Understanding Micro Elements in film openings

By Travis Quailey

We can see in the opening shot how they used a different camera techniques e.g pan shot and close up shot) in the opening sequence, because it starts with a tilt on the main character daughter playing and some shots close up shots on the father and her daughter, which suggest the close relationship between them.

A beautiful tracking shot then when the father go to open the door and the frame moves from side to side a lot, this shows that something is wrong and maybe something is about to happen. The music also here playing a big role when it change to a slow and calm which make the scene more scary and create the suspense of the film.

In the shot of the father attacked and fall on the floor they use a tilt shot to suggest the father is impotent and helpless. Then fast moving shots for the scene where the robber is beating his wife and stealing the objects in the house, they are all fast shots and they have used action and reaction from the father when they attacked his wife.

There is few close ups of the father struggling on the floor which suggest his impotent and helpless. In the end of the scene, the thieves go out with the daughter then they show father in a close up of his eyes, his eyes close that suggest that he has given up.

Lighting also plays a major role with the viewers feeling and perceptions of the scene and characters. The entire scene is in soft low light, light not directly from the source, to provide the impression of good night for the family

Cinematography

Diegetic sound in the opening scene of the film law abiding citizen happens when you hear the beads which the father and daughter are making, the mother who is clearly cooking a meal for her family and as the door rings you can hear an aggressive bang noise which turns out to be a pair of burglars.

Diegetic

Facial Expression – Shows emotion which could make the audience feel bad the characters

Body Language – This gives everyone an idea of what the characters feelings are in the film and what could happen next in the film

Action(fights and abuse) – Makes the film much more exciting and gets you involved in the film

Sound effects (items braking and people being attacked) – Exaggerates the stunts and action which makes it sound more realistic

Performance

In this shot the audience gets a glimpse of scene with one of the main characters of the film and as it is a calm scene where he is sitting down next to his daughter. The audience can learn more about the story and what could happen next. As it is a slow start to the beginning of the story its bringing tension to the audience by making them want to know more about the characters. Costume is like a family man kind of look which is casual and nothing special.

Mise en scene (Setting, costume, figure expression, props)

Extreme close up is basically like a close up but even closer, this is a scene where the wife is being raped in a scene and as it is a 15 it doesn’t show the full extent of what is going on in the film but shows her facial expressions which makes you understand that the woman is in serious pain. This emphasis’s the scene a whole lot more than a close up this is why it is called an extreme close up.

Extreme close up

A close up shot is an effective shot in a movie which is used by a lot of different genres such as action, horror and sci-fi for the audience to get involved in the film more by showing the characters feelings by his facial expressions which could show what might happen next in the film.

Close up

It shows medium shot of one of the robbers in the film with his facial expressions and body language showing he is clearly upset about the situation and what is happening to the main characters family which is an effective shot and typical convention of a thriller.

Medium Shot

This a motion video shot where a woman in the movie is thrown across the room to stop her from assisting her husband during the robbery. This shot is very effective towards moving action such as hand-to-hand combat.

Pan