Film Opening 4 - Alien

Film 4 - Alien

Alien was made in 1979 by Ridley Scott, produced by Twentieth Century Fox and distributed by Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. It had an estimated budget of $11 million and made can estimated $78, 900,000 in the US. The opening sequence is about 40 seconds long.



At the beginning there is silence and then, about 13 seconds in the computers spring to life and the diegetic sound kicks in. Throughout the entire sequence there is just the beeps and hums of the computer, there is no other sounds which suggests that there is no one else around. This makes the viewer uneasy as there is nothing to control the situation, something we don't have a developed knowledge of - the technology on what appears to be a spaceship) is the centre of the whole scene. This makes the audience wary of what is going on.
The initial beep that breaks the silence is high pitched and harsh. This shocks the viewer and makes them feel uncomfortable as it is a very unpleasant sound. It also similar to the sound of alarms making the viewer on edge as they feel something is wrong.

At the end the sound just stops and everything goes back to how it was initially. This creates a narrative enigma as the audience wonders what on earth has happened and how it will effect the people on board the ship. It also makes us feel very uncomfortable as we know something the characters don't which could put them in danger however we have no way of letting them know what's happened.

The first thing we see is a montage of shots of the spaceship. There are a lot of buttons, wires and screens - complex technology for it's time. This could make the viewer feel uncomfortable because they don't understand the set and there is seemingly a lot of things that could go wrong.

Apart from the establishing shot of the control room the camera flits between close-ups of the computer system and a red button that appears to be protected by a plastic case. We can just about make out the word, "Emergency," which, again, puts the reader on edge as red buttons have connotations with danger or panic, especially when they're emblazoned with a word that is suggestive of things going wrong.

When the computer comes on the screen and the buttons surrounding it are reflected in the plastic cover of the emergency button. This implies that whatever is happening to the computer is wrong and dangerous.

The room appears to be empty however there are slight bits of movement (apart from the actions on the screen). For example a rod is swinging just behind the red button. This movement is unnerving as we don't know what could have caused it - it seems like there is no one in the room. It also disturbs the frame as everything else is so still and creates a feeling of unease, suggesting that something isn't quite right.

The colours in the scene are all very dark and muted, presumably because the ship is in space. This creates a feeling of tension as we can't properly see what's going on in the scene. Dark colours also denote danger and an unseen threat which gives the viewer a sense of impending doom. When the lights come on they are bright and colourful so greatly contrast to the rest of the set, again connoting that what is going on is unplanned and not right.

 

The technical sounds, complicated equipment and technology and set all signify a sci-fi film. However there is also darkness and things moving in the background which could also suggest a horror or thriller film. This is called hybridity and gives the film a wider appeal as it relates to two target audiences.

There is very little shot variety in the scene which makes it quite repetitive however this could be a deliberate move by the director to reinforce the idea that something is happening that is out of the control of the people on board the ship. It could also be reflective of the film's age and the limited resources available.