Se7en Opening Sequence- Analysis

Click here to watch the opening sequence.

Overview on "Se7en":
- Distributor: New Line Cinema
- The opening sequence of Se7en gives the audience an insight into the film- it introduces the character of the killer (John Doe, played by Kevin Spacey). It also hints at the storyline.
- The title designer, Kyle Cooper, and director, David Fincher, sets the atmosphere of Se7en, as the disturbing film that it is, through their choice of shot and titles.
- Due to the horror/thriller genre, it is based at an audience of young adults.
- Se7en is a well known psychological thriller with horror elements, and I feel like this opening sequence is a great example for me to use, to create the base of my own physiological horror film. I do however know that in order to meet the marketing criteria, I will need to involve a range of shots and movement within my title sequence.

Genre:
- The introduction of the extreme close-up of hand the dark lighting immediately enforces and horror genre, due to the audience not being able to fully identify the character. This adds mystery and enigma to the opening sequence and makes the audience want to know more about the protagonist.
- The tone is quite sinister, due tot het use of Mise-En-Scene. Examples of this include crossing out children's faces.
- The title of the film also highlights that it is a horror film, by it's disoriented look, giving the impression that the audience is looking through the eyes of a psychopath.
- The opening sequence is edited with jump cuts and sudden movements which shocks the audience, putting them 'on the edge', therefore enforcing the thriller genre.

Themes and Typography:
The colours chosen at the beginning are dark, and dim lit, creating the mood and the atmosphere. The typography, used to display the names, are in a handwritten/graffiti font, to give it a distorted and abstract feel. It then gains a shadow, as it transitions to the next shot. This creates an disturbing and uncomfortable feeling for the audience, however it is not off-putting because the film is aimed at young, thriller-lovers.

Shots:
- The shots of the title sequence are a few seconds frames with quick cutaways, for focusing on one particular area. This makes the audience feel uneasy, as they feel like they are seeing something that they shouldn't be seeing.
- This creates the impression that they are witnessing the preparation of the action, which foreshadows what happens in the film.
- Another main focus is extreme close-ups onto objects. This limits the audience's vision, creating enigma.

Shot types:
The opening sequence is made up of many extreme close ups that work together to create a montage. This is effective at intriguing the audience by providing them with detail and distancing them by not showing any wider shots, that will give them more information about the character. This can be effective at creating a tense atmosphere for an audience by showing minimal full length character shots. This inspires me to vary the amount of shots in my film, as well as using mise-en-scene to create an uncomfortable feel.

Mise-En-Scene:
- The opening sequence is full of unusual and creepy mise-en-scene, such as pictures of victim's faces being rubbed out by black marker pens. Straight away, this makes the audience feel a sense of discomfort.
- The audience is exposed to the word 'God' being cut out of a dollar bill/ This hints that the character believes in God.

Editing & Colour:
The editing that went into the opening sequence lasted five weeks compared to the two days it was shot over. This can be seen because of how advanced the editing is, with the use of dissolving transitions. This makes the audience feel disjointed.
The colour used is a washed-out grey-tone. These dull connotations, combined with flashes of red which appear randomly, give the sense that there is a lot of violence in the film.

Music:
The music chosen and used by Howard Shore is a remix of Nine Inch who are known for their association with dark and gruesome imagery. The music is gritty and reflects the overall disterbing tone of the film. As the msic increases in tempo. the random images begin to flash and pop up more frequently, making them difficult to follow. Ths creates a sense of urgency. The effect of repetition of some images creates a feel of unease and disorganisation. The disturbing sound effects (for instance, the nails scratching on a chalk board) conveys an unnatural atmosphere, which makes the audience feel uncomfortable.

Characters:
There are minimal shots of characters in the opening sequence. In doing this, the audience is alienated, as enigma is created due to the limited shots of character. This is effective because it adds more suspense and tension, which is what a horror/thriller should do.

Credits:
The titles appear distorted and flash onto the screen. This creates the a psychotic feel.
The protagonist's credits (John Doe played by Kevin Spacey) does not appear, which conveys the mystery behind the villain because the audience has limited information.