Opening Sequences

How is the sequence engaging and how does it conform to traditional Thriller codes and conventions?

1. Buried - 2010


Right from the beginning, the opening sequence of the action thriller is enticing to audience due it's use of a non-diegetic backing track. The track is low and creates an eerie and suspenseful feeling. It begins with a quiet cello sound that is soon accompanied by trombones and even a tuba. The sound creates and intense feeling and in some ways it can be compared to that of the 'Jaws' theme song. In Jaws it was used to bring the uneasy feeling of danger and distress and here it foreshadows the coming danger. The music is intense due to the rise and fall of sounds that never reach a high point. They grow and grow and grow and then turn somber and quiet but it isn't long before the sounds begin to heighten again. Using an intense backing track for the opening scene in a Thriller film sets up the correct atmosphere that pulls an audience into another world for a film. 


Thriller movies often use their title sequences to foreshadow events that are to come in the film. 'Buried' (As one can assume by the title) is about something or someone being buried. The way in which the titles are presented is done cleverly as if they are being buried underground and we as the audience are following as we get deeper and deeper underground. The words scroll upward from the bottom of the screen, lingering in the middle before the letters are messed up and continue to scroll away from the screen. They move upward which hints to the audience that we are going further down the hole, getting deeper into the earth. In many thriller films, we see in the opening sequence how the film will go from big picture to little picture and here we see how the film will take place by dragging the audience under. When you bury something, you are piling pieces of dirt onto pieces of dirt. In a sense, the letters are like those scattered pieces of dirt and they relate to an upset in the equilibrium. 


Another way in which the 'Buried' opening sequence conforms to the Thriller conventions and codes is the dark colour scheme. The effect of black space is to create a feeling of unknown and in this case, it represents the feeling of being confined. While black space can be used to show that there is a great unknown, it can also create a 'boxed in' effect where the audience feel as though they have no place to escape. The first two minutes of the film are a complete black screen which replicates the feeling of being in a coffin. And that is also what Jorge Calvo, creator of the sequence, set out to do here.

Calvo says that his title sequence was very much influenced by that of Saul Bass who created sequences using 2D graphics. Calvo says that he tried to take it 3D but found the 'dry 2D-ish thing' to be more 'depressing'. 

Left: Saul Bass work on 'Vertigo'            Right: Jorge Calvo work on 'Buried'

Both graphics foreshadow events in the films. For example, the theme of spiralling personalities occurs in 'Vertigo' while being capsuled in darkness, buried in  a pit of nothingness is clearly seen in the film 'Buried'.

2. Splice - 2010

The first image an audience is presented with is what seems to be a piece of skin. The patterns on the flesh resemble that on a magnified part of the body. The entire screen seems to be tinted green. The colour green is often used to represent something gross and inhuman which would be perfect in a film that already seems to be focussed on the human body. It shows that the film will be great for anybody who can stomach it. Because of this, its target audience would probably for audiences 16-55.

The shot zooms in as we travel along this body part where it eventually seems to turn into something inhuman. The microscopic patterns now seem to resemble scales. Again, the camera continues its journey, doing a 360 spin before again zooming in on another part of this unknown object. As seen in the screenshot to the right, there is an abundance of small spheres scattered across the screen. In the next few seconds of the sequence, these seem to be enlarged. They look like globular molecules that would be found in the body. 

The accompaniment of non-diegetic sounds creates an atmosphere of suspense and fear. The high pitched ringing is something you would usually find in a horror movie as it alludes to something dangerous that is to come. There are a few high piano notes that are played along with some type of brass instrument to create the suspenseful tone. 

The main actors name seems to be scrawled across the same surface we saw in the beginning of the sequence. This is significant as it represents the person who is most important to the film. The following names seem to be burnt into what looks like the surface of a persons flesh. 

As the sequence progresses, the audience is taken deeper and deeper into the body. This shows that the audience will be taken on a journey that is not just surface level. The sequence takes us so much deeper than the surface, exploring the depths of the body. From flesh, to veins, to organs which to some is pretty gross but it is exactly what the director has wanted to happen. The green hue is significant to explain some sort of decay that will happen and the title itself alludes to the different parts of the body. To splice is to cut and it is obvious that this film isn't for the weak stomached.

The title isn't introduced until the end of the sequence and by then, the camera has zoomed right out onto what seems like a persons back. As the title begins to appear, the non-diegetic sounds intensify as an orchestra plays to build suspense to a loud crescendo which would probably cause some audience members to hide behind their hands. 

The film is gruesome and because of that, it could be considered a horror but the music that is used to create suspense and the design of the titles allude to a hybrid film. Thriller, Horror and Sci-Fi are all combined genres in this film. 

3. Orphan - 2009
The opening sequence for the film Orphan doesn't involve any real images. Instead it focuses on drawings that pull an audience into the mind of a young and disturbed girl. Immediately, an audience is hooked by the non-diegtic sound that creates an eerie atmosphere. There are brass instruments accompanied by music that one may hear in an old school church, the sounds are low and hardly harmonious. The colour palette is also very, very dull. What's the significance of this? The audience may ask.. their questions will obviously be answered when they see a photo of what looks like a brother and his younger sister. 

The camera pans across the table to scan over the photos and various bits paper as it slowly reveals the theme of the movie - Family. This conforms to the thriller convention of foreshadowing the movies theme without giving too much information away. There is a brother and sister and we eventually see a colourful and happy family.

The sepia edited filter will let the audience know that the film or events had taken place years ago and out of nowhere we get this coloured drawing. Drawings are used in film as a representation of what is going on in someone's head. A persons creativity is how they would get out their true thoughts. 



Thrillers will often use some form of the main characters talent to showcase how they will effect the movie. For example, this drawing puts us in the head of the young girl. Yes, it is a happy family.. but in less than three seconds, the drawing is altered and the effect turns from sepia to negative, making the family now surrounded by black. 


Innocence in thriller films is often used to cover up a darkness within a specific character, especially in psychological thrillers. Here we have the perfect example of an innocent character who is mentally corrupt. The images we see begin innocent but as the colours flash, we can see how she really thinks. This shows that the film wouldn't be suitable for children despite its happy beginnings. I believe this film would be for audiences aged 16+ as anyone younger would be too scared and those of any age above could always be interested in a good thriller. 

In one sense however, this opening sequence subverts the convention of having a consistent dull colour scheme. Many of the drawings are bright and even with the change in colours, black being the encompassing one, the artwork still seems to glow with vibrant blues, oranges and pinks. The colours are representative of a wild and vivid imagination that leads to the characters disruptive behaviour later on in the film.