The film opens with text, which reads: “America. 2022. Unemployment is at 1%.Crime is at an all-time low. Violence barely exists. With one exception”
This text
immediately informs the audience that this film in set in near-future (only 9
years from now) and in America. The statements can connote that the country has
entered a time of peace; however the very last sentence implies that this new
‘utopia’ has been obtained at a cost. The audience understand that this
‘exception’ [to the absence of violence] is going to be witnessed in the
film. This is a convention of the Horror Genre. Directors use it to set the scene and put fear in the audience before the action has even started.
There is then another piece of text “Blessed be the New Founding Fathers for letting us Purge and cleanse our souls, blessed be America, a nation reborn.”
After this text at the start of the opening scene it changes to pre-recorded CCTV footage. This connotes violence because we associate looking at CCTV footage when there is violence happening. There are fast edited clips put together. The different CCTV shots show all different types of violence. This is not a convention of horror. Normally horrors will create tension in the opening scene and be very mysterious. The purge does not use traditional horror conventions.
Costume
Within the CCTV footage there are lots of different costumes. From watching the opening i could see that the characters making and causing the violence were wearing jackets with the hood up to cover there face. The targets they were attacking were wearing smart clothes. One person had a white shirt and tie and black trousers. This is a convention for a Horor film because it shows bad from evil using the costumes. The director uses different costumes to make sure the audience know the two different groups in the film.
Lighting
The lighting in the purge opening is very dark because it is filmed at night. The only essence of light we see is the reflection from fire and explosions. The image above shows the fire lighting up the screen and leaving the person in front looking like a silhouette.
Actors
We do not see the main characters in the opening to the purge. Instead we see a wide range of characters which are not necessarily important to the film. This gives little away in the opening sequence making you want to watch more of the film. Sometimes horrors will give you little hints during the opening to who the main character is going to be. However int he purge this is not apparent.
Make-up
When watching the opening you can see hints of blood and some gore. All this will be professional make-up. For example on one of the CCTV videos there is a man crawling away from a blazing fire. He has got blood all over his back which has got into his white T-Shirt.
Props
During the opening there are many props used. This ranges from cars, pyrotechnics and weapons. The weapons are used to show what sort of violence the characters are inflicting on the victim. Pyrotechnics would be the explosions and fire. There are also cars driving around with people in the back.
Setting
When i watched the opening i would say that the setting was in a city. It looked like a big built up urban area. There were shops, houses and other buildings. The streets were 3 lanes wide which shows in is a main road. It is also set in america because you can tell from road signs and the way the traffic lights look. It is also set in the dark and it looks like it is around 1 o'clock.
Sound
There is music played all the way through the opening of the purge. The music track is Clair DE Lune, Written by Claude Debussy, Arranged by Alfred Reed, Performed by Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc. Published by Klams Music & Co, Inc.
Editing
The editing in the opening for the purge is very unique. The shots would have been filmed from actually CCTV cameras and then been made better HD quality to be able to put into the movie. The cuts between different shots is edited to look like the camera is cutting out and then coming back on a new scene. This makes the CCTV edit look more realistic. The CCTV is not a normal convention of a Horror film. Normal conventions for a Horror film are a mysterious opening scene and a scary start to the movie.
Camera Movement
The camera movement is mostly pan shots and tilt shots.This is not sticking tot he normal conventions of a horror film. A convention would be a POV shot or hand held shot. This is to make the viewer more tense and feel like they are in the film. However to stick with the CCTV effect the camera has to move only side ways and up and down.
There is then another piece of text “Blessed be the New Founding Fathers for letting us Purge and cleanse our souls, blessed be America, a nation reborn.”
Costume
Within the CCTV footage there are lots of different costumes. From watching the opening i could see that the characters making and causing the violence were wearing jackets with the hood up to cover there face. The targets they were attacking were wearing smart clothes. One person had a white shirt and tie and black trousers. This is a convention for a Horor film because it shows bad from evil using the costumes. The director uses different costumes to make sure the audience know the two different groups in the film.
Lighting
The lighting in the purge opening is very dark because it is filmed at night. The only essence of light we see is the reflection from fire and explosions. The image above shows the fire lighting up the screen and leaving the person in front looking like a silhouette.
Actors
We do not see the main characters in the opening to the purge. Instead we see a wide range of characters which are not necessarily important to the film. This gives little away in the opening sequence making you want to watch more of the film. Sometimes horrors will give you little hints during the opening to who the main character is going to be. However int he purge this is not apparent.
Make-up
When watching the opening you can see hints of blood and some gore. All this will be professional make-up. For example on one of the CCTV videos there is a man crawling away from a blazing fire. He has got blood all over his back which has got into his white T-Shirt.
Props
During the opening there are many props used. This ranges from cars, pyrotechnics and weapons. The weapons are used to show what sort of violence the characters are inflicting on the victim. Pyrotechnics would be the explosions and fire. There are also cars driving around with people in the back.
Setting
When i watched the opening i would say that the setting was in a city. It looked like a big built up urban area. There were shops, houses and other buildings. The streets were 3 lanes wide which shows in is a main road. It is also set in america because you can tell from road signs and the way the traffic lights look. It is also set in the dark and it looks like it is around 1 o'clock.
Sound
There is music played all the way through the opening of the purge. The music track is Clair DE Lune, Written by Claude Debussy, Arranged by Alfred Reed, Performed by Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc. Published by Klams Music & Co, Inc.
Editing
The editing in the opening for the purge is very unique. The shots would have been filmed from actually CCTV cameras and then been made better HD quality to be able to put into the movie. The cuts between different shots is edited to look like the camera is cutting out and then coming back on a new scene. This makes the CCTV edit look more realistic. The CCTV is not a normal convention of a Horror film. Normal conventions for a Horror film are a mysterious opening scene and a scary start to the movie.
Camera Movement
The camera movement is mostly pan shots and tilt shots.This is not sticking tot he normal conventions of a horror film. A convention would be a POV shot or hand held shot. This is to make the viewer more tense and feel like they are in the film. However to stick with the CCTV effect the camera has to move only side ways and up and down.
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