Analysis of a Thriller Opening Sequence Se7en

7/23/2019 Analysis of a Thriller Opening Sequence Se7en

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Analysis of a Thriller Opening Sequence: Se7en.

Se7en is an efective thriller opening because it achieves a grim,

menacing atmosphere whilst signiying small details relevant to the plot o the

movie. A combination o extreme close ups, an atmospheric soundtrack, specialefects and transitions create a really sinister and eerie introduction to the

movie.

The maority o titles shown within the opening se!uence are in a handwritten

style ont. This ont style is incredibly efective as it is almost like it has been

written by the killer himsel and it links to the narrative o the story since it is

later discovered that the killer has created many books like the one he is

creating in the opening se!uence. The efects on the typography continue to

create a sinister eeling in the way the ont glitches. "t almost re#ects the

insanity o the killer as he has intention to do insane and malevolent thoughts.

$ne small attention to detail is that the only text that is in this handwritten ontare the names o the cast and crew involved in the creation o the %lm. &hich is

really creative as it is almost as i the killer has written them into his book. The

rest o the text is not written in a handwritten ont, but in a more standard ont.

The camera is in a permanent extreme close up o everything that the killer is

doing with his hands. This is useul as it makes everything that he is placing into

his book clear to the viewer so they can understand the narrative and grasp what

each item is so that it is more signi%cant later in the %lm. The special efects

used in the se!uence act like an old %lm reel. The screen glitches and shakes like

its being recorded on an old, damaged camera. This could've been done so that,

like the glitching text, it enorces the eeling o malevolence towards the killer.

(ut also it resembles an old ashioned camera that could've been used to record

evidence ootage and %ts in with the time o the movie. Throughout the

se!uence, there is a constant, low and deep pitched song playing throughout

which is interrupted by high pitched sounds such as black noise rom a radio or

mu)ed screams. The song, %rst o all, creates a very suspenseul mood as it is

calm but obvious that it is accompanying something bad. "t eels suspenseul

and, having it accompany the killer as he creates the book, eels uncomortable

as it creates an almost *calm beore the storm' efect. The white noise radio

sounds urther create discomort as they happen so suddenly without any

transition in. They begin high pitched beore they eventually wavers in pitch and

so at %rst, it sounds like a victim screaming. This is creative as when someonebecomes scared, sudden noises are oten associated with bad things like this so

at %rst it startles the viewer until they realise what the noise actually is. This

helps to build up suspense. There is also the sound o mu)ed screaming heard

within the se!uence, which links to the narrative o the %lm. "t's almost as i the

killer is remembering what he has done to people as he creates his book and

remembers their screams and so it is mu)ed because it is playing in his mind.

$r alternatively, it could highlight how the victims were killed without any

detection because the killer gets rid o his %ngerprints so that he cannot be

traced. And so the victims are still crying out or help because the case o their

death hasn't been resolved. This could relate to the religious theming throughout

the %lm, seeing as the killer claims he does this because +od told him to, as



+hosts are souls o people who still have things to resolve about their lie and

cannot go to the aterlie until it is sorted.

The title se!uence helps to establish what kind o genre %lm the viewer is about

to watch and what the narrative might be about. The se!uence shows us

someone careully creating a book that they are %lling with pictures o deormed,

morgue style photos o bodies and they are writing in it. &e see several sharp

instruments that they use to help create their *masterpiece' and they appear

!uite menacingly. &e are also shown a shot o the killer opening up a raor and

appearing to brush it against their %ngers. -ach o these points are signi%cant to

the plot o the story. The deormed bodies and the artistic way that this book is

being created links to how the killer is killing of people to represent the seven

deadly sins. The book he is actually creating is also signi%cant, as it is one o

many. And the shot o the raor on his %ngers relates to how the killer cuts of his

%nger prints so that he cannot be traced by the police. (ut these shots also

create !uestions, such as why is he killing of innocent lives in the %rst place,

what in#uenced him to do so, what is his identity because it is never onceshown throughout the se!uence /, are the people shown within the se!uence his

past victims and so on. The se!uence engages interest by leaving lots o

!uestions in the viewer's mind, making them want to watch the %lm to have

them answered.

