From a film opening we would typically expect to see titles, credits, various establishing shots that introduce the audience to the surroundings and characters of the film. We include all of these within our film opening and I believe we pulled it off in a way that doesn't look like it is just another student film. We left space for titles and credits to be appropriately placed rather than just thrown in at any time. Rather than beginning with an establishing shot we begin with a shot of our Protagonist, this suggests that this is a character driven film.Our genre is a hybrid it has a wide variety of conventions and we took inspiration from watching other British crime comedies. I would say our film is much like "The Bank Job". There are elements to that film that are brutal and somewhat disturbing when the aspect of realism sinks in. Our film has some reality to it with under tones of light hearted comedy that catch the audience off guard which is what a good action comedy should do rather than rely entirely on obvious gags.
The editing in our film opening is what one would expect in an action film which quick cuts, fast shots and a variety of different camera shots. For example we used the Edgar Wright quick cutting montage technique he has used in both "Shaun of the Dead" And "Hot Fuzz". It is a variety of different shots that show the audience everything that has happened within the span of 3 or 5 seconds.
Another scene that is similar to ours is the interrogation scene in "Casino Royale" where James Bond is tied to a chair and tortured by "Le Chiffre". The lighting is very similar as we used a spotlight in a very dark and gloomy area. The setting is quite similar as well with all the tools and the gritty atmosphere . It is very clear to the audience that awful things have happened before the film begins. We also used sound cuts where the music paused to emphasise the humour or awkwardness of the situation. For example when Dave (George Griffiths) falls over during the chase it was completely accidental and slightly awkward so it was decided a pause in the music would be spread out from the step that causes the slip up to when his title card appears after he gets up. It is a common editing technique used in comedies but the one it reminds me the most of is in "Shaun of the Dead" when Shaun and Edd are drunk and staggering out of the pub when they see a zombie that they assume to be another drunk. They sing a tune, then stop and turn to the zombie to see it's response before walking off and calling him a Tit.
"Shaun Of The Dead"
"Casino Royale"
"Fatal Error" -our production.
The music in our film is very upbeat and somewhat aggressive which is common in a lot of action films. In most British action comedies the directors use a lot of British indie rock to set the tone of the film being about Britain. A good example of this is the film "Rock'n'Rolla" which I reference a lot as it was one of the films on my mind when making this film opening. The film has a lot of British Indie Rock music as the film is called "Rock'n'Rolla" it makes sense to use that kind of music.
The type of music used for the scenes prior to Eugene's (Will De ath) escape is what you would expect from modern first person shooters as it has a very military/spy feel to it. It reminds me of sneak music that you would expect in games like "Splinter Cell" or "Metal Gear Solid" which suggests the protagonist is a spy or some sort of contract killer. I think the music we have used sets the film well and the serious sound to it makes the comedic scenes even funnier and true to the action comedy genre.
The Mise En Scene of this film is what you would typically expect to see in a British action comedy. A dark, un-glamourous, realistic setting. We chose a countryside setting for our film kind of like 'Sanford' from "Hot Fuzz" where everything seems quite tranquil but what takes place there is unlike what you would imagine and it challenges the conventions of action films. In an Action movie you would expect the setting to be based in the city but we decided it would be funnier if all this was to take place in a quiet countryside village, one of the least likely places for these events to unfold. We tried to keep the opening scenes looking quite dark as what was happening within the opening few seconds was quite Grimm and disturbing. We then cut to a brighter setting when the comedy elements where introduced. We include guns which is a typical convention of action and can be compared to the majority of action films. Although the firearms are not used heavilly they are seen and it suggests the people in possession of them are dangerous. In this film we leave parts for the audience to fill in with there minds. For instance we do not show Eugene being tortured but the audience just assumes this from the setting he is in. We do not see any of the characters actually using any of there weapons but we can only assume that in the end, someone must have been killed. This thought is brought to mind when Eugene whips out his Handgun and we cut to the opening title overlapped by loud music. The non diegetic sound of the bang when the music is introduced could suggest a shot was fired, but from who? These are the types of questions we wanted to leave the Audience with so that it could secure us an audience and create the enigma we wanted.
The Props we used are an obvious convention of action films as we had a handgun for each character. Firearms are a typical convention of modern action films which is one we stuck to and we needed them for the characters to look the part. The hat that Eugene wears was Wills idea and we didn't think much of it until it came to filming and he took his hat away from the interrogation room. It reminded me so much of "Indiana Jones" and his relationship with his hat. Despite how much danger Indie is in he will always pick up his hat if left behind and I think that a connection between character and prop is a very key element of character development. We used a variety of old farm tools and assorted props that could be used to harm. It sort of adds a horror element but so subtle that it just a disturbing undertone than a solid theme of the film.
