Wednesday, 18 December 2013
Title Sequences Analysis
I will be analyzing three title sequences of horror movies
from three different era’s to show the difference.
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)
No doubt the effects used in the title sequence would be
unique and have elements of surrealism as that is a key element of his
directing skills. The film opens up with the DreamWorks company logo along with
intense music which already introduces the genre of film. A different style of
music plays but it is still rather intense. The sky is a dark blue colour with
mysterious red and white stuff falling from the sky with a factory being the
backdrop with smoke coming out of the chimneys, which represents the genre. The
camera is constantly moving showing us various things related to the film.
There is a constant theme through the title sequence which is blood, which is
also a key theme throughout the film. The blood locks thick and fresh and
running down various household items which sort of indicates what is to come in
the film. As the music gets more intense so do the effects with the blood
getting faster and leading into a river and also a large fire, which is part of
the plot twist of the film at the end. It then shows pies which is also a key
element of the film. The scene ends with the music getting quieter and stopping
and the scene fades into a cloudy dark sky.
Psycho (1960)
We see the film company Paramount Pictures presented.
Intanstly you hear fast, intense music playing which creates tension. The
famous film director Alred Hitchcock is then presented which can make viewers
of the film more excited knowing that he directed it. The name of the film is
then presented. The font and the way the writing moves creates tension and
gives a scry effect combined with the intense music. Famous actors and other
important members of crew are then presented. The grey lines that come across
the the credits represent being locked away or trapped (like in prison) which
foreshadows the film. An establishing shot of the city is used with a high
angle. It pants from left to right and gives the audience a better
understanding of where the film is set. The name of the place they are and the
date and time is set on the screen which leaves the audience curius as
obviously the date and time has importance. The way the camera enters through
the window makes the audience feel like they’re in control.
Se7en (1995)
The sound of thunder is a classic convention of the horror
genre, along with dark shots/shadows which creates tension. Unusual images
being displayed give a disorientated feel. Shadows being projected and hidden
identity makes the audience feels curious. Fast moving shots of various
machinery make the audience feel confused. Brad Pitt is presented to the
audience which tells Brad Pitt is going to be an important character in the
film. Disturbing and unusual shots are being shown, this creates discomfort and
curiousity about the characters mental health. Morgan Freeman is then presented
to the audience, showing that his importance in the film is secondary to
Brad’s. Some unusual sounds are used – some digetic and some undigetic which
both add to the horror convention. The film title is being presented with a 7
replacing the V, representing the title ‘Seven’ and showing that the number is important
in the film. More actors are being presented, these actors are less important
than the ones presented first. The colour red is used indicating blood which
could foreshadow blood in the film or danger or hell as all are related with
the colour red.
Thursday, 12 December 2013
Tuesday, 10 December 2013
We Need To About Kevin Opening Sequence
The sequence opens up with a rattling sound that is repetitive throughout the film. It’s not clear what the sound is but it’s quite an intense sound and after watching the film I think it sounds like blood squirting out of someone due to the end of the film and what is revealed. As the mysterious sound is going you see a curtain slowly drifting in a dark room. It makes the scene rather intense along with the sound as you would expect something to jump out (if it was a horror film). The scene doesn’t seem to fit in with the rest of the opening sequence but you see what the scene is linked to towards the end of the film. As the camera zooms closer to the curtain it gets whiter and then fades into a strange scene where Eva is getting thrown around by a huge amount of people in a tomato field. It is apparent that this scene is to show the fun and freedom Eva had before Kevin but at first it’s unclear what it happening. All the tomato juice that everyone seems to be covered in represents blood, which is linked with the massacre Kevin did. This is the first use of the colour red to be used in the film, it goes on to have much more use of red, especially on Eva. While Eva is getting carried by men and then placed to the ground (a bit like how the victims are carried out of the school on stretchers) you can hear people in the background shouting ‘killer’ and ‘murderer’ and it’s unclear why but as she is covered in tomato juice representing blood it foreshadows stuff to come. You can also hear arrows In the background which is how Kevin killed his victims. The scene is quite unsettling as the people are crowded, people are shouting and the music is very loud. The amount of people that are crowded in the tiny area covered in tomato juice could also represent the people involved in Kevin’s massacre and how they could escape from the gym due to being severely locked in. After the scene ends it goes onto to show Eva is her house with red paint all over her house and various shades of red all over her house, which is a key editing feature used throughout the film. She lies down and seems distressed, showing that this is a flashback.
The Brief
Preliminary Exercise: A task which gives me a chance to film and create a character opening a door, crossing over a room and sitting down in a chair opposite another character , with who she/he begins a short conversation. This task should show Match on Action, Shot/Reverse Shot and the 180-degree rule.
Main Task: Create the opening titles and credits of a new fiction film, to last no longer than two minutes.
Main Task: Create the opening titles and credits of a new fiction film, to last no longer than two minutes.
Wednesday, 4 December 2013
Tuesday, 3 December 2013
Institutional Research
Hammer Films
Hammer Films is a film production company based in the United
Kingdom. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic "Hammer Horror" films made from the mid-1950s
until the 1970s. During its most successful years, Hammer dominated the horror
film market, enjoying worldwide
distribution and considerable financial success. This success was due, in part,
to distribution partnerships with major United States studios, such as Warner
Bros.
Blumhouse Productions
Blumhouse Productions is
founded and run by Jason
Blum. Blumhouse produces micro and
low-budget genre movies like the Paranormal Activity, Insidious and Sinister
franchises. According to various stories, the company’s model is to produce
these movies independently and then release them wide through the studio system.
Blumhouse has a first-look deal with Universal Pictures. Blumhouse’s highly
profitable credits began with Paranormal Activity, which was made for $15,000.
The film was released by Paramount Pictures and grossed over $193 million
worldwide. Blumhouse produced the Paranormal sequels,
Insidious which grossed over $97 million worldwide on a budget of $1.5m and
Sinister, which so far has grossed over $87 million worldwide on a budget of $3
million.
Dark Castle Entertainment
Dark Castle Entertainment's name pays homage to William Castle, a horror filmmaker from the 1950s and 1960s. When first
formed, the goal was to remake Castle's horror films (very similar to another production
company Platinum Dunes).
After two remakes, it moved on to producing original material, along with
remakes of non-Castle films. Starting with RocknRolla, the company
began producing films in genres other than horror. Initially, most of the
company's films were mostly critically panned, however recently critics,
including RocknRolla, Orphan, Splice and Unknown, have received their films
better.
Twisted
Pictures
Twisted Pictures is
an American independent production
company, mainly creating films of
the horror genre.
Twisted Pictures is best known for producing the Saw film series. Twisted Pictures was formed after the box
office success of Saw in 2004, which lead to a nine-picture distribution
deal with Liongate. The
company went on to produce six sequels in the Saw film series. Carl Mazzocone
served as president for four years.
Credits to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twisted_Pictures
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