Main Task - Don't Say a Word - New Thriller Deconstruction

Dont Say a Word (Link to opening scene)

The film starts with the opening credits and production companies. The diegetic noise or background traffic and trains lets the audience know the film is based in the city. The first shot shows that the film is based in San Francisco, you can tell at the shot shows The Golden Gate Bridge located in San Francisco. The tracking shot of the city gradually starts to get close into the city so the audience can see the location better. The next shot is of a train, with the titles reading ‘Williamsburg, Brooklyn, November 1991’ this tells the audience exactly where they are in the film and at what time. The camera then pans over a building and stops on a clock positions at the front of the building. This could mean that the time being shown is a big significance at this point in the film. The camera then tilts down to see two men walking out of the building dressed casual and looking a little suspicious with their body language, with their hand inside there jacket pockets and trying to rush out of the building. This could make it seem as though they have just done something wrong.

The camera then tilts further down to see a close up of a man’s face in a car mirror, this shows the man’s perspective is the same as to what the audience was seeing. The man then looks at his watch showing the time of 3:55pm and then looks back at the clock on the building. This then ensures the audience that the time is a definite indicator to something about to happen, it shows the importance of the time. The next shot is a close up of him smoking the last bit of his cigarette in the car with another man, this could show that they have been waiting to see someone or waiting for something to happen. The other man has an earpiece in which indicates the importance of these men. This shows that they are waiting to hear something and could be involved with the police or special agents. In the background there is another man talking but which doesn’t seem to be to any interest to the other two men trying to concentrate on what they are doing.