Se7en Opening Title Analysis

Sourced from watchthetitles.com

Music is key in this opening. It has an almost static feel to it with assorted noises in the background that we could associate with horror such as a heartbeat. The style of the music is somewhat similar to the introduction of 'Counting Bodies Like Sheep' which also has the same sinister feel to it. The music in the opening has a beat to it which is used to sync the titles. This also happened in the 'Sin City' opening. The speed and the sound level increases towards the end making the audience feel as if something is gaining on them. It then ends with a bang once it reaches the climax to scare the audience. The use of music is evoke emotions in the audience and to set the scene for the rest of the movie.

The opening is composed of short close up shots of props or the hands of the character. By using close ups you cannot see the character adding an element of mystery and suspense. It makes the audience wonder who the character is and what is he doing.  The clips have a yellow but dark tone creating the illusion of an old rusted setting. It is a good example of the use of colour in a scene. As the scene goes on it seems to get darker and the colour red starts to become more prominent as we start to learn what the character is doing and we know that something evil is at play.

The titles are rough and look handwritten matching the theme of the clips. They are not still and flutter in its place. It looks like they were placed there with a projector giving it a handmade feel to it to match what the character is doing it the clips - making something. The font looks almost scratched on which goes with the several clips where they show the character's mangled fingernails.

At 0:04 the company that made the film are credited. After watching several other openings of films I learned that most film name the company first.

Like most other films the main cast are credited before the crew. In this case they were credited from 0:15. By naming the actors first people who like these actors are more likely to stick around if they know their favourite actor is in it.

Again like most films the title is announced early on in the film. In this movie it is a 0:25. And at 0:31 the main cast are announced. These two things are almost always at the beginning of the opening
scene.

The crew usually are credited nearer the end. The music directors are usually first and in this case they are announced at 1:17. Next was costume design at 1:22 then the editors at 1:25.  The director is usually the last person introduced and in this opening it was at 2:04. Putting them at the end makes its more easy for the audience to remember their name and it also puts and emphasis on their name and role.

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