Seven

The movie Seven directed by David Fincher was released in 1995 and is an award winning neo-noir thriller film released by the well known institute 'new line cinema'. The film begins with an over the shoulder mid-shot showing the apartment of Detective Somerset who is played by Morgan Freeman. The apartment is best described as dingy and is very dark. This darkness is both from the lack of natural light in the scene as there is only one light source- which is a theme throughout the entire movie and the fact that a chemical process called bleach by pass was used in production, which is when the silver in the film stock is not removed which allows for the dark to become deeper, allowing for more intense shadowy images in the film and increases the overall tonal quality of the film. This may also be used as a foreshadowing effect implying that the film as a whole will have a dark atmosphere. During this opening scene there are diegetic sounds of a city being heard softly in the background, police sirens are easily the most notable which allows for the audience to build up an idea quickly that the area and the city in general is not a safe or particularly nice place to live. This theme of danger and crime juxtaposes with the fact that it is later revealed to the audience that Somerset is a detective, when a close up shot of his badge is given. In the shot where his badge is shown, the audience is also given an insight into Somerset’s personality as he has arranged his belongings to be in a neat line, this anal-retentive behaviour is shown in various scenes throughout the film. 

Throughout the film there is a constant buzz of the city in the background, this use of diegetic sound adds to the tension of the scenes as it is used to emphasize certain key moments and build the idea that the city is full of crime up in the audiences mind. This works as the diegetic sounds used are often police sirens, cars honking their horns, people arguing and dogs barking. This also adds to the imagery the audience is building up in their mind of the surrounding city as it sounds like a busy city, it sounds dangerous. In the first shot the use of diegetic sounds are used to build tension as they're emphasized for example the noise of the tap is emphasized to make the silence louder. This adds tension and fits to the genre of a thriller. 

In the next shot when Somerset is entering the crime scene the dark shadowy theme with only one light source is continued, and the diegetic sound of police radio's is introduced to add another layer to the sound. In this scene the audience is given a clear view of Somerset’s stereotypical detective clothing, which consists of a trench coat, suit and hat. This stereotypical styling given to Somerset allows for the audience to draw some initial conclusions about his character, some of which could be that he is an old school detective, who has seen everything. His character develops even more as the scene continues when he shows concern for the child of the victims, as he enquirers as to whether 'the kid saw it' this based with the reply given by the fellow police character gives the audience the impression that Somerset often questions crimes, and tries to cares about the people involved. During this conversation shot-reverse-shot was used to show the dialogue between the two characters, and let viewers get in touch with what was going on within the scene, it also gives an idea as to what the other character was seeing at the time.

The audience is introduced to Brad Pitt’s character in the next scene, Detective Mills. It is clear from the start that the characters are opposites; simply looking at how Mills is styled gives an indication that he is more modern than his counterpart. Styled in a suit with a leather jacket he appears more dynamic than Somerset. This difference in personality is highlighted once again when the two detectives leave the crime scene. Somerset wants to find a bar to discus the case whereas Mills wants to return to the precinct. During this scene it is raining quite heavily, the diegetic sound of which is made louder. This use of rain is a constant throughout the film and symbolizes how the city is dirty, violent and polluted by hate. This use of rain also adds an oppressive feel to the film. 

During the title sequence the first non-diegetic sound track is used the song closer by 9 inch nails. This song highlights the killer’s obsession with sin and god through the lyrics ‘let me get closer to god’. The use of this song also creates tension as it leaves the audience feeling as though they're being watched and judged. It highlights the eeriness of the thriller genre. The emphasized use of screams also adds to this tension as well as providing the audience with feelings of helplessness and insecurity. Unlike the main film, the title sequence appears to have a sepia filter this gives the images a dirty brown tint and adds to the theme of impurity and pollution that Fincher tried to create. The images and video clips used in the title sequence also create tension and mystery as the audience is given an ambiguous view of the killer. They’re given a look into how he operates and his particular form of psychosis. It adds a hook for the audience as they want to find out who the killer is. Connotations can be also made about the particular images shown for example the meticulous list being written out by the killer shows obvious psychological distress, it shows obsession and intelligence. Editing in the sequence varies from quick cuts to slower focal shots highlighting the importance of certain aspects. The quick cuts add tension as they are only giving quick flashes into the killers though process whereas the slower focal points allow for deeper understanding and thoughts to develop. 

By Hannah Constantine

Mission Impossible II

Mission Impossible II

Mission Impossible II is an action movie released in 2000, directed by John Woo. The film starts off with an establishing shot showing that the current location for the scene is the Grand Canyon. This is a well-known and iconic natural landmark in Arizona, America and is used in the introduction to Mission Impossible II to add to the build-up of tension. The tension is built up in this first shot as the Grand Canyon is an isolated and extreme environment, this leads the audience to draw conclusions about the character that Tom Cruise is playing, Ethan Hunt. Conclusions drawn many be that Hunt is as a man capable of surviving in this harsh environment on his own, this makes it easier for the audience to picture him as a spy capable of saving the world. 

