The opening sequence of Leon: The Professional establishes the film's setting of New York City through aerial shots of rivers, trees and the skyline. It introduces the title against a black background in white font. The sequence shows Leon drinking milk in a restaurant, which is unusual for a thriller genre. It also shows another character, Benny, smoking to portray him as a "bad" character connected to crime. The soundtrack is calm with violin and flute music to set a tone of travel as the camera moves through the city streets. This summarizes the key details and analysis provided in the document.
3. At the beginning of the opening sequence the ‘GAUMONT’
logo appears as sort of a flower blossoming after us seeing a
boy standing at the edge of the world [planet earth], holding
onto a flower which he later releases into the atmosphere
which later blooms into the ‘GAUMONT’ logos. Flowers
blossoming usually represent new beginnings or new life
possibly which could actually represent a new story which is
about to be introduced to the audience, hence the logo being
the way it is.
GAUMONT
4.
5. CAMERA MOVEMENT
ESTABLISHING SHOT
▸ The first image taken by the camera is an arial shot of a river, after which it pans
over numerous trees. The next view is an establishing shot of the skyline of New
York as the camera turns upward. The purpose of this image is to show the
audience where the action will be taking place. Then, the viewer might have
expectations for what might happen next and cues as to whether the shot is
urban or suburban.
6. OPENING SEQUENCE
EDITING
▸ On top of a black background, the title is written in a
plain white font with the word "LEON" capitalized and
separated by spaces. The headline has been
highlighted and given prominence using this writing
style and size. Intentionally, the colors are chosen to
highlight the contrast and make the font pop against
the ominous background. The font is placed in the
middle to draw attention to it and capture the
audience's undivided focus. To draw the audience's
attention, the title is placed so that it specifically fills
the volume of the scene.
7. MISE EN SCENE
The movie is set in New York, as evidenced by the
opening sweeping image of the city skyline, a banner in
the street that reads "Welcome to Little Italy," and a
deeper dive into a restaurant called "Supreme Macaroni
Co."
LIGHTING
The lighting in the establishing shots of the sea, trees, and
city is very natural and brilliant, creating a setting that is
familiar to viewers. Contrarily, the images taken inside the
restaurant "Supreme Macaroni co" made use of artificial
chiaroscuro lighting to create a more tense and somber
environment.
8. PROPS, COSTUMES
AND CHARACTERS
The first prop the audience sees of Leon is a glass of milk,
which is unusual for a thriller because viewers typically
expect to see the character drinking alcohol.
When Leon finishes his glass of milk at the conclusion of his
chat with Benny, it almost has the effect of a full stop. This is
done on purpose to highlight the conclusion and highlight a
characteristic of Leon.
Benny, the second male figure who interacts with Leon, is
smoking a cigarette while holding a lighter in his hand. This is
inserted on purpose to give the character a "bad"
appearance, which is frequently connected to crime, drugs,
alcohol, and the streets.
Leons costume involves him wearing a pair of sunglasses
with black lenses that shows a reflection of a male character
called Benny sitting a table with a red checked cloth and a
bottle of drink, lighting his cigarette. This is included to hide
his eye which is done in order to not reveal his identity.
This creates mystery as the audience are wondering who the
character is and who the character smoking is.
9.
10. SOU
ND
The soundtrack in the opening is overall calm and highly
soft as it includes simple soft notes whilst the white credits
appear over a black background. As the camera moves
across the ocean, a violin playing at a high pitch is added,
which could have been done to evoke a sense of travel.
Flute and pipe instrument sounds are added to the
soundtrack as the camera wanders through the city's busy
streets. Up until the point where Leon and his Benny are
presented to the public inside the restaurant "Supreme
Macaroni Co.,"The soundtrack is still playing throughout the
opening. The only sounds used during the dialogue
between these two men are background noises.
