Analysis of thriller opening: Se7en.

The opening of 'Se7en' is very ambiguous and doesn't give you much information on the film, however i certainly believe that this works to the films advantage.

It starts with a Flash Cut watching a black and white picture with the title "Se7en" printed in white. Throughout the whole opening sequence there is no establishing shot, which is usually used at the beginning of a scene to indicate the location or setting. Instead the over-the-shoulder shot (point of view) is being used several times. The viewer has a very close look over the shoulder of a mystery character and at the things he does. This leaves open several possibilities of who the character is and therefore pulls the audience into the film, this also adds to the suspense. This extensive use of close ups serves to simultaneously absorb the audience presenting them with only a miniscule amount of detail, without allowing them to view the whole character, and attempt to decipher the message it carries. The editing technique is fast paced, with added dissolve transitions, this helps to create a notion of disconfiguration and disjointedness. The handwritten 'scratch' text used for the credits twitches and flickers in and out of shots to emphasise the disjointed and crude atmosphere of the film.

The mise-en-scene is very gloomy and eerie, this gives you an idea of the nature of the film and induces a feeling of fear in the audience.