Thriller Opening Mise-en-scene

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Jordan Crookell Mese-en-scene analysis of an opening to a thriller Opening plot summary The thriller opening that I decided to watch is ‘Inner Evil’. At the very start we see a girl that is lying dead on the floor. She has what looks like a gunshot to her head. We then see the girl suddenly wake up in her bedroom heavily breathing. The girl then leaves the house and looks at the key. There is then a white wash and we see the girl’s throat being cut. After this there is another white wash and we see the girl walking through a building estate. She is then grabbed from round the corner by a mysterious character and struggles to get away. The shot then goes back to the girl who is walking in the park. She is being followed by the same mysterious character in black. The girl turns around but cannot see this dark character. The girl is used twice in the opening tiles. She is both the victim and the mysterious character in black. This is used to great effect because the audience get to see that the girl is both. This implies to the viewer that the girl kills herself because we see a few flash forwards of the girl harming herself. As well as this, the title of the thriller is called ‘Inner Evil’. This suggests that the girl is responsible for her actions but is not in control of herself. Setting and lighting The opening looks as if it is set in the centre of a city. This is common in thrillers because one of the conventions of a thriller is that it has to be set in a natural

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Thriller Opening Mise-en-scene

Transcript of Thriller Opening Mise-en-scene

Jordan Crookell

Mese-en-scene analysis of an opening to a thriller

Opening plot summary

The thriller opening that I decided to watch is ‘Inner Evil’. At the very start we see a girl that is lying dead on the floor. She has what looks like a gunshot to her head. We then see the girl suddenly wake up in her bedroom heavily breathing. The girl then leaves the house and looks at the key. There is then a white wash and we see the girl’s throat being cut. After this there is another white wash and we see the girl walking through a building estate. She is then grabbed from round the corner by a mysterious character and struggles to get away. The shot then goes back to the girl who is walking in the park. She is being followed by the same mysterious character in black. The girl turns around but cannot see this dark character.

The girl is used twice in the opening tiles. She is both the victim and the mysterious character in black. This is used to great effect because the audience get to see that the girl is both. This implies to the viewer that the girl kills herself because we see a few flash forwards of the girl harming herself. As well as this, the title of the thriller is called ‘Inner Evil’. This suggests that the girl is responsible for her actions but is not in control of herself.

Setting and lighting

The opening looks as if it is set in the centre of a city. This is common in thrillers because one of the conventions of a thriller is that it has to be set in a natural environment. The girl is then seen to be walking in the park. Everywhere is covered in ice and snow and all the ground is white. This suggests to the viewer the feeling that the girl is honest and pure to herself. When the girl is walking through the city centre, we do not see many people around. This implies to the reader that the girl is alone and has no one to go to if she gets into trouble. This impacts the audience because it makes us feel sorry for the girl as she is clearly shown to be alone and on her own. In the opening of the thriller ‘Inner Evil’ we only see one prop being used. This is the key to the girl’s house. It is used as a weapon as we see a flash forward of the girl’s shadow cutting her neck with the key. Apart from this, no other props are used in the opening to this thriller.

Characterisation and Body language

The audience can tell from when the girl woke up and the way she is always looking around her that she suffers from anxiety. She is constantly looking around her as if someone is always watching her. The girl is extremely conscious of her surroundings as she never moves without looking around her first. This gives the audience the hint that she is extremely self-conscious and is nervous when out of the house on her own. The girl seems to walk quite quickly however keeps turning around and watching her back. At three points in the opening of the thriller we see flash forwards. At the start of the opening when the girl is in the house, she is always breathing heavily and when she goes over to the mirror she looks at herself and looks extremely on-edge. This is effective because it makes the audience feel nervous for the girl because they have already seen the girl lying dead just before. Leading on from this, the girl’s nervousness is shown to the audience and we as an audience can feel her mental heartbeat getting gradually faster and faster throughout the opening. When the girl is holding the key, we can see that her hand is shaking. This creates atmosphere because in a way the audience can feel the negative energy that is coming off her.

The three flash forwards are used extremely effectively. The girl walks past the point that the action happened then stops. This is when we see what happens to her in the future. For example, the girl stops at the corner where we see her kidnapped and then the shot changes to the image of her being kidnapped in the future. The girl then looks confused and even more nervous about herself. Another time this is used very well is when the girl is walking in the park being followed by herself in the future. The girl turns around thinking that something is behind her when it is actually the mysterious character dressed in black (This is her from the future) that she cannot see. This is used as her shadow and it follows her everywhere she goes.

Costume

The girl is wearing a white vest and she puts on a white coat. This colour is chosen to symbolize purity of the character. On the other hand, the character we see that is dressed in black is actually the girl but she is shown in the future because of the flash forwards that the girl has whilst she is walking. This mysterious character is

dressed all in black. This is to create the illusion that she is evil and a very negative person. This feeling of evil is emphasized through the way that she is shown to be stalking the girl and shadowing her wherever she goes.