Analysing a film opening-

Step BrothersBY CHLOE GREIG

INTRO

In this presentation I am going to be analysing a film opening. The film I am

analysing is ‘Step Brothers’. I will be analysing the mise-en-scene, editing,

lighting, camera, sound, and also looking at the conventions you would

stereotypically see in a film opening and whether Step Brothers meets

them or not. I will also be analysing the genre and how the film goes about

establishing it.

Step Brothers (2008) is an American buddy slapstick comedy film Starting

Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly as the main characters. It is produced by Will

Ferrell and Adam McKay.

https://www.youtube.co

m/watch?v=Sczh_KjjFNU

This is a link to the

opening of the

film

Mise-en-scene, Costume

In the opening the characters are dressed fairly regularly to suit their

jobs/personalities. This shows the audience that they are just ‘normal’

people living ‘normal’ lives, and gives a state of equilibrium and normality.

It can also help you relate to the characters more. The 2 main characters

Dale and Brendan are dressed casually to represent their lazy attitude and

stay at home lives, whereas the parents are dressed smartly as they are

going to work. This can also give them a higher status as they are out

working making money for their children.

As you can see from this image from the film, the son is dressed very casually to represent his lazy behaviour and the mum is dressed in smart work clothes. This shows us she is going to go out and she isn't lazy and actually has a job and gets out of the house.

Mise-en-scene, Lighting

All the way through the opening of Step Brothers there is a high key

lighting. This creates a happy feel good mood about it. It can let the

audience know that the film is going to be a fun, light-hearted film. When

Robert (the dad) is doing his meeting and he sees Nancy (the mum) the

lighting is all on her. The background and other people are in low key

lighting but she is in high key lighting. This shows to us that to Robert she

stands out from the crowd and he thinks she is the most beautiful person in

the room.

You can see the lighting effect

at 1min 24 secs:

Mise-en-scene,

Actors

There is a contrast between characters in the opening of the film. The 2 main characters Dale and Brendan act like lazy slouchy teenagers, even though they're 40! They sit at home eating food and playing video games for the whole of the opening. This contrasts with the 2 parents Nancy and Robert. They go out and work for the whole of the opening. This helps the target audience relate to the characters. If you are watching it and you are a teenager you can relate to Dale and Brendan, but if you are an employed person you can relate to Nancy and Robert.

Also when you first see the 4 main characters they are usually in the middle of the screen. This can connote that thy are going to be the main characters and the film is going to revolve around them throughout the film.

Mise-en-scene, Make-up

In the opening of Step Brothers and mainly the whole film, there is subtle

makeup used. The only type of make-up is some minimal makeup on the

mum (Nancy). As there isn’t much makeup it gives a realistic effect to the

film. It can show us that Nancy cares about her appearance and needs to

look good for her job. The fact she has makeup on can make her look

more attractive, and this can attract a wider range of people to watch

the film as some older men may be attracted to her, so want to watch the

film.

Mise-en-scene, Props

There is a few props used in the opening scene and example of some is

nachos and a toy guitar, these are used by Dale and Brendan. This shows

the immaturity of the characters as they are 40 years old but still lounging

at home eating nachos and playing with toy guitars! This brings humour to

the audience and this is very effective, as you are instantly laughing even

in the first few minutes of the film.

Mise-en-scene, Setting

The setting of the opening and mainly the whole film is in a house. The

house is a traditional American style house :

As the house is a traditional house, it

brings a sense of reality so when you

watch the film you feel like you’re

watching something that’s happened in

real life! The colours of the house are

warm and welcoming. This fits in with the

genre, as you would expect the house

to be nice and happy as the film is a

fun, enjoyable film.

Editing

In the opening there is a lot of cross cuts between the 2 main characters

(Dale and Brendan). This shows us an intro to the 2 characters, and lets the

audience know that the film is mainly going to revolve around the 2

characters. It can also signify unconventional home life. This could be

because the parents from both family's have split up, so Dale and Brendan

haven't had a ‘normal’ child hood. It also sets the tone and theme of the

film as the film is about the 2 family's coming together. It could also reflect

the parents feelings. They have very hard rushed lives of running about,

going to work and making money for them and their child, when the

‘children’ (Dale and Brendan) just stay at home all day, and the cross cuts

can connote their frantic lives.

Camera

At the opening of the film there isnt an establishing shot straight away, and

this is rare for a film opening. This could create enigma and questions in the

audience’s mind like ‘Where are they?’ ‘Where is the house set?’. This

makes you want to carry on watching to find out the answers!

