The non diegetic soundtrack that runs throughout the opening sequence is Lux Aeterna. This track is used as a leitmotif throughout the movie but is first introduced in the opening credits. This piece of classical music was composed by Clint Mansell specifically for the Requiem for a Dream movie, despite the track appearing in many other films such as The lord of the rings: the two towers. The track itself is a contrast from the image track that shows a TV set being pushed around the backstreets of a city. The contrast creates enigma for the audience as well as foreshadowing that the storyline will feature a strange perspective on reality. The discordant nature of the track helps to build up a tense atmosphere from the quit beginning to he dominating sound towards the end of the scene,despite the audience being unaware of the meaning behind the dramatic build up of the music.
The sequence begins with a Shutter like sound and the title dropping into a black shot to accompany the sound effect . This create the idea that the characters are trapped or locked in to their situation, prior to knowing their storyline. the text then corrodes into a fade to black shot. Creating the idea for the audience that there are chemicals involved with the storyline which is later revelled to be heavy drug use. The dissolving text is also accompanied by an artificial sizzling sound, this also rejuvenates the idea about heavy drug use and also creates a visual image of burning for the audience which can be noted as foreshadowing the actions of the characters later in the film.
The screen then abruptly cuts to a close up of the first character introduced to the sequence. The lighting of the shot creates a dark and dingy atmosphere as the character speaks is a muffled tone complying with the compact surroundings. Light from outside the shot is reflecting onto the characters face in order to create the enigma for the audience as to why the character is confined in such a dark place, thus mirroring the storyline of the film. The camera then flips to create a shot reverse shot of the conversation between the two characters, the camera then pans over the bared window which is acting as the light source from the previous shot, this could be a metaphor for how trapped the characters are feeling- this would also explain the use of the shutter like title display. There is also enigma that is created as to the symbolism behind TV set, this prop is then pushed through the entire opening sequence, making the audience question its relevance, which in turn engages them into the movie.
The camera then switches to a wide shot of middle aged women bathing on deck chairs, the bright lighting is a large contrast from the darker lighting off the previous shots. The brighter orange tint of the shots is a result of colour temperature change in order to make the shot look warmer. This warmer tone creates a great contrast to the movies storyline, which is a deliberate effect in order to keep the audience engaged. The camera then has a panning shot of each individual woman which is then crossed with the two characters and the moving TV, portraying the divide in social status between the two types of character. The uniform dialogue from the women creates a sceptical atmosphere creating yet more enigma for the audience as well as the idea that all people are the same and can be effected by the same thing no matter of your social class, which again foreshadows the plot of the film. A wide shot of the women of the street is then used so that the audience can see the graffiti on the wall behind their sun trap. The message on the wall read 'shamed' which will only be subconsciously noticed y the audience however the message is referencing the plot line and how the characters are too ashamed to face up to their metal struggles.
The camera then changes from a wide shot of the women to a wide shot of a busy market street. The shot is half lit with sunlight and half in complete darkness. This lighting is a foreshadowing metaphor of the darkness that the characters choose to ignore, which effectively makes them worse off in the long run. This shot again creates enigma amongst the audience as to where the scene is going. The shot then fades to black to feature more credits in the same corroding typography as the title sequence. The text colour is white, which is usually connoted with innocence and purity however when the text dissolves it becomes clear to the audience that all of the innocence has been lost for the characters.
A black shot the reoccurs with more credits. The theme of the text is the same as previous credit shots however the names that appear on the screen are enclosed in opposite corners. This deliberate spacing creates the idea of distance between the characters which again foreshadows the rest of the plotline for the audience.
There is then a tracking shot of the characters pushing the TV set across a fairground. The shot is low angled which highlights the characters fast pace movements by showing the audience a better view on their panicked expressions. Also the fairground as the mise en scène creates more enigma for the audience as it is a reoccurring theme in the background of the shots. This makes the audience question its relevance and wonder if there is a link between the fairground rides and the characters actions.
This is followed by a cut away shot of a rusting fire hydrant with the characters still pushing the TV set across the back of the scene. The corroding theme of the opening sequence is then reintroduced as the focus of the shot is on the rust of the fire hydrant, this theme is then reflected onto the characters with there movements in the back of the shot. The black shot of credits then abruptly interrupts the shot again highlighting the chemically corroding theme.
The audience are then shown an extreme wide of shot of the sea front. The main focus of the shot is the light from the sun, although it is slightly blurred, the light source of the scene reflects onto the end of the walkway where the characters are heading. This could be a symbolism of there characters fate, often bright lights connote death. However this scene is left open to interpretation by the audience as they have not yet been introduced to the characters intentions.
An artificial scratching noise is then introduced to the Lux Aeterna track. The sound creates the imagery of a record player becoming stuck on a vinyl LP. This added repetitive scratching sound creates in idea of the characters being trapped or stuck in there own situation mirroring previous ideas of the characters isolated situation. The added sound also builds tension for the scene as well as creating a disturbing contrast between the image track and the sound track giving the audience the understanding that there is a darker layer to what seams like a fairly normal situation.
A central wide shot is then used of which the characters move across. This shot shows the struggle to move the TV set and how far they have travelled with it. This could resemble the journey that the characters are on and the struggle they will go through throughout the film. This shot then transfers to another black shot of corroding names.
Another low angle tracking shot is displayed with the characters expressions becoming more jovial despite the now much higher volume and more intense soundtrack, this again creates enigma for the audience as to what the meaning behind the contrast is.
After another black shot of credits, there is a cast away shot that is split on half by a metal bar. On one side of the shot there is an overgrown grassland with an abandoned roller-coaster in the background and the other half shows boarded up buildings. On both sides of the shot there is a sign of thing eroding such as the ding leaves on the left and the crumbling building on the right. The corrosion theme is evident on both sides of the shot however in personal opinion I believe that the two sides of the shot show the difference between reality and the mental state of the characters. With the wild grassland and abandoned fairground resembling the characters mental state of overgrown thoughts and abandoned hopes and the mental bars and uniformed buildings being the cadged reality that they are trapped in.
The credits of the producers and other non- character rolls are central to the black shot rather than being at the corners, this furtherly highlights the distance they are trying to resemble between the characters as well as promote the directors and producers of the film.
A wide shot of roller coaster is similar to the wide shot of the previous central wide shot in that the camera angle doesn't move it is the characters that move across the screen, thus creating the symbolism for the journey of the characters. The shot then transitions to a cut away shot of two gas meters with the characters moving in the background. The shot also has the roller-coaster in the background again creating enigma for the audience as they begin to question the journey the characters are on.
The final shot of the opening sequence is the same as the first shot with the black shot falling from the top of the screen with the shutter sound. This just furtherly highlights the trapped situation of the characters to the audience. However the final shot doesn't have the title of the movie it has 'SUMMER' written across the screen in order to set the scene for the audience as the next scene begins.
There is ambient sound to the opening until half way through the sequence. Theses sounds such as the movement of the TV set and the footsteps of the characters add realism to the scene. however at half way through the soundtrack overpowers the ambient sound as well as all other diegetic sound. This not only builds tension to the piece but creates the idea for the audience that reality can be blocked out by a unstable metal state.
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