Thriller Opening Analysis 1: The Bourne Identity

The Bourne Identity


Camera Work

The extract begins with an under sea long-shot  facing upward to ward a man floating in the sea. This shot does not show that much but still reveals to the audience an awful lot. The shot connotes that scene is set in the middle of a stormy sea as the shot shows shimmers of lightning above the sea's surface, also connoting that the surrounding area is stranded as the man has not yet been rescued. When the shot then cuts to being above the ocean, the audience is exposed to an establishing shot where they can see faintly a fishing boat in the distance. This shot is used to start show the audience where the scene is taking place, which is in the sea and aboard the fishing boat. Eventually once the man is rescued and is on the fishing boat, the camera work changes. The establishing long shots that are used to start the film are then juxtaposed by the use of lots of hand held camera work. This would have been done to give the watching audience an example of a POV shot, showing what these events would have looked like through the point of view of the sailors themselves   Once one of the sailors starts to examine the body, lots of close up and POV shots are used to show facial expression of the sailor and to show the attitudes of the sailor towards what he finds out about the man he's trying to save.

Editing

The type of editing actually changes though out the first few minutes of the film. At the start of the film, the pace of the cuts and the use of dark filters on the establishing ocean shots helps to create suspense and establish importance of the floating body in the first minutes of the film. Then is then drastically different to when the floating man is eventually spotted by the boat crew. Then the editing becomes very fast paced. The time between shot cuts are drastically reduced and this combined with the use of the hand held camera shots increase the intensity and urgency of the scene while still maintaining the dark, suspense filled start to the movie.

Mise-en-scene

The man in the water is wearing all black with a utility belt on. This connotes that he may have been on some type of 'mission or task' before being passed out in the sea. The director has done this in the first shot of the film too show that this character will been the main character in the movie and also that there is a back story that the audience do not yet know about, foreboding that we might eventually find out why he was in the sea. The men on the boat all appear as dirty and un-groomed, showing that they may have been out on this boat for days, maybe weeks. Also, the props used when a sailor is cutting open the main characters clothing (Pliers, knives ect) are significant, showing that the sailor has had to of done some sort of thing like this before, weather on a man or animal the audience don't know but this use of props help to give depth and suspense to the scene.

Sound

Through out the beginning of the film, non-diegetic orchestra music is played. First it is slow and calm, building tension and suspense. Then it becomes fast and frantic, signifying the urgency and pace when trying to save the man from the water. Diegetic sounds are also throughout. The sound of the crashing sea along with the sound of thunder and lightning help to the set the scene and build tension in the first minute or so of the film. Also, the use of diegetic dialogue from the sailors is used. There speaking in foreign which is then subtitled in English  This use of foreign language rather than English forebodes that further on in the scene, the main character and sailors may not ne able to understand and be able to communicate with each-other.