There is also a lot of mid shots, here is an example of one:

The mid shots help us be introduced to the

characters and so we can get an understanding of

what the characters are like. It can also help us to

relate to the characters and so we empathise with

each of the characters.

There is also shot reverse shot when Robert and

Nancy are in the meeting together. This is to show

what Robert is saying and so we can see Nancy's

reaction.

Sound

In the opening of Step Brothers there is no dialogue for quite a while and the only sound you hear is non-diegetic sound of the song A Punk by Vampire Weekend. This song Is very upbeat and very catchy. It draws you into the film and catches your attention which makes you want to keep watching, it is also a song well known by a lot of people so when the audience hears the song they might recognise it. It has a feel-good tone about it and this fits in with the tone of the film, so lets the audience know the film they are about to watch is going to be a decent joyous film that you are going to enjoy.

After you hear the song for abit you then start to hear the first diegetic sound of the film, with the non-diegetic music quietly in the background. The first conversation is between Nancy and Brendan (Mum and Son). Nancy says “I'm leaving and I’ll be home about 11”. When she says this its like she's talking to a child. This is because even though her son is 40 years old, he still acts and has a mental brain of a child! This creates humour as you don’t stereotypically see a 40 year old man lounging around at home whilst his mum goes out and works.

Conventions in a film opening

In a film there is stereotypical conventions that appear in the opening,

here is an example of some conventions you usually see at the beginning

of a film:

Film Title

Main Actor names

Director names

Enigma

Equilibrium Conventions= the ‘ingredients’

you expect to see in a media

form or genre, in this case a

film opening.

Does the film meet the conventions?

Film Title- Step Brothers does meet this convention, however the title doesn’t appear for about 5 minutes! This almost creates suspense as you are waiting for the film title to come up. This can encourage the audience to keep watching the film and be drawn in as they are intrigued as to when the film title to appear.

Main Actor names- The Main actor names comes up almost instantly on the opening of Step Brothers. This is effective as it can catch the audience’s attention if they see an actor they enjoy watching or who is famous, so therefore they keep watching the film and are instantly drawn into it.

Director names- There is also the Directors name at the start of the film. This is very effective as it can catch the audiences attention. If you recognise a director that has made very successful film it can make you want to watch the film as you know it should be very good. The director name and titles are arty and childish. This reflects the protagonist of the film; two 40 year old men who act like children.

Does the film meet the conventions?

Continued…

Enigma- The opening of Step Brothers has a developed enigma. The main mysteries you will get from the opening is the usual ‘who is that character?’ and another may be ‘why are Dale and Brendan 40 years old but still living at home with no job?’. These unanswered questions the audience has will cause them to keep watching the film to find out the answers. I think that the film hasn’t got a massive amount of enigma because of its genre. The film is a light hearted comedy, so they don’t want too much mystery as it may take the comic effect away from it, and you usually see most enigma in horror/thriller/action films, and Step Brothers isn’t any of these.

Equilibrium- Step Brothers definitely has an equilibrium at the start of the film. Each of the 2 families are going about their lives and everything is calm. You also get this feeling from the lighting. The lighting is very high key in the opening and this gives it a calm feeling and a sense of normality.

Title Fonts- The Title fonts has been used in a particular way in Step Brothers to fit the genre and tone of the film. The opening credits are very childish and silly, this then fits in with the whole theme of the film as the 40 year old men act like kids!

Genre

The genre of Step Brothers is a slapstick comedy. This is a genre that attracts a lot of people and is generally a funny, feel good type of genre. The film establishes this genre in many ways. For example the characters of Dale and Brendan. They are 40 year old men but they still live at home and do nothing all day except eat and watch TV. They also have a very immature personality. This creates a comic effect as you stereotypically don’t see 40 year old men doing this. Genre is also established from the sounds. Non- Diegetic music used throughout the film is all up beat catchy songs. This instantly gives a good feeling to the film and creates a comic feeling. Especially one song in the film that’s called ‘Boats and Hoes’. This song is made up and is very suited to the genre of the film as the lyrics are silly and comical. Also in the opening of the film the word ‘Breast’ is used! This word is very immature and funny and this brings a comic effect to the film.

Conclusion

In conclusion I think that Step Brothers is a great film and

I especially like the opening. However I think some of

the comedy in the start is a bit cliché so it could come

across as not funny. However It effectively establishes its

genre and creates a high quality film through mise-en-

scene, camera, sound, editing. It also meets a lot of film

conventions. I think that all of these media concepts

have helped make it an effective film opening and an

excellent film, attracting a wide target audience.