Analysis on Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrel
The first section of the opening sequence revolves around a series of characterised close-up and medium shots of character A and B; who are openly selling illegal goods to a small crowd until they are disrupted by the arrival of the police, who they then proceed to run away from. We are automatically dawn to these two particular characters not only because of the camera shots, but also because they are alerting the audience -through the involvement of their activities that the factor of crime will feature in this movie. They are also dressed fully in black which makes them stand out from the other characters who are in much plainer colours to contrast and draw attention to character A and B.
The first shot in the opening title features an uneven white type written font against a black background. Not only does the font suggest a connection to old type written police reports but the audience also associates the colours of white and black with the British police force’s uniform. Furthermore suggesting the orientation of crime. It is clear from the modern clothing such as the black overcoats; and the style of the characters hair, that the film is set in the present day. We are also aware of this feature because of the surrounding scenery which is set near a car park in the backstreets of London which appears to be so, because of the characters strong cockney accents.
During the opening scene the camera continues to track back to the character A and B to re-emphasis who they are. Although the main attention is focused on character A, we know character B is also important because it shows many close-ups of him. He is also dressed in all black like his associate which makes them stand out from everybody ells. Furthermore, he is also the one who alerts character A of the arrival of the police. The audience knows something is not quite right when we see a close-up of character B looking to the side warning and re-engaging the audience in something ells drawing attention away from character A. The audience have seen close-ups of him before so are interested in what he is watching. As an audience we are trained to read other people
expressions and conversation, which leads to assumptions that something is wrong.
The music played during the chase away from the police is Rock-in-Roll type, with high energy and frequency to emphasise the adrenalin, particularly with the bass which can also be a sybollic representation of a heart beat which complements the feeling of adrenalin.
During th arrival of the police, there is a shot of a shot to display the two way conversation between A and B to show it is connected.
Through out the chase scene, the audience feel very close to the crouwd, almost as if part of it, with multiple quick edits and cuts which emphasises the speed and pace. It also demonstrates the feeling of panic and rush. With the quick cuts, the viewers are able to understand and empathises with the intended chaotic effect.
It is clear that the film centres around an underprivaged area, not only because of the fact that character A is selling illigal goods, but also because of the run down subburban area which we see in the mid and long shots which remind the audience where the scene is set. It also demonstrates the roufness of this area with the exsamples such as the broken bolavard which is bent- hasn't been fixed it also looks like the dammage is intentional. Streriotypical with theses types of area.
There seems to be a murky filter over the lence of the camera to emphasis the darkness of this area. The clothes are also quite dark and dreary.
