Saints and Soldiers Opening Scene

Opening Scene
Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXVOtfKinaM

The opening scene of Saints and Soldiers makes the audience feel cold and vulnerable. This is because there is snow as well as trees that have no leaves. This also makes the opening look quite bleak because there is no one around. This is a good opening shot because the audience are drawn into it because it is an unusual start to a war film.

This shot tells the audience where the film is taking place which in this case is Malmedy, which is in Belgium. I like this shot because it looks very cold and inhospitable. This is because the colours are quite dark and the white add to the coldness.

I like this shot because it is a very mysterious symbol. This may seem strange but even though it is obvious that it may have belonged to a soldier that was killed, the audience does not know how he was killed. Also, the camera is quite low to the ground which makes it seem as though the audience are looking at it whilst crouching.

In this shot, the camera moves from the left hand side of the screen to the right hand side. During this movement, the audience is able to see people digging. The shot is also filmed from knee level which adds to the mystery of the opening scene because since the audience are not shown any of the soldier's faces, they do not know what is happening or why they are digging.

In this scene, a hand places the number 72 into the snow. This still does not reveal that much to the audience about what is happening but on the other hand, if the audience are unsure of what is happening then they will keep watching it. Also, the camera is quite low to the ground which makes it appear as though the audience are looking crouching.

This is the first shot that the audience sees that is above knee height. In this shot, the audience see that the people who are digging are American Soldiers. Also, the camera is at eye level which makes it seem that the audience are standing next to the actor.

In the next shot, the camera then goes back to knee level and pans from the left hand side of the screen to the right hand side. This shot lets the audience see a soldier with a bunch of dog-tags in his hand. This tells them that there must have been a battle or some sort of fight because the dog-tags should be worn around the neck. Also, this allows them to solve what has happened, because the helmet, number 72 and digging in the previous shots must mean that a lot of soldiers have been killed.

This is a tracking shot, because as the soldier is walking, the camera follows him. Also, this is a good shot because it makes the audience feel as though they are walking with the actor yet they still do not know what they are walking away from. Whilst he is walking away, there are 3 other soldiers who are still digging. The audience can also tell a lot about what is happening by his facial expressions. This is because he looks quite disgusted at what is behind him and so he turns his head away and keeps on walking.

In this shot, the camera is quite low to the ground, which makes the audience feel as though they are looking up at the 2 stretcher-bearers.This automatically gives them a feeling of not being on the same level as the 2 soldiers who are higher up then they are. Also the camera seems as though it is crouched which means that it could be one of the wounded soldiers who are looking up at the medics.

In this shot, the camera is looking down on the dead solider and it can be classed as a birds eye-view shot. The camera then zooms in on the body and finally focuses on his face. This is a good shot because it shows the extent of the fighting, because the man has numerous bullet holes in his body.