Mission Impossible Research

To annalyse the the opening sequence to the film 'Mission Impossible' i looked at the music, editing, shot types and the shots themselves to see how they convey the genre of the film, the character set up and how they try and invite the audience into watching more.

The now famous mission impossible theme tune sets the tone straight away for how the film is going to be. The fast paced music gives the audience the idea the film is going to be fast paced and full of action.

The clothes the characters are wearing not only show the time period the film is in but the role of each character. The general suits show its not futuristic nor a film for the past. The suits most of them are wearing gives an idea of intelligence yet hard work, which would be crucial for the role in a high American policing unit. You see tom cruise in a tank top after which shows he is going to be involved in some kind of action.

The editing itself conveys the message of a fast pace film as cut's between are fast. The names and titles that come up are written twice, one which is a still of the name giving you a chance to read the names, however you see it in the backdrop of the shot going across at speed, which yet again gives the clue the film is going to be fast paced and full of action.

This shot in the title sequence gives a glimpse of action to come in the film. The high angle shot gives a chance to see whats to come in the film and also sets the scene to the film, in the middle of a fairly big city. The low key lighting means the flame stands out even more creating an intense picture and gets the audience considering what is going to happen and means they want to watch on to find out.

A mix of close ups, extreme close ups and occasional mid shot of Tom Cruise give the audience a sense of importance to him and his character, which also gets the audience wondering what role he will have and what will happen to him.

The constant referal to the lit fuse poses the question what its for and what all the characters in the title sequence have to do with it. Through the whole sequence you see the lit fuse and the theme tune follows the pace of the burning fuse, which is intriguing as no one knows what is happening to it.

The title sequence itself does the job of giving the audience an idea of what the film is like, a fast paced action thriller without giving to much away. It also posts alot of questions in your head and makes you want to watch on to find out more.