Research task 3 Seven, Shutter Island and Panic Room Panic Room poster from - Shutter Island poster from - Seven poster from - History of thriller genre -

Panic Room Narrative theme, Sub genre and iconography: I think that in the opening title sequence of Panic Room the narrative theme is isolation this is because in the OTS we go through the skyline of New York mostly panning, or using long shots. Somehow this creates a feeling of being on your own because there are no people that can be seen for most of the opening. As the title sequence continues the music gets somewhat cheerier but still maintains its deep troubling tone, the tone only changes when the camera goes toward areas that have more people, basically things start looking more positive when things are less isolated. This was used because... Narrative structure: The OTS goes through the usual narrative structure of a beginning, middle and end but goes through some different stages in the first few seconds it starts with a deeper more ominous tone as it goes through the city, then at the next stage things lighten up slightly but maintains that ominous tone it is at this stage that it goes to areas where people can be seen, not very closely though, and then the last stage, this is where the camera goes to the park and the mood has changed noticeably, the tone is serious without seeming dramatic and there are people who are seen walking about and we briefly see one of the characters talking trying to get something done. I think that the OTS used this narrative structure because it set up a certain idea about what may happen in the movie, this perception that the viewer now has about the events that may follow... Character types: Meg, the mother, is the main hero character she takes care of Sarah and does what she can to keep her safe, but also has to do most of the things in the movie for herself. This makes Sarah, the smaller, younger and more vulnerable character, the damsel in distress. She can do things on her own and help within the movie but will always need more support and more saving. I think that these two character types were chosen for this movie because they were important for setting up thrilling situations, a hero character is always going to get themselves into trouble so seeing them and them alone overcome them is in itself quite thrilling, but when another character who isn't as independent or as able in predicament to get out of trouble, then that just means that the audience has two people to worry about now. The Opening:

Panic Room Mise en scene: The very well built buildings of New York were used in most of the shots of the opening, i think, to show how safe the area is, or at least how well the audience should think it is. I think that this choice was made because it was meant to indicate how unsafe places are, no matter how good the place looks, which really just sets up how the unexpected is likely to happen in the movie. Cinematography: There were some very specific shots used in the OTS, they used a lot of panning and high angle shots, a few low angle shots and a time-lapse shot just before the end. These all made the film feel very thrilling because gave the impression that they were keeping a look out for something over long time, which kept with the theme of the movie which was panic Sound: There is a lot of non diegetic sound used in the OTS, these sounds are the music, there aren’t any other sounds until we get closer to the end where we hear one of the characters, Meg, conversing with another person. The lack of diegetic sound may be used because the ambient sounds of the city would not create a thrilling atmosphere. Titles: The titles of Panic room are large white/silver metallic looking text that loom over the New York skyline they are integrated into the opening sequence rather than being in cuts in between the different shots.

Seven Narrative theme, Sub genre and iconography: The narrative themes of Seven are the seven deadly sins. This is not clearly portrayed through the OTS though, the sub genre of the film is crime, the film is a crime thriller, this too isn’t made very clear through the OTS it seemed more like it would be more of a psychological thriller rather than crime just because of the amount of very strange and disturbing things that the antagonist is doing during the opening, for example during one point the character picks out some pictures of a man's hands, they appear to be very disfigured. It is implied that he is a violent character in the OTS through certain icons, he is seen cleaning a slightly bloody needle, and in a section of the OTS near the start he is seen shearing some of the flesh on his own finger off. All of these action make the character and the whole movie seem very dark and creepy Narrative structure: It would be best to assume that the narrative structure of the OTS would be beginning middle and end as this is the norm, but it is hard to figure out if this is the case because there are not tells that give away any information that tell us how time is passing in the opening sequence. Character types: There are many different types of characters in Seven but the main three; ohn Doe, Detective. David Mills and Detective Lt. William Somerset are all very different, John Doe is very clearly the antagonist, then there's David Mills the protagonist, Mills is the main protagonist so he is the hero this makes Somerset, who is the secondary protagonist, the helper character.

Seven Mise en scene: Everything in the OTS was chosen because it matched the very dark creepy theme of Seven, from the bloody needle to the creepy pictures, they all fit in and make for a chilling start to a movie. Also used was the lighting there were some parts of the OTS where there was something going on but there was dim lighting, it could have also been the distorted Images that helped to create this effect. Cinematography: Close up shots are commonly used to create a closer feeling or connection with the character however this is not the case, in the OTS it makes the events seem creepier, it also creates some suspense as we are not able to see the full picture all of this comes together to make a very stage feeling for the audience which make this a good thriller OTS. Sound: In the OTS of Seven there is a lot of strange noises that can be heard, none of these noises are diegetic this make things thrilling and creepy. In addition to the noises, music is played in the opening, it is strange, screechy and not very pleasant to hear, I think that the decision to use this type of music as opposed to the usual kind of suspenseful music was so that the audience would be a surprised because this is different to the normal thriller music. Titles: The titles and text are scratchy white letters shown against a dark black background which are shown after footage is shown. The text shakes and jitters around before resuming to clips in the title sequence.

Shutter Island Narrative theme, Sub genre and iconography: The theme of Shutter Island is imprisonment I think this because the OTS showed chains which are icons of capture and imprisonment, the reason for this is because the movie is about insanity and the confusion that it gives people this is something that is clearer into the movie, figuratively insanity and not being able to control yourself or not being able to see what’s happening can make a person feel trapped. Narrative structure: The narrative structure of Shutter Island is beginning, middle and end, this Character types: The characters are Teddy Daniels who is supposedly the protagonist, then there is his partner Chuck, who is also a kind of protagonist and finally there is Dr Cawley who is arguably an antagonist, the fact that is is hard to put each of the character into a specific category just goes with the fact that the movie is about confusion and insanity the action of Teddy and the revelation about at the end of the film really make the audience question what he is in terms of being good or bad, same with Chuck and Cawley. Opening of shutter island

Shutter Island Mise en scene: The things that are actually captured by the camera come nearer to the end of the sequence, the boat on the rough waters going toward the island however there was some footage or chains along with rattling that was being played while the credits were rolling this Cinematography: There is not much going on that is actually captured by a camera in Shutter Island's OTS, except until the end where we see a long shot of a small ship ferrying the main characters to the island. The decision to use no actual camera footage was to make things seem weird which fits with the theme of the movie. Sound: The sound used are a mixture of diegetic and non-diegetic sounds, the sounds are of chains clanking, cell doors closing and locking, some fog horns and of rough water that is passing along the boat with some non-diegetic sounds like the music that plays throughout. Titles: In the opening of shutter island, the titles appear in front of the footage that is shown, the text is a dull colour with no real thrilling elements to them, there are also no thrilling transitions between the text and the footage possibly to allow the audience to think about what the opening could mean for the rest of the movie.