Through my lens: Film Opening Research

Study 3 films

For my project I have decided to make a psychological horror/fantasy film opening. All different movies take a different approach in their openings. Three films that all open in different ways are, "Ring", "Split". and "1408".

The "Ring" is a film about a video tape that mysteriously leads people to dying exactly 7 days after they watch it. This opening focuses on getting to know the characters. There is 2 girls in a room on a rainy night, one of the girls is blonde and in a white top while the other girl has black hair and is in a black top. You can tell that the girls are comfortable around each other by the way they were sitting. The coloring is very dark and gloomy. The audience gets to know the characters by their dialogue. As they are watching TV they turn it off and the girl with black hair starts talking about the rumor that if you watch a specific video tape, you die. When the girl is telling this story the camera slowly zooms in on her face emphasizing that she does not look scared or uncomfortable. The blonde girl who is hearing this story completely changes her expressions from comfortable to then horrified, she says that last weekend she watched the film. The genre of this film really shines through because of many aspects, one is that when the opening starts it shows the house in night time which is made out of wood and very dark. You can see a tree that is highlighted which is very lifeless and has no leaves, this could possibly symbolize death throughout the film. Only one of the room lights are on showing that these girls are home alone which connects to the horror genre. Right away as soon as the scene cuts to inside of the girls room you can notice the back round, the one yellow lamp lighting up the room, the window thats curtains are open and you can see outside, and the door being open. This adds to the eeriness of the film by making it feel like they could be in danger.

The film "Split" is about a man with many different personalities that kidnaps three teenage girls. The first two minutes, of this film opening really focus on developing the characters. It starts off at a girls birthday party where this other girl is being left out. Then after the party is over the girl who was left out does not have a way home, while she is calling her parents the birthday girl is talking to her other friend and her dad explaining how this girl is very different and has a past of running away from home. The girl who is left outs character is being developed by her body language, expressions, and dialogue. Her body language is very uncomfortable and her expressions are very emotional and she seems that she feels very out of place. Her voice is very soft and she doesn't want to bother anyone so she says she will take the bus home. The birthday girls dad is shown as very nice and welcoming, he encourages that he takes the girl home. The birthday girl is developed as someone with a big personality. She talks about how she should not have invited the girl but she felt that she needed to but eventually she tells the girl she can take her home. This shows that she may not be the nicest but she can be welcoming. The birthday girls friends character does not really go into depth, all the audience can really tell is that she is most likely her best friend. As the girls and the dad leave the party and get to the car the girls get inside of the car and the dad is packing the trunk. Here is when the mood shifts to scary. You can start seeing the camera slowly getting closer to the dad with slow footsteps that are now heard. The music throughout this entire opening keeps an eerie, suspenseful feeling.

The film "1408" is about a well known author that is very into paranormal activity where he then stays in a haunted inn and stays in a haunted room. The opening of this film really focuses on displaying the genre as horror. It starts of with an empty road on a dark and stormy night where there is one car driving by with creepy music playing in the background. The car then stops and there is one man alone in the car with what it sounds like screaming in the background. It shows that the man is leaving a county which could show that he is in an usual, far place from home. The man still being the only one on the streets turns around and drives to an inn. The man runs through the rain where you can see it seems like an isolated location and he is still the only person in sight. When he walks into the inn he is greeted by the couple that works there that they have been waiting on him. They then talk to him about the inns haunted history and he asks for the most haunted room. The feel of the inn is very dull and lifeless. There is no other human activity but the couple and the man which adds a sense of isolation and fear.