Film Analysis of a 

Thriller Sequence: 28 Days Later (2002)

Mise en Scene  

Lighting:

High key lighting used to illustrate expression on the main characters face and the eerie light that shines upon London.

 

Location/set:

The first location is set in an abandoned hospital creating tension and unlocking the first enigma.

The next location is set on the empty streets of London creating further tension within the sequence.

 

Props:

Phones in the hospital – showing that the main character has no communication with anyone.

Cans – shows chaos in the hospital and the desperation of the main character and the people in the past.

Key – The key could unlock the door to the main characters future.

Abandoned Money – shows the significance that the money is worth nothing.

Newspaper – provides the answer on why London is deserted.

 

Performance:

Cillian Murphy seems to be the only survivor in London after 28 days.

Murphy is attempting to find other civilians who he can interact with.

This adds tension and suspense due to the performance created by Murphy

 

Costume/Hair make up:

No facial make up has been applied to relate to the long period of time the main character has been in hospital.

However, make up has been applied to his head to make him seem like he has been experimented on.

Costume – scrubs from doctors, which showed the main characters desperation to grab what he could find at the hospital.

 

Actor Appearance:

Cillian Murphy is the main character of “28 Days Later.” He is young and can be seen as an irregular protagonist or contemporary victim as he is not physically able to fight against zombies. He is often noted by critics for his chameleonic performances in diverse roles.

Cinematography 

Camera Shots:

Very wide shots and extreme long shots are used to show that the main character is deserted on the streets of London and that all the surrounding locations are deserted with people.

 

Medium close ups of the main character to show puzzled, worried and distressed features on the main characters face.

 

A long shot is applied to show the entire body of the main character and the circumstance he is in.

 

An establishing shot of London is used to set the silent tense mood of the sequence and slowly develop the opening sequence.

 

Camera Movements:

A camera tilt is used to slowly establish the main character and add a dramatic effect to the beginning of the sequence.

 

The Camera pans to show the audience where the main character is heading next as he travels across Westminster Bridge.

 

Another Camera tilt is used on one of the buildings in London to shows that there are no people in the buildings.

 

The use of a zoom out from a medium close up to an extreme long shot shows how the main character is the only man in the street. This creates tension and makes the main character stand out.

 

Camera Angles:

The camera rotates from a canted angle to a normal shot to show the confusion in the sequence and possibly in the opening character’s mind. 

Sound  

The General sound of the sequence is ambient, with no use of a score to create tension in the sequence.

As the sequence draws to a climax a score is layered, making the scene more suspenseful adding tension to the sequence. 

Editing  

Continuity Editing is used to show that the sequence is real and not constructed.

Slow Editing is used to create tension in the sequence.

As the sequence draws to a close Fast editing is used to create dramatic tension that can be equipped with the score. 

Narrative Structure  

The narrative structure in the opening sequence is restrictive.

This creates enigma in the sequence as the audience want to know:

Why the hospital is deserted?

Where are the people in London?

Why is the main character in wires and naked in bed? 

Influence for our thriller sequence  

The use of long and wide shots to show the abandonment of the location that the main character has to face and the suspense that can be built from these scenes.

The use of ambient sounds and no score to add tension to the opening sequence.

Occasional close ups to show concerned, confused and anxious expression shown on the main characters face. 

Analyses:

After watching a sequence from “28 Days Later” a thriller movie it was clearly evident that there were aspects within the sequence that can be used in other thriller related sequences. Examples come from all aspects from Mise en Scene to Cinematography and even sound techniques used. Once these skills are applied to the sequence, other codes and conventions help to establish that the opening sequence of “28 Days Later” can be classified in the contemporary thriller genre.

Firstly in regards to Mise en Scene the use of key props such as the dislodged phones, scattered money and broken cans, all help to contribute to the tension and suspense found in the thriller genre. Furthermore, the locations used in the sequence of “28 Days Later” also contribute to the thriller genre. The use of an abandoned hospital creates enigma for the audience and the empty streets of London also add tension to the sequence. This links to the eerie light that slowly looms over the city creating suspense.

Moreover, in relation to cinematography the use of camera shots was crucial in illustrating that the opening sequence was part of the thriller genre. The sequence uses a variety of wide and extreme long shots to illustrate that the main character is the only person on the streets of London. This creates a form of suspense for the audience as, they witness that that the main character is the only person to be seen on the rural locations of London.  The use of medium close ups create tension as the audience witness the true anxiety and fear that the character is facing, this is a typical element of the thriller genre. Nevertheless, the use of camera movements builds tension in the sequence, especially in regards to the camera tilt. This slowly builds tension, in the scene as the camera tilts from the top to the bottom of a building leaving the audience compelled to find out what is at the bottom of the shot. 

Sound is an important part of building tension and suspense in the thriller genre. In the sequence of “28 Days Later” the sound is generally ambient showing that the only sound made in London is from the main character. Furthermore, as the sequence draws to a climax the score is dramatically layered creating tension for the audience as the main character finds out that he may be the only person situated within the city.

The use of editing helps to establish tension and suspense in the sequence. “28 Days later” uses slow editing to create suspense in the sequence, as objects and movements are slowly introduced into the sequence. However, once the sequence draws to an end and the dramatic score has been introduced fast editing was used to create dramatic tension to the sequence before drawing it to a close.

Finally, to make a successful thriller sequence narrative structure is crucial. In the sequence I have studied the narrative structure is restrictive. This draws a new element to the sequence which increases the tension and suspense as the sequence gradually unfolds and the audience and main character simultaneous learn things out at the same time. The sequence also uses enigmas, a classical trait in thriller sequences as it allows the audience to ask questions like, Where are all the people in London, Why have they disappeared? And What is responsible for their absence? These narrative structures help to set up the rest of the sequence as the movie unfolds.