Analysis of 3 suspenseful scenes in Collateral

Throughout the film of collateral, starring Tom Cruise and Jamie Foxx, there were many suspenseful moments but I chose three to focus on, and the first one is the famous bag swap scene at the beginning.

The bag swap 

The scene starts off very slow and all you can see is Tom Cruise,because everybody else is blurred out, and you hear his foot steps which have been enhanced whilst editing. then the camera cuts to another man who as well on has the focus on him. This makes the viewer want to know what is the connection between the two men. The way Tome Cruise is walking in slow motion and the other man isn't makes Tom Cruise, along with his blacked out sunglasses, look more powerful and have a licence to kill. As the man walks normally this makes him look more normal and innocent. However, we get a shock when the two bump into each other. The instant match cut to the bags makes them the focal point and the director wants us to focus on it. The over the shoulder close ups lets us see the expression on the actors face to show that the are up to something. Then the very first time we hear music in this clip is when Tom Cruise goes to pick up the bag and walks off. The music gradually gets to a faster pace and just at the end it sounds like time is ticking which therefore gives the feel that he's on a mission. 

Tom Cruise walking through the motel
The scene begins with Tom Cruise getting out the car and telling Jamie Fox to meet him in the alley behind the motel. As Tom Cruise leaves and we know that Jamie Fox is alone and then a soft piano based music begins. this makes the view feel calm and peaceful. However, when the camera cuts to Tom there is no peaceful music, instead there is no music at all just the distressing sound of a baby crying. Every time the camera cuts to Jamie the tranquil music plays because the director wants us to feel how he feels. By now we already know what kind of character Tom Cruise is playing so we expect something to happen. The cross cutting between the two characters creates suspense because whilst one is calm inside his car and oblivious to what is going to happen, the other knows perfectly what is about to happen and is out for the kill. The fact that when we see Tom Cruise, we only see him walking to through the motel, and are waiting for him to find his location and kill who he needs to kill makes the scene more suspenseful. When the man falls on top of the taxi the soft piano music which we associate with Jamie is still playing. This is what gives the viewer the shock.


The pair being pulled over by the police
Straight after just killing someone Tom and Jamie drive away with the body in the trunk and a cracked wind screen. when we hear the police sirens we know that they are going to be caught out and that it is just a matter of time. The use of close ups shows the emotion in the characters face which makes us sympathise with them. High angle shots make Jamie Fox look vulnerable. The way that Jamie takes some time to respond to the police officer's questions makes the scene longer and more suspenseful and the way he doesn't seem too sure about his answers makes the viewer feel that the police definitely won't believe him. Throughout the clips so far there is no music, but just as Tom Cruise tells Jamie to not dare open the trunk, a low weary sound begins. The pace of the scene is very slow which makes the viewer feel on the edge because they know that he will be arrested so they just want it over and done with, but when one of the police officers gets a call for a shooting not far from there, the pair and the viewers can relax as they won't be arrested. 

Thriller Sub-genres

Thriller is a genre that uses suspense, tension and excitement to attract the viewer. The main idea of a thriller is to hide the truth from the viewer, build suspense and then drop the bombshell. Having looked at various genres we found romantic, political, psychological, action and supernatural to be most popular. 

As soon we all have to create thriller openings we need to choose what kind of thriller genre inspires us. For me when I think of a thriller I think of horror or action so I would like to create an open for that kind of sub-genre. Both horror and the supernatural, and action have inspired me because the most exiting part of a film is when something shocking happens, or when you jump; so on one hand, horror has influenced me to create a very natural and normal scene to relax the viewer and then all of a sudden give them a shock.  On the other hand with action it has encouraged me to create something very fast paced and a sense that something is not quite right.

Analysis of Inspiring title sequence (Donnie Darko)

Donnie Darko - Opening Sequence

Donnie Darko is a thriller which is of the sub genres psychological and surrealist and it's title sequence inspires me because the movie has a great opening sequence. In the opening scene what is on screen is a landscape view of a mountainous area at dawn and it has a calming effect on the audience but at the same time the non diegetic earry music makes us feel un easy so it is hard to feel completely safe when watching.
The camera starts off showing the area to set the scene then slowly closes up to a figure on the ground and a bike next to it, then a man wakes up from his sleep and smiles which is creepy considering where he is which makes the audience already ask questions. The music used is meant to make the audience feel uneasy and it does that. The title is written in a unique font and as soon as it comes on screen it is accompained by music which is startling and then it shows a burst of light which is a reccuring motif in the movie.

Thriller Sub Genres

List Of Thriller Sub Genres Include:
- Mystery
- Crime
- Psychological
- Political
- Paranoid

The thriller sub genre that inspires me most is psychological because of many reasons but the main reason being it leaves the audience asking many questions and any movie that can do that is a good movie to me.

