Skyfall - Film Opening Deconstruction

In class we analysed the opening of the film 'Skyfall', directed by Shawn Mendes.

The film clip ‘Skyfall - Opening Scene: Train Fight’ by Sam Mendes, represents gender in a stereotypical way to some degree and it is a fast paced action film.

At the start of the clip, the audience is shown the train with a man on top. Continuous drumming replaces dialogue, which resembles the sound of a heartbeat and creates tension within the scene. The drums foreshadow that this is an important scene as the audience await the forthcoming action with anticipation . The sense of tension is also heightened by the director’s addition of the sound of the train along with the drums. The camera reveals two men fighting on top of the train; a long shot has been used so the audience can see where the men are. The scenery is colourful, suggesting they are in the countryside and it is light, this could make the audience feel hope for the characters that one will win the fight. Both men are wearing suits to symbolise their power and authority and music is also used to raise the suspense when there is a crescendo as the action intensifies. The audience is shown that one of the men has already been injured but continues to fight on, the blood is made the focal point of the shot. This creates a sense that he is ‘manly’ and is not affected by an injury. The scene is male dominated and depicts the idea that men are stereotypically stronger than women, as the two men fist fight whilst the woman helping has to use a gun to make any impact.

The director uses a panning shot from the car to the train to create a split focus, however the two men on top of the train are the main focus. A set of close up shots are used to show a choking device and a metal chain. These both are a focal point and this displays them as being very important and key objects in the scene. The scene changes from light to dark as the two men go through a tunnel on the train, the darkness connotes danger and mystery. The audience doesn’t know what the men are fighting over and don’t know who is going to win, the high angle shot of them fighting also creates mystery as there is no way of identifying who is winning the fight.

The clip then introduces the audience to a new character by panning up from a speaker to her face. This depicts power and that this women has more power and authority over the two men on the train. Her power juxtaposes the power the men have on the train, the women has more power than the men as she calls the ‘shots’, she is able to influence everyone around her, suggesting she is the leader.She also has an element of mystery to her at the start as the audience is only shown a short clip of her. The director has used a number of different shots to establish the power and mystery, such as a low angle shot which automatically tells the audience she is of higher status. The girl is also introduced, but she is made to seem weaker as she has a gun to help her fight, it also implies that she has very little power. The gun suggests that she could not beat an opponent in a fist fight so needs something else, which connates that she is weaker. The girl is being given commands from the other lady and she must follow them.

A high brow shot is used when the two men are fighting. It looks down on one of the men, this portrays the man in the grey suit as having more power and is winning the fight. The scene pace changes at this point as it becomes faster, the pace quickens as the lady is making her decision on what to do. The director does this by changing from shot to shot so the audience see glimpses of the lady in the office and the two men on the train. This change of pace creates tension for the audience. The location can add to the tension, as the men are fighting and the music is climaxing the audience can see another tunnel, this implies that someone is reaching the end, one will win and one will lose.

The scene changes again once the decision is made and one of the men is shot. The music stops completely and there is a small echo of the gunshot. When the music stops it connotes the loss of life and sadness, and the echo symbolises the ending of someone and they leave their last mark. The blood on the man’s shoulder - at the beginning of the clip - could have been foreshadowing him being shot at the end of the clip. As the man falls the the camera is looking down at him. This makes the audience feel a loss of hope and portrays the man as losing all the power he once had.

In conclusion, the clip ‘Skyfall - Opening Scene: Train Fight’ represents gender in a stereotypical way as men have more power, but also show that women can have higher authority.