Die Hard 4.0 Thriller Opening

This is a trailer for Die Hard 4.0 as I am unable to find the opening scene to the film, yet this will help to give a feel for the film
Die Hard 4.0 0:20-1:40

0:20 is the point when the narrative of the film truly begins as the sequence before does not relate to the narrative as it only presents the filming studio and presentation company which is common in nearly every film.

Stock Setting: The settings of the men seem to be random as one is located in a library type area whilst the other is in his home which seems rather odd as they don’t seem to be stock settings for the thriller genre, however the location of the woman seems to be rather different as she is located in an office looking area which may not be typical for a thriller, however as she seems to be the antagonist as she is hiring people to do evil deeds, this setting shows that she has a lot of power which is needed for a bad guy.

Stock Characters: I don’t believe that we have seen the protagonist yet; however the woman seems to be the antagonist which challenges the typical ideas of the bad guys as they are usually males. However she does conform to the idea that she has power as she is found in an office styled setting which connotes her authority and command. The other characters on the screen don’t seem to be of importance to the female as she just gets rid of them with ease which shows that she has no sympathy as it is her job, therefore these characters are dispensable to her and the company which gives us the impression that there will be more death and violence throughout the film by these people and with little remorse as they are the antagonists.

Themes:  This opening seems to be like a spy thriller as there is a lot of hacking into databases, which is very common in this style of subgenre, however as you carry on through the film it changes course and involves other themes like crime thriller etc. as there are many scenes of violence and combat which are not as common in the spy thriller genre, however these are qualities that are found in the latter subgenre.

Narrative: From the opening we are able to identify that there is a woman who is in charge of a rather large company who hires random people to hack into databases for an unknown reason and then once they have completed their job she just ‘eliminates’ them one by one, so it will be up to the protagonist to stop it.

Iconography: The image of the screen going fuzzy and the lights at the beginning being shut off can be associated with the idea of something being hacked into which sets the atmosphere for the film. The image of the terminator robot is also iconography for destruction and indestructability as it was able to get damaged severely yet never die so when it is quickly shown on the screen these ideas are made in the audience’s brain. As the iconography of a hacker is right from the beginning of the film, we are put straight into this world of crime and thrill which is obviously common for this style of film.

Camera Work: There is a use of what seems to be a dolly camera movement which helps us to get to our main target whilst also giving us an idea of the setting as well. The use of a zoom onto the words ‘unlocking password’ shows that this man is trying to hack into someone’s device and shows the importance of the process as it covers the whole screen which connotes that this operation is a big part in this person’s life. Yet again a close up on the words ‘100% complete’ shows that this process is important as it occupies the entire screen so it allows the audience’s attention to be pulled to it. The side mid shot of the man at the desk again gives us a better understanding of the setting he is in and he can see that the room he is in is virtually empty. Close ups onto the characters faces help to illustrate their emotions clearly to the camera which helps us to understand what’s going on a bit better and to allow for the audience to connect with the characters.

Editing:  To begin with there is the use of special effects that set the scene for this type of thriller as it is a twist on the original 20^th Century Fox opening of a film as they shut down the lights and cause some form of haze on the screen which looks like someone has either hacked onto the screen or the power has been lost which shows that this film will follow these lines. There is a fade in to begin with the opening which helps to get us ready for the film with ease as the transition is smooth. Throughout this opening there are cuts to names of the actors so we know who we are about to watch in the film. There is a use of special effects again when the images of the computers change to the names of the actors as the images seem to crackle and shake which is again associated with this hacking operation.

Mise-en-scene:  The image of the computer screen shows that the person is attempting to hack into something which links to the previous use of effects on the opening sequence so it reinforces what this whole film will be about. The image of all the computer software shows that these people take they’re job seriously and are professional at what they do as their equipment seems to be rather high-tech so they can be well funded. The body language of the male shows that he is nervous and on edge as he keeps looking around to make sure he is not being watched which connotes that the task that he is performing is illegal or dangerous which is common in most thrillers. We are shown another man who seems to be hacking into something else for the same woman yet does not seem to have contact with the other man so shows that the woman may be deceitful. The woman is in an office styled location whilst one man is in a library and the other seems to be at home acting casual. As the man is at home and doing such a dangerous job, it connotes that this task is a way of life for him and he is used to it which may show that he is used to a bit of danger. The costumes of the characters also show their personalities as the men are dressed in casual clothing which shows what they are doing is for fun or as a hobby whilst the woman is dressed formally which shows she does it as her job.

Sound:  The non-diegetic music creates a rather tense atmosphere as the instruments used appear to be strings and low orchestra equipment which makes the audience more on edge as the music is rather eerie but helps set the tone. The sound of the computer keyboard rapidly being pressed and the sound of browsers and taskbars popping up on the screen signifies that this man is very experienced in what he is doing and is obviously important as there are no words being spoken just silence so we are focused on his work. The first dialogue is between a female and the male who seems to be doing the same style of task as they are both attempting to hack into some database, but as this is the first spoken words it shows its importance in the film. There is also use of silence throughout the opening, which adds a great impact onto the audience as it helps them focus on the tasks that the people are performing rather than having to focus on the images and the sound of the clip.