Opening Scene Analysis - Miss Geourgiou

Opening Scene Analysis

 

The first thing that alerted me that this film was a thriller film was that as the audience I could see that the use of handheld camera shots makes me feel that the two characters that are in the house are victims in this scene and that something bad may happen to them as they are being watched. The second affect that I also picked up on as well was the use of low key lighting to create tension and build suspense during the scene, this also allows me to feel that something bad is going to happen as this is a very highly used convention in thriller films to build suspense and scare the audience.

 

The third convention of this thriller film that I saw was used to create suspense and shock in the audience was the use of eerie music as the lights are turned off in the house that also creates tension for the audience as they expect something bad to happen now as the tension begins to build bigger and bigger which leads to a killing scene. The convention that was used there was the use of non-diegetic sound as the music was edited in to create suspense in this scene, the eerie music also carries on until the character is in the house and it also allows another beat to be played which is slower and builds tension as it resembles a similar beat to a heartbeat. By doing this it makes the audience feel that the pace is quickening and that the film is leading to something that could potentially be bad for someone in the film and the two victims that we have already seen.

 

By using the handheld camera angle it allows the character that is holding the camera to focus on things in front of them and when the knife has been picked up out of the drawer it focuses on this as it is a weapon and we now know that someone is going to be killed or injured in this scene. The use of the weapon in this scene is using another convention as it is using iconography by using a weapon. This is the fourth convention that I have picked up on that has been used by the film producers.

 

The use of the eerie music as the camera moves through the house also keeps the audience on edge as we all expect something to happen and as we wait for it to happen the tension carries on building until the killing scene has taken place. The fifth conventional feature used in the film was the use of slow editing, this is used as the potential killer moves through the house slowly also building towards the tension as the mystery also builds by doing this. As the boyfriend leaves the house it makes the audience automatically feel that the girl is the victim in this scene as she is alone and unaware of what is about to take place and maybe if her boyfriend was still there the next scene where she was killed may have been stopped or maybe panned out another way.

 

The setting for the film is also another conventional feature used in this film as the house is very dark and secluded as there are not many other houses around this house so there is hardly any light which also builds tension in this scene and creates a nervous feeling for the audience watching. A mask is then picked up by the character with the camera which hides the identity of this character so he is not noticed in the killing scene. Just before the killing scene it allows the victim to turn around and see the killer, the killer then attacks and the music and pace to the film both change creating a sense of fear for the audience and a sense of sympathy for them towards the victim as she was basically defenseless against the killer.

 

The next convention that is used in the film is the use of diegetic sound and also off screen sound, the diegetic sound is the victim screaming and the audience can also hear the knife being plunged into the victim. This is off screen sound as the special effects would not have been available for it to look like the victim had actually been killed so the camera has been slightly turned away from her being stabbed. The pace then quickens as the killer and also the audience sense adrenaline after the killing scene has taken place.

 

The camera angle then changes to show the killer and then eventually the audience can see the killer and that it is the younger brother, which to the audience, would have been unexpected. This almost makes the audience feel that the younger brother is maybe possessed by something which made him commit the murder. The camera angle that it has been changed to is the mid shot, this focuses on the killer as he is obviously now the main focus as we now know who it is. The camera continues to move back and then focuses on the weapon that was used to kill the victim.

 

The eerie music also continues as the camera also moves back and looks down on the three characters in the scene to show that the three characters may now be victims as they are made to look smaller and inferior. This is the final convention used in the opening sequence which is used to end the build of suspense and then calm the audience down for the next chapter of the film.