"Clive & Eugene - Fatal Error"
We set our film in the countryside as it challenged the conventions of action films by setting the film in a peaceful environment rather than a busy city. It reminds me a lot of how "Hot Fuzz" was set in a quiet little English town that seemed completely harmless and yet turned out to be such a brilliant setting for the film and made it so unique and funny to watch. The opening scenes are set indoors in a dark and somewhat dilapidated room full of various deadly farm tools and instruments of torture. This gives off a chilling vibe and sets the audience mind into thinking the film is quite serious. This makes the comedic twist even more effective which is what we had wanted to do since the start of writing up our scripts and developing our storyboards. The outdoor shots were filmed on quite boggy days which were awful filming conditions as we got very very wet. Looking over the footage it gave the film a gloomy atmosphere which I really like and is much like the gritty filters you would find in most British action films such as "snatch". We think we pulled off the setting effectively rather than looking like we filmed an action film in the locations closest to us.
There are 3 characters in this film, Eugene, Clive and Dave. Played By Will De ath, Kain Stones (myself) and George Griffiths. Eugene is much like any typical action movie star you would expect to see but since the genre we have chosen is 'action comedy' he has comedic characteristic. Though it is obvious Clive and Eugene have dangerous potential as shown by the use of firearms. We wanted to base Eugene around typical spy film characters like "Ethan Hunt" from the Mission Impossible series of films and "Jason Bourne" from the Bourne saga. The light undertones of comedy in this film give off quite an awkward charm about Eugene much like 'Danny' from Hot Fuzz which we had gotten a lot of inspiration from. The Typical Action comedy protagonist, especially in British film is supposed to be good at their profession but still keep an awkward charm about them and get into trouble frequently. This is exactly how Eugene is. It shows he is good at what he does as he manages to escape the bad guy's hideout. We can also see the awkward charm shine as he runs through a field with a chair tied to him. Rather than just take the chair off he continues to run until he collapses. Clive is the typical British action comedy villain. He is patronizing dark and dangerous and in a clear position of power. As I portrayed Clive I based him around the typical Guy Ritchie bad guys like 'Lenny Cole' from "Rock'n'Rolla" and "Brick Top" from "Snatch". Both villains are very patronising as they have the power to do and say what they like. They also both have very dark potential. Brick Top feeds people to pigs to be eaten alive, Lenny Cole feeds people to Crayfish alive.
"Lenny Cole - Rock'n'Rolla"
"Brick Top -Snatch"
Clive does not feed people to carnivorous animals but he does torture people as we can tell from the opening scene.The fact that we do not see the scenes of torture but we see the aftermath is what makes the audience think of the events prior to the initial scenes of the film which is what we had intended. Dave is the comic relief of the film and the bumbling sidekick to Clive. He, like Eugene, is also much like "Danny" from "Hot Fuzz". The character of Danny is simple, he literally is simple and awkward to watch which makes the film so funny. Dave pulls this off with his flamboyant running, clumsiness and unprofessional behavior. Usually the comic relief of a film like this would come from the secondary protagonist rather than the secondary antagonist so we have challenged the conventions of action comedy by setting this character for such a role. It is a generic convention of British action comedies to have these types of characters and I feel we have managed to pick characters with a lot of chemistry rather than just throwing in 3 characters that are practically the same.
"Danny-Hot Fuzz"
"Dave - Fatal Error"
The Costumes we have used are quite professional looking like what you would typically expect in an action film. Eugene wears a grey blazer, black trousers and shoes, aviator glasses and a western hat. This mismatch of clothing is what makes Eugene unique as a character and creates a sense of enigma around him. We have challenged the generic conventions of action star attire by giving our protagonist an eccentric appearance. This gives the protagonist a more iconic look and makes him stand out from the other two characters. Clive is the primary antagonist therefore he must have the most professional look of the villains featured in this opening. He wears a black, military style coat , black trousers and shoes. The use of black clothing connotes his Dark personality and professional attitude towards his job. The military style coat suggests he is in a position of power and his job involves some form of violence. This theory is later backed up with the scenes of him in possession of a gun. Dave is dressed similarly to Clive as he is the sidekick to our villain, the secondary antagonist and the comic relief of the film. Seeing as he is quite childish and unprofessional, Dave is dressed in the same style of clothes that Clive is in but without the sharp and professional look. This shows us what kind of a character Dave. I think that Eugene's costume is made all the more distinctive and iconic when the only other characters are dressed in similar clothing.
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