Jack Reacher

Tajul Islam

Jack Reacher (previously titled One Shot) is a 2012 American thriller film. It is an adaptation of Lee Child's 2005 novel One Shot. Written and directed by Christopher McQuarrie, the film stars Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher

Camera Work

There are many camera shot used in the opening sequence of jack Reacher. The first shot is an extreme close up of the main characters hand gripping onto an object (switch of some sort) this makes us the audience intrigues into what the switch does and what he is starting, is also makes the audience concentrated on what the switch is all about. It is also a parallel between the start of the film and the start of what he is doing. There is also an establishing shot which introduced the setting which seems to be in a rural area with lost of trees which then cuts into a city scarp which shows us there might be a clash between the two sides. This sequence is slowly outlining what the main character does as a job as there is a van driving along a empty road with the setting in the background. We are introduced to the main character using a close up of a gun that he is holding, this creates a feeling as if he is someone not to be jokes around with and is someone of high authority.

SoundThrough out the opening sequence there is a non-diegetic sound used to go with the opening. It creates a sense of mystery and a feeling of what is going to happen next. The non-diegetic sound also brings in the audience to witness what is about to unfold and who is the main character. There are also sound effect used for example during in the first scene there is a sound effect of the switch which demonstrates that something has started. There is also a sound effect of the gun being reloaded which indicates that he is getting ready for something

Editing

The first editing technique used is a parallel shot between the car driving and a man doing things with bullets. This can be a contrast between either the villain and hero or a contrast between two heroes. A jump cut is also used to introduce one of the two main characters of the film. It uses this as way of skipping time and building a suspense into what he looks like and is doing. Also an action match is used toward the end of the opener when the individual is reloading the gun, this shows continuity of the sequence and shows us different camera shots of the main character to make him look lik someone important.

Mise En Scene

One of the mise en scene used in the opening sequence is props and that is bullets. The use of these bullets give us an understanding that there might be an involvement of these bullets within the film and have an importance towards the main story. Another prop used is a machine gun that is attached to the main character. The machine gun gives us a feeling that the main character is someone with high importance and is also a dangerous man. The main character is wearing a solider/ assassin type of costume which shows us that he is a form of authority and may have a hidden mystery behind it due to the assassin type look.