katherine are trying to escape, but the police open fire and Evelyn is killed. Another element to the narrative is romance which is often seen in thrillers, Chinatown included. The romance is, predictably, between the male protagonist, JJ Gittes, and the femme fatale, Evelyn Mulwray.

Overall, the narrative within Chinatown features in a lot of other thriller films, with the twisting turning narrative being the crucial element. Narrative is extremely important in films of the thriller genre because it presents things in certain ways to the audience via the point of view of one of the characters. The twists in the narrative, along with the mystery and corruption keep the audience interested and always intrigued as to what is happening next.

first thoughts on thrillers (No Country for Old Men and Vertigo)

Over the past few weeks, i have been looking at the thriller genre in media lessons and at home. So far, i have enjoyed watching thriller films, despite them being a genre i have never looked into before, and am starting to understand more of the thriller signifiers; such as spiralling staircases to mirror the spiralling narrative, themes of corruption and mystery, and flawed heroes.

Up to now, I have watched films including 'No Country For Old Men', 'The Silence Of The Lambs', 'The Black Dahlia', 'China Town' and Hitchcock's 'Vertigo' and 'Psycho'. I have noted many similarities within the films which are definate thriller signifiers, including the twisting narratives, use of bleak and urban settings, femme fatales, corruption, and rain and shadows. I have noticed that there is also alot of enclosed spaces and claustrophobia included.

In 'No Country For Old Men' I found the setting highly effective for the thriller genre. Although it was set in a bleak desert, claustrophobia was created in the emptiness and loneliness of it. The dark clouds add a mysterious atmosphere, and the dark silhouette of the mountains contrasts with the bright light in the centre of the shot, which draws attention to the man and his car, highlighting how alone he is, adding to the tension and mystery. ( image from: http://thecia.com.au/reviews/n/images/no-country-for-old-men-0.jpg)

Another thriller film I found very effective was 'Vertigo', directed by Hitchcock. The film begins with a spiral over a black background, which straight away indicates the film will include a spiralling thriller narrative. This shot shows the signifier of wide open space, creating the idea of loneliness, and also shows a hero, and a femme fatale. Not only this, but the sky is full of clouds, creating darker lighting.

From watching these thrillers i am trying to get some inspiration for my own opening of a thriller. So far, I'm thinking of using urban settings, typical of thrillers, and starting with a chase or at least alot of action, like the beginning of 'Vertigo'. I think i may try and get in the idea of shots down a spiral staircase like in 'Vertigo' to mirror the twisting narrative and all the layers of it.