This establishing shot also makes use of forward tracking which increases in speed as it moves closer to the character, this use of speed adds to the build up as during this sequence a non-diegetic sound track is added, the track is Zap Mama by Iko Iko, this track uses contrapuntal sound as it is a upbeat and relaxed song, it brings to mind holidays by the beach. This goes against the scene which is rather high tension, and clearly dangerous. By using this relaxed song the audience is given a look into the characters view of his situation, he is relaxed even though he is free climbing up the face of the Grand Canyon. The forward tracking shot cuts to a birds eye view shot, which could also be considered a subjective point-of-view shot from the eye of an eagle, which is a diegetic sound in the clip. The use of this diegetic sound is iconic as it is often used in American films to symbolize the great out doors, especially isolated wilderness scenes which this scene is. Eagles are also predatory birds, who are at the top of their individual food chain, so by using this diegetic sound the sound producers may be implying that the character Ethan Hunt is also a predator. 

There are a variety of close up shots used following the forward tracking shot, including close up shots of the characters feet as he climbs. By doing close up shots of the characters feet the audience are given an idea of the strain of his dangerous tasks and shown how easily he could fall. This is further enforced as shortly after this shot the character loses his footing and drops a few feet. This adds tension to the scene and fits the genre of the movie. After this moment of free falling Hunt regains his footing and hangs from a ledge by one hand. During this dramatic and hair raising fall the character remains calm, giving the audience an insight into his character and making it known that he can deal with high pressure situations easily whilst remaining calm. This shot also has definition added to it as the current costume Hunt is wearing is a black vest top/muscle shirt which allows for the audience to have a clear view of his arms. This would have been done to not only entice female viewers but give the general audience an idea of the physical strain the character is under. The dark colour of the vest can also connote a sense of mystery which is surrounding the character at this point. 

Hunt makes a transition from dangling from one arm to hanging in a cross position. The symbolism behind the cross is significant as it has so many different connotations which can apply. The connotation which most stands out for this particular scene is the saviour, suggesting that Hunt, like Jesus, is a saviour. This foreshadows the plot of the movie, in which Hunt saves the word from a chemical weapon called 'Chimera' after a struggle in which the odds often were not in his favour. Whilst in this cross position the shot zooms in to a close up of Hunt's face, in which he is surveying his surroundings with a look of consideration, as he calmly figures a way to keep moving. Once Hunt makes it to the top of the canyon the angle of the shot moves between a long shot showing the view and distance Hunt has climbed and a Birds eye view shot. 

The introduction of the helicopter adds a layer of diegetic sound to the scene as it overpowers the non-diegetic sound track 'Zap Mama' and subtly begins the introduction to the well known Mission Impossible theme tune. The helicopter also introduces a new element into the scene as it shows a stereotypical government agent wearing a black suit and dark sunglasses. The agent appears to be carrying a large gun but is in actuality a message launcher. This adds tension to the scene as before the message hits the ground the audience can almost believe Hunt is about to be injured or possibly killed. This is done by showing the 'gun' being fired from both Hunts point of view, and a close up shot. An extreme close up is then used to show the content of the message which is a pair of sunglasses similar to that which the agent on the helicopter was wearing. This would allow the audience to draw conclusions about Hunts character and his occupation if they did not already know he was a spy. 

CGI is used to show Hunts point of view whilst wearing the glasses to give the audience a sense of adventure and make them feel more involved as they are seeing what he is seeing. Although outdated by today's standards this use of CGI would have been seen by the audience at the time as extremely advanced, adding to the mystery as they would have never seen something so high-tech. An English voice actor is used to give Hunt his mission whilst he is wearing the glasses, this adds a sense of sophistication as English accents are often used in American films as they're viewed to be highly educated and often play the roles of either Antagonist or the protagonist especially if the accent is upper crust. In this case the voice is that of an IMF agent, and adds a sense of tension as the audience would relate the sound of the upper crust English accent to similar character such as James Bond. Pyrotechnics is used to end the scene with the glasses self destruction and quite literally starts the transition into the tile sequence with a bang. 

The title sequence uses mainly primary colours and cuts quickly between both images and clips of explosions, ancient war pictures and what appears to be chemicals. This fits in and foreshadows the plot as in this particular movie Hunt is attempting to save the world from a chemical weapon 'Chimera'. The speed at which the shots change fits with the genre as it is an action paced sequence and fits to the tone. It is the combination of all of theses features and shots which add to the tension and creates a hook which grips the audience from the get go. 

By Hannah Constantine