Opening EG5: The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2011)

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

David Fincher (2011)

BBFC 18, MPAA R

Film Opening Length: 

Budget: $90m
UK/US/World Box Office: $18.4m, $102.5m, $232.6m

Production Companies: Scott Rudin Productions, Yellow Bird
Distributors: Universal Pictures

LINKS:
IMDB, RottenTomatoes (Tomatometer 86%, Audience 86%), BoxOfficeMojo, Wiki

Trailer for 'The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo':
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POSSIBLE INFLUENCE FOR MY FILM
I like the narrative of this film and would like to make a narrative very similar to this. I like the idea of a strong female character getting full on revenge over something so horrible as rape. The main protagonist, Lisabeth Salander, in this film does exactly this, she has been through so much trauma and horrible abuse that when anyone abuses her she wants to get full on revenge on them by abusing them also or killing them. In my film opening, I want to make the killer female just like in this film, so that she can abuse and kill men/women that have abused her. I would also make the victims predominantly male because I disagree with how the character of the ‘scream queen’ in slasher horror films is normally always a female. Also, the fact that the killer would be female, would be countertypical to the slasher horror genre norm of the killer being male.

COMPANIES/IDENTS
There are two film idents shown at the start of this film, they are Columbia Pictures (a Sony Company) and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures. Sony Pictures is one of the 'big six' conglomerates. Over these idents of this film, non-diegetic music starts playing which can be connoted as very eerie, spooky and child-like. This immediately connotes the genre of the film and sets the atmosphere of the film. This music carries on playing in the film opening until the dialogue has finished between the two characters in the film opening then new non-diegetic music starts playing in the second half of the film opening which is very very different. This new music is in the music genre of rock and is very fast and loud to perhaps connote the action, crime nature of the film.

IDENTIFYING ANY PROTAGONISTS

Finally, we get to a character. Being the first character shown would usually connote that this character is the main protagonist, but in this case it isn't like that. 

This first character shown is an old male who is on the phone with another old male. 

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This shot of the second character shown is a high angled close up over the shoulder shot. This type of shot connotes that there is some sort of threat and that this character feels weak/is weak. It makes the audience feel threatened and uncomfortable.

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OPENING SHOT

The opening shot is an extreme long shot of what you can denote as a big lake and forest area in the distance, to establish the location/setting to the audience. There is snow which connotes that it is winter or that this location is somewhere in the northern part of the world. This shot opens in with a fade in. This shot is also a panning shot, this is used to further help the audience establish the location/setting. 

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TITLES
There are no titles shown until the very end of this film opening. The title sequence accompanies an entire visual sequence and non-diegetic music which heavily connotes the dark genre of the film. There are 19 titles in this title sequence. 

The first title shown is 'Columbia Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Presents'. This is stereotypically the first title you will see in film openings - (main production company/ies presents). 

Order of Titles:
1. Columbia Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Present
2. A Scott-Rudin Yellow Bird Production
3. A David Fincher Film
4. Two Main Actors
5. Main Title: The Girl With A Dragon Tattoo
6. 10 actors names
7. Casting by
8. Costume Designer
9. Co Producers
10. Sound Design by
11. Music by
12. Editors
13. Production Designer
14. Director of Photography
15. Executive Producers
16. Produced by
17. Based on the book by, Originally Published by
18. Screenplay by
19. Directed by

MISE-EN-SCENE FOR EXPOSITION
NARRATIVE
Barthes’ narrative enigma can be applied in this film opening. 

SOUND/GENRE SIGNIFICATION 

Over the film idents of this film, non-diegetic music starts playing which can be connoted as very eerie, spooky and child-like. This immediately connotes the genre of the film and sets the atmosphere of the film. This music carries on playing in the film opening until the dialogue has finished between the two characters in the film opening then new non-diegetic music starts playing in the second half of the film opening which is very very different. This new music is in the music genre of rock and is very fast and loud to perhaps connote the action, crime nature of the film.

SHOT VARIETY

There is a lot of use of extreme long shots in this film opening because the director wants the setting to be clearly established to the audience. 

The second shot is of a house connoting that the shots are cutting closer to finally get to someone as you can see in the next shot. So, there are two shots until we finally get to shot of a character.