No Country For Old Men
Thriller Opening Analysis
This film begins with the sound of wind, followed by the title of the film. It is shown in plain white lettering that stands central against a plain black background. Having such simple title graphics tells the viewer that this is a mature, serious film, as for something such as a comedy bright, friendly-looking lettering is usually used. Lettering like this does not distract from what we are about to see.
The wind sound effect continues, and a non-diegetic voice over begins. Shortly following this, scenes of a desert/ sand dunes begin to be shown. In conjunction with this, the speaker has a heavy Southern accent, and is telling us of being a sheriff, we can safely assume that the location is the Southern States of America. These bleak, empty shots give the viewer a feeling of hopelessness. It feels as if we are lost.
After around a minute and a half of this, a policeman is shown walking a handcuffed man up to his police car. Here the voiceover continues, but it is accompanied by the diegetic sound of footsteps, car doors and the like. The policeman puts some kind of oxygen tank into his car. It seems that this tank belongs to the criminal, as it is unlikely that anything differing from the norm would be carried by a policeman. The camera angle then changes and we see another car behind the police one. It is obvious that this is the car of the criminal as there is no hint of anyone other around, apart from the two we have just seen.
All the shots at this point have been fairly dramatic and surprising rich in texture and colour for somewhere as bleak as a desert. A wide angle lens appears to be used, which adds to the effect of massive scale (and being lost).
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