Post Apocalyptic Research: Opening Sequence #1 - Children Of Men

Opening sequence #1

Children Of Men

The first film opening I decided to analyse was Children of Men. This film opening inspired me due to the original nature of its post apocalyptic storyline.



Shot List

Shot 1: Universal Pictures and Strike GFX Openings

Shot 2: Universal Pictures, Strike Entertainment and Hit and Run titles

Shot 3: High angle, wide shot of members of the public who appear to be all staring to one specific object (A televised news report); a character who appears to be the Protagonist enters the room from the door at the back and pushes his way through the crowd to order a coffee; he then joins the crowd in watching.

Shot 4: The scene cuts to an eyeline matched, mid shot of a TV screen showing a news report explaining that the youngest person on the planet has died.

Shot 5: The scene then cuts back to the high angle view of the Protagonist and the crowd; the Protagonist takes his coffee and the shot follows him as he pushes back through the crowd and out of the door; the camera then focuses on the streets outside as motorised TukTuk-like vehicles drive through them, leaving trails of smoke as they go. "London, 16th November 2027" is displayed in the bottom left corner of the screen in order to denote the date that the story is taking place. The scene begins to follow the Protagonist once more as he walks down the street. This shot continues as the Protagonist stops at an electricity box in order to put alcohol into his coffee; the shot pans around him as he does so and shows the path he has just walked. He places the alcohol bottle in his jacket and is about to place the lid on his coffee as the coffee shop that he had just left explodes in the background; the Protagonist jumps back whilst looking at the explosion that has just taken place and the camera begins moving towards it in a way that looks as if it is a POV shot of somebody running towards the explosion. A woman appears to emerge from the building holding what appears to be her severed left arm as screams and the sounds of broken glass play in the back ground.

Shot 6: The scene then cuts to a black title screen, on which the white, block titles read 'Children Of Men'

How are character types established within this opening?

The opening establishes the Protagonist almost immediately through the actions he carries out. The way in which the Protagonist is shown to enter the room and immediately become the central piece of the shot as he pushes his way through, gives the viewer the impression of his dominance within the scene and suggests the type of character that he is to the viewer.

The opening also establishes a character that is used to have the storyline moulded around him. The character "Baby Diego" who is being spoken about on the news is shown to have been murdered, this cases the viewers to feel sympathy towards this character but also causes them to question the opening itself as he is explained as being "The youngest person in the world".

How is location established?

The opening establishes the location after the first few seconds of the opening scenes duration. It begins with a group of members of the public all grouped together in the foreground, this would denote to the reader that it is some form of public place and people will link this with places to eat and shops. The location is properly established when the Protagonist enters the room and orders a coffee, this establishes the location as a Coffee shop or Café.

How is the narrative constructed?

The narrative in the opening is rather sparse, it is mainly made up of a news story that plays in the background of the opening explaining about the death of the youngest person on the planet. This narrative mainly attempts to make the viewer ask as many questions as possible from the outset and throughout. Other than this, there is a tiny amount of narrative from the Protagonist when he says "Coffee, black".

How does the opening reflect the genre of the film?

The opening of the film appears to be a complete opposite from the general genre of the film. When people think of post-apocalyptic, they generally think of the planet being broken, abandoned and unpopulated. This opening shows technology as being fairly advanced but within the exact same shot is shown to be regressing; these two points are both shown when the Protagonist leaves the coffee shop and into the streets. Large television screens on buildings are shown to be abundant throughout whereas the vehicles being driven around are smoking and making amounts of noise that are opposite to the ideas of today in which we are searching for quieter motor vehicles.

Is the opening appropriate for a film of this genre?

I believe that this is an incredibly powerful opening for a film of this genre. From the beginning of the opening and throughout, the viewer is led into being hooked on the opening due to the numerous questions that the opening causes them to ask themselves. The opening leaves all of these questions open to interpretation and leaves the film open to the different branches of storyline that it could go down.

How have titles been used?

The only titles used within the opening are used when the Protagonist leaves the coffee shop and goes into the streets. The words "London, 16th November 2027" are displayed in the bottom left of the screen in order to set the scene for the viewer and to show the comparison between London now and in this future that has been crafted for the storyline.

In your view, is this an effective opening?

I believe that this opening is extremely effective due to all the elements I have analysed above. I believe that I will take direct inspiration within my opening from this particular film opening.