Comparison of 3 Films of my Genre

For my initial idea, I have decided to compare 3 well-known opening sequences of films that are related to the same genre as my opening sequence I am planning to construct. I am going to compare their similarities and differences and explore the techniques used in media, such as the use of camera, sound, mise-en-scene, use of titles, the function, the themes and finally the narrative/storylines of the opening sequence. These ideas will hopefully help me a bit further for creating my opening sequence. For each film, I am going to analyse each film and note down as many features as I possibly can, which gives me more thoughts about my own construction.

'The Boy in the Striped Pajamas' is a historical-drama film.

Use of Camera - The opening shot is a close-up shot of the 'Nazi Germany' flag, as shown by the swastika shown at the start. The setting of the film is introduced with an establishing shot of a major city in Germany.
Editing - Mainly continuity editing, especially cross-cutting, which cuts from the kids playing planes in the street to the housewives busy working around the house.
Use of sound - Classical music, relating back to the setting of the historical drama; 1940's. It creates a clear atmosphere of the type of film.
Mise-en-scene - The cars look old-fashioned, showing that this film is set back in time. The costume of the protagonist (waistcoat) represents the rich side. There is also a woman wearing a black dress, with white leather coat to show importance.
Narrative/typical storylines - Based on the war, due to the fact that the German army are evacuating the residents out of the city.
Themes - World War II, considering the German army, as part of the storyline.
Use of Titles - The titles are 'Fade-in' and there is no transition when it disappears. It just goes straight away. There is emphasis on the above-the-line talent and the films name, as it's titles stay on the screen longer, showing importance. The above-the-line talent titles finishes when the setting is introduced.
The Function - Introduce the setting of the scene and to also refer back to the time, when WWII happened.
There is no plot to the film just yet, which creates an effect, which allows us to follow the film and find out what the film is about.

'Forrest Gump' is an epic romantic comedy-drama film.

Use of Camera - The opening sequence uses a panning shot throughout to follow the feather on it's route across the city. The setting of the film is once again introduced with an establishing shot. The opening sequence ends with a close-up of the protagonist looking at the feather.
Editing - Only occurs at the end with a match on action when the protagonist goes to get on the bus, but fades out.
Use of Sound - Gentle classical music which goes well with the flowing feather. It gives a clear atmosphere of the kind of film it is.
Mise-en-scene - The feather comes from a dove; a dove is recognized around the world as a symbol for love and peace; therefore relating to the simple yet loving nature of Forrest.
Narrative/typical storylines - The feather can also symbolize how you go through life, as this film is based on Forrest Gump reviewing his history of events throughout his life.
Themes - Deals with special needs as the character has a low IQ rate. The film expresses to people with special needs that they can achieve their goals in life.
Use of Titles - The titles are 'Fade-in' and 'Fade-out'. However, the titles stay on the same length as each other, suggesting that the cast of the film are all important in the making of the film.
The Function - Introduces the setting of the scene. It also creates affect with the fade-out at the end, as the viewer wants to find out what happens next in the film. It also introduces the protagonist of the film.

'Billy Elliot' is a drama film. This is the only film out of the 3 I have used in this task that does not have a hybrid genre.

Use of Camera - It starts off with a point-of-view shot to focus on what the boy is doing (putting the vinyl and the scratcher onto the vinyl player). It moves on to a close-up shot, then a long shot to show the boy repeatedly jumping in the air. It then cuts into a panning shot to show the boy making breakfast, which then cuts to a mid-shot and over-the shoulder shot to show his emotion and what he is looking at. Once again, it goes back to the panning shot to follow the boy running to find his nan, which follows with a mid-shot to show the boy helping the granny home. Finally, there is an establishing shot of the police with shields, as the time of the film goes back to the 'Miners Strike in 1984-85'

Editing - Continuity Editing such as a match on action (when the boy jumping on the bed goes from a close-up, to mid-shot, to long shot and when the boy runs out of the door to find his missing nan) and a shot/reverse shot (when the boy looks across his nan's bedroom to find she is not there). 

Use of Sound - The song played is 'Cosmic Dancer' by T-Rex, with the lyrics giving us the idea of what the film is about.

Mise-en-scene - The shields of the riot police; used in the event of the Miners Strike. The boy's father and his older brother are coal miners out on strike.

Narrative/typical storylines - It is a tale of a young boy who turns from Boxing to Ballet. It also explores the issues of class and gender, though it resolves them only partially.

Themes - The theme of this film is the idea of realising your potential and not letting yourself be intimidate or held back by limitations relating to social labels.

Use of Titles - The titles of the film last slightly longer than the other titles used e.g. the distribution titles. This is done to show importance of the title. The title are 'Fade-in' and 'Fade-out'.

The Function - There is no plot to the film as yet, but it engages the viewer to find out what is going to actually happen, which makes the opening sequence very effective. The function is also to identify the time of the film, relating back to the riot police. It also introduces the main character of the film. 

From this research, I now know the key conventions of a drama film, which includes.

• Many of the drama films have hybrid features, which shows that by this, drama films could be more effective.
• The music played for each film gives an idea on the type of film and maybe the theme.
• Drama films have fade-in/fade-out titles and also they have different durations for each titles to show some have more importance than others.
• The function of drama films are plotless, so it creates an effect to the audience to think about what will happen next.