1. Film Opening analysis – Forest Gump
The openingscene forForrestGumpstarts off witha trackingshot of a white feather,which
suggestsinnocence andvulnerability.Thisallowsthe audience togeta vague ideaonwhat the
character islikelytobe introducedlike.Asthe cameraisfollowingthe feathersmovementsthe
backgroundof whichthe filmissetin isdisplayed,the treesare greenandthe buildingsare striking,
alongwiththe cleanroads,thissetsa smoothtone to the filmandallowsthe audience tofeel at
ease while watchingit,knowingthere’snotlikelytobe unexpectedenigmas.The creditswhich
appearon the screenare alsowhite,whichfitsinwiththe calmandpeaceful tone of the film.The
scene isverylightwhichsuggeststhatthe filmisgoingtobe light-hearted. Asthe journeyof the
featherisbeingshown,there isnon-diegeticmusicbeingplayedinthe background,thisiseffective
because itstone andbeat isparallel tothe movementsof the feather.Thissuggeststhatthe musicis
insync and has the conventionsof a drama.The musicgetslouderasthe movementsprogress,
buildingupexcitementthatthe audience are abouttobe introducedtoa keypart of the film.Italso
adds dramaticeffect,fittinginwiththe genre.The musicissynchronoustothe calmnessof the film
whichgivesaninsightforthe audience intowhat the filmislikelytobe like.The differentpace and
tone of the musicsuggeststhatthere islikelytobe a tragedyinthe film, due tothe uncertaintyof
the differenttempos.Howeverthe musicalsoportraysthe erawhichthe filmissetin,being1986,
because itisclearlycreatedthrougha varietyof instrumentswhichwouldhave beenaround
comparedto the technologywhichhasnow beenadvancedinmoderndays.The musicistoosoftfor
a horror film,toojoyful fora thrillerfilmandnotupbeatenoughforan actionfilm.The change of
soundisnoticeable andimportantforthe audience whenrecognisingwhothe maincharacteris
likelytobe because asthe feathergetscloserand closerto Tom Hanksthe musicgets louderand
more stringsare added. The featherglidingthroughthe airand grabsthe audience’sattention.The
waythe featheroriginallylandsonaman’sshouldersuggeststhatthe filmisjustabouttosettle and
that thiscouldbe the maincharacter,thisallowsthe audience tobelieve the uncertaintyof whothe
maincharacter is.Thisleadsto a misleadinginterpretationof the filmbecause the musicwouldn'tfit
inwiththat man if he was the maincharacter. Deceivingthe audience, the feathercarriesonits
journeyandeventuallyfallsbythe firstcharacterintroduced;the camerazoomsinfor a close up
shotand showsa man pickingupthe feather.Thisisthe start of the introductiontothe main
character, intriguingthe audience anddrawingthem intoquestionwhatthe maincharacterlooks
and acts like. The final shot,whichisthe mostimportantshotof the openingscene,displaysthe
maincharacter and hisactionsleadinguptothe restof the film.The wayhe sitsthere ina fixed
positionhoweverwithasense of unnerve,impliesthathe mayhave social difficulties,orcontrasting
thisidea,thathe maybe extremelyconfident.These actionsdeterminethe restof the filmforthe
audience.The original ideaof the feathergliding throughthe citysuggeststhatthiscouldhave alink
withthe character, suggestingthathe glidesthroughhislife,withupsanddownsalongwith
tragedies. The Mise-En-Sceneof thatfilmisintriguingbecause itintroducesthe characters
characteristics.ForrestGump'sdirtyandmuddyshoesoriginallysuggestthatthe maincharacter is
likelytobe teenagerswhohave justbeenplayinginthe park.Howeverwhenthe age isdeceived
throughthe image of the character itsuggeststhathe ischild-like andjuveniles.The shoescontrast
withhis smart and formal attire;thiscouldimplythathe hasfinancial difficulties,introducingthat
characters background.The wayForrestGump possessesthe feathersuggeststhathe isa unique
character by puttingitinto hissuitcase,alsoportrayingthathe isstartinga journeyjustlike the
featheratthe start of the film.
