Research into Thriller genre

  Research into Thriller genre opening scene

Shutter Island is a 2010 American psychological thriller film, based in 1954. The director of Shutter Island was Martin Scorsese and was written by Laeta Kalogridis (screenplay) and Denis Lehane (novel). The production companies for this film were Paramount Pictures, Phoenix Pictures and Sikella Productions, the budget for this film was $80,000,000 (estimated) and grossed $128,012,934 (USA) and the worldwide grossing was $294,804,195. This production was released in 2010 on the 12th of March (UK) and won the Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Actor: Horror/Thriller.

The main characters in the movie are, Leonardo Dicarprio, Emily Mortimer and Mark Ruffalo.

This opening scene begins with text that shows up on the screen that automatically tells the audience where and when this was set, Boston Harbour Islands, 1954. The clip then begins with a wide shot of a ship appearing through fog, which automatically creates a mysterious and uneasy atmosphere, the sound used to portray this clip is diegetic sound of a foghorn, this is synchronous sound.

We are then introduced to a character with their head in a toilet, we are shown with an over the shoulder camera angle of a male character looking at himself in a mirror looking distraught, who comes across as a dominant character, and as possibly the main character of this movie. The characters facial expressions and use of eye-line match show the audience how this character may be feeling. 

The character then proceeds to say, "Pull yourself together Teddy", this automatically provides character information of who this character is and his name, and that the narrative of this movie may be about him. The use of the long shot duration convey intensity and intimacy within the narrative and also allows the viewer to focus upon facial expressions and other aspects of the clip.

We are then introduced with another shot of 'Teddy's' face with a close up zoom in, this then sets the narrative that this production is about him, due to his long screen time and him being in the centre of the frame and the only character we are introduced to at the beginning this shows his potential status and importance throughout this movie as the audience are being informed that he is important, and we must focus on him.

In the scene on the boat, the use of the short depth of field focusing on the fishhooks, and the added ambient sound of the metals clanging, and fog horns all create a sense of eeriness and further influence the ideas that this is a thriller genre movie. 

As this clip continues, we are introduced to another character and both these characters come across as potential partners, this further adds to the narrative of this film and how it comes across and what it may be about. The use of the establishing shot used in this scene shows the viewer that they are in the middle of the sea and in the middle of nowhere, this shows the audience that they are going somewhere, and allows the viewer to use their imagination and discover where they may be going.

In the last clip of this opening scene we are shown an island through an extreme long shot to capture everything in the frame. The sound used when the camera is facing the island is non-diegetic soundtrack of deep and dark instruments playing, as if it signifies danger. This further adds to the genre of this movie and makes it clear that it is a thriller genre movie due to the soundtrack and also the lighting and scenery of the location. From this opening scene you are able to tell the type of audience that is mainly attracted and who it is aimed for, which would be around the age of 16+, as you are able to tell that it is an intense thriller and will contain strong images. Overall this was a very well-produced opening scene and creates a bold narrative as it provides brief but also slightly clear understanding of what this movie could be about, and also introduces possibly the two main characters. From watching this opening scene, I am intrigued and want to watch more.