Skyfall Opening Scene Analysis

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4gdhsVKTcs

In this opening sequence we see a lot of gender representation, most notably in the first few seconds we see Bond fall into the water being pulled down into the darkness by a woman's hand, in this shot we see that the hand is much bigger than him. This is a representation that classically in the bond films although the men have the power they are easily controlled by women and their desires. It suggests that women are the corruption of men, this is shown by him being taken into darkness. Although you could argue that since he is drowning the female hand is actually his saviour from death.

In this shot we see cardboard cut-outs of Daniel Craig in the style of a target, the target has a wound on his right shoulder which is significant to the film as it is the symbol of his struggle for ideal health and is represented through  a new start for Bond. It is interesting that they show him as a target since this is how the villain considerer the character. The target comes towards the viewers making the sequence more interesting, it keeps their minds active as to what is going on as throughout the opening credits each mini scene is foreshadowing future events in the movie. The shot zooms in to the wound on the target, this is like we are seeing inside the hero's story. In the sequence the protagonist (James Bond) is dressed formally in a full suit and tie suggesting that this character has the capacity to make important decisions. In this case the fact that he is wearing a black suit (tuxedo) is typical for the hero (meaning Bond) to wear as he does in most films, it is the stereotypical looks for his character, the black for the protagonist is bold and dominant showing death to his enemies as well as confidence in his decisions. 

Dark and gloomy colours used in this shot are giving a sense that it in the past or a nightmare. The use of a dark blue connotates sadness and upset. The use of knives coming down from the sky shows the masculinity of the trilogy with each knife representing a past James Bond character which we then the shot pan over and zoom in where CGI is used to transform the daggers in to gravestones. These weapons are also naturally symbolic of betrayal deceit. 

The backing track to the scene is non-diegetic characters in the film wouldn't hear it, it is purely for audience reaction. The sound is the Skyfall theme song made especially for the film, the track acts as a narrator to what is going on the the film. This music gets much more intense as the credits come to an end awaking the audience for the rest of the film, it makes them want to see more of the film as it is immediately left on a cliffhanger. Additionally the increase in volume and intensity of the soundtrack suggests a disturbance in equilibrium  since both the opening credits and music is representative

in foreshadowing the events in the film. Visually this is through featuring locations of the film in the opening sequence for example the Chinese dragon foreshadowing his journey to China as well as a scene of a mansion with two deer's outside, this is foreshadowing the finale in the mansion where he was born 'Skyfall'.On the initially seeing this it would not become clear to viewers that these are the locations they visit however it then makes it seem recognisable later on in the film. 

Later in the title sequence we see Bond in an abandoned warehouse shooting down his own shadow, this is symbolic of his mental state throughout the film, fragmented and unsure of what it true. This on the other hands could be interpreted as him shooting his former self, something which he has to do in the film in order to become stronger and be 'reborn' as a better secret agent. 

The use of props is significant also to this film, one example being, the pistol with a silencer is a representation of Bond himself, these weapons add to the masculine theme of the feature.

The use of colour changes towards the end of the credits, this is going with the idea of tension mounting in the storyline. The colour goes from a dark blue to a red symbolising danger, aggression as well as passion. These are all things that fans and typical viewers would expect from a James Bond film. 

The fact that all these scenes are dark and blurred goes back to the idea of them being passed demons that have come back which Bond needs to deal with.

Godzilla (2014) Opening Credits Analysis

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBQJjqnG1iI

In this thriller-opening scene for Godzilla it is unusual to conventional thriller credits. It shows what the movie is about however they way it does this is what makes it different. Instead of having actual people from the movie feature in the opening credits or in some cases CGI/ animation to make a scene this film used old styled footage and ancient anatomical drawings. By doing this it gives an ancient nostalgic feel to the film it is like the drawing are from a legend, drawings of what people thought they say thousands of years ago. This relates to the idea of it being Godzilla which has remained asleep underneath Tokyo for years. It also flicks through book titles, one of which is Charles Darwin's Origin of Species which of course those familiar with the film know that it is a mutant creature which would be unexplainable in regards to such as book. It also features news articles about submarines going missing and civil unrest all things which the creature causes. It is unusual that in this thriller the villain is actually a monster rather than a person or organisation, this for propp's character types could be considered unconventional. The hero's in this scene appear to be the military who are fighting to combat the 'villain' and save the city, which arguably could be regarded as the princess as the reward of it is the city being saved (as well as everyone living there).

