This film opens with the sound of church bells and an eery tune in the background at this point on screen we simply just see the opening credits - black background, white text. We then see a man sat down in front of the camera, the camera almost seems to be a little shaky, it zooms in and out focusing on the man the whole time. It almost seems as if he is creating a home video. The man in shot seems to be getting increasingly annoyed and flustered by the lady doing his make up and the man with the lint roller. He seems like he just wants this to hurry up and end. The man's shirt is red which may symbolise danger. The shot shows him sat in front of a bookcase this could symbolise his knowledge, if this is right he must be incredibly smart by the vast amount of books in the background. We then go to another black screen with credits on, however this time we hear a telephone ring and a woman's voice answer. As we don't see this we feel a sense of mystery. As the conversation continues we have an establishing long shot of a city landscape, it is night time and rush hour by the amount of traffic on the roads. We then have a long shot of a dark room, within stands a man who we can just make out due to a bit of light entering from a window casting a little outline on the objects inside. The man has his back turned to the camera suggesting he is a private man and keeps himself to himself, not letting anyone in. A woman come into shot now, creating a two shot. She is dressed all in white showing the audience her purity and innocence, her age also suggests she is wise. She speaks softly to the man telling him of a death. This shot shows focus on the man - a narrow depth of field - he is more important then her. He is of black ethnicity and wearing a smart black suit, this shows he has money as the suit looks expensive. There is an aspect of Levi Strauss' theory of opposites to this scene as obviously they are of opposing gender, she is in white and shown in the light whereas he is in a black outfit and in the shadows of the room. This may connote the goodies and baddies of this film. Each is now shown in separate shots as the woman expresses her sympathy and regret for his loss. We hear the voice of the man on tape at the beginning of the film, the audience realise this is who is dead. Then we see a black background again, this time it shows the title of the film in a simple white font. The audience is now focused on the slow, sad orchestral music playing. It almost sounds regal possibly suggesting the dead mans importance and power he had. After we see the title of the film, we have a low angle shot of a grave stone in the shape of an angel, the audience assumes this next scene is set in a graveyard. This observation is correct as we receive a long shot of a burial site. A black car is parked up and a large number of people are gathered around one place with their umbrellas open. As we get closer we see the coffin and shot as of friends and family, their closeness is felt by the types of shots used. The rain represents the emotions of the people - their tears. The camera tracks over the sea of black coloured umbrella to a single pink umbrella which clearly stands out from the others. The colour pink suggests it is a female holding it and its size suggests a child. Our observations become clear when the pink umbrella is put down and we see a little girl's face. In this high angle shot we see a close up of her smile as she looks up towards the sky. This suggests she is different, thinking positively at a time of sadness. Thinking that the man in the coffin will be up in heaven looking down on her, making her feel happy as someone is always looking out for her. The rain could act as his own tears pouring down as he looks down upon his friends and family he has left behind. The editing of this opening sequence stayed rather consistent throughout. Comparing it to other films of this genre i would say it is pretty typical as their was a voice narrating through parts and it started with a home video which is common amongst drama as it gives you an insight into the character's life, or what was left of it in this case. link: Tuesday 14 December 2010
Textual Analysis - The Ultimate Gift
This film opens with the sound of church bells and an eery tune in the background at this point on screen we simply just see the opening credits - black background, white text. We then see a man sat down in front of the camera, the camera almost seems to be a little shaky, it zooms in and out focusing on the man the whole time. It almost seems as if he is creating a home video. The man in shot seems to be getting increasingly annoyed and flustered by the lady doing his make up and the man with the lint roller. He seems like he just wants this to hurry up and end. The man's shirt is red which may symbolise danger. The shot shows him sat in front of a bookcase this could symbolise his knowledge, if this is right he must be incredibly smart by the vast amount of books in the background. We then go to another black screen with credits on, however this time we hear a telephone ring and a woman's voice answer. As we don't see this we feel a sense of mystery. As the conversation continues we have an establishing long shot of a city landscape, it is night time and rush hour by the amount of traffic on the roads. We then have a long shot of a dark room, within stands a man who we can just make out due to a bit of light entering from a window casting a little outline on the objects inside. The man has his back turned to the camera suggesting he is a private man and keeps himself to himself, not letting anyone in. A woman come into shot now, creating a two shot. She is dressed all in white showing the audience her purity and innocence, her age also suggests she is wise. She speaks softly to the man telling him of a death. This shot shows focus on the man - a narrow depth of field - he is more important then her. He is of black ethnicity and wearing a smart black suit, this shows he has money as the suit looks expensive. There is an aspect of Levi Strauss' theory of opposites to this scene as obviously they are of opposing gender, she is in white and shown in the light whereas he is in a black outfit and in the shadows of the room. This may connote the goodies and baddies of this film. Each is now shown in separate shots as the woman expresses her sympathy and regret for his loss. We hear the voice of the man on tape at the beginning of the film, the audience realise this is who is dead. Then we see a black background again, this time it shows the title of the film in a simple white font. The audience is now focused on the slow, sad orchestral music playing. It almost sounds regal possibly suggesting the dead mans importance and power he had. After we see the title of the film, we have a low angle shot of a grave stone in the shape of an angel, the audience assumes this next scene is set in a graveyard. This observation is correct as we receive a long shot of a burial site. A black car is parked up and a large number of people are gathered around one place with their umbrellas open. As we get closer we see the coffin and shot as of friends and family, their closeness is felt by the types of shots used. The rain represents the emotions of the people - their tears. The camera tracks over the sea of black coloured umbrella to a single pink umbrella which clearly stands out from the others. The colour pink suggests it is a female holding it and its size suggests a child. Our observations become clear when the pink umbrella is put down and we see a little girl's face. In this high angle shot we see a close up of her smile as she looks up towards the sky. This suggests she is different, thinking positively at a time of sadness. Thinking that the man in the coffin will be up in heaven looking down on her, making her feel happy as someone is always looking out for her. The rain could act as his own tears pouring down as he looks down upon his friends and family he has left behind. The editing of this opening sequence stayed rather consistent throughout. Comparing it to other films of this genre i would say it is pretty typical as their was a voice narrating through parts and it started with a home video which is common amongst drama as it gives you an insight into the character's life, or what was left of it in this case. link: 
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