Analysing an Opening Sequence - In Bruges

Analysing an Opening Sequence

In Bruges (McDonagh, 2008)

Genre – In Bruges, directed and written by Martin McDonagh, is situated most definitely within the ‘thriller noir’ genre. This is an obvious example of modern day film noir, with all the main conventions, but in this case not including the shot technique of black and white, but to make up for this lack of dramatic effect, low key lighting schemes are used, and heavy shadows are shown within the opening sequence. Within the introduction, the audience is faced from the off point with a rough, interesting character. In this contemporary model of film noir Ray, who is played by a well know actor Collin Farrell is not seen within the opening sequence which lasts all of a minute and a half. But, a lot is learnt about him, through a film technique which has become more and more popular within film noir over the years which is known as narration. This conventional film noir style opening could satisfy any noir lover’s generic expectations, beginning with soft, tension adding music which builds up as staple noir narration is read out, also with fading in and out effects used to emphasize the shots at present of the beautiful yet eerie city of Bruges.

The narration used within the opening of this recent example has been written with a noticeable intention, in the form of establishing the scene and putting the reader in a privileged position. Speaking over shots of this cobbled, captivating city puts the intended audience in what could be described as the perfect frame of mind for what the rest of the film has to offer. ‘I didn’t even know where Bruges was… it’s in Belgium’ exclaims Ray at the end of his monologue.

Film Language – The mise-en-scene within the opening sequence could be described as untypical of the noir genre, but within this film where the writer has played about with the conventions it seems to work well, shots of Bruges at night, almost uninhabited, a beautiful sight. Each shot of the city consists of different camera techniques, including pans, zooms and tracks. The opening shots used, are all of buildings, characteristic of Bruges which is famous for its captivating cobblestone streets and detailed religious churches which date back years. Collin Farrell’s musky Irish accent adds to the mise-en-scene within this introduction, giving it an edge over other films categorized within the genre. The shots used fade in and out with the music played, which consists mainly of piano, a predominantly strong mood enhancing instrument within this opening scene, anchoring the location upon which Collin Farrell speaks of.

Ray’s narration shows the kind of character that he is, which is its intended result on the audience after all. It shows how he is a rough man who wouldn’t hesitate to put a bullet through someone’s head but also that he has a slight sense of humour in the background and to any film noir loving audience, this helps him to become immediately loved. Ray is describing within the opening scene a murder that he has committed in the past and his actions after that event, he is relatively serious due to the sensitive matter, but he shows streaks of personality using strong language and a slightly aggressive tone which can become attractive to an audience.

Narrative – The narrative of the opening sequence revolves around Ray’s narration over artistic shots of Bruges, being put in this unrestricted position the audience are given an insight to Collin Farrell’s character where they find out a story within his life which seems to have been disturbing him for some time. This establishing use of narration and creative shots do exactly what it says on the tin, set the scene, which is a profound intention by Martin McDonagh as an opening sequence, setting his fortunate audience up for the consequences of Ray’s actions that are about to unfold within the rest of the film. Bruges is not a very well visited capital, and most members of the audience will know little information about it, so an opening sequence of this stature has to be slightly informative in that sense, and this is one aspect that Martin McDonagh puts over very well, simply giving the audience pictures, and putting the lead character in a similar position to them, knowing almost nothing about a place which the rest of the film is going to be set in.

Themes of crime and violence occur constantly within the opening sequence, mainly presented within the narration, and a contradicting view of hiding out in Bruges, a peaceful place, is also shown, but this does seem to give the film that extra subconscious edge over other typical films involving felony and brutality. Tension is created dramatically within the opening sequence, and the music is one feature, along with not seeing a single person for the full minute and a half, only hearing a voice describing murder and tribulation. The opening sequence ends on a note of severe tension, the piano fading out and Collin Farrell reading the words ‘it’s in Belgium’ with a three second period of what could only be described as an ideal silence.

Representation and Ideology – The social groups shown within this opening sequence includes that of the Irish Gangster committing crimes and regretting life, being forced to live for weeks in hiding in a city which he is not fond of, ‘Get out of London, get to Bruges’. This introduction is definitely not glamorizing crime, which a vast majority of films tend to do, whether or not it is the intention, In Bruges seems to describe more or less the truth about crime and how it doesn’t pay. Within this film the audience are kept well within reality, which could be seen as a disadvantage, in the sense that no alternative view is given to this life style that is being led, putting it into words is hard to describe without being harsh but it shows how a criminal lifestyle can simply be a one way street to one’s death or life imprisonment.

The film shows how that kind of gangster lifestyle isn’t always as glamorous as it can be made out to be, committing crimes is an ever occurring aspect of life, and this film truly puts that fact into perspective, but in a lighthearted tone which ass to the selling factor of the lead character, Ray. London, where the crime was committed brings with it connotations of excitement and glamour, and when Bruges is mentioned, the story brings about a new style of film. There are no other films like this, situated within the streets of Bruges, making it very individual and appealing to the audience.

Media Audiences – In Bruges is rated 18, which gives an idea for the target audience, in this case it would more than likely just simply be 18+. Its themes of crime would seem to appeal to most ages but mainly young adults, the older generations would be more interested in its noir connotations and it would almost bring back memories for them, the target audience in this case is very wide, just not for the faint hearted or the easily offended and certainly not for the younger audience, for obvious reasons. The preferred reading is that crime can hide anywhere, and there is simply no place that isn’t covering criminals in someway or another. The film seems to make an effort to deter people from crime which is uncharacteristic for most modern day films, but it does work well with the themes created. There is an oppositional view to this film, and it comes in the form of, ‘is there actually anything we can do about crime?’ Although this does seem to be a very general statement, it is relevant to In Bruges as an oppositional view, and it seems reasonable when watching the opening to see why someone may feel the need to express this view. The last view that is shown is the negotiated reading which reads as follows, ‘although the opening presents the film as not encouraging violence maybe it shouldn’t even be mentioning it.’ This reading seems like a very decisive view of proceedings, where no open-mindedness is shown, but it can also be seen as simply common sense. As a British teenager it interests me to learn about places such as Bruges through the art of film noir techniques and criminal behavior, I feel this film is presented in a very informative fashion which works well.

Institutional Context – The two stars within this film, Collin Farrell and Brendon Gleeson are very well know, and would have helped a lot within the process of getting the film on the map. Collin Farrell in particular has a wide variety of past roles including Det. James 'Sonny' Crockett in Miami Vice, and Stuart Sheppard in Phone Booth, all of these would have only added to his appearance and helped to advertise the film. In Bruges was produced independently by Graham Broadbent and Peter Czernin along with being distributed by Focus Features, giving the film slightly less of a start up boost than it deserved. All three of the main characters are shown within the film poster which would have been used for advertisement, with the lead character in the middle in the shape of Collin Farrell. The images in the background are conventionally noir, buildings and back alleys everywhere, the only difference is the colour, which makes sense due to its modern day production, and also the font used is typical. The film established positive reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes, a well-known film critic website let the world know that 81% of critics gave In Bruges good well earned reviews. Chicago Sun-Times film critic Roger Ebert gave the film high praise and a four-out-of-four-star rating, saying, "This film debut by the theater writer and director Martin McDonagh is an endlessly surprising, very dark, human comedy, with a plot that cannot be foreseen but only relished." Overall, it seems as if the film was set for an exciting summer, that may not have entirely come there way.