Opening to Insomnia

The titles are in 'black and white' in a blocked ink; to resemble the style of an eye test. This is because Al Pacino (the main investigator) is tired and cannot sleep, hence the title Insomnia. The titles are almost smudged looking like blotted blood, linking to the thriller genre and the editing is slow paced, linking to the on going theme of tiredness. Titles fade out, implying that events within the film are jumbled and time is upset.

This shows a extreme close up of a blood stain on fabric, linking with the theme of death that occurs in thriller genres. The title implies that tiredness is a key feature within the film and could effect certain events that occur.

An aerial shot establishes the location and that the characters must be in a plane flying over, we later find out that they are inspectors on their way to Alaska. In this scene we also see one of the inspectors constantly looking out of the window of the plane to look at the setting and claims to have not seen a house for 20 minutes, showing he is distracted from the investigation he is meant to be performing.

This over the shoulder shot shows a distorted reflection from a mirror of a man that is shown to be rubbing a blood stain off of his cuff with black leather gloves. This scene links with the fabric with smudged blood in the opening titles. This is method of filming does not allow the audience to see who the man is, as he is implied to have done something criminal which could link with the inspectors we have already seen. 

This extreme close-up gives an insight in to the personality of the character/ characterisation. For example, his eyes show a deep gaze in to the distance. This is important, because it shows that he is thinking or looking at a crucial factor of the film’s story line. The idea of showing just his eyes, also leads the audience to think of him as mysterious/ hiding something (as we can’t see the rest of his body or the atmosphere), leading us to the conclusion that he may be a criminal/ bad guy.

This close-up on props is a key detail. This is due to the fact that it includes a forensic photo of a corpse, catching the audience’s attention and leading them to wonder what happened to this person. It also gives more of an insight in to who the character looking at them is (investigator...).  

This angle-shot of a newspaper prop, displays an article on a robbery homicide. This is important, as it feeds the audience a clear picture/ information on what happened in the past before current events are taking place (explaining what happened to the corpse and who the man on the plane is (an investigator). 

This extreme long-distance shot of a seaplane flying into the fog, establishes the setting/ atmosphere. It suggests that the setting is a watery/ coastal area such as Alaska, (as the plane is a seaplane). Also the fact that it isn’t a large aeroplane with lots of passengers, makes the setting seem isolated and inhabited. Furthermore it makes the passengers seem very important people (as it’s just them on the plane).  

By Maddy Fox and Rhianna Henson-Smith