Textual analysis of the first scene of Crime films

1. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

The opening clip of this film shows the audience a male character sitting in a car, waiting for someone at night, listening to the radio. He slowly begins to pull a gun out of his glove compartment.

The use of dim lighting is used at the beginning of the opening scene, creating an atmosphere of mystery to the audience as a male character sits in a car in silence. The use of non-digective sounds of an old 1950's era song has been used to create a date in which the film has been set in. Ironically, the 1950's is probably the most popular era of crime films, especially as film noir and gangster films are predominantly set in this time period and were created at this date in time. Slow shots used of the character revealing a gun and a bottle of alcohol suggests to the audience that he is waiting in the car for someone he knows and that this character is going to be central to the plot, committing the crime. The opening scene being set in a car suggests that the character is trapped into a situation, he has no freedom and has no choice but to commit the crime.

2. Sin City (2005)

The film opens with two characters in a passionate embrace on a balcony overlooking New-York City. As they kiss, the audience are shown the female character being killed by the male and he holds her as she dies.

A film noir effect has been visually used here. The use of black and white is predominant to the film as well as in the opening scene the use of Red, which the female is wearing on her lips and her dress. This suggests to the audience sex, passion and love and emphasises the relationship between the male and female in the scene as they kiss. The use of narrative gives the audience a sense of the male characters point of view, he seemed to love this woman after mentioning her held the woman until she had died. It creates an atmosphere of sympathy. Slow shots are used in this clip also; this can emphasise the fact that men are more powerful than women as he is narrating as well as being the murderer in this scene.

3. Goodfellas (1990)

The film begins with 3 male characters traveling in a car whilst a woman is in the boot tied up. As she makes noise the men stop the car, and stab and shoot the female character.

The image of a car driving fast in a dark setting and red tail lighting suggests danger to the audience.3 Italian men are sat in the car, which is a convention of crime films (Italian mafia, mobs etc) The car is black and white, symbolising a possibility of good and evil, there is more black on the car suggesting that Evil has overtaken good. A digective sound coming from the boot of the car suggests that someone is inside and creates an atmosphere of suspicion as the audience see the men pull out a knife and gun and open the boot. The use of the red tail-light now shone all over their body is symbolic to blood.