1. Snatch
I chose Snatch (Guy Richie) for the first film opening to look at, I chose this film because it is of a
similar genre to mine. The film stars Jason Statham, Brad Pitt and other big names. It is a back alley
film full of dirty deals and trouble, I picked the film because the first five minutes are very similar,
and gave me some guidance to what I would aspire to achieve when my final piece is done. For this
extract I am going to look at the sound and the general overview of the characters.
During the opening few second of the film you see two men, which is different to mine, however is
still a great effect to have as you get a feel for who the first two lead characters are. The shot is
followed by a voice over, which is the voice of Statham, this is similar to what I aspire to do as I feel
that without introducing a film it can sometimes be a little vague, therefore I have decided to set the
scene and let them know what is going on and why I am where I am (in the rural areas in Uganda
may not be the simplest place to mark out!) Statham’s voice overviews what the characters sitting at
the table are lie, and why their names are like they are, towards the end of the voiceover he
mentions diamonds, which then cuts into the next shot of the start of a diamond heist. Statham’s
character is perhaps portrayed to be a little rougher than ‘Tommy’ who seems like he is there
perhaps not on his own accord.
When the diamond heist commenses you start to get a feel for the genre of the film, which again like
mine is similar as mine skips from a calm scene straight into the action. I like this idea of a film
opening because it really grabs the people’s attention, whereas if you had a slow start, you may lose
people if perhaps it was an amateur film! The music that is going on behind the slow heist is also
very important, as you may not realise that it is about to happen, with the non diegetic calm music it
would be unclear that they are about to hold up a diamond store; however it becomes very
apparent as the tension in the music begins to rise. The way that Richie has shown the camera
following the security screens as they pass through the building also really emphasises what is about
happen and how high security it is. This may also give us an idea that if it were such a high security
place, who are they stealing from? Does it set the rest of the film?
I also really like the way that they have done the general overview of the characters that have
leading roles, I also wish to add this into my production piece, where I will be able to pause on my
three main characters and introduce them.
All in all this film has been very influential towards my final piece, and is one worth watching!
Sound
Non-Diegetic:
Music over the top
Guns cocking
Diegetic:
Voice over
Dialogue
Breathing
Fighting
Performance
Statham: sinister but warm, looks out for his
friends, doesn’t know what he’s doing out of his
comfort zone but still trying
‘Tommy’: nervous looking, perhaps out of place.