Se7en opening sequence analysis

 Throughout the whole opening sequences very dark, dull colourless shots are shown, which signifies that the man in the clips is a dark, evil character, this clearly connotes the horror genre. Only close up shots are used in the sequence, which can make the audience feel uneasy because they can not look anywhere but at the 'killers' equipment. The shots are so close that all that can be seen from the killer is his fingers, which gives the film many enigma codes, such as 'who is he' and 'where are we'. There are many enigma codes in this sequence, which adds the element of mystery, making the audience fear the unknown. The man's fingers in the shots look dirty, and have plasters on them, which hints at the man's nature signifying he is evil, and the killer of this film. This leaves the audience with more questions, because they do not know why his fingers are dirty, and why they require plasters. When using the pen the man pushes down very hard, so hard it is making a screeching noise. This connotes that the antagonist is a very aggressive character, and that he will go about his killings in this way. Fast paced editing is used in the montage, not giving the audience much time to look at each shot. This shows just how much preparation the antagonist is doing, signifying he is obsessed, calculated and dangerous. The soundtrack builds suspense through the opening, working well with the short takes. This music uses lots of screeching, and scratching sounds, which are ear piercing sounds clearly connoting that this man is dangerous and someone to be feared. Low key lighting is used showing the antagonist is in a dark place, which not only signifies that he is evil, but that he is in his element in the dark because this is where he is preparing. All of the font used looks handwritten, signifying that the antagonist is not professional linking to the fact that he is writing by hand. This shows that the killer is working for himself, and so he has not typed up his notes. Handwriting makes the writing look more personal, which connotes that the killer will be personally tracking down his victims. The text shown is superimposed, making the sequence look like an old slightly broken video, making the footage seem like it could be real, and making it more scary. At certain points in the clip, the footage goes partially red, which signifies danger, and that there will be blood to come. Se7ens opening sequence does not obey Todrov's theory of a film starting off as an equilibrium, because clearly the disruption is being shown from the start.