Suspense Film Openings

 

    For this blog post, I will be analyzing 3 different film openings for my film genre: suspense. In doing this, I will be able to fully analyze what elements of suspense are commonly used by directors and obtain an understanding as to how to effectively use them in my project.

Suspense Film Opening #1: A Quiet Place (2018)

    In researching suspenseful film openings, a commonly referred to sequence is the one for "A Quiet Place." I decided to analyze this opening because I believe that this is a perfect example of a modern, popular film utilizing suspenseful elements in its display of the plot. I also believe that with the lack of audio in this introduction, I will be able to fully dissect the actions and events the author had intended for these scenes.

    

    

    In the introductory sequence of "A Quiet Place," we are introduced to a father silently and carefully taking a loud toy out of his son's hands. This helps to first build the narrative that there is something wrong in this world. This is further exemplified through the unkept streets, dusty cars, and newspaper headline "It's Sound!" In the portrayal of these elements, the audience connects all of them to the idea that society has now collapsed in the face of a danger related to sound. The opening also helps to create a sympathetic feeling to the family displayed, with the father calmly explaining to the son that he can't have the loud toy and batteries and the mother smiling down at him in love. However, because she felt bad for the child who couldn't have the space shuttle toy, the daughter gives him the toy but not the batteries, silently telling him to be quiet. The boy then disobeys and grabs the batteries. This first section of the film also helps to display how the family is adapting to life in this new world. We can see this through the family not wearing shoes and having to walk very far to return to their house. A defining characteristic of this opening is the lack of sound, only utilizing tense sound for the scene between the father and son. This was purposefully done by the director of the film, because when the son activates the loud toy during their trek home, it is unexpected and not caught on camera. This helps to create a sense of shock and peril in the main characters and audience. We then see the shocked and scared reactions of the family, with the father trying and failing to outrun the fast monster trying to reach his son. In showing a blurry, but huge and fast monster, the creators of the movie are able to show the audience the threat displayed throughout the entirety of the introduction while still maintaining the mystery around it.

    In my analysis of the opening, I have been able to clearly see what the creators of the film were trying to create through a lack of audio information. In restricting the amount of assets that they have, they are able to create more focus and emphasis on the slight sounds they do use in these scenes and the movie overall. This, in association with the mysterious threat and small details such as the characters having no shoes, create a believable and dangerous world for the audience to enjoy. I will be using this information by emphasizing the detail and elements that I want to accentuate and set up the rest of the plot of my film.

Suspense Film Opening #2: Jaws (1977)

    For my research on suspenseful film openings, I had decided to use the first scenes from the movie "Jaws." With the introduction of this film being an iconic moment of film history, I believed that it would be a perfect example of suspense done in films as it uses both mystery and action to set up its central plot.

    In the first shots of the opening to "Jaws," we are introduced to a drunken man and woman looking at each other during a beach gathering at night. In showing their eyes between cuts to the two, we can clearly see that the two like each other, causing them to begin talking in the following shot. Although we can't hear what they say, they begin to run together towards the water, taking off their clothes as they sprint towards the ocean. In showing the two different characters taking off their clothes, we can clearly see the drunken man is struggling to run and take off his clothing compared to the woman. This eventually culminates in the man's inability to reach the ocean, leaving the woman to swim out into the sea alone. We then receive a shot of the woman inside the water swimming on the surface coupled with sudden music, creating an unsettling feeling for the audience. This is then accentuated with the slow camera movement towards the now still woman, with the iconic and tense music beginning to slowly build up as the camera moves closer. The woman is then violently moved around by a creature below her, causing her to eventually be taken under after screaming and shouting in the water all alone. In doing this, the creators of the movie maintain the mystery surrounding what exactly attacked the woman while still showing the gruesome death of the woman. This is aided by initially showing a shot of the ocean and basic sea noises, and after the woman is killed, the ocean continues to make the same noises at the same angle. In doing this, the creators are able to create the idea that the sea had enveloped the woman, causing the same conditions to be present before and after her death.

    For my analysis of the opening, I believe that it portrayed the common elements of a suspenseful film opening. It not only displayed a mysterious threat that it didn't reveal, but it had set up the plot for the rest of the movie through an initial reveal of information. I think I will use the information for these first two openings by not revealing the whole of my plot and only focusing on the introductory details to the it. In this way, I will be able to focus on their execution, increasing audience engagement and the overall strength of the opening.

Suspense Film Opening #3: Rear Window (1954)

    I had decided to research the opening for "Rear Window," because I believed that although it wouldn't have the action or mystery of "Jaws," or "A Quiet Place," it would still display the basic information for an iconic suspenseful movie by Alfred Hitchcock. 

    

    In the introductory shots to "Rear Window," the camera slowly begins to move towards a windowsill, revealing a cramped apartment complex. In the following shots, we are shown the surrounding apartment windows and buildings, with individual people in their windows living their life. In doing this, the movie reveals its major strength, which is its portrayal of surrounding background characters. This helps to not only exemplify the feeling that it is a real neighborhood, but it builds the setting for the movie that is to take place. We are then introduced to a man in a leg cast and wheelchair trying to rest in the initial windowsill. The camera then cuts to his desk, which is filled with memorabilia such as pictures and cameras, making it evident that his profession is a photographer. In the following shot of the man shaving while looking out the window, we are given information about him and his situation through a phone call he is on, such as how long he will have the cast on and how he is in his job. This helps to build a personal level between the character and audience. As he is having this conversation, he looks at his apartment neighbors and surrounding events such as a helicopter flying, helping to create a realistic city atmosphere. This eventually culminates in a prolonged shot of an apartment with a woman and man arguing. This coincides with the conversation on the phone talking about how there are nagging wives in the man's neighborhood. In the use of this harsh adjective, we can clearly see that the creator of the film is trying to use this to say the conversation between that man and woman isn't friendly. This is supported by the emphasis on their specific apartment and the tension between the two as they speak to each other.

    In my analysis of this opening, I saw that this movie had been able to set up the central conflict of the story extremely well, portraying it as a small and regular argument among the huge amount of windows and people. The specific focus on the man and woman arguing however helps to display the feeling that in this precise area, there is a problem among a general amount of happy and normal individuals. This is perfect when not wanting to reveal details but also identify problems in the setting of the film. I will be able to use this information by possibly having my central plot in characters be first built up to be portrayed as normal before revealing or hinting at issues with them or their surroundings.

    In the analysis and examinations of these 3 film openings, I now have a more thorough understanding of the different tactics film directors have used in displaying their plots. Although these films were made in different eras of Hollywood, they all share a similar theme of introducing story elements in an interesting and engaging manner or setting up the central plot. This was seen in "A Quiet Place," and "Rear Window," where we are introduced to the world that our main characters are living in and the conditions they are under. However, for "Jaws," we are only introduced to the central conflict, with the girl being killed by the shark. In these differences, we can clearly see the directors shifting the possibilities of opening the movie to coincide with how much information they want to reveal to the audiences.

    I believe that these openings were vital to the heightening of my knowledge relating to the topic. This is because I now know that I can introduce the central plot or idea in a unique and engaging way, not having to reveal the full extent of the story. In this way, my project will increase in quality and in storytelling, with our opening focusing more on the small details rather than trying to capture the full extent of our plot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpVxUvVXkGY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fnWMVv7q6g

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_E5ZKX3XZc