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What does Thomas Sutcliffe mean when he says “films need to seduce their audience into long term commitment. While there are many types of seduction, the temptation to go for instant arousal is almost irresistible”

What Thomas Sutcliffe means is that filmmakers must grab the audience’s attention within the first few minutes of a film, so that they are interested and watch the film right till the end.

According to director jean Jacques Beineix, what are the risks of ‘instant arousal’?

The risk of ‘instant arousal’ is that there is an expectation the rest of the film to match the quality of the opening sequence otherwise the audience wont entertain an expectation.

Explain what “a good beginning must make the audience feel that it doesn’t know nearly enough yet, and at the same time make sure that it doesn’t know too little” means

This is when the opening of the film gives away enough of the storyline but not too much in order to keep the audience interested in what more to expect.

What does critic Stanley Kauffmann describe as the classic opening? Why does this work?

It’s when the opening scene starts of with an establishing shot. This sets the setting for the film. It gives the audience an idea of where it is and a taste of what to expect.

Why is Kyle Cooper’s title sequence to the film Seven so effective?

It was so effective because it told a story, it introduced you to the obsessive nature of the main character and forecasted a lot of the events that were to take place later on in the film. Also, the opening title was more influential than the film itself.

What did Orson Welles want to achieve with his opening to the film A Touch of Evil? What did Universal Studios do to it? Why?

He wanted it not to include any credits and title music to plunge the audience into the story without giving them time to prepare themselves. However, the studio were a bit more cautious and ended up putting in the credits and music. This resulting in the originality of the sharp idea being lost.

What is meant by “a favourite trick of Film Noir”? What is the trick?

It’s when you put the ending scene at the beginning of the film, it’s more like a destination point rather that a departure.

How does the opening to the film The Shining create suspense?

The opening sequence is so effective as you can see that the screen is full of omens and the camera pursues the car like a predator from high up. This suggests that this car is heading towards the wrong direction.