Film Openings

I have looked at different openings to films to see which type of openings would be appropriate for my film.

The first film i am going to be looking at is Psycho(1960), this is the first clip of the movie.




A brief description of the storyline -Phoenix officeworker Marion Crane is fed up with the way life has treated her. She has to meet her lover Sam in lunch breaks and they cannot get married because Sam has to give most of his money away in alimony. One Friday Marion is trusted to bank $40,000 by her employer. Seeing the opportunity to take the money and start a new life, Marion leaves town and heads towards Sam's California store. Tired after the long drive and caught in a storm, she gets off the main highway and pulls into The Bates Motel. The motel is managed by a quiet young man called Norman who seems to be dominated by his mother.

Director:  Alfred Hitchcock Writers:  Joseph Stefano (screenplay), Robert Bloch (novel) Stars:  Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh and Vera Miles When watching the opening of this film it creates an erie feeling due to the dramatic background music and the close up  shot of the woman, because of this close up shot you can see the feelings in the woman's face which then makes the opening give you a tense feeling. Also during this shot you get to see a view point from the from of the car and as the pace increases so does the speed of the car and the music. As the increase of music pace it makes you feel more tense and awaiting what is coming next. This is a good clip as it leads you wanting more and to watch the rest of the film. The second film i am going to be looking at is A Cinderella Story (2004), this is the opening clip.

This is a short description of the film -Routinely exploited by her wicked stepmother, the downtrodden Sam Montgomery is excited about the prospect of meeting her Internet beau at the school's Halloween dance.

Director: 

Mark Rosman

Writer: 

Leigh Dunlap

Stars:

 Hilary Duff, Chad Michael Murray and Jennifer Coolidge

This film has a very different opening to the Psycho as this is a chick flick and has a very different feel than to watching a thriller. This opening to the film explains the whole story line and has many establishing shots to show the viewer where the film is set and gives lots of background information into the film. The music gives a happy cheerful feeling at the beginning and then when the dad dies and he music changes you begin to feel sorry for the characters and feel involved in the storyline.

When creating my film opening i will take notes from the first film i analysed ( Psycho ) as it gives a scary effect which i could use in my film, i can use the same sort of music to create an eree felling to the beginning of the film and leave you wanting more.