Mad Max (1979) Independent - Film Opening Analysis

Mad Max

I have chosen to analyse the Opening Scene of Mad Max.

Synopsis:

"Taking place in a dystopian Australia in the near future, Mad Max tells the story of a highway patrolman cruising the squalid back roads that have become the breeding ground of criminals foraging for gasoline and scraps. When his wife and child meet a grisly end at the hands of a motorcycle gang, Max sets out across the barren wastelands in search of revenge."

-'IMBD Synopsis', Retrieved 9th November 2016, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079501/plotsummary

Production Company - Kennedy Miller Mitchell:

"Kennedy Miller Mitchell (before 2009 known as Kennedy Miller) is an Australian film, television and video game production house in Potts Point, Sydney, that has been producing television and film since 1978. It is responsible for some of Australia's most well known and successful films, including the four Mad Max films, the two Babe films, and the two Happy Feet films."

-Wikipedia, Retrieved 9th November 2016, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kennedy_Miller_Mitchell

Productions of Note:

Mad Max 2 (1981)

Happy Feet (2006)

Happy Feet 2 (2011) 

Distributors - Roadshow Entertainment:

"Roadshow Entertainment (formerly Roadshow Home Video) is a division of the Australian media company Village Roadshow (formerly Roadshow Home Video and Roadshow Entertainment). Notable releases include First Blood, Mad Max, Gallipoli, and The Terminator."

-Wikipedia, Retrieved 9th November 2016, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kennedy_Miller_Mitchell

Timeline:

0:03-0:23

Fade in transition on an establishing long low angle shot of the crumbling 'Halls of Justice' sign, accompanied by the score of the triumphant anthem of Mad Max, which juxtaposes the dilapidated sign. Dissolve transition into quick panning long shot over an endless desolate road, strewn with electricity poles/pylons. Low-key lighting as the sun is coming up. The white text 'a few years from now' appears superimposed after appearing in the style of a typewriter (one letter at a time), aligned centred at the bottom of the frame. The text infers that the time is an undetermined point in the future. Fade transition into a mid shot pan of a white painted skull and cross bones. Fade transition displaying a sign reading 'Anarchie Road' and a yellow car. Medium pan upward of graffiti to reveal a man holding a gun.

Mid shot of a man with his feet out of the window, facing the camera. Low-Key lighting has been used in the car within the shot, to emphasize shadows. Diegetic radio transmission sound can be heard before the protagonist is 'walkie-talkied' information. Outside the car, window the audience can see a desert like barren setting, which is a geographical marker of the location of the film. The shot switches with straight cut editing to a mid shot of a man pointing a gun. The bright yellow car is within the foreground of the shot. The shot turns to a point of view shot from the perspective of the man with the gun, an overlay of a gun on the long two-shot of the couple having sex, where there is a sting of her screaming. Diegetic police sirens can be faintly heard, before increasing in loudness. A dissolve transition is used to change the scene, switching to a two shot of the men in the car. 

0:23-0:43

Two-shot of two deployed police officers in a car at a three-quarter angle, providing the audience with a perception that makes them feel as if they are a third passenger in the car. Straight cut to a two-shot of a couple in a different car at the same angle as the shot prior. Low angle shot from behind of the cars going past at high speed, the road filling most of the shot. Low angle shot from the front of the yellow police car not quite out of view of the camera, before switching with a straight cut to a shot from behind the car from a high angle. The director may have chosen a high angle shot to display the change in power as the cop car begins to move faster, on the tail of the bandit car. Another mid two-shot of the two police officers in the car, with dialogue exchanged before cutting to a close-up shot of an officer zipping up his jacket. (the diegetic noise of the zipper can be heard) Non-Diegetic background music slowly fades in, the music is a stereotypical action track that builds suspense, it features the slow banging of drums. Over the shoulder shot, showing one of the officers grabs the sling of a gun, it has a shallow depth of field with the background blurred, the camera then pans downward as the protagonist turns round. Tracking shot of the wheels moving on the bandit's car. 

0:43-1:03

Medium close-up shot from the front of the bandit car horizontally pans to the cop car chasing them from a long shot behind. Two shot of the officers. Tracking mid-shot as the yellow police car rounds the corner. Two shot of the other two officers, followed by a close-up on one of them before switching back to a two-shot as the officer closest to the camera gets out his gun. A mid shot of the outside of car reveals him pointing the gun out of the window, with police sirens sounding. 

Film Deconstruction:

Sound:

Whilst the titles and credits are appearing a low non-diegetic piece of fast paced music can be heard, which includes a drum beat. This music is the Mad Max anthem. The director has decided to use very little diegetic sounds or sting's in this opening, to highlight the desertification and lifelessness in post-apocalyptic Australia, this is particularly effective as the sting of the gunshot, and police car sirens shock