I watched The Bourne Identity yesterday and I loved everything about it especially the story which was exciting and had me on the edge of my seat from start to finish. The direction was great as well: I really liked the opening sequence with the sound of thunder over the film studios' logos and the flashes of lightning with a shadowy silhouette floating on the water in the first shot. I also really like the way the words of the title of the film come up in flickery blue text and appear in a series of lightning flashes.
I like the bit where the old man on the boat cuts up Bourne's wetsuit because it is really close up so you're not quite sure what is going on. I also like the long silence while the man does this then the sudden "What are you doing to me?!" from Bourne. This sudden shock is not as effective as in a lot of films I have seen that use this technique but I still like the way they used it in this. (Strangely the best example I can think of from another film off the top of my head is Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban where Harry is walking up to Prof. Trelawney's room in silence to replace a crystal ball then she suddenly comes in and suddenly starts talking to him. Chilling.)
When Bourne is talking to himself in the mirror you can see the reflection of a big round light which illuminates just a tiny sliver of his face and jacket, the rest of him in darkness. I love the high contrast and bright light which makes the shot look a lot more interesting than if it were just lit as though in daylight. Another shot similar to this is when Bourne is on the train and you can see his reflection in the window.
I like the bit where the old man on the boat cuts up Bourne's wetsuit because it is really close up so you're not quite sure what is going on. I also like the long silence while the man does this then the sudden "What are you doing to me?!" from Bourne. This sudden shock is not as effective as in a lot of films I have seen that use this technique but I still like the way they used it in this. (Strangely the best example I can think of from another film off the top of my head is Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban where Harry is walking up to Prof. Trelawney's room in silence to replace a crystal ball then she suddenly comes in and suddenly starts talking to him. Chilling.)
When Bourne is talking to himself in the mirror you can see the reflection of a big round light which illuminates just a tiny sliver of his face and jacket, the rest of him in darkness. I love the high contrast and bright light which makes the shot look a lot more interesting than if it were just lit as though in daylight. Another shot similar to this is when Bourne is on the train and you can see his reflection in the window.
Like in Hot Fuzz, there are a few scenes where the beginning or end of a scene starts/ finishes with a fast, loud motion or sound. In The Bourne Identity, someone bangs a plate down on the table at the very start of a scene on the boat and later on when one of the bosses comes out the lift, the scene starts with the "ding" of the lift. There is also a scene that closes with the slamming of a car door. An example from Hot Fuzz is where Angel clicks his pen and the scene ends. I like this as it is a nice way to start/ end a scene and it adds variety so the film doesn't get monotonous.
In this film there is this one shot where Bourne has just got off the boat that rescued him at the beginning and is walking down the road in the middle of the screen. The camera is still and he walks towards it, getting closer then when his head and shoulders are taking up most of the screen, the camera pans right as he turns and walks down another street and the camera stays still as he walks away. I really like that because it's different and looks good and you get to see different angles in one long shot. It's a bit weird though because at the end of the shot where he is facing away from the camera and walking down the road, a car passes behind him and when it has left the screen Bourne has vanished with it.
In this film there is this one shot where Bourne has just got off the boat that rescued him at the beginning and is walking down the road in the middle of the screen. The camera is still and he walks towards it, getting closer then when his head and shoulders are taking up most of the screen, the camera pans right as he turns and walks down another street and the camera stays still as he walks away. I really like that because it's different and looks good and you get to see different angles in one long shot. It's a bit weird though because at the end of the shot where he is facing away from the camera and walking down the road, a car passes behind him and when it has left the screen Bourne has vanished with it.
I am not very good at talking about music in films (or, arguably anything else, judging by my blog so far) but to breifly comment on the music in one particular scene, Bourne is at the bank in Zürich. The score is quite quiet and soft but as he starts looking at his papers, passports, money, gun etc, the music becomes louder, more urgent, with violins and drums where there once was just a quiet piano. He is beginning to discover who - and what - he is.
To conclude, a lot of the comments and analysis I have written here I will refer to when making my film introduction. I will hopefully use a lot of the ideas, camera angles etc. but I don't think we will actually be making a thriller, hopefully just a film shot like one.
To conclude, a lot of the comments and analysis I have written here I will refer to when making my film introduction. I will hopefully use a lot of the ideas, camera angles etc. but I don't think we will actually be making a thriller, hopefully just a film shot like one.
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