Donnie Darko - A Surrealist/Psychological thriller movie with a big cult following ( an inspiration to me)

Title Sequence: Marathon Man

In our group we looked at the title sequence of Marathon Man, above is the whole opening which also has the title sequence at the start.

The title sequence started at 0.00 and ended at 3:02 in between this time the titles were placed in priority. The first two titles to come up was the Paramount clip which has become an iconic start for all Paramount movies, next A Robert Evans & Sidney Beckerman Production was next; these two titles coming right at the start indicate there importance, but they also indicate that the movie is about to start.

We are then introduced to the list of actors from 0.46 then, in the middle of the sequence at 1.01 the title finally comes into screen. It was good to see the title placed in the middle of the sequence because it showed me how our group could play about with were we think the title could be placed. From 1.24 to the end the co-starring and production team are listed. At the end we are once again introduced to the Director's name John Schlesinger as we are at the start. This title sequence was good to look at in detail because it showed us that we could list our titles in order of importance or in a order we feel works better. Marathon Man's title was slow paced, which indicates a scary/thriller vibe for this film, we could also play with the tempo and fonts of our titles to add to the effect of our Thriller.

Intertextuality..

Intertextuality: is a term to describe the visual referencing between films; the films 'borrow' from each other. They borrow certain camera angles, mise en scene, snippets of sound or editing methods. They change these aspects a bit so it is not exactly the same.

Physco was released in 1960, and directed by Alfred Hitchcock, it is often classed as a 'complex physiological thriller'; it has even been named "The "mother" of all modern horror suspense films". Other films have borrowed aspects of this film, and more importantly from the famous shower scene clip.

What Lies Beneath: Has borrowed aspects from Physco, this film also introduces a shower scene to us. The bathroom is white and pure, just like in Physco. Also, the Blonde damsel in distress is the person who is in the shower/bath, which is also another aspect of Physco. The high angle shots onto the Blonde female were shown in both clips and is another aspect that What Lies Beneath has borrowed from Physco.

Succubus: This student thriller takes the shower scene from Physco but they add an interesting twist to it; they use the entire scene. But instead of having the Blonde female as the victim, she is actually the murderer. They use the turning on of the shower CU that Physco uses, this particular shot adds suspense because in indicates that something isn't quite right. They took many of the camera angles from Physco, they used the same stabbing in the shower technique and the CU of the dead body; however Physco used an ECU of the woman's eyes and Succubus used an ECU of the mans toes.

Both What Lies Beneath & Succubus borrowed a few of the strengths from Physco to add to the success of there film, however they took these strengths and made them there own.

Analysis Of Collateral: Three tensional scenes.

Collateral was directed by Michael Mann and was released in 2004 it stars Jamie Foxx and innocent cab driver and Tom Cruise who is a villain. This action packed thriller is full of tension, and creates suspense in a number of ways; I will be looking at three scenes that I feel created this suspense to a large extent.

1)Bag swap scene: This tension in this scene is mainly created through the use of camera shots and sound, as we see Tom Cruise all that can be heard is his footsteps which have been enhanced in post production. His face is introduced to us through a number of close up's and mid shots, through these shots we know something is about to happen, this creates tension and adds suspense in our minds. The man who's bag is going to be swapped with is also introduced in the same way creating an unknown link between the two characters; the cutting from both men adds to the suspense as we want to find the link between these suited and booted men. We then see these men bump into each other which at first seems completely innocent, the quick cut to the brief case informs us this wasn't innocence. At this point everyone else in the airport is blurred out and we can just see these two men, there speech is quick and the swap is quick but is highlighted through a CU on to the bag; the music then comes in which is upbeat and has a fast tempo.
2)Police Scene: The suspense in this scene is created through the CU of the characters worried expressions, the high cam angles show that Tom Cruise and Jamie Foxx have something to hide. The music has a suspenseful feel to it as its quite slow and makes every moment for the two men seem even longer. The scene seems to last forever and this in itself creates suspense, this is created through the slow music which is quieter than the characters voice's, and the slow editing; the ECU of Cruise's gun adds another sense of tension.
3)The Ending/Chase Scene: The final scene is full of suspense as the men are on a final chase through the train, the upbeat music which has a drumming feel to it creates the suspense and an action vibe. The CU of Cruise's facial expressions show the danger in his eyes which is then cross cutted with the fear shown in Foxx's eyes. The mix of cam shots create a mixed emotions vibe of what the two men are feeling, the music is very upbeat and has a tensional feel to it. The establishing shots of the train which cut to the characters take us into the situation and make us feel apart of it. As both men shoot in the dark we see the cuts link the men together, we know this will end it tragedy but we don't know which character will die. This final scene is the scene which for me creates the most tension, as both men are out to kill this is shown through the shots and music mostly but between the jumpy editing also.
 
 Overall Collateral creates a huge of amount of tension sometimes through its big budget and sometimes through minimalistic features that we could also use.