The Opening Sequence of the Coen Brothers' Movie O brother Where art Thou?

I have chosen to evaluate a scene from Indiana Jones, Raiders of the Lost Ark where Indiana and Sallah uncover the Well of Soles where the lost ark is hidden. We open the scene at 57:03 with Indiana leading a team of diggers up a hill to the spot where they will dig for the ark. As the scene opens we hear the diegetic sounds of the diggers and commotion taking place in the background. We also hear non-diegetic music that will be referred to as the “ark theme” playing as Indiana climbs the hill and has his men start to dig for the ark. The slow and sort of creepy tone that makes up the ark theme reminds us of the continuing quest for the ark and

Fargo’s opening scene sets the tone for the rest of the movie (fig. 1). As the opening credits are rolling across the screen, there is nothing but stark whiteness behind them. At first, this looks just like a simple white background. As the movie plays on, the viewer discovers this stark whiteness is actual footage of a snow-covered highway in Middle America. The epic and foreboding score in the background matches the harsh whiteness of the setting. To the untrained eye, this has nothing in common with film noir. However, the Coen brothers have the ability to create a postmodern film noir that disguises itself as a murder mystery with a rustic setting and comical characters. This movie tells a contrived tale of American culture, and more specifically

The wide and open nature scenes are also very prevalent in this film. This film takes us on a journey through desert, mountains and wide open valleys full of nature as Josey Wales fights off his enemies. Also, one of the influences of American Western cinema is the music. The different musics like patriotic drum tunes, folk, and tribal are played in this film to match the kind of situation taking place as well providing a slight cultural aspect of life experiences during that period in time.

The land is bare, an empty terrain sparsely populated with grass and shrubs. The sounds of hooves and galloping fill the air. Soon, cowboys and their horses ride into the scene towards the viewer with triumphant music permeating the background. A cloud of dust follows their movement through the desert-like landscape. The sun beating down as the cowboys file in a straight line into a camp, two by two, resting their guns on their thighs. The screen pans out and we are transported to a small town where two men discussing the recent Apache attacks. They receive a message on the telegraph, only containing one word. Cue the suspenseful music and the word is revealed to be “Geronimo.” Although this is the opening of the movie Stagecoach, many popular Western films have followed similar opening scenes containing the stereotypical desert landscape with cowboys heroically riding their horses. Western films, such as the Stagecoach, gained national popularity, making over millions of dollars in sales. Their popularity serves as justification for why these Western ideals affect the nation’s identity and image. Richard Slotkin described this occurrence of Western movies influencing American characteristics as the “Myth of the Frontier,” with myth meaning a body of tales, fables, and fantasies that help people make sense of their history and capture their attention. Although the classic symbols of the Myth may be outdated, the ideals of the “Wild West” portrayed through the mainstream

The Black and white film at the start of the music clip symbolises the age of the events and the impact of these.

The opening grouping blurs into" ‘The End,’ an environmental melody by the Doors that sounds as colorful as the Vietnamese wilderness looks" Apocalypse Now (1979). With this spooky, cranky tune as his background, Captain Willard tumbles into a descending path that proceeds all through the film. Promptly, the music connects picture to place and time: with its furious rhythms, the tune sets us up for the journey that begins. Music from the Doors shows up again close to the end of the film when Willard rises out of the stream and shots of Kurtz's butcher are intertwined with shots of the caribou butcher. The homicide scene is the most hallucinatory of the film because of the mix of the Doors' rock, cinematographer Storaro's dreamlike lighting plan, and the forward and backward cuts in the middle of Kurtz and the

The success of the brothers not just as as film producers, but also editors, writers, and directors is beyond impressive. A massive part of their success can be attributed to their effectiveness in their employment of dramatic and cinematography tools, one of which is music. The films that the brothers have produced since their debut in the early 1980s are consistent with the sensitivity in which music and sound is heavily is utilized, making the films and unique come alive, while ensuring that the audience remains entertained. Their efficient use of music also ensures that the audience does not get bored with the film since there is minimal monotony in most of their films. Another factor that has contributed to their success in the movie industry is their unpredictability that makes it hard for the viewers to predict the next occurrence or scene in their movies. The unpredictability is also evident in their use of music all over their films. All in all, the films produced by the Coen brothers are often carefully crafted and designed not only for the maximum entertainment of the viewers but also the effective communication and relay of the core message. It is easy to dismiss the immense importance of music and sound in a film, but watching movies by the Coen brothers greatly proves one otherwise. It is beyond evident that music is a fundamental aspect that all

This film takes place during the Civil War around 1862-1865. It takes place in rural Alabama, spring time, and early morning as it moves into late evening. Since this is during the Civil War the Union soldiers are invading the south. Most of the action

The Coen brothers were a staple independent action-adventure film makers. Their movie Fargo featured an ending with butchered bodies and wrecked cars. The plot of the film has little to offer viewers but the action is what draws people in. The hero in the film resorts to crime and engineers his wife’s kidnapping. He did so to try to get out of an embezzling mess that he got himself into.

In the opening scene where the boat approaches the island, there are low pitched fog horns sounding, in an eerie sort of way. It adds to the tension and feel of the whole scene and sets the mood for the whole movie. As the boat emerges out of the fog, and slowly reaches the island accompanied by the eerie sounds the audience start connecting the dots and begin wondering what the movies outcome will

The last scene of the film "Cobb comes home" uses effective camerawork to show Cobb's ultimate wish all along of returning home. The techniques appeared in this scene are mid and long shots, and zooming. The scene starts as a mid shot of Cobb in the Los Angeles airport, his hometown. After he crosses the border, the camera then cuts to a mid shot of Cobb receiving his luggage, and saying his goodbyes one by one to his friends, causing a joyful, but sad emotional reaction in the audience, as this is the end of their mission, which is time for everyone to return home now. Another aspect that causes emotion within the audience is the heroic music. The heroic music highlights the fact that Cobb has achieved his mission, and has got his reward

The camera zooms in on the protagonist, surrounded by enemies. They’re fighting with everything they have, and despite the odds are succeeding. A few simple notes, and everyone in the movie theater knows the villain is about to enter the room - the stakes are higher than ever. This is an example of leitmotif, an important musical tactic that the modern Western world has Wagner to thank for. Leitmotif is a short theme associated with a specific character or situation. Wagner developed the technique, and used many of these in his operas (Fuller). This technique has become very popular in film, musical theater, and

This film started when the slaves guided by Cinqué led a revolt in the slave ship La Amistad. The slaves forced two Spanish crewman to take them to Africa, but they ended in the U.S. The ship was captured and the slaves were taken to jail, meanwhile the trail started. Queen Isabella 2 of Spain and William S. Holabird were debating about who will keep the slaves, while Roger Baldwin and Theodore Joadson defended the case. First they proved that they were Africans, not

Later when they’re cleaning up their old room they come up with a crazy idea , but it ended up being a really bad idea. The movie took place in Orlando , Florida. It´s taking place during this time. The plot of this movie is pretty obvious.

The film’s opening is a black screen with nothing other than Beatrice’s voice reciting the song sung by Balthasar in Act II Scene 3 of the play. Branagh’s use of this song in the beginning is akin to the Chorus’ opening statement in Romeo and Juliet. Furthermore, it could be said that Branagh uses this technique to ensure viewers are aware of the film’s conflict. This in turn allows the film to increase its pace and informs the audience from the beginning that part of the conflict will involve mistrust. Viewers are also able to infer a resolution worthy of the prophesied “Hey nonny, nonny” (Crowther). From there, Branagh has added a visual aid of a painted villa. The camera