28 Days later film opening analysis

28 Days Later Film Opening 

Plot-

The audience are given very little about the films narrative from the opening sequence all that they will know is that a containsous virus that causes rage is now out in the open. The very beginning contains newsflashes of violence other humans cause to one another and riots. Here this will create a sense of foreshadowing of extreme violence and establishes the thriller element of the genre. The camera pans out to an chimpanzee obviously being experimented on against its will. Animal rights activists burst through the door claiming they will free all the chimps that are held prisoner at the facility. A scientist comes to warn them about their actions however they ignore him and release a chimp. This chimp violently kill a women and begins the spread of the virus. 


Mise-en-scene-

There are many props in the scene which are experiment tools which are used to show the professional setting.There is a dead money layed cut open on an operating table in the lab, which suggests the way the scientists treat the test subjects is inhuman and cruel. The costumes are significant as the infiltrators dress in all black and balaclavas which is something often connated with criminals suggesting that these people are not just peaceful activists.




Camera- 

The camera pans out from a CCTV broadcast that the audience see as if they are looking at it from the film world, which is a very effective way to emphasis with the chimps. This is further established when there is a POV shot from the chimp gazing fearfully at the monitors, again allowing the audience to see things from the victims perspective. The chimps are the victims as they are inflicted with a disease that humans wish to explore. 

There is a low angle shot used on the leader of the activists who organised the break in, this is to show his dominance and a sens of superiority and power, it also has connotions of fear from the scientist.There is also Shallow depth of field used, the metal meshes out of focus, this allows us to focus on the intended subject in the background.There are also establishing shots of the labourity to show the harsh and cruel nature of the environment. Close ups are used on both the activists and chimps faces to show the emotions of the characters. Low key lighting is used to establish that this is a dark, and dull place, where the ape is attached to the table.

Editing-

The editing is very prominent in the opening sequence, The first view shots are edited to look like that are off of the screen that the chimp is looking at, There are also multiple fast pace cuts to build a sense of tension from the audience. As the camera flashes the shots remain still for a second as if they are the photos that the activists have taken. An action match is used when the activists break through the door. 

The lighting in the scene is very dark to represent the violent atmosphere and to establish the thriller genre.It makes the lab appear to be a very dismal place and keeps some things hidden to create enigmas.  

Sound-

Diagetic screams can be heard from the monitor broadcasts which reinforce the thriller genre and foreshadow a sense of danger later in the film. There is a muffled voice-over on the clips which add a mystery as to what is being said, Another diagetic sound is that of the heart beat from the chimp, this allows the audience to emphasis with the animal as they can hear the terror that it is feeling from the elevated heart rate, There is also the use of non-diagetic eerie music which is used to build up suspense and tension which reflects the atmosphere of the sequence. 

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