Set at night in an imaginary city (Basin City) the scene is based on the top of an apartment block, on the open balcony. The characters are at a party, but are alone outside together. This setting is typical of Thriller as in this genre it is often that the action happens in a small, hidden part of a big urban place. Half way through the scene it starts raining. Rain is often thought of with bad connotations. Reflecting the mood to be brought by her murder. The fact the characters are at this party, gives the audience the idea that they are of some importance and high social status. The dark of the night hints that these characters are antagonist and are up to something. Location & Setting Lighting & Colour stock The whole opening scene is in contrasted black and white, except for the colours green and red which are shown only on certain features. One section is done in 100% contrast. The black and white helps create the dark night scene, and adds to sophisticated music and atmosphere. The red of her dress connotes blood and lust, both which are reflected in this scene. The 100% contrast helps to create the atmosphere, the sexual contact is reinforced by the sudden change in effect. Mise-En-Scene

Costume/appearances ‘The Customer’ wears a red dress, red lips, and we are shown a flash of her green eyes. The only colour we are shown in this scene is that on her. The colours; green and red, can both be interpreted with dangerous connotations: red with blood and lust. Green with money, envy and poison. These reflect how she had messed up with money and the situation she is now in. ‘The Salesman’ wears a sharp black and white suit, with smart sleek hair. The way he is dressed so well says that he is rich, important and ‘business’. Props The cigarette- Used frequently in Thriller films, connoted negatively they help give the idea that these characters aren’t all clean and good. The smoke is also used to help create atmosphere. ‘The Customer’ is in a bad position and the fact she is smoking could show she is nervous and weak. The shot were she takes the cigarette from ‘The Salesman’ is prolonged and builds tension. The suit- By using the suit, also as done in many Thrillers, we can straight away get a taste of his personality, status and sometimes situation. The gun- Showing the audience the gun lets us know for sure that he has shot her. The gun is the prop which makes the action and finishes the scene. Seeing ‘The Salesman’ in a suit, carrying a gun we can assume that he is a hit man. Mise-En-Scene

Actors’ performance ‘The Customer’ is shivering, she look sad and vulnerable, which she is in comparison to the dangerous situation she is in. She puts on a confident front to ‘The Salesman’ but we can tell she is scared. Later on in the scene this front is broken and she opens up to him, letting both him and the audience how she is really feeling. ‘The Salesman’ is confident and speaks knowingly of her. The way he speaks to her gives her false sense of security, he tells her he loves her though they both know he doesn’t. “I let her hear my footsteps”. He is clearly in control of the situation. He is shown to be emotional, “I hold her close until she is gone” and he describes her perfume as “sweet promise that brings tears to my eyes” but then kills her and says his line “I’ll cash her check in the morning” and we realise he is not really effected by killing her, how a hit man should be. We can also gather from this that she had hired him to kill her. Mise-En-Scene

Camera shots Wide shot- used to establish the surroundings and setting. From this shot we get an impression of how small and insignificant she is too the vast city. Wide shot, APOV- This allows us to see him coming towards her, it is APOV because we know she is aware he is approaching. This creates the tension which she must be feeling. Close up- This closeness of this shot clearly shows us the slowness of her action, both that and the fact she is smoking gives the audience the idea she is nervous. Close up- This shot is in time with when ‘The Salesman’ says: “its your eyes, all the things I see in your eyes” the close up allows us to see her eyes go green Mid shot- This shot is of both the characters facing the camera, allowing only the audience to see ‘The Customers’ face and reaction to what is being said to her. From this shot we can tell she is scared and lonely. Wide shot- over the city, zooming away from the murder. This shot reminds us just how small this action is in comparison to vast city, and how such things can go unnoticed by everyone else.

Mise-En-Scene Camera angles The first shot is high angle, from the point of view of ‘The Salesman’, this we can assume because in his dialogue he describes her actions as we can see. The high angle from his point of view along with the fact she doesn’t know he is there tells us he has control over the situation. Another high angle shot is used after he has murdered her, this enables the audience to see both characters and to see clearly what has happened. Camera movements The 180 degree rule is obeyed throughout the scene, keeping the action simply understood and not confusing to watch. A match on action shot is used as the girl turns around to face the man. As she turns the shot is cut and the next one shows an APOV of ‘The Salesman’ watching her, this adds to the tense atmosphere. A shot-return-shot sequence is also used. The shots switch between each character to show the audience their reactions to each other. The pace is slow, building up tension to the climax of the girl’s murder. Each shot is prolonged which reflects the calm and slow way the characters are speaking in. Even after he has shot her he slowly lets her to the ground and then waits holding her on the floor.

Mise-En-Scene Sound The non-diegetic film score heard is slow jazz, which reflects the slow prolonged shots and dialogue. Both the use of this film score and the dialogue between the characters builds the tense atmosphere and creates suspension for the climax. As well as dialogue between the characters there is also the use of objective character identification, dialogue from ‘The Salesman’ which can only be heard by the audience. Both help to give us insights to the characters personalities and situations. After the murder has happened the film score changes to faster jazz with a lower pitched backing beat; this reflects what happened, the romantic scene has turned into one of murder and the film now seems much more sinister. As well as these sounds we can also hear diegetic sounds in the background, very faint sounds of wind and city noises can be heard to give us a feel of the atmosphere and urban setting. > link to the opening scene, with sound.