Analysis Of 'Se7en' Opening Sequence

In the opening sequence of ‘Se7en’ it is clear that there are several codes and conventions present. There are three different types of code. These are: technical, verbal and symbolic. Within the title sequence, there is a lot of jumpy editing. This is a technical code. The jumpy editing represents a fast paced film which also adds to the tension building process. The sequence is also very grainy. This connotes that the story is complex and it is difficult to understand as the audience cannot ‘see’ it clearly. It could also connote how we see the situations or events through a particular characters eye. It could show that a character has difficulty making sense of what is going on before them and that is how the audience must experience it too. The use of grainy image also hints to the audience that the film is sent in a generation older than the present and it may not have modernised aspects to it. The use of overlapping and duplicated scenes is almost like a visual message to the audience to pay attention to those particular scenes. Moving on to verbal codes, one of the most prominent ones is the scream that can be heard. The scream connotes fear, or even torture given the content of the clip. The scream is also a typical convention of a thriller film. The sound of scream could also be seen as a type of ambient sound as it makes the scene seem more real for the audience. Within the sequence there is also text that appears to be highlighted by an unknown person. The words highlighted are pregnant and transsexual. The highlighting of these words connotes sexuality and gender. It could also be an anecdote within itself. It could make the audience believe that the film is based around a person that has made mistakes. Pregnancy could be a mistake and wanting to be a transsexual could connote a mistake that was in the makeup of your body. It could also hint towards femininity. Only a woman can become pregnant and a transsexual may want to become a woman. The final codes are symbolic. In the sequence, an image of a woman is presented with a red like going over her face. The colour red connotes blood, death and danger. The fact that it is passing through the woman’s face could connote that she is in danger. It may be that she could get severely hurt or that she might die. It may also connote that she herself is dangerous and the person that marked her face needs to be careful of her. Another symbolic code is the use of a razor blade to scrape skin off of a person’s fingers. The use of this connotes identity and that who you are in the film is an issue. It could also connote that people are afraid that their identity will be exploited so they are trying to remove it from themselves in any way possible. A convention from the sequence is that there is no sight of a protagonist; the audience do not know who the main character is. Another is that the camera uses filters to change the appearance of the sequence. Instead of normal colour being used, a red filter is used again connoting danger, death and blood. The use of shadows and dark lighting suggests a mystery in the film. It also connotes a lack of trust and that people have dark sides that not everyone is necessarily aware of.