Analysing 'The Dark Knight' (Influences continued)

To help my coursework group with more Ideas we all individually looked at different films that involved the genre we were basing our work on (Thriller). I decided to look at the opening of 'The Dark Knight' and with that I made sure I got as much information as I could get out of it.

Institutional Context:

What Written Text (captions) is used in the sequence?

On the DVD menu ('play Movie', 'Scene Selection' and 'Languages')


Legendary Pictures


DC Comics


Warner.Bros Productions

What Information does it give the audience?

It tells and shows the audience that the movie is a big budget movie.

Why is it Important?

Once again it shows its a big budget movie, which is also an influence for an audience to watch a movie.

Which Film Company is used?

• Warner.Bros Productions
• A time Warner Company

Identifying Genre

What is the genre of the movie? (genres)

• Horror
• Action
• Thriller

Is it a major genre, Sub Genre or Hybrid Genre?

• Action/Thriller (Major Genre)
• Horror (Sub-genre)

How is the genre constructed?

Mise-en-scene:

• Setting: The city
  
• Costume: Men in clown masks and suits (villains)
  
• Props: Guns, Cars, Bags, Bombs etc.
• Camera Work: Extreme Long shot, zoom in, tracking shot, crane shot
• Sound: Non-diegetic (music), Diegetic (people screaming, dialogue)
• Props: Guns, Cars, Bags, Bombs
  
• Lighting: Natural Lighting and artificial lighting (high/low key)
  

Analysing continuity techniques:

Identify any examples of match on action, shot/reverse shot, synchronous sound?

Match on action was seen when characters opened doors and opening the vault.

Shot reverse shot was seen when 2 characters (villains) were having a conversation.

Synchronous sound: seen throughout opening scene!

Analysing Representation:

Which social groups are being represented in the sequence?

Middle class (villains, workers)

How are they represented?

Throughout the opening scene we see the city and then we see a bank with workers and villains robbing a bank (audience assume there is a purpose).

Identify any stereotypes and explain why they have been used?

working class people: sets the scene of a normal day that is soon taken over by a robbery.

Analysing the audience:

Who is the target audience for this film?

The certificate shows 12+ but it seems more like a 15-18 as there is a lot of violence and scenes that can cause disturbance towards the audience.

How have the producers of the film targeted this audience?

They have seen the amount of violence or threat shown in a movie and this helps understand a final idea of what the target audience is.