deconstructing

1. DECONSTRUCTING A SHORT
FILM CLIP- THE DARK KNIGHT
OPENING SCENE
BY OLIVER BERRYMAN
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OYBEquZ_j0

2. From the opening shot, a birds eye type of shot, the most obvious denotations are that this
particular scene is set in a city due to the volume of buildings and also that it is also set during
the day. From the denotations we can clearly connote that something is about to happen in a
busy place in the middle of a city during the middle of the day. They use high key lighting as
although there is shadows, the buildings are highlighted from the light from the sun. This could
suggest the temperature of the day is hot and that this film could be set in a first world country
like America due to the weather and how well built up the area is. In this particular shot, no
characters have been introduced yet so there are not any costumes or make up involved yet that
we can find connotations from. This is an extreme long shot and the main focus is on the centre
buildings. There is then a tracking (dolly) shot which focuses the viewers attention on the centre
black building. The camera stops zooming onto the building and the denotation from this shot is
one of the glass windows from this particular building smashing and the glass falling. From this
we can draw the connotation that some action is going on in the bullet or perhaps it has being
shot. This is low key lighting as only a dark reflection is shown from the windows and our
attention is drawn onto the glass smashing. This is a long shot as there are still over 100 other
windows in shot. The colour of the smashed glass and the contrast to the colour of the rest of the
panes of glass creates a colour balance and a point of focus.

3. The previous shot pans into a high angle over the shoulder shot. This enables us to see out of the window
and to see a building which is not as high as the building the camera is situated in. From this we can connote
that this character dressed like a criminal is about to shoot at the other building. His body posture in this
particular shot is quite a straight back posture which could suggest he is quite confident with the task he has
to do. Firstly we can come to the conclusion that he is potentially a criminal and a potential villain in the
film. We can also connote that he was the reason that the glass smashed was because of his gun due to the
way it is positioned and the proximity of the character and the gun. Moreover, the way he is holding the gun
suggests that this is not his first time dealing with weaponry so he could be quite a well known criminal. We
then find out in the same shot that he fires a grappling hook across to the building. From this we could
gather that the other building is his destination or he is going to perform a criminal act. The proximity of the
building to the person is shown through the window and also through the rope on the table. This shot then
cuts which leaves mystery as we do not know what he is using the rope he fired across for.

4. The previous shot instantly cuts to a long shot of a man on the pavement in the middle of a city. The mans
posture is hunched over which could suggest he may be quite older than other characters. He is also seen to
be holding a mast and duffel bag. These two items could clearly connote us to a criminal activity. The clown
mask could also make the audience think that this particular person is either directly or indirectly linked to the
character in the previous shot. However, this character is not performing any crimes yet as he is no wearing
the mask yet. He is dressed in a baggy suit with long greasy hair which could suggest he is careless of his look
as he will soon be wearing the mask anyway. The duffel bag makes us wonder about what is in it as it could
suggest what this person is about to do. There are other people in the shot within the background which
shows that this city is busy and they could potentially be involved in a crime if they are near this person. The
dark colours of the characters clothing balances out with the high key lighting of the city. The camera then
zooms into the clown mask, focusing the viewers attention on it, which could suggest that this character is a
criminal and this mask is definitely going to be used to perform a crime of some sort. The word ‘payday’ is
placed on a yellow sign in the background which could have significance as that could be explaining what is
about to happen for the audience.

5. This birds eye view high angle shot clearly shows the two masked men
and duffel bag travelling along the grappling hook line in order to get
to the other building. This particular shot shows the proximity and the
distance between the floor and the characters. This could suggest that
CGI or green screen was used for this shot to be safe. The high key
lighting allows us to see everything in this shot and our attention is
drawn to the two men and the bag. The speed which the bag travels
along the line suggests there is something heavy in it. The camera
pans and tilts as the characters make their way along the rope

6. There is a straight cut to an over the shoulder eye level shot in the car. Here we can
see three masked characters in the car with the backseat passenger loading a gun
from this you can connote that these three people are criminals and they want to
remain anonymous as they are all wearing similar clothing with their faces covered. All
characters are sat with similar posture suggesting they have a similar role or feel the
same about the task they are about to perform. The shot then cuts to the two in the
front of the car which suggests that all these characters have significance as they
receive the same amount of attention. The low key lighting focuses the attention on
the three characters and sets the atmosphere to be quite eerie and mysterious as it
makes the viewer wonder why they need masks and guns and what they are going to
use them for.

7. This low angle medium shot shows two of the three masked
men getting out of the car, looking around suspiciously, and
then walking towards a building as the camera pans towards it.
From this we can connote that they could potentially be going
to rob a bank or a store. This concludes that they are definitely
criminals. The high key lighting shows that they are going to
perform a crime. The framing of the shot with the car and
buildings surrounding them suggests that they are in a busy city
potentially going into a busy bank.

8. The next shot is of the two masked men running into a building and shooting into the
air as the camera pans to reveal where they are holding up. From the layout we can
connote that it is a bank and that these men are looking to steal money from there.
From the figure in the background’s appearance and uniform, we can connote that this
man is a police officer and from the members of staff and members of the public facial
expressions, we can see that they are clearly distressed and scared to have a gun fired
in this facility. From the way the public are dressed, we can clearly see this is a well
built bank for those who are higher is class and wealth. Therefore these masked
criminals have targeted it as there may potentially be more money. The camera then
pans further to reveal all the staff been thrown onto the floor with their hands up. This
shows that they have surrendered and that they are following what they have been
trained to do.

