Film Openings Studies

 Film Studies

Content

For this post, I want to go over the story for each film.

It is a story in the summer of 1989, when a group of kids unite because of their traumatizing encounters with an evil clown. Together, the kids are determined to kill the clown. In the opening scene, Pennywise bites a kid's arm off and drags him into a street gutter that leads into the sewer. What is the most memorable thing that happened in this scene? It killed a kid. And because of the mini-series in 1990, many older viewers, now adults, sympathize with this scene. 

IT (2017)

For my opening scene, I originally wanted to go with a horror scene, but that was just too generic for me. I want my opening scene to leave a bite. Like this scene. I want it to have horror elements, but not follow a horror story. Specifically, I want my story to be crime related, following drug cartels and other significant terrorists attacks. Although this isn't an interrogation scene, the horror aspect of it is really well done. 

The filter over the camera adds to the mood of the scene. The grayer, monotone colors work in unison with the thunderstorm to create a darker mood. This sets the tone for the whole movie. A huge aspect of the movie is about the characters mourning the little brother that Pennywise killed. I would like to incorporate a filter like this to give the sensation of a more serious tone. This develops character and the plot for the rest of the movie.

Sinister (2012)

The way this movie starts off is crazy!! Immediately the movie gets into the action with 5 kills, and again this scene killed off a couple children. For my scene, I think I have an idea to kill off a character at the end. With a bullet rather than a tree. Because of the crime aspect I want to have, I think it should be in a police station or another area that would normally have access to such weapons. Also, the old, grainy filter used on the scene is a great touch again. This is definitely a must add to my opening.

Halloween (1978)

Halloween is another influential horror movie, as seen from its seemingly endless sequels and spin-offs. When Michael murdered his sister, it left a taste in people's mouths. All of these three films had kids as their main character. I believe that is such an important part about making a film memorable. In my scene, I plan to have a teenager and an adult together, and the adult influencing the teenager in some way.

Main Takeaway

I definitely have found inspiration for my film opening. By studying some film openings and researching what they do well, I have come up with some ideas of what I could do. I have decided that I will focus on more suspense elements rather than jump scares. I want my scene to give the viewer chills. I think that having a kid be affected in the opening will invoke that feeling.