War of the Worlds Opening Titles Analysis

War of the worlds is an adaptation of the book and it is about an alien race taking over earth. One man is trying to save his family in the middle of an extra terrestrial invasion. It has the theme at the start of complacency amongst the human race and the inferiority of the human race compared to other life forms.

Camera Angles

The first shot is an extreme close up of a droplet on a leaf. This creates the idea of nature and how a small thing like a droplet can have a big impact, which makes us think that maybe this film is about one insignificant man having a big impact. Also is highlights the idea of insignificance, the droplet is so small on the leaf which mirrors the theme created at the start of patheticness.   

Another shot is a birds eye view of a city, which emphasises the idea of someone looking down upon earth, almost microscope like. It suggests that something is studying this city and the movement of the traffic makes it seem like everyday life continues but they are unaware of someone watching over them. This builds up tension as it makes it seem sinister and threatening that something is watching these people whilst they have no knowledge.

A mid shot of a child doing sports is included in the opening to show innocence. The child is not playing professionally he is having fun with his friends and the mid shot is used to show the child's innocent expression and the casual way he throws the ball. This adds more sinister levels and tension levels because this child is having fun innocently but he doesn't know that he is being watched and observed. This would intrigue the audience as they would want to know who is watching this city.

A long shot of this building in Paris is used to add range to the idea of something watching these characters. This structure is on the other side of the world to America but it is still being shown next to clips of microscope like spying on cities. This suggests that it is an entire world that is being studied which makes it more tense as it seems like the world is diminished. The long shot is used to show the extent of the tower and how powerful of a structure it is, but the sun is going out, perhaps the power of this structure won't last forever?

Editing

At the start special effects are used to show cell life forming and evolution. This connotes the idea that this world came from a small place and also brings in the idea of evolution. Because we already have a sinister vibe perhaps evolution could play an important factor in the movie, a more evolved species, a more adapted species? The special effects are used to show cell life in great detail which adds tension as the audience would want to know how evolution and cell life fits into the story.

An action match is used from SFX of the earth from a distance and edited into a traffic light colour and shape. This makes us think that the earth does not have a bright future because it turns red not green, perhaps a downfall of some sort. But red on traffic lights is not permanent so perhaps is suggests that the planet will recover.

The font used is bright and shining for the credits and the title of the film. This makes the text stand out and because it is a shining silver it connotes the idea of modernisation and of sleekness, which we haven't seen in the opening so the audience would be intrigued as to where that fits in. The title appears quickly that shrinks back into nothing, this could reflect the sinister theme created and the idea that nothing lasts forever. It also matches the evolution feel as life is fleeting like the title.

For a number of the scenes of cities and people going out everyday busy business Fades In and Out and Fade to Blacks are used to merge the scenes into one flowing take. This shows the mundaneness of peoples lives and the normality and business side of life. Because a great number of scenes fade into each other it suggests there being a great deal of people unaware of the sinister forces at work, which creates a great deal of tension as the audience wants to know who is studying the human race.

Sound

The soundtrack used in this opening has an eerie feel to it, with the sounds being long and drawn out high pitched notes, this then picks up pace and becomes more dramatic throughout the opening. Because the pace increases and the volume as well the audience will be more excited and the idea of a thriller genre is being created because the music is building up tension. There is also a sound motif over the title of dramatic trumpets and drums which emphasises the gravitas of the title and makes it seem more dramatic which makes the title more memorable.

The dialogue is done narrator style like and has an outsider looking in quality to it. The narrator is speaking in the past tense and in a reflective tone which suggests that some disaster happens that this narrator remembers but because he has lived through it this suggests that everything will be alright in the end, giving the audience a sense of cathartic release.

The diegetic sound on screen is silent, we cannot hear the cars or the people walking around, this makes us feel like an outsider, looking in on a world which matches the idea of something watching and monitoring these people adding to the sinister sense.

Mise-en-scene

Lighting

The light shining over the title at the end of the opening titles eventually fades away and disappears. The light is very bright at the start which has the idea of a spontaneous event happening but because the light fades away it seems like this event doesn't last or has negative consequences because the light fades to darkness. This would intrigue the audience because they would want to know what event happens.

The sun going out in Paris is an example of ambient lighting and how it is used to show negative actions. Because the sun is going out is suggests that the good of the world is dying out, and darkness will be taking over. The sun is setting to darkness and it is a red light, perhaps suggesting the idea of a bloody conflict. This makes the audience want to watch because it symbolises a disaster, and they will want to know what that is.

Props

The props used are not significant, they are just the everyday items that people are carrying in the streets, bags, briefcases and phones. This means that there is no specific person drawn attention to and no important prop which brings in the idea of mundaneness and the insignificance of all these people.

Costumes

The costumes have the same connotations as the props, because they are not individual and regular clothes they make everyone look the same and not draw the eye. This makes it seem like organisms under a microscope which matches with the cell SFX at the start and the sinister idea of someone watching over theses people.