Ollie Johnson
AS/A2 Media

This is the opening scene from James Bond film 'Casino Royale'. I have chosen to analyse this as it is a great example of the kind of film that I am trying to make the opening scene for. It also incorporates flashbacks to break up the action in a similar way to those which i have planned to use in my film.

The scene is shot in black and white which immediately leads us to believe that it could be a flashback. The scene begins with an unusual low angled establishing shot of a building and a car pulls up next to it. The wind can be heared blowing through the street and the setting is quite eerie. The location is revealed via text appearing in the corner that tells us that the scene takes place in Prague, Cheque Republic, however we are not told when this scene is taking place. The next shot is again from a low angle, showing a man getting out of the car. The audience at this early point in the scene are already wondering who this character is, and what role he will play in the film. Then yet another low angled shot, as the man is seen going up the building in an elevator and slowly ascending violin music adds suspense and also add to the fact that the elevator is going up the building. Then this is followed by a close up of the man in the lift, but this time from a high angle. We cannot hear the music at this point and this could, along with the close shpt of the man, create the effect of making the audience seem like they are in the lift as well. We then see a close up of the floor number going up. This shot again adds suspense as it is like its counting down, or in this case up, to something important that will be on a particular floor in the building.
Then we have a mid angle shot of the character walking through the building and the camera moves slowly forward as if we are following the man towards his unknown goal. All we can hear is his echoing footsteps and then a creepy sound echoing effect. This tells us that the building in which the scene is taking place is almost, or completely empty. We are then in what appears to be an office and the door begins to open. We are in suspense for a brief moment before we see that it is the same man who enters the room. The camera move back and pans across, following the man as he crosses the room and turns on a lamp. This is followed by a close up of his face as he looks puzzled at something. The next shot could be a point of view shot, as the man looks at a mirror. Then we hear a second voice and there is an over the shoulder shot as the man turns to looks behind him and for the first time we see our main character; James Bond.
The next few shots are mid angled, one showing Bond, one the other man and the other a slightly wider angle showing both, as the man sits down at the desk. We then see a close up of a drawer being opened which reveals a gun. At this point the music begins to get louder, with slow suspense building violins that are typical to any film scene where suspense is a key factor. Then Bond and our other character have a conversation with similar mid angled shots to the ones used a few seconds ago.
This is followed by a scene showing a cricket match however this is only in the extended cut of the film so I have chosen not to analyse this as it would not have appeared in the cinema version of the film.
Then we see another flashback. This time a man is running down a corridor, frantically looking behind him, and the music is faster paced with brass instruments, creating more of an atmosphere. I will take this into a account when considering music and sound effects in my own chase scene. The man runs into some toilets and then we see Bond burst through the door. This is then followed by a very faced paced gritty fight scene. Throughout the fight the camera is not always steady and the angles are quite unusual for example there is even an overhead shot. The editing is obviously very quick with a shot every one or two seconds. Another interesting shot to note is when a door closes on the camera and it is as if we are in the room watching the fight take place. This fight scene has given me a few ideas on how to create a fast paced action scene, and also i could try some of the more unusual camera angles used here.
The fight continues for a few more seconds then is suddenly cut short and we are back in the office again, with our unknown character holding a gun towards Bond. The camera switched back to Bond and then back to the other man, although this time the shot is closer and focused on his face. He then pulls the trigger and to his surprise, the gun isn't loaded. This is a particularly enjoyable moment from the audience as we see Bond has in fact replaced the gun himself.
We are then shown more of the flashback showing the fight in the bathroom, and we learn that the man Bond is fighting was sent by the man who was talking to Bond. The fight scene continues as it did before with extremely fast editing and dramatic music. The editing however, then slows down as Bond begins to drown the other man in a sink, but the music gets higher and louder in pitch, building up before stopping suddenly as the man drops dead. We then see a mid angle shot of Bond as he looks down at his dead victim, before returning to the scene in the office. This sudden end to the music is particularly effective as it leaves the audience slightly shocked. This is yet another effect i could consider in my scene.
There is then a shot-reverse shot of the conversation between Bond and the man at the desk. Then suddenly Bonds shoots the man, stopping him mid sentence, and we have a higher shot of him falling back off his chair. This takes the audience by surprise as we are expecting him to finish his monologue. Then Bond gets up to leave and we are transported back to the bathroom scene, where Bond can bee seen picking up a gun. Then the man who we believe is dead grabs a gun and goes to shoot at Bond, who quickly turns and fires first. Then we see the classic James Bond shot of him firing the gun and the camera zooms out with him in the circle in the center and the music starts up again, leading into showing the title sequence.
Overall i think this is a very effective opening scene. The use of flashbacks make it interesting and the fast paced editing in the fight scene, combined with the use of usual shots and dramatic music, make the scene very entertaining. The audience would most likely enjoy this scene and are undoubtedly gripped right from the beginning of the film.