12. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Analysis

The Editing in this clip is conventional of the Thriller genre because it is fast paced throughout (which also links to the genre of Action/Adventure) however, cross fades are used to go from shot to shot so it doesn't actually seem as fast as it is. The fast paced editing also suggests the action that is going to come during the rest of the film. The screenshot that we see is the process of a cross fade between two different shots.

 

The Mise en Scene in this opening sequence is unusual due to the objects that we see. For example, one of the first things that we see in dragon skin, then straight after this we see water droplets. This is strange because these two things have nothing in common and prompts the audience to ask questions. We also see, lips, tyres, wires and small metal balls during the sequence. The screenshot that I have taken is of fire, I chose to take a screenshot of this because it is the only thing that we see in the whole sequence that isn't black or white. The constant low key lighting emphasises again, the genre of the film and the monochrome colours connotate the contrast between purity and death.

 

When I heard the Soundtrack to this opening sequence I was shocked because it is not at all what you would expect of a film like The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. The music is non-diegetic, fast paced, low pitched and very loud. There seems to be a female singing and the song reminded me of one people may exercise to in order to give them motivation. The music has a Dubstep genre which is non conventional when putting into consideration what kind of music is used in films such as 'Se7en' and 'Brick', both of which are also Thrillers.  The Soundtrack however, does adhere to the Narrative on screen, which is very conventional of opening sequences in general.

 

The cinematography in this opening sequence is very conventional as it continuously uses Extreme Close Up's to show great detail of certain objects but hides everything else. This is almost giving the audience clues which makes the film seem personal. The unusual framing of the objects (like the flowers and the hands on the face, towards the end of the sequence) adhere to the Thriller genre because they disorientate the audience. Also, the flower is the most natural thing that we see throughout the whole sequence  yet even that, we do not get a clear view of, which is also mysterious.

 

The Titles in this opening sequence are not very conventional of the Thriller genre. The font used is very serious, but also very small. The fact that it is White font on a Black background highlights (as I said before) the thin line between purity and death. Also, there is not much attention drawn to the Titles, because the main focus, is the objects on the screen. This is similar to The Sixth Sense in the fact that the Titles are kept simple but effective. The fact that more than one person's name is one screen in the screenshot to the left suggests that they are of low importance in the film, because usually, the Main Actor or the Director, would have the screen to themselves.