Differences between opening scene of 'Legally Blonde' and 'Seven'

In 'Legally Blonde', the opening sequence is telling the story of an envelope being delived, we dont yet know what's in this envelope or who its going to until the end of the scene. The characters involved are very stereotypical, the girls are very pretty, always doing their har and screaming and laughing, where as the boys are topless, wrestling, handsome and shotuing. the Characters are very 'jock type' they're all perfect, good looking, popular and they all get on. the setting is also perfect, sunny california weather, well kept university, bright, vibrant and cheerful colours along with the upbeat music makes us feel happy. 'Leagally Blonde' uses close up;s to focus in on the main characters hair, her necklass and her shoes, these close-ups all show us that she is a girly girl, which is important to the film. The sequence also uss long-shots so we're able to see the whole setting, were able to see peoples reactions to the pretty girls. It also uses BCU to show us different parts of the girl, using different images instead of one large one allows us to focus in on different parts of her much more and we can take more in. Everybody seems to love the main character, she is clearly popular as everyone is friendly to her.

In 'Seven', the opening scene is telling the story of investigators trying to figure out a murder, this has a completely different mood to 'Legally Blonde' instead of being all cheery its much more depressing and serious. The characters in 'Seven' are not girls, they are all men and they are very serious, they take their job seriously, in this scene the main character isnt treated with the same respect as we see in 'Legally blonde', his methods of doing things are questioned. The settin was in New York, it was on a very raining day and everything looks gloomy, this is a assive contrast to 'legally blonde' which is set in the californian sun. The colours are very dull in this film, nothing stands out, there is alot of black, grey and brown. The music at the end of the sequence is very spooky and uanted, it has a beat but its not an upbeat song, it is there to show that the film is a spooky thriller. The music is completely different tot he music in 'legally blonde' but both tunes make us feel emotion. In 'seven' we are given background information, where as in 'legally blonde' we ar left to pick up the pieces to whats happening, this is because 'seven' is a much harder film to follow, so the information given is vital where as 'legally blonde' is easy to pick up. There are a few mid-shots in the opening sequence this is as there are a few important conversations taking place, so with a mid-shot we are able to see exactly whats happening. When Morgan Freemen and Brad Pitt are walking down the road the camera is at a low angle, this is to enthesis the rain, it makes us feel as though its coming down on us much more which symbolisis the whole feeling of the first scene. The sequence also uses close-ups but instead of to show body parts it is to show objects he is putting into his bg, by looking at these objects we are able to understand his job.

Horror and Thriler Film - Frames

Describe your shot and identify in what way it could be seen as representing horror?
My shot is of a woman looking into the mirror and she can see the reflection of a hooded man behind her, the man is looking down at her and part of his face is obscured. the fact that only half of the mans face is shown is very 'horror' like as it brings imagination to the shot. Also the fear in the womans face adds to the 'horror' theme.

What did you actually do to achieve the effect?
We decided to place the man so that he would show up in the mirror but not actually show up in the orground, this resulted in it looking as though twe were looking through the man's eyes, this made the whole shot much more 'horror' like.

What is successful about your shot?
Your able to see the facial expressions of both characters, this is important as horror is allabout emotion and if you're unable to see the emotion of the characters it will be difficult to pick up the actual emotion of the shot. The shot also successfully makes the man look much bigger, this lets the audience know who's got the power and who's the most likely to cause damage.

What would you do differently in hindsight?
If i had a chance to take my shot again, i would choose a better location, i dont think the mise en scene was ideal for a horror film, the lighting was too powerful i would prefer if the room was darker and the mirror looked too modern, it didn't have the horror characteristics.