Most shots used in this feature are standard mid-shots of the drawings however it also uses a birds-eye-view-shot to show the creature emerging from the ocean, this is used to give the viewers perspective of the size of Godzilla. Showing how everything else is insignificant compared to the enormity of the beast. By only showing the tail of the monster it adds mystery as it allows people to speculate as to what the creature actually is. It is also interesting looking at the camera style they have used in the scene all shots containing 'real' video is designed and edited to look as though it is old footage (like original setting of the film). You could say that the footage is similar to 'classified files' as though we as the viewers are seeing secret documentation. 

This is a long shot used to show all of the weapon (bomb). It is again used to show the entire thing, at first glance it is a nuclear weapon however it features a logo of Godzilla with a red cross around suggesting that it is specifically for defeating the monster. The colour of the bomb symbolises energy, caution, warning and most significantly decay which links in with the idea of it being a nuclear weapon.

The music in the opening credits of Godzilla start off so quiet it is hard to hear any background noise what so ever. Although as you go through the sequence the music intensifies and becomes more dramatic with loud noises and towards the end of the sequence we hear a man sounding a countdown (relating to the bomb) then we see the bomb being deployed, hearing it donate and go into the surroundings it then goes silent (with a slight ringing) and fades to white.

Jack Reacher - Opening Scene Analysis (Micro/ Macro)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SngDiZlqqKc 
(no sound on video)

In the beginning of this opening scene there is a build-up of tension, featuring around the assumed villain character, this shows that there is an imbalance of power between the criminals the the police, they are inferior and unaware of what is going on. This scene is accurate to a real life situation of terrorism in the film in which authorities have a lack of control over these situations since they don't know when such events will occur. The theme of the character could also reflect on recent events (current affairs) in America to which has had a large

debate on issues of gun control in schools, it is presumably gun enthusiast who is the sniper (possibly an assassin)  as it is clear he is a professional, this would conform to the idea of the man being a white American down to the setting (being able to freely have a gun). From the gunmen's stance with his sniper rested on the wall combined with the long procedure of setting up the weapon suggests that he is possibly ex-military getting his own back on the government as a protest against gun control and the rights to have guns in the US. We can also see that

from the first screenshot that the villain character is wearing white gloves, this again conforms to the idea that he is a professional assassins or even hit man either for personal revenge or as part of a larger organization. It is stereotypical for the villain character to be male in such crime thrillers. He is conventional in the sense that he is close shaven head and is wearing a jacket and jeans attempting to symbolize either a stereotype or to make them blend in. Although it is more common nowadays to have a female character to be a villain than it used to be they tend to have more stratified ways of murdering their victims (such as poisons) this scene in Jack Reacher with the character and weaponry suggests it is going to be a more masculine orientated movie. You could argue however that the character isn't conventional villain in the sense that he is not wearing the conventional colours of that styled character rather than wearing black he is wearing brown suggests practicality and intensity. It is also interesting to not that the (assumed) bankers/ politicians are all wearing black, since we are seeing things from the hit man's perspective this could suggest that he is seeing them as the evil beings rather than himself.

In this camera shot we get a clear shot down the gun scope at the businessman right in-between his cross hairs of the target, it is if you like a POV shot of the gun itself. This is a brief shot before a jolt in camera angle and the man is next dead on the bench, it creates heightened tension and in the build up makes the audience anxious at to who the villain is after. Through use of this camera shot it adds tension to the scene as we are seeing what he sees. It leaves the audience trying to guess who or what he is aiming for, with this shot the man goes over a few people again continuing the tension build up. The tension at it's highest when he then finds his target  this is the clear beginning of disequilibrium in the films narrative the man depicted with the gun is conventionally made to look like the villain as in this instance the person with the gun is set out to murder rather than protect.

The shot of the gunman's watch (brief as it is) suggests that he is organized and is waiting for a particular moment to strike, maybe when the police force is at its weakest or more likely when the target he is after is on a lunch break. The watch itself symbolizes time passing in the opening sequence intensifies the time it takes to get the targets, it makes the audience question what is going on, who it is the man is after, will the police stop him in time etc.