9. This close up of presumably the rooftop masked criminal
with a machine that determines which wire to cut
without tripping an alarm. The amount of wires in the
fuse box both shows that this building has a high security
and electricity but also that this particular masked man
will be under pressure to cut the right wire so he is not
responsible for the robbery to be unsuccessful.

10. This then cuts to a scene of the rooftop masked men where one
of them has cut the wire in the fuse box. From the way the
background figure has positioned his arm, we can connote that
he is about to kill him during this close up shot to which we
soon find out that he does. This makes the audience wonder
what is going on as they worked together to get here just to
betray each other. The high key lighting highlights everything in
the shot but focuses the attention on the two characters and
what happens.

11. The scene cuts to a medium shot back in the bank. The fact that this shot is on a
man by himself could suggest the significance of this man for example he could
be the bank manager. His outfit and desk make the character loom very formal
and of a higher class however his facial expression is quite distressed and
concerned which is probably because his bank is being robbed. The high key
lighting focuses the attention on this character and what he is about to do next.
From this we can connote that he is not going to do the same as the other
members of staff and just surrender which could mean he potentially fights
back.

12. In this over the shoulder medium dolly type of shot. We see one of the masked
men walk through some doors into the vault room of the bank. The small
window and low key lighting doesn’t allow a colour balance which sets the
atmosphere to be quite sinister and menacing as they are about to perform a
bank robbery. This is quite stereotypical and runs along with the conventions
we have of a bank and a bank robbery in particular. The camera then pans
towards the vault door which suggests that he is going to attempt to break into
the vault door to get the money out of it. The body posture of the character
shows that he is fairly confident which could suggests this is not the first time
he has robbed from a bank.

13. The next shot is a medium shot which shows this character
fighting back at the masked criminals with a shotgun. He makes
an entrance by shooting out the glass in his office. His facial
expression shows his anger and passion for this bank which
breaks the convention of a standard bank robbery. The high key
lighting highlights the character and his gun. CGI was potentially
used to show the gun shot. This changes the mood of the
robbery and turns it into more of a shootout.

14. This medium shot shows one pf the criminals shooting the managerial figure after he ran out of
shotgun shells. The lead room in the bottom left corner shows the way that he is shooting. The
way he is stood and is holding a gun with one hand shows his confidence and from this we can
connote that he has shot people before or used a gun in the past. The lead room on either side
of the character could clearly suggest that there are now more opportunities open now that the
threat has been taken out. The camera just focuses on the mask and the expression is quite
angry and distressed which could reflect to this persons actual emotions as he could be angry
that this managerial figure tried to ruin the plans of the bank robbery. The camera then zooms
and pans into a close up shot where the masked man tilts his head which could suggest he is
having deep thoughts about what he has done and whether this person is actually dead or not
which could have a deeper meaning on this mans personal life which may be revealed later on
in the film.

15. The next scene instantly cuts to another shot of the same masked man rushing into
the vault to start filling the empty duffel bags with money. The long shot allows the
viewer to see the whole vault room which frames the shot. This high key lighting
highlights everything but mostly the money, as if it is lit up for him as an objective. The
money has been conveniently places on either sides of the character which means
there is no lead room in this shot which could suggest that he has met his destination
and he has no where else to go as he has completed the objective of committing a
bank robbery. We then receive a close up shot of this criminal dragging the money
from the tables into his duffel bag. The way he is rushing suggests he could be nervous
or under a lot of pressure. This could connote that the police are on their way so the
criminals are trying to be quick.

16. We are then faced with multiple medium shots of the two remaining masked men having a
conversation so the camera keeps cutting from one to the other in quite a quick manor. This
could connote that the conversation could easily turned into a heated argument quickly if they
are not careful. The audience are waiting for one of the characters to betray the other by killing
them so they keep the money for themselves as that is what has been happening during this
particular scene. The screenshot above is an over the shoulder medium shot of one of the
masked men with a gun pointed towards the other masked man. To say he has a gun pointed
towards him, the masked man seems fairly calm as he is looking at his watch and talking back in
a calm tone. From this we can connote that this character is waiting for something to happen or
he is not afraid to die. The high key lighting lets us see the costumes of the bank robbers better
and to see that they are dressed formal as well as lighting up a large part of the bank.

17. The final shot of this scene is a medium long shot of a school bus driving into ‘Gotham national
bank’ and flattening the character who was pointing the gun. From this we can connote that this
was part of the plan just for one of the criminals to get away in the school bus with all the money.
The audience will be shocked by this because although they expected one of the masked men to
die at this point due to past scenes, no one expected the man pointing the gun to die from a
school bus. The bright yellow school bus creates a colour balance from the dull colours of the
interior of the bank. The fact that they committed this robbery during the day is good because it
means that they have a school bus as their get away vehicle which is beneficial as it will blend in
with all the other school buses in the area. From this we can connote that this last masked man
alive is smart and potentially one of the main characters or villains in this movie as he has made an
entrance and has remained alive even when his Hench-men have died. From this we can connote
that he will have significance throughout the movie. This makes the viewer wonder the persons
identity and how significant this bank robbery will be to the movie as a whole.