Drama- My Sisters Keeper film opening analysis

Before actually focusing, the blurred shot shows a ripple in water, this suggests simplicity. This film is all about the loss of a loved one as a result of cancer and the fact that water is the first thing shown gives the idea that water is a basic human need and you would die without it, as is her sister and gives the impression that as she is so important to her she feels she wouldn't be able to live without.  The blurred shot suggests the confusion of the daughter with the fact that why has this happened to her sister. The music is quite calm and gentle, this suggests that the sister has passed away and is now at peace. A close up shot reveals a kite flying in the sky  connotes childhood, this idea is backed up by the fact that a voice over of a girl talking about her childhood is combined with the calm and gentle music which suggests to the audience that this is a sensitive topic to discuss. A sequence of close up shots of different family members outside in the sun having fun reveals her emotion, in hindsight she recollects memories of fondness. The title 'My Sisters Keeper' is shown in a very small font in white, this suggests that she does not want to tell the story of what happened to her sister, she would rather ignore the story all together. A close up image of stars in the solar system is shown, this suggests to the audience that she believes her sister is up in the stars. A series of scientific images of fertilisation are shown which indicates to the audience that she was created through doctors. A transition effect using confetti to symbolise marriage immerses a series of wedding shots and other shots of her parents happy together. This indicates that they also went through the pain of the loss of her sister. A close up shot shows a woman holding a child, this is the girls mother holding her sister. Another close up shot reveals her brother and a younger girl which is herself, they are both playing with bubbles which suggest that they had a very happy childhood full of fun and games. A close up shot reveals a confused expression of a baby, at this point the music stops. This is to draw the audiences attention to the fact that what she is about to say is important. The next shot is a close up shot of a type of medical operation to create a baby. The next shot reveals another close up shot of a brother and sister, the narrator reveals the fact that she 'was engineered'. The music had stopped at this point to emphasise the importance of this statement and the idea that this fact plays a hugely important role in the film. The next sequence of shots are all blurry which suggest how she doesn't feel as though she is of importance to her parents. The next few close up shots of each family member shows everyone, including the narrator happy. The final shot in this opening shows the mother sitting down smiling and holding her daughters hand as she try's to run away. An editing technique zooms in closer three times until it only the two hands holding each other are shown. By doing this it is as if the narrator contradicts their closeness and is wondering why they are so close in this image when in reality she does not feel special to her Mother.

Codes and conventions of romantic films

Codes and conventions of action films

Codes and conventions of horror films

This mind map shows the codes and conventions of the Horror film genre. From research I have found many codes and conventions that all conform to films of the Horror genre. As you can see one of the main features is isolated locations. For one of my film opening analysis I analysed the opening of the film 'Scream' and the location of the film is in an isolated house near a woods. The victim in the film also conforms to the villain shown in the mind map, she is a young female on her own in an isolated house. The villain also conforms to the mind map as he interrogates the victim through a phone call, his name is not revealed.

Historical fiction- The boy in the striped pyjamas film opening analysis

The film opens with producers and casts names appearing in front of a red background. The colour red used in this particular time period immediately represents the Nazi flag so it clearly reveals to the audience that this film is based around the 1940s when the Nazi regime was at its peak. The camera zooms outwards to reveal the Nazi swastika flag, an establishing shot of a city square is shown with Nazi flags hung on buildings. The music is quite tranquil however combined with the Nazi flags it is haunting and will remind the audience of the horrors they would have heard about that occurred in this time period. A high angle shot reveals a group of boys running impersonating aeroplanes. This shot reveals the fact that the boys are controlled by the Nazi regime as the camera is looking down on them which represents the Nazis control over civilians. The camera zooms into the boys running and having fun showing that they are not effected by the Nazi regime.The surroundings show an idyllic German city square, people are shown sitting around at outdoor cafes and walking around the square which helps to create the calm and idyllic atmosphere. A close up shot reveals wine glasses being cleaned, this connotes wealth as wine in this time period would be associated with the upper class. A two shot reveals a pair rolling up a rug, this indicates that the family that live there are moving. A maid is shown in the background which also indicates the families wealth to afford this service. A low angle shot shows the boys again running through the street playing, near them there are men dressed in navy uniform. The low angle shot could represent the fact that the boys have run past very important people who are looked up to. A medium shot reveals the boys running past an area where Jews are being forced to get into trucks and are taken away. The background noise of barking dogs contrasts with the calm and relaxed music as the dog barking is violent. The fact that the boys are running and playing happily is in contrast with this incident with the Jews shows that the boys have so much freedom to do this whereas the Jews are having their freedom taken from them. This would make the audience feel sorry for the Jews and other minority groups. The Nazis are wearing army wear and are holding guns and are forcefully pushing Jews into the truck, this is to intimidate them and show them that they have the authority and full power, the audience will see the Nazis as the clear antagonists, film makers would have seen this as a very important element to portray. An establishing shot reveals a ghetto, Nazis are in control in this area to and are making the Jews pack and leave aggressively. The calm music is overplaying with the sound of dog barking, it is as if this situation is being brushed over and ignored. This is most likely what fortunate citizens who are not in the minorities would have done. This makes the audience feel that this treatment towards the Jews is normal.