The document provides an analysis of the opening sequence of the 2008 film "Hancock". It summarizes that the sequence introduces the title and production companies to set expectations for a masculine action/comedy film. The main character, Hancock, has superpowers but is an unreliable alcoholic who tries to help police capture criminals, though causing destruction. The sequence establishes Hancock as a unconventional superhero and leaves the audience wondering about his background and struggles.

1. HANCOCK

2. Institutional Context: There are various captions used within the opening sequence like all the names of the film and production companies and of course the title, just before it cuts to the actual film. It is important so that audience is introduced to the beginning and from the editing/making, they can assume what kind of film it will be. The chosen font used looks strong, bold and rough, suggesting the film is masculine. It’s simple and presented in capitals letters to build on this idea of manliness. There are many film and production companies involved in this film which tells us that the film is going to be very impressive and high quality. The film company behind ‘Hancock’ is ‘Columbia’. The connotations of this icon is that the company is a large and trusted one, with a big budget. As well as this, the production companies used are ‘Overbrook’ and ‘Weed Road Pictures’ and ‘Blue Light’ which connotes the way it’s been made is going to be outstanding and exciting if more than one company has been used.

3. The film is a hybrid genre, a combination of Action, Comedy, Crime and Fantasy. These genres are constructed by different conventions and how they have been used such as: Mise-en-scene, where the beginning is clearly set in a busy American city and a particular highway where the chase takes place between the police and the Asian criminals. The costumes used on the main character ‘Hancock’ is more of a trampy-like style. There are also police uniforms used for the officers in their cars. The props included are an alcohol bottle, sunglasses, guns and cars. The camerawork used is very important, different shots are used to create suspense. This includes different extreme long shots to establish the surroundings and when Hancock is flying over the city too. There’s also a close-up of Hancock’s face when he is lying on the bench talking to the kid to show his facial expression, a point-of-view shot from Hancock’s eyes when he sees the birds coming towards him in the air and shot/reverse on the conversation between the criminals and Hancock. High-key ambient lighting is used to represent a sunny daytime in America. There are many special effects used in the film to support the Fantasy genre, when Hancock is flying to the crime scene to capture the criminals, lifting up the car and flinging it all over the place in the air as well as the sparks from the metal scraping against the police cars. Identifying Genre:

4. There’s a drunken male who we find out has superhero powers like super strength and flying abilities. However he is not your stereotypical hero, as he tries to save the day and give some assistance, when a group of 3 criminals try to escape the police cars but causing mayhem and destruction in the process. So far, this suggests the main themes will involve Action, Crime and Superheroes. The main character called Hancock is presented as a laid-back, unreliable, non-stereotypical and chaotic in his approach to try and catch the criminals. The character enigmas created in the mind of the audience are: Who is he and what is his background story on alcohol and his living arrangements? Analysing Character & Narrative:

5. Analysing Representation: The social groups represented in the sequence are black masculinity and the struggles of being a superhero, having to always be available to rescue those in need. They also include Asian criminals and a little white boy who once admired the hero but soon changes his mind after. The protagonist is shown as a lazy, unbothered alcoholic because of his trampy appearance and the alcohol bottle in his hand. I don’t think there are any stereotypes used in the film so far as the hero is not your usual and the little kid is rude, calling Hancock an ‘asshole’.