Robin Hood Prep

In the opening scene of Robin Hood, the main character Robin played by famous actor Russell Crowe is represented as a stereotypical hero. We can tell that he is a hero by his actions - how he is very brave, and willing to sacrifice his own life to save his friends and family - in his case, a friend that got stuck, hanging on the gate. By looking at this scene people immediately know that Robin is a brave and heroic person and looks up and respects him.

Robin Hood

Jeopardy and Suspense is also presented during the fighting scene in the first 10 minutes. There are lots of explosions and arrow shooting going on in the scene, which causes tension and the rapid editing adds up to the affect and makes people feel they are in the movie.
We could tell this film is set in the medieval times from the clothes and makeup they wear, the mis-en-scene. Their clothes has holes in them and their faces look very dirty, suggesting they don't have a lot of money. They're weapons are bows and arrows, telling us that guns aren't yet invented. Also, the place they are trying to blow up is an old castle, showing us that the movie is set a long time ago. This leads to my other point, that this movie is a hybrid - a mixture between action and adventure, jeopardy and suspense, and historical.

Fighting scene

Representation in Gladiator

Given that the key aspects in Gladiator are conflict and violence, the opening scene is in marked contrast to this. It is a very soft opening, images from nature such as wind blowing through a cornfield. This peacefulness is reinforced by the sound of birds chirping and children giggling. Unlike many violent films, that plunge you immediately into the heart of the action, this is starting softly and also it’s referring back to his previous life before he’d been captured by Rome and become a gladiator.

We see some clues as to binary opposites: we have a past life that is remembered as happy and peaceful through the imagery of the cornfield, and by the end of the opening sequence, we know that he is living a completely different life. Also, the imagery in the wind and the corn that is natural, compared to when he gets onto the horse it’s all swords and armour that are manmade.

All the sound effects provide a parallel contrast: you go from all the birds chirping and children giggling to total silence. That signifies a break, almost as if it’s saying that that was another life, as if it was gone. The silence puts a stop to the past life, and then it’s replaced by the first signs of conflict and battle: marching, armour, swords clinking.

In terms of costume, the director deliberately hid what he was wearing in the start so it was all about nature and children laughing. As the camera pulls back, we see his armour; he’s gone from just a normal guy to a warrior. The fur almost making him look like a wild beast.

In speech, he’s showing his intent that he wants to go back to his previous life, as he says he’s going to harvest his crops and sending his men back home.

Skyfall character representation

In the movie Skyfall, James Bond is represented as a cool, calm, stereotypicle Englishman. He fights off the bad guys wearing a suit, he is the character who always wins and never fails. He never shows his emotions - whether he is scared or panicking, he always maintains a serious face.

Moneypenny is M's secretary, represented as a bit of a tomboy in this movie. The clothes that she wears and her actions make people think she must be a very independant woman. The way she holds a gun makes people think she is strong and brave like a man.

M is represented as a cold hearted woman who is the head of the British Secret Service (MI6). In the start of the film, she orders Bond to leave one of her agents who was about to die, so that Bond could get a hardrive. We could see from this scene that M is and will always be willing to sacrifice one of her own agents to get what she wants. She is cruel, powerfull and heartless.

Adventure Films

- Harry Potter
- Spiderman
- The Dark Knight Rises
- Night & Day
- Skyfall
- Lord of the Rings
- The Expendables 2
- Speed
- Inception
- Mission Impossible

Bullet points

The Hobbit (Trailer No.2)

• Low and high angle shots, hero shots
• Camera movement - moving left, right, up, down, and sometimes moving in an arc to make the audience feel more involved
• Different colour tones - warm colours then turning cold when it comes to other scenes
• Close ups
• Sudden changes in music
• Editing - putting completely different scenes together such as fighting scenes and laughing scenes
• Computer generated images - such as the views of landscapes and magical creatures
• Voice overs
• Text
• Mise-en-scene