The %rst shot shows an empty book being prepped or contents to be added. "t

is an extreme close up shot which blurs out the pages o the book but still shows

that they are blank. &e can also see the thickness o the book and gather that

the whole book is going to be %lled by whatever this person wants to put in to it.

This creates many immediate !uestions, the most obvious one being what is

this person going to put into this book0 This shot is signi%cant because it implies

that this is a re!uent routine that the killer goes through as he has booksprepared to be %lled with whatever he wishes them to. This is also a signi%cant

prop to the storyline. The shadowing within the pages o the book, also help to

make the production company title stand out more so against the pale pages o

the book.

This is another extreme close up shot but now o the killer's victims. &e can

notice rom this shot that the skin on his %ngers are rough and appear as i they

have been picked at. The blade that he is holding and rubbing against his %ngers

signiy that he is in act, taking the skin of his %ngers. This is relevent to the

storyline as it links to how he takes of his %ngerprints to become hidden rom

the police. "t is efective because it makes the viewer eel uncomortable. "tmakes them think about what it could eel like i they did it to themselves and

make them eel ill or discomorted rom the thought o it.

The title o the %lm, Se7en, is unsually composited in this shot. The title would've

been expected to be in the cetner o the composition as it is the most important

part o the se!uence since it is the title o the whole movie, however it is

positioned to the top right o the screen. This could've been done to disorientate

the viewer or to bring in the title o the %lm without diminishing the suspenseul

and atmospheric mood o the opening. The ont itsel appears rustic and

damaged, as i it is rotting away on something old. This creates a grunge theme

which is typical o a horror ont, so it creates a eeling o eerieness anddiscomort.



Another extreme closeup shows the killer writing in his book. The name *1ichard

1oundtree' is the same ont that all the other names are typed in, which is this

handwritten style text. This is really creative because it is as i the killer has

written the names himsel. &hat else is creative about this speci%c shot is the

use o ghosting. The ghosting obsucures the text that is already written by the

killer so that the viewer cannot read what is there. This starts to create !uestionsabout what the killer is up to and what he is recording in his book. Also, the way

the ghosting is used on his hands and the pen, creates two diferent implications.

"t %rstly implies that this is perhaps something he spends a lot o time doing,

wanting to put a lot o detail and efort into it. This could've been done so that it

signi%es the insanity and how mental the killer is because he is so obssessed

with making an masterpiece rom his murders. Seondly, it implies that this is

something he does oten and that he is almost doing it subconciosuly because it

is something that he has done re!uently beore. -ither way, it creates

uneasyness in the viewer and the idea that this killer is completely insane and

despicable.

2inally, another extreme close up shot but this time o a blurred out photo.

3reviously, all the other shots had been !uite monochrome. So the sudden

redness is !uite startling and it really stands out within the se!uence. "t is

implied that the killer is in a red room, processing photos that he has possibly

taken himsel o his victims. This uther suggests the idea that he puts time and

efort into his murders and implies that he takes a sense o pride in his work. (ut

also, the colour red could've been used to symbolise blood and evil. This links

into the genre and theme o the movie !uite well since it is ull o murder and

and insane killer. The photo is heavily blurred but it is evident that it is a dead

body. The blurred efect creates the implication that the body o the victim must

be so badly mutilated that it is too graphic to be shown. So this signi%es thebrutallity o the killer and what he does to his victims.

$verall, the opening to Se7en is very efective as it ollows typical thriller

conventions. "t builds up a narrative or the movie and uses suspenseul music so

that the viewer can grasp the genre and theming o the movie. "t uses S24 and

low key lighting to create a sense o mystery and obscure possibly signi%cant

storyline props so that it creates !uestions in the viewer's mind and engages

them into the %lm. 2inally, close up shots and glitching transitions and text all

come together to create a sense o instanty and make the viewer eel discomort

whilst always maintaining a sense o realisim and making them believe that this

could be something that happens in real lie and that they could be a victim o.

Documents

Analysis of a Thriller Opening Sequence Se7en