The document analyzes the opening sequences of four thriller films - Taken, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, Twilight, and The Box. It examines the characters, settings, camerawork, mise-en-scene, lighting, sound, editing techniques, and target audiences in the openings. Overall, the openings establish characters, set dark and ominous tones through lighting and music, build tension through editing and sound, and target young adult audiences through action and romance.

1. Task 12 – Opening
Sequence Analysis
Conduct a textual
analysis by looking
at similar films you
are intending to
produce.

2. The Different Films I Looked at
• Taken
• The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
• Twilight
• The Box
The 4 different films I looked at are all in
the thriller genre, but have different
storylines so I could explore the genre
further.

3. Characters
In the film ‘Twilight’ the
character ‘Bella’ is shown
as an introverted person.
This is portrayed through
the fact that she doesn’t
give to much away about
herself in the opening
sequence and she sort of
keeps herself to herself.
This also makes her seem
independent, however this
is contradicted in the rest
of the film as she has to
rely on other people a lot
to save her life.

4. Characters 2
In the film ‘Taken’, he is
shown as a strong man,
this could be because he
is an ex- CSI agent for
the government. This
makes him similar to the
main character in
Twilight, because it also
makes him seem
independent, especially
as in the first scene he is
sitting on his own in the
dark. This could portray
that he is also a lonely
character.

5. Characters 3
The main Character in
‘The Box’, ‘Norma’ is
shown as quite innocent,
however she commits a
strong action when
pushing the button to kill
someone. I think the main
way this has been
created is by her high
pitch, soft voice giving her
a sweet tone.

6. Character 4
In ‘The Girl With The
Dragon Tattoo’ the
woman is shown as
strong, maybe a bit
dangerous at first. This is
displayed through her
look because she is
shown as tough and has
a striking appearance
made up of tattoo’s and
piercings.

7. Setting
• Most of the films opening sequence started in a
homely setting.
• In ‘The Box’ it starts of with a married couple in
bed, in there home giving a sense of security.
• In ‘Taken’ the films starts of Bryan dreaming of
his little girl, this is him reflecting on happier
times, as when he awakens he is on his own a
dark room.

8. Camerawork
• Establishing shot – normally used in the
beginning to show the setting of the scene
• Close ups – used to identify the main
characters, and used on anything which is
important and relevant in the film. For
Example, in ‘The Box’ it is used on the
number plate of a car.

9. Mise En Scene
• Most things are taken into account when being placed
onto the set, and are only placed there when necessary.
• Weapons – In the film ‘Taken’ there are
weapons used in almost every scene, this
is normally a gun.
• Wooden Box – In the film ‘The Box’ the
wooden box which is relevant to the entire
film, and in the opening sequence is
displayed in almost every scene.
• Forest – In the film ‘Twilight’ the forest is shown in almost
every shot in the opening sequence, this could be
because a lot of the film is based around and in a forest.

10. Lighting
• Dark lighting is used in all the films I
looked at.
• I also found that a lot of scenes where set
in the evening or at night. This creates a
feeling of you never know what is going to
be out there. This plays on fears of a lot of
people, as a lot of people are afraid of
what might be in the dark, creating tension
for the audience.

11. Lighting 2
• Another lighting used a lot is low key
lighting because this creates shadows.
This gives the feeling of mystery because
you never know what is going to be in the
shadows.
• I thought this was played on a lot in the
film ‘The Box’, making the audience feel
scared.

12. Sound
• Music was common over the top of all the films I looked
at. Non Diegetic music is used to build up tension. This
sound is normally high pitched and gets faster as the
action builds up.
• For example in ‘The Box’ music is constantly played in
the background to build up tension to the action.
• The music is slightly different in ‘Taken’ though because
generally fast paced throughout and doesn’t lead up to
action.
• In ‘The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo’ I would say that
music is not used and relied on as much compared to
the other films.

13. Editing
• Continuity editing is commonality in most
of the opening scenes of the films that I
looked at. This is because there isn’t a lot
of action in the beginning scenes. This
helps the film flows nicely.
• Although they are not used in the opening
scenes, jump cuts are used when action is
in the film. These quick fast paced cuts
help build up tension.

14. Audience
• All the films I looked at are all aimed at the same
audience, which is teenagers and young adults.
This is a similar audience to what I will be aiming
my film at.
• These films reach there audience well because
the storylines are action packed, interesting and
easy to follow. They cater for both female and
male, by following love stories, for example in
Twilight but use violence to attract the male
audience.