The Other Guys Opening Evaluation

This is the opening scene to the film 'The Other Guys'

Camera

The film changes camera angles a lot in the opening scene, because it goes straight into action. The changing camera angles show a lot is going on, and most of the shots are close up or medium, although it's harder to gauge because they are in cars. The movement contains a lot of quick panning around, to keep up with the action. A crane was probably involved to get the angles above the cars as they go through the streets. At times, it feels handheld but there is no first person shots.

Editing

The editing consists of lots of quick changing angles. There is some special effects like the explosion at the end of the car chase which may have been added to make it more dramatic.

Sound

The sounds are mixed, with lots of different diegetic sounds, meaning the characters can hear all of the sounds. The main sounds are of cars going through the streets, gunshots and police sirens; these all remain constant. All of these sounds are common in action films, so we know the genre of the film straight away as we hear the police sirens.

Mise en scene

The characters have very distinct costumes. The two men we see first are in a black uniform with police vest, so we know they are police officers. The bad guys are also wearing black, but they have guns and are getting chased so we know they are the bad guys. There is suitable lighting, it is set in the daytime but it is overcast so we can see the fire better at the end of the scene. It could also be pathetic fallacy, because some crime has occurred previously, we expect, for the police to be involved. The main actors are well renowned for action films, so we naturally expect an action film when first see Dwayne Johnson and Samuel L Jackson. There is no noticeable make-up used, despite them being involved in a big conflict at the start of the film. The props are very common for action films: fast cars, guns and explosions. One prop which stands out is the police siren on top of the car, which gets shot and very quickly replaced. This could reflect the very efficient service the police offer in the city, by replacing the light straight after it got destroyed. The setting is in a city, which one is unclear. We know this because the quick cut at the start of the scene and throughout the scene we can see talk buildings and lots of people. This shows that it could damage a lot and is a meaningful chase.