Analysis of fim opening - Skyfall

Analysis of film opening - Skyfall

Genre

I am going to be analysing the film Skyfall. Firstly, after thoroughly watching the opening sequence I would say there are about two different genres that are easily noticeable. The first one is action, there are many generic conventions of action in this opening clip, for example when you look closely on Daniel Craig’s suit you can see he has a shot wound which clearly connotes that he has been shot and violence has been used.  Also, the fact that there is a cardboard cut-out of Bond with numerous gunshot holes in it with blood pouring out clearly connotes that there film is action. The next genre is thriller, this is heard at the very start and throughout by the music that is played over the top (Adele), it’s quite slow paced but has a thriller affect to it as it builds up tension.

Character

The opening sequence gives us as he audience members not much of an idea to what the characters are like.  However, from the content that is shown I can tell that there is one main character as within the first 30 seconds the name Daniel Craig appears connoting that he is the main characters as main characters always appear within that time frame. Throughout the rest of the clip there are a number of other characters that appear such as Judi Dench who I would say is also one of the main characters. In addition to this the way Daniel Craig is presented in the opening connotes that his line of work is to do with violence, this is due to the bullet holes, blood, guns etc. although he is licensed to kill due to working for the government.  Moreover, in this opening the male gaze theory has been used as you can see nude women who are dancing around, this has no relevance to the opening at all, it is just used to attract the interest of males.

Atmosphere

The atmosphere that is shown in the opening is rather relaxed and slow, this is due to the music that can be heard throughout the opening sequence. In addition to this, the use of slow paced editing connotes that this film isn’t one that is always going to have you at the edge of your seat. Also, the characters are also quite slow, adding to the slow relaxed pace of this opening.

Themes

There are numerous themes that can be drawn from this opening, the first one is death, this is due to the blood that can be seen at 0:42 pouring from the cardboard cut-out of Craig. Also, the bullet hole that is found on Daniel Craig at the very beginning whilst he looks like he is drowning. Also, towards the middle of the clip you see the camera pan through what is seen to be a graveyard, this has connotations that someone is already dead or is going to die, leading me to think that Daniel Craig might die as at the start also we see him drowning therefore if you put two and two together it makes sense that he might die.

Setting

There are various places where Skyfall was filmed. The locations are Scotland, Turkey, China and Japan. However the majority of it was filmed in England in places such as London and Surrey. The fact it was filmed mainly in England is important as It makes British Audiences want to watch it as its home grown. In addition to this, the fact it was filmed in a number of other countries attracts audiences from all over the world; therefore this will bring in revenue from all over the world also.

Sound

The first piece of non-diegetic music of Adele signing ‘Skyfall’, this creates and sets the mood for the film opening as it is quite quiet and calming. This is the only piece of music that is played. It is played throughout the clip and the way that it is sung connotes that this film could also be a thriller.

Titles

The titles are good as they are all in the correct. The main actors name appears within the first 30 seconds and also the movie title appears within the first 30 seconds. The titles are have the same font, colour and size apart from the Daniel Craig one and the Skyfall one, this connotes that them  two titles are more important. The use of the same font shows a balance throughout the clip as if you keep changing the font and colour of the titles it just looks unprofessional and dosnt look as good and sometimes it can be hard to read as you are so used to looking at one font and colour that when it changes it just looks strange.