Sunday 9 January 2011

The Brothers Bloom OTS

The opening sequence to my short film has to be attracting, it has to pull the audience in quickly along with setting the scene and possibly even introducing some characters.

The Brothers Bloom, a 2008 film by Rian Johnson, has an excellent opening title, which to me shows the whole theatrical and performance like state that the film also embodies. The brothers being con-artists, there is a huge level of acting, performance, theatrical occurences etc. which are all qualities that will be similar to my piece, apart from the con-brothers. Below is the end of the opening sequence and the title.

The Brothers Bloom OTS from sam webber on Vimeo.



I love the two characters from the film, not so much when they are older but when they are younger, like here in the scene, they look so professional and quite crazy and surreal. The slow motion of the piece as they begin to walk toward the camera is almost a parody of how in action films the large tough attractive man walks out of the rubble in slow motion carrying the heroine under one arm, here we have the protagonists of the story carrying their heroines, their livelyhood and whole lives.

The usage of music here plays with the films generalised look as well, the jazzy fast paces music, courtesy of The Faces (I know im losing you), and also the dress of the characters, makes the film seem from the thirties or fourties.

The best part however of the film is the title itself. I absolutely love simplicity of it, but the effectiveness of it is just as amazing. The bulbs crackle explode and flash into the title, 'The Brothers Bloom', alone it feels like a performance, like the bright lights of Broadway or the west-end. The spotlights as well make the piece like it is set inside a theatre, the way they swoop around the title and toward the audience leading to a white out and the cut for the next scene, it is just brilliant. This is by far one of the best opening title sequences I have scene, not the most expensive or outlandish but simplisitic and effective.

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