Research & Planning (Analysis Of 3 Opening Sequences Of Chosen Genre)

Labyrinth

The labyrinth starts off with opening credits running through one by one on the screen, along with music in the background. When the title appears on the opening credit a shiny twinkle effect is placed on the title ‘labyrinth’ similarly to the way a star in the sky would twinkle, a similar effect of this is used in the film, it also has the sound effect of a twinkling star and sounds magical. Already we can relate this magical effect to the codes and conventions of a fantasy genre as the fantasy genre is very likely to contain these kind of elements, gives a sense of the film being out of this world and tells us the film has magic in it. Also, as each credit fades in and out of the frame, an owl flies through and in my research I have found owls have long been a part of human folklore and legend. Also, that they have held a variety of symbolic roles in culture and have represented misfortune, death, prosperity and wisdom. This indicates another key code and convention of the fantasy genre being used in subtle ways from the very beginning of the film to follow the fantasy genre and brings in a magical fantasy atmosphere to it. I can also suggest that the use of the owl in the opening credits indicates its significance and the importance of its role throughout the film, that your always being watched and the idea of being watched is relevant to the whole film. The first shot if the opening sequence is an establishing long shot of a field of grass and a pole on the right hand side with an owl on it, we then see a girl from far running into the frame from the left hand side. This gives us a chance to first focus on the owl, again this hints its importance and the theme of always being watched, we are then focused onto the next thing in the frame, which is the girl running into the frame from the left hand side towards the right. Later on during the sequence another indication of the fantasy genre is shown, this is when the camera tracks to the girls bedroom. The camera pans through a part of the girls bedroom to her, as the camera is panning we can see teddy bears and stuffed toys, a fairy music jewellery box (with the sound of it being played in the background), we can also see a puzzle game that has features like a maze and you have to get the ball through to the end without letting it fall into the traps ( the holes) the game we see in the frame is like a foreshadowing of the real event that happens later on in the film, the game is also called Labyrinth and directly links to the film and it’s title and is a clue of the narrative. The camera keeps panning through and we come to a line of books, ‘wizard of oz, snow white and Grimm’s fairytale’, this gives a sense of a childish feel to the movie, a sense of imagination and that the girl is in a fantasy world, along with the fairy music in the background, it sets the childish atmosphere and this follows the key code and conventions of the fantasy genre’. After it pans through the books we lastly see a stone statue of a goblin, this emphasizes the character of the girl and the fairytale world she lives in, as goblin is part of folklore and folklore is usually seen in the fantasy genre. The goblin also becomes an important character later on in the film and is seen constantly throughout, so hints are given to prepare us for what is going to happen although not much is given away therefore we are kept at interest and want to watch on.
The opening sequence overall was up to my expectations, it gave many hints of the film as a whole and led up to the story quite swiftly whilst keeping me deep in interest. The music was used very cleverly, at times the music would be slow paced, it would also speed up at other times, and then go slow paced again, the way the music was used allowed me to be put in a state of comfort, then discomfort then comfort again, which gave the effect of making the viewer feel uneasy, and sensing at the back of the viewers mind something bad will happen. They use this effect of comfort and discomfort through use of speed with the fairy music, and is almost like a threat to the fairy music as if something is coming in the way. Fairy tales end in happy endings most of the time and are make-believe but the threat is that it is going to become real very soon in the film.



Jumanji

The soundtrack of Jumanji is herd even before the movie has started; during the ‘tri star logo’ the music is being played. It creates an intimidating effect on the viewer. After the opening credits, it moves onto the first shot which is an establishing shot of a dark forest at night, it looks misty and has that mystical atmosphere, we then see two young children in the frame, one child looking slightly older then the other, they look scared and frightened and are up to something, we don’t know what. A whole in the ground in dug and a chest is revealed by the child, they pick it up and throw it into the hole in the ground and cover it up. Now because I have watched this film I can say that the 2 children in this opening sequence is like a foreshadowing of the characters later on in the film, because I know later on in the film there are two main child characters that lead up to a similar situation as seen in the opening sequence. So in a way for the first time viewers it hints out a similar situation to come in later on in the film. We then hear dialogue in this sequence, ‘what if someone digs it up? May God have mercy on his soul’ this gives us a clue about the narrative of the film because that ‘what if’ actually does happen’. We also hear a sound of drumming in the background similar to a heartbeat; we hear this when there is a close up of the chest, makes it sound as if something is alive in there, a sense of life in the box. The opening sequence is not really up to my expectations as it doesn’t tell me enough about the film, there isn’t much t suggest it is a fantasy genre, it seemed a bit boring and plain and not that exciting as I would expect. Although It could be argued that the reason less clues are given in the opening sequence is so the plot is not given away and so the viewers are left to wonder and watch on.


Night at the museum

Night at the museums opening sequence begins with twinkly fairy like music which gives a magical feel to the film instantly, it then smoothly gets louder and more involved with the opening sequence and everything featured in it. The music has trumpets and classical instruments played almost sounds like an orchestra. We then see different establishing shots of the city, one shot looking at a number of buildings lined up and another shot of the busy roads; I know this is a city of America as we can see the typical yellow American cabs drive by. Also when it had shown the first shot of the buildings, it looked like an early morning showing the city at dawn, it follows through landscape shots all the way to the museum, once it gets to the museum it is dusk, and the sun has gone down. A shot of the museum alone is featured at night, but inside is a glorious kind of glow coming from inside with rays of light escaping from the windows. The light is golden/yellow colored and makes it look magical. It gives a sense if life inside, and this is a key clue to the narrative of the film. There are many shots in the opening sequence of the different things in the museum, suggest the museum and all it contains is very important to the film and narrative of it. The title is linked very well to the opening sequence, the whole time changing of dusk and dawn is clearly shown, and this hints the narrative. Also, a shot of the museum at night is shown followed by many more shots of everything inside it and this completely links to the title.