KS: Film opening research of 'Se7en'(Fincher,1995)

The first research Lilli and I looked at were studying several film openings to find influences for our coursework. The first, 'Se7en'(Fincher,1995) we particularly liked the use of montage editing in the opening sequence, the creative effects of merging non digetic sound effects and music and the animation and overlaying of graphic images.

• The montage editing created a sense of disjointed searility which reinforces the eery storyline and allowed the audience to understand the mind of the serial killer. 
• Music is used throughout the sequence and is mixed up in volume as the clip develops a creepy and uncomfortable atmosphere, with repeated sounds echoed throughout the opening. 
• 'Se7en' uses a series of close ups and extreme close ups so the audience only sees the man's hands, with each finger plastered up so the killers finger prints cannot be detected. We see these hands turning, looking through and sewing pages of the book together which allows the audience to question the significance of it, what is the man planning and creating with various photos of different people? 
• The title credits are an animated font moving around the layout not only to grasp attention but to create a dramatic style of the film straight away from when the name is presented, to hook the audience with the well created design and flashes and smudges of writing underling a creepy sense of the film. The names of the actors are all in a handwritten style font underlining the theme of the film, with flashes of scribbles. 
• Particular camera work techniques of blurring the subject creates a delusional effect, and the use of directional light heavily shadows the setting creating a supernatural feel and eliciting great emotion, fear and horror through the clever positioning of images, font, discordant music and layered affect to create suspense and tension. 

I especially feel the contrasting colours of black and white work very well together, and the use of side angle shots cut to canted angle then birds eye angle merges the different images together perfectly with occasional flashes of red for the audience to elicit disgust over the film with the connotation of blood. I loved this abstract piece Fincher created, with the warm colour wash of the images placed together contrasted by the statement block colours of red, black and white.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEZK7mJoPLY