Opening scene analysis presented to the class.

 

  Iron Man opening scene analysis

During the opening scene of Iron Man the audience are faced with the opening extreme long shot, a view of a desert and complete silence, with only the diegetic sound of the wind. In the distance three trucks are driving along the road and straight away we are given enigma's as to why the scene is set here. The next shot displayed is a long shot of the trucks driving towards the camera with a background music which is very manly and can be seen as a convention of an action film. As the scene goes on we discover that the trucks are army trucks and the audience can question whether they are completing a mission, as at the top of the truck is a soldier, handling with a gun and on the look out for any of the opposition. The range of shots of the trucks make the audience excited and they are immediately drawn in as the scene looks dangerous, but still questioning why they are here, obeying the conventions of an action genre.

The next shot is inside one of the trucks, and we get a glimpse of some of the soldiers inside the car. The audience are shown a close up of a glass of alcohol being held by someone, which is unusual as it doesn't fit with the rest of the scene, and in the background, coming into focus, we are shown a medium shot of a soldier who also looks as confused as the audience as to why the character is drinking alcohol, but he can also be seen as intimidated by the character, who we have not yet been introduced to. Straight away the next close up is of the protagonist, Tony Stark, wearing very formal clothes which makes him stand out from the rest, the glass of alcohol can connote that he has a lot of power as he is doing things that you usually wouldn't think a person would be able to do during the conditions of the scene. As he is wearing formal clothes you wouldnt expect his character to be in an action genre when comparing him to all the other soldiers. The soldiers could be more relatable to an action film when talking about their outfits and weapons theyre holding.

The protagonist talks with a lot of dry humour which helps the audience connect with him, even though this is not a general convention of an action film, it allows the character to become more personal to the audience instead of referring him to just the protagonist. Just as we get used to the humour in the scene, a soldier asks to take a picture with the main character, connoting he is a celebrity. Just as the picture is about to be taken, the audience are shocked with a sudden explosion of the truck in front, which they see through an over the shoulder shot of the soldier in the front seat. The sudden explosion creates another enigma as to who is attacking them and why, this is a sign of an action film as it is intense and exciting. The characters start shouting and we hear loud gun noises in the background which keep the audience in their seats waiting to see what happens next. One by one the soldiers are killed leaving only the protagonist to fend for himself. 

The camera becomes out of control, which helps the audience to feel how chaotic the situation is, the camera does not stay still on the protagonist, which can connote that he doesn't know how to react and doesn't know whats going on. The audience watch as the protagonist runs and panics, trying to find a point of safety. While trying to call for help, we are shown a range of close up angles of the main character and the repeating gun shots keep the audience of the edge of their seats. Suddenly a bomb falls right next to the main character and shows an extreme close up of the maker of the weapon called 'Stark Industries' and before he can get away he is hit with the bomb and the ending shot is a close up of him lying on the floor bleeding and unable to move. The picture blurs as well as the sound suggesting that he is dying or becoming unconscious.

The opening scene is very intense and exciting which can be compared to the convention of an action film, faced with a lot of enigmas, audience will be wanting to keep watching to find out what happens throughout the film.

Opening Two Minutes Analysis

Analysis of an opening scene of 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier'

'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' opens with an action sequence in the middle of the nowwhere on the ocean. The setting is sophisticated and dark and the non-diegetic sound creates suspense and gives a dramatic effect, which grabs the audiences attention straight away and are immedietely drawn in, obeying the conventions of an action film.

The film lets off some steam in the opening shot by adding in a few lines between the characters of dry humour, allowing the audience to connect with the characters throughout the film. Even though this is not one of the general conventions of an action film, it allows the characters to become more personal to the audience staright away rather referring them to just an antagonist or protagonist.

Another strenth of the opening scene is the next shot, which introduces us to the main protagonist. Jumping out of a plane with no parachute shows off his strenth and determination which is what the audience wants to see in a hero. This connotes that throughout the film he will be a very powerful character. 

Already the characters are faced with a mission to complete which show off the conventions of an action genre as the audience get to see high energy and a lot of physical stunts. This allows the film to become exciting and intense, keeping the audience on the edge of their seats even in the first few minutes of the film. The conventions of the action genre are made clear through aspects such as the use of weapons, intense fight scene but what really brings out the action is the muscial score. Without any certain melody, the scene has a bass undercurrent that hangs over the images and pushes the action forwards. The sound levels go up and down according to whether there is dialogue, or action or whatever else is going on.

The opening scene is intense and exciting and will keep the audience in suspense throughout the film, portraying many conventions of an action genre which make it an excellent film.



Analysing Genres

Genres	Conventions	Film Titles
Horror	Teenagers often getting killed by a villain or monster. Scary and includes haunted scenes. Blood and gruesome scenes also can be included.	Paranormal activity Saw The Conjuring
Adventure	Exciting storyline. Chase or quest.  Involves hero, villain and sidekick.  Usually the hero overcomes the obstacles and may have a love interest by the end of the film.	Indiana jones Journey to the centre of the earth. Lord of the Rings
Action	Includes hero and a villain and a mission. Chase scenes, fights, escapes. Physical stunts and lots of energy.	Transformers The avengers James Bond Fast and Furious
Romance	Man and women fall in love. Often something in their way to try and stop it. Includes different emotions and usually has a happy ending.	The Notebook How to lose a guy in 10 days Titanic Love actually
Thriller	Full of suspense tension and excitement. A thriller is usually a villain-driven plot, whereby he or she presents obstacles that the hero must overcome.	Taken Dawn of the planet of the apes The cabin in the woods

Favourite Genre.

 

 

Action

 

Personally, i find action is my favourite genre as it is exciting, fun and keeps you on your toes in suspense. Action films  have tremendous impact, continuous high energy, lots of physical stunts, races, rescues, fights, escapes, non-stop motion, spectacular rhythm and pacing, and adventurous heroes - all designed for pure audience escapism with the action sequences at the core of the film. All these features are what i most enjoy when watching a film.

 

An example of an action film i most enjoy watching is Mr and Mrs Smith, the storyline allows there to be exciting and eventful scenes, full of action and violence. Also including romantic comedy, this film includes a sense of sophistication, love and humour along with the physical stunts and brutal fights.

 

Another more intense type of action film i like is Transformers, the film has a huge amount of enegry including some amazing races, fights, rescues and so much more. The animation is so vivid and life like, it brings you into the film so you can get a deep and exciting effect throughout. The action sequences create a high amount of suspense and will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end. Transformers also includes scenes with dry humour which keeps the film entertaining as well as adventurous which i personally love and find most appealing. 

 

Favourite Director

 

 

Joss Whedon

 

Directing the third highest-grossing film of all time, The Avengers, Joss Whedon is one of my favourite directors. Whedon is notable for his signature dialogue featuring dry humour and heavy emphasis on his subtext. Many themes are shown throughout his work inlcuding feminism, self-sacrifice and he often uses misogyny to define the trait of a villian.

Whedon is filled with visions of female empowerment from his genre-defining TV show, Buffy the Vampire Slayer where the stereotypical cute, blonde girl in most horror movies becomes one of the most memorable heroines in TV history. Following on in The Avengers, Whedon turned Iron Man 2 eye candy Black Widow into a genuine character who is known as the only heroine of the team amongst a group of heroes.

Whedon won an award for Best Director at the Saturn Awards in 2013 for one of his most popular pieces of work grossing all over the world, The Avengers. Joss Whedon is an amazing direcor especially with action films, which i find most exciting and interesting to watch i love his style of comedy and suspense throughout all his films and hope to see more of his work in the nearby future.