"Watching" Documentary on Film Openings

"Watching" Documentary on Film Openings

1. What des Thomas Sutciffe mean when he says "Film need to seduce their audience into long term commitment. While there are many types of seduction, the temptation to go for instant arousal is almost irresistible"

Sutciffe talks about the film opening being crucial, in the sense that he feels it's important to reel in the audience from the very beginning in order to keep them interested. There are many ways in which this can be achieved, although usually the most successful film openings bring a well developed sense of intrigue that will leave you settled into your seat desperate to know more about the story and the characters.

2. According to Director Jean Jacques Beineix, what are the risks of "instant arousal"?

Beineix expresses that the film will have to living up the standard of its first opening scene. If the film were to fail in appealing to its audience, despite have a decent opening, Beineiz fears it will be unable to keep the audience interested.

3. Explain why "a good beginning must make the audience feel that it doesn't know nearly enough yet, and at the same time makes sure that it doesn't know too little"

The idea is to give the audience enough insight as in what to expect and what may happen, enough to keep them slightly apprehensive yet intrigued, allowing them to wonder why such and such is happening, but not enough to grant them the ability to predicate entirely what the film has in store, otherwise it becomes meaningless and will have them questioning the worth of paying money to see the film. Leaving the audience in suspense is a positive way in which to achieve this.

4. What does critic Stanley Kauffmann describe as the classic opening? Why does this work?

Kauffmann describes a shot/pan of the city as the ultimate classical opening as it enhances and establishes the main setting in which the movie takes place.

5. Why is Kyle Cooper's title sequence to the film Seven so effective?

Cooper's title sequence allows us as the audience to predict what will happen in the movie.

6. What did Orson Welles want to achieve with his opening sequence to the film A Touch of Evil? What did Universal Studio do to it? Why?

Welles's aim was to achieve the 'one-shot' take, which consists of action, continuous in time and space, from the perspective of a single camera. Universal Studios then when on to add in a title sequence and some music over the original footage in attempts to make it seem a little more realistic and interesting.

7. What is meant be "a favourite trick of Film Noir"? What is the trick?



8. How does the opening to the film The Shining create suspense?

The shot begins by panning through a lake which immediately creates a feeling of disorientation. Then from a birds eye position above the trees we watch a small vehicle make its way along the cliff-top roads. There is a clear sense of the passengers being shown to be quite isolated and as if they are heading into the unknown. Dramatic foreshadowing is then used to good effect as we watch the car move along the edge of the cliff top, a perfect connotation of a family on the edge of a collapse which raises suspense, drawing the audience in immediately, making us want to know what might happen next.