Opening Scene Casino Royal

By Tom Young

Scene 1The films opening scene is set in Prague, the establishing opening shot is in black and white and the lightning is very dim as the scene is taking place at night. The mesa-en-scene creates a very depressing atmosphere because there is no colour, this makes the mood more serious and important than if it were to be in colour. It also allows us to focus on the people talking rather than objects or backgrounds that could distract viewers from the characters discussion. The camera angles in the first scene begin with a low angle shot where we see a large building and a car pulling up outside. The shot then switches to another low angles shot where we see a characters face as he gets out of the car. His facial expressions suggest he doesn't want to be there, it adds dramatic tension because the audience wants to know what he is about to do.

Scene 2The camera switches again to a low angle shot of a moving lift, we assume the lift is occupied by the character we have just seen, this is what the film makers expect us to think, they use cross cutting in order to pace the scene. We then get a higher angle shot of the character in the lift looking up, the camera then switches to a eye view shot of the a screen informing the character of the which floor the lift is on. The characters facial expression suggest he is dreading getting to his floor, the sound is diegetic which also creates an atmosphere of tension. The directors then cross cut to an middle angle shot of the character walking down a corridor, this shot makes the audience excited as they know they are about to find out what the character is about to do.

Scene 3The character enters a room, its extremely dark which creates a mysterious, threatening atmosphere, the audience has probably worked out someone is already there. The camera moves horizontally across the room from a slightly low angle shot we can see a shadow figure sitting on a chair however this may only be noticeable by some eagle eyed viewers. This creates an extremely dramatic atmosphere as the audience are eager to find out who the mysterious person is. The camera then switches to a higher angle close up shot of the previous characters face. His facial expressions suggest he is aware of another persons presence. The camera then moves slightly horizontally so where can see the intruders identity, the other character turns his head to see the mysterious person. The shot then switches to a closer eye view shot of the intruders face so the audience are aware of who it is. The shot creates shock among the audience as they are now aware of the characters identity. The shots then switch between the two characters as they talk, they also include one big shot which includes both characters , they are very calm which suggests that something is about to happen, the audience is on the edge of their seats, its very tense. The mis-en-scene of these shots are very calming however create a tense atmosphere. The scene then becomes more sinister as a higher angle shot shows one character take a gun out of his draw. This scene creates dramatic tension as the mis-en-scene is suggesting violence is about to occur. However the shot then goes to a eye view shot of the the other character informing his attacker he has the bullets.

Scene 4The bathroom fight scenes is shown as a flash back scene, the shot switches between the two scenes as the character tell us what has happened. It is much more violent than the other scene and much louder, this would of created a shock for the viewer. As the scene before was much calmer it contrasts with the fight scene because they have very different impacts on the audience. The first scene created tension among the audience however the following fight scene created fear and dramatic tension as the audience was unaware of the characters fates. The sound would have created a lot of fear because it seemed to be more amplified than the other scene. There was lots of sound effects that would enhance the fights punches and crashes to make it seem more violent. The scene may also effect the audiences perception of Bond. Many think of him as a hero as seen in previous films however he is seen clearly in the scene being extremely violent and aggressive, however we are unaware of why he is doing this. The scene is also in black and white, it it set in the toilet where it is very white, Bonds suit contrasts with the white room in order to stand out, this may have been put in there to show the audience of his status within the film, he is the main character. Bond is seen giving mercy to his victim by letting him live after trying to drown him in the sink. The scene ends shortly after as we see a higher angle shot of the victim picking up a gun and trying to shoot Bond, Bond quickly turns around and shots him first, the shot then cuts to the title sequence.

Scene 5The title sequence is made up of animations along to the movies theme music. The title sequence is coloured in lots of rich colours including red, gold and dark green. The music is also very quick and upbeat along with the animations of killings and lots of casualties suggest the film features a lot of violence. The films animation tend to replace knives and bullets with card symbols, this suggest that the plot might include something to do with gambling, or rich status people. The film also features animations of the character James Bond shooting out at cards this suggest that James Bond will be fighting against the casino and its people. The title sequence also features lots of patterns which again suggest that the film will feature rich people, the gold backgrounds suggest that he will be visiting a casino. The viewer/audience is able to take a lot from the title sequence in order to get an idea about the plot and the places that the movie might take them. The connotations of the title sequence suggest the possibility of fighting against high class people and the idea of violence and killings within a casino.