Analysing opening sequence of a film 2

Law Abiding Citizen

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We looked at the opening sequence of Law Abiding Citizen. The gene of the film is a legal thriller, this is because the film is based on the justice system and how it can be undermined and manipulated to avoid maximum punishment. This film really questions your morals to which you decide for yourself if the father is the antagonist or protagonist.

The music and sound in the opening is used to control the audience’s feelings and emotions this is typical for a thriller. t he very start it sounds like they are listening to the radio. Then after when you hear the door being banged where you are waiting for something to happen the music is slow, quiet and mysterious. Then when the attackers storm in the music becomes more subtle however represents the struggling, pain and hopelessness of the father. The screams and moans from all the two characters are echoed to play on the emotions of the audience.

The opening supports the typical conventions of an opening to a thriller in the way that it creates questions to the audience. The questions left in the audiences head in this opening are, Why is the intruder killing the man’s family? How are they associated to him? What did the he do to the little girl? Another why that this conforms to a typical opening to a thriller is that it leaves the audience wanting to what more. They are intrigued by the action which happens abruptly within the first two minutes of watching. From the opening it seems that there is a clear protagononist who is the father of the little girl. However contradicting to that in the opening sequence he is working with tools we can assume this could be his job which is normally the types of jobs that antagonists do..


In the opening scene there are no clear conventions used. However there is a use of a close up of the bracelet that his daughter gave him which will probably feature throughout the film as the incentive to carry out his revenge.

Overall the opening is not like a typical Theiler this is because of the lack of conventions shown through codes, also the antagonist and protagonist are not displayed clearly. this is because the protagonist has antagonist qualities for instance the Manuel labour shown at the beginning. How ever also just like a typical protagonist the man has a respectable life style and is a man.