opening scene analysis

2
Opening sequence analysis Goodfellas: Mis-en-scene: We see the three men driving along the road. However they begin to hear banging from the boot of their car. This results in them deciding to find somewhere quiet and off road in order to inspect this diegetic sound. The audience can denote that this is during the night time, as it is very dark during this scene. As Henry opens the ‘trunk’, we see a bleeding man, tied in a table cloth. This revels to the audience that our protagonists may usually be seen as antagonists in another movie, as they have attempted a murder. The three men now finish off the job: stabbing, shooting, and subsequently burying the now deceased man. This opening scene gives the audience their first taste of violence in the movie early on, as this is a common occurrence, not only just in the film, but throughout the whole of the crime/gangster genre. Lighting/Colour: There is very dark, low-key lightings denoted during the opening scene of Goodfellas. This denotes the dark night in which gangsters prefer to commit their crimes in order to get away, however this connotes the dark narratives we are yet to see throughout the rest of the film. The audience can denote the lights from the mis-en-scene of the scene. This colour connotes serious danger and blood.

Upload: conor

Post on 07-Dec-2015

22 views

Category:

Documents


0 download

DESCRIPTION

y54y45y

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: Opening Scene Analysis

Opening sequence analysis

Goodfellas:

Mis-en-scene:We see the three men driving along the road. However they begin to hear banging from the boot of their car. This results in them deciding to find somewhere quiet and off road in order to inspect this diegetic sound. The audience can denote that this is during the night time, as it is very dark during this scene. As Henry opens the ‘trunk’, we see a bleeding man, tied in a table cloth. This revels to the audience that our protagonists may usually be seen as antagonists in another movie, as they have attempted a murder. The three men now finish off the job: stabbing, shooting, and subsequently burying the now deceased man. This opening scene gives the audience their first taste of violence in the movie early on, as this is a common occurrence, not only just in the film, but throughout the whole of the crime/gangster genre.

Lighting/Colour:There is very dark, low-key lightings denoted during the opening scene of Goodfellas. This denotes the dark night in which gangsters prefer to commit their crimes in order to get away, however this connotes the dark narratives we are yet to see throughout the rest of the film. The audience can denote the lights from the mis-en-scene of the scene. This colour connotes serious danger and blood.

Costume/Props:The three men on screen are denoted to be wearing suits. This is a common convention for male characters in gangster films. This connotes formality, as well as their luxury lifestyles, almost as if they are businessmen at work. The gun in which we can see in one of the characters hands, as well as a knife in one of the other characters hands, further proves this connotation. These weapons signify the danger shown by the red lights.

Page 2: Opening Scene Analysis

Sound:The majority of sound during this opening scene is diegetic, as well as synchronous. An example of this diegetic, synchronous is the dialogue between our three protagonists, in addition to the banging sounds from the boot of the car. Another would be the sound of the previously mentioned weapons: Jimmy’s gun as he shoots it, as well as Tommy’s knife as he stabs his victim. However there is one non-diegetic noise towards the end of the trailer; this being a voice over from our main protagonist, Henry. In this narration we hear Henry say: “As long as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster.” This sets the scene, preparing the audience for the narrative of the movie.