The Da Vinci Code opening scene analysis

The title of the movie is the first thing you when the movie starts, it says "The Da Vinci Code" in white letter on a black background, the colour of the background may represent that the story is quite dark and threatening. The font in which the title is written with looks old fashioned which may mean the story is based on something old.

 In the background there is some very quiet music is a very low pitch this adds suspense.

The first shots of the film is a fast edited panning of painting on walls this tells the

audience that the first scene is set in a museum or gallery. The museum looks to be closed because its dark however you can see a shadow chasing a man, to the audience it looks as if someone has broken in and committing a crime. These connotations represent a mystery-detective genre. You can see the man who is getting chased but you only see a small snippet of a shadow walking towards him. An enigma is created by only showing a shadow of the man chasing him. This adds suspense because the audience want to find out who he is.Also by showing a shadows it may frighten the audience because people associate shadows with death. With the small clip of the shadow its looks like the person is wearing a cloak, this indicates that he trying to stay hidden or un-identified. The old man is wearing a suit this gives the impression that he works there and is an important part of protecting the gallery.
They use a bird’s eye view shot from outside of the gallery through the glass ceiling a couple of

times , however you can see anything through the glass, this gives the idea that no one can save the man because no one can see what's happening, this is also why it’s based at night.

The mysterious character which is following the old man, only seems to be walking, this shows that he is confident. They use a close up of the man running to shows that he frightened and tired of running , this also shows that he is very old because he was hardly running at a fast pace. They use a camera angle which makes it look like he is running at the audience this makes sympathise with him.

As the man is running away they show a lot of the painting in the gallery this adds an enigma its makes us, as the audience wonder if it represents anything? They also have use an extreme close up of eyes on the painting this gives the impression that someone is watching, also Christians believe when they see an eye that gods watching over them.

The old man pulls off a painting to release rails; this makes the audience think he is safe.
The un-identified character takes his hood down and they do close-up of his face, so the audience can get to know the type of person he is.He looks ghostly with the white skin, this

makes him look alarming.

They then show an extreme close up of the villain gripping the triggerof a gun, this shows us that he is planning to kill the old man.After shooting the old man they use a low angle shot at the villain this shows us that he is powerful, they then use a high angle shot at the old man to show that he is helpless.After this they use a long shot of the man walking away this shows that he is significant to the story line.

(NOTES FROM PLANNING)

Skyfall opening scene analysis

The first thing we see as the movie starts is a dark distorted figure which is in a long shot to show the whole characters body, this gives us the idea that the character is a man because of the shape of the person. However we are not able to identify this person because the camera has given a blurred effect, this gives us the idea that the character is a secret agent because they don't want to reveal their identity. The character is down a thin dark corridor this suggests he is hiding however there is a stream of light coming through a blind in the window which looked like a spotlight giving the impression he is an important figure in the film.

As well as showing a character they gave a snippet of the James Bond sound motif. This gives us the idea that the character might be James Bond. The James Bond theme tune is a very famous and is recognised globally, using the tune at the beginning gets the audience in a good mood and should excite them. After the small introduction of the theme tune , it goes silence this is a convention of the genre because it comes across that he is creeping around quietly so he doesn't get caught, this builds tension because the audience are wondering why he is doing this.


He then walks towards the camera but looks behind it making the audience wonder what he is looking at. The way he walks towards the camera looks as if he's walking to the audience. As he walks closer to the camera it goes into a close up short. His eyes are the only thing we can see because light is shining on them, this interacts the audience but they still want to wait to reveal is identity completely. 


It then goes into another shot and he gets he's gun out which is a convention of a spy movie. He has his gun pointing out ,like he is looking for someone this makes an enigma. He walks into a room and and the camera pans the room and reveals dead bodies on the floor, James then finds  a spy who had got shot , he tries to help him but he's told by his boss not too , this shows that he is caring. He contacts his boss through an ear piece to tell her what's happening, this is a strong convention of a spy movie.

They use a non-diagetic sound of ticking this connotes that he has a period of time that he can be in that building because he needs to find someone.

In the same room there looks to be a laptop which has been broken into, they use a close-up to make sure the audience realises something has been taken. We , as the audience don't know yet what they have stolen or why it is important so this sets an enigma and this is very likely to be the story line.

What he is wearing doesn't seem to be very suitable for his job , this gives the idea that he is really good at it. Also they are not usually supposed to be publicly open as spies so wearing a suit hides the idea of being one.

After walking out the room to carry on with his mission some new music starts this sets were the location is as it comes across as a tradition eastern Europe tune. When he gets outside you realise he is in a city this is very stereo typical of a secret agent movie because it makes the missions that much harder because the area is busier. The car he gets in is a black Jeep , this connotes authority , power and wealth which spies normally have.

(NOTES FROM PLANNING)

Harry Potter and the philosopher stone opening scene analysis

The first scene is set at night which adds mystery also the random spots of light makes the area look enchanting. They also have a mysterious music which sounds rather magical, it also gives off the idea its the theme song for the movie because its very memorable. In the opening scene a light fades in adding mystery. After the light has stopped fading in you see an owl appear on the road sign, Owls have big eyes and can twist their head round this denotes that it is watching someone or something, this adds suspense. In the next shot the owl is flying away this comes across as he is frightened or surprised by Dumbledore who appears for the first time.

The first character you see is a man called Dumbledore, he doesn't look very human like because of the extremely long beard and cloaks. Also he is holding a weird looking object which seems to take light away, this gives us the idea that they are trying to secretly do something and trying to make it darker so no one see's.

The second character you see turns from a cat into a women this gives us an idea that they are wizards and witches. Black cats are also normally associated with witch's however this cat isn't black which makes the audience feel as if she is good. Black cats are normally denote a dark soul and being evil.

When Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall are talking they mention "A rumour" this adds suspense to the audience as they want to know what happens. When Dumbledore is taking the light away from the lamppost the music also seems to dim. We also don't find out the name of the baby until the end of the scene, then the title of the film is revealed.

The first time we meet Hagrid we see him on a flying motor bike, to an audience this makes him come across as a funny character.

Shot types
when you first see Dumbledore they use a long shot they do this to show what he is wearing which comes across as very significant to who he is. Bearing in mind the subject is a cat I think they used a medium shot of the cat. When Hagrid gets off his motorbike the first shot is a low angle shot this tells the audience that he is an important character. Right at the end of the opening scene the zoom into the scar on Harry's head and it lights up this shows us that his scar is very significant to the movie. Apart from these shot types I don't think there were any other shot types that were very important and represented anything.

(NOTES FROM PLANNING)

hairspray opening scene analysis

In the opening scene it starts with the song "Good Morning Baltimore" this encourages the audience be happy and be optimistic about the film. Right at the beginning of the opening scene they use sounds from around the area and incorporated into the song. They also use a heavy beat to excite the audience and make them feel like something big is going to happen.

They used a wide variety of camera angle but the angle I thought stood out the most was the high angle-birds eyes view, this showed the audience were the film was set and gives them an idea of the time period by the type of building and fashion. They also zoom into a newspaper and reveal the date. When she looks in the fridge the camera gives the idea that she can see the audience by the way the camera angle is set.

The first time you see Tracey she is in bed and she pulls of her covers to reveal her eyes, By showing her eyes first gives the audience a chance to interact with her. They add suspense by not revealing her fully until she is completely ready. We also find out what the plot could be about when she sings because its clear that she want to perform because she sings about wanting to sing and dance. You also find out that she is a very caring person because the feeds the rats which are on the pavement , most people wouldn't do this however she does. While walking around were she lives you can tell she is very passionate about performing because she comes across as very oblivious.

when she is getting ready they show a hairspray can , she then sprays it at the camera which interacts the audience. They also Reveal the name of the film "Hairspray" on the spray giving a good effect. The reason for the film name could be down to the type of fashion and big hair.

The opening song tells us were the movie is set because they repeat the words "Good morning Baltimore" Because they start of with a song and the main character sings it we instantly as an audience realise we are watching a musical.

On the way to school she misses her bus because she is too busy singing however she manages to hitch a ride from a random stranger, this could be down to her being charming of being in an era when people don't think of the dangers of doing stuff like that , nowa days you couldn't really trust people with a responsibility of giving you a lift for no reason.

Scream opening scene analysis

The first thing you see in the opening scene is text saying "SCREAM", with a flash of colour from white to red this shows to the audience that they are watching a horror movie because red connotes blood. Also the flash of colour gives the idea of lightning which most people would say is scary.By using capital letters in the title also emphasises the word "scream", because it comes across as being loud like screaming would be.

The first sounds you hear in the first scene is a knife going through something which is a stereo typical weapon in a horror movie,then you hear a scream this connotes that someone is scared or surprised which is also a connotation of a horror movie.

The first character we meet in the movie is a girl which the audience would assume is the main character. When a girl is the main character in a horror movie it connotes that they are going to be the main victim because girls normally come across as damsels or an easy victim. You also realise that she is all alone which makes us feel that another character is going to be introduced very quickly and normally a villain because when someone is on their own they come across as vulnerable. However at the first phone call she doesn't seem bothered by a random person calling her and both the character and audience don't realise what is going to happen, as the caller carries on calling her ,both the audience and character become very anxious.

The first scene is at night which is very stereo-typical of a horror movie, the dark sky connotes mystery, drama and the unknown.

The fact that she is about to watch a scary movie herself makes her come across as quite strong and fearless however when she is put in the position herself the tables change and her reactions are a lot different. If anything this scares the audience because its such a coincidence.

As she is on the phone , they exaggerate every sound that's in room to scare the audience for example the sound of the popcorn cooking this is done because they want you to notice that she is all alone in a big house. Also they keeping flashing back to the popcorn as it is cooking when she's not watching to make you feel like something is going to happen to that because she is leaving it alone on a hob.They show the garden and outside of the house this gives the idea that someone is watching.

When the villain says he can see her they zoom into her face really quickly to show her expression.Just after this you can hear barking of dogs , this is used to scare the audience.After this they use non-diegetic high pitched ,fast pasted music.