Film Openings

The opening to a film is always the most important aspect as it is the audience's first impression of the film. Due to this, we want to make our film opening as enticing and professional as possible. To help with this, I decided to look up some of the most successful film openings of all time and analyse what made them so effective.

Lord of War (2005)


This opening is effective as the titles are unobtrusive whilst still being easily readable. The soundtrack works well in conjunction with the genre of film and the mise of the scene. Further to this, the camera follows the bullet, creating intrigue and causing the viewer to feel attached to the bullet. The use of camera in this way is the stand-out factor of this opening, causing it to be regarded one of the most memorable film openings of all time.

The Dark Knight (2008)


This opening is effective as it uses many action-packed shots which cements the genre of the film whilst building up a sense of mystery. The scene establishes a complex storyline which is to echoed in the rest of the film whilst creating a sense of unease within the audience. It is this which makes The Dark Knight's opening so successful.

Reservoir Dogs (1992)



The opening scene to Reservoir Dogs is effective as it uses a combination of close-ups and slow motion to help establish characters and their personalities. This method of establishing characters also indicates the genre of the film as a drama. The opening remains simple, helping to create a sense of ambiguity and causing intrigue within the audience which will make them more likely to watch the film, thus making the opening successful.

From this, I have discovered that for our opening to be successful it must establish the film's genre and narrative as well as including some interesting shots which will entice the audience.

By Olivia Calver