What is the purpose of a film’s opening sequence?The purpose of a film’s opening sequence is to get the audience on edge and excited to watch the film. Opening sequences achieve this goal in many ways. One way is introducing the characters. For example, in ‘The Dark Knight’ the audience are introduced to the Joker, who is the main protagonist, through a bank robbery. This makes it clear to the audience that the Joker is a character that they should fear as he and his group terrorize and kill civilians. This opening sequence also achieves its goal by reinforcing the genre. Another way an opening sequence excites the audience is through reinforcing the genre of the film. For example, in the film ‘Casino Royale’ the opening sequence contains almost all the action-thriller conventions. The sequence is an intense chase between Bond and a protagonist, and the main convention of an action-thriller is a chase/pursuit scene between protagonist and antagonist. This instantly lets the audience know that the film is going to be action packed and exciting, which helps to excite the audience and make them want to watch on. Finally, the goal is achieved by generally exciting the audience, depending on the genre. Horror-thrillers usually have a very tense and suspenseful start. Using sound, cinematography and editing to achieve this. For example, the movie ‘Sixth sense’ uses a very winey underscore, that creates a sense of mystery for the audience and keeps them on edge. It matches with what is going on in the scene as the characters begin to exchange dialogue, setting the tone for the movie and enticing the audience to watch on and potentially find answers to questions they might have.

In the film ‘Skyfall’ the opening sequence is used to establish the genre, introduce new viewers to James Bond, and refresh the memory of those who have watched past Bond films. It also reinforces the genre which excites and entices the audience to watch on, the opening sequence foreshadows what s going to happen in the actual film, which is non-stop action. These features of the opening sequence are achieved through different cinematography, editing and sound.

To begin with, the cinematography in the opening sequence instantly introduces James Bond’s character. In the screenshot, you can see that the shot has low key lighting and rim light on Bond. From this the audience, can infer some of Bond’s characteristics. In the

screenshot, you can only see Bonds eyes, and the rest of his face is casted into darkness. This suggests to the audience that he has two sides to him. One side being the fearless hero that always saves the day. And, the other being the somewhat cold-hearted murder that doesn’t mind getting his hands dirty. This suggests to the audience that they can look forward to seeing these two sides to his personality, later in the film. Also during the opening sequence the cinematography uses an over-shoulder/ PoV type shot. This is a very simple, yet effective shot as it creates an element of mystery and creates a little bit of tension/suspense. The audience can’t see behind Bond, which as the volume of the underscore increases, could lead the audience to believe that Bond is being followed. This could represent the idea that Bond is always being followed, and by projecting this idea the audience can become intrigued as to what Bond’s fate will be later in the Film.

Sound plays a key role in this opening sequence, as it increases the suspense and puts the audience on the edge of their seat. The aim being to excite them and to get them craving to find out what’s going to happen next. During the first minute of the opening sequence, as Bond enters the room, the underscore is very slow-paced and the tone is relatively high-pitched. As Bond explores the room and uncovers the people who have been shot, the volume increases and this lets the audience know that things are about to get a lot more intense. As Bond exits the room the underscore’s pace is a lot faster and the volume dramatically increases. It happens as Bond gets in a car and from this the audience can infer that there is about to be a chase. This also reinforces the genre as one of the main conventions of an action-thriller is a chase between antagonist and protagonist, exciting the audience and foreshadowing the action-packed events later in the film. As the sequence progresses and the chase begins, the volume and pace of the underscore is at its highest and from this the audience are made aware that a big chase is about to happen. The idea behind this is to excite the audience and to put them on the edge of their seats.

Another key feature of the opening sequence is the use of editing. The editing only really comes into play as Bond enters the car and he and his companion

begin to pursue the antagonists. As the antagonists become aware they are being followed there are a lot more fast-paced cuts. The fast-paced cuts increase the pace and intensity of the scene for the audience and a sense of disorientation and confusion is created. The audience can become to feel on edge as the pace increases as they are unclear of what is going on. This makes the audience want to watch on and find out what is going on. The fast-paced cuts also make the audience feel as if they are there with the characters as both characters and audiences are on the edge of their seats in anticipation. These cuts are simple, yet very effective and reinforce the action-thriller genre, by throwing the audience in at the deep end. Exciting and enticing them.

In conclusion, the opening sequence of ‘Skyfall’ is to introduce new viewers to James Bond, as a character, but also to reinforce the genre and to let them know that there is plenty of action to come. And to persuade them to watch on and be excited for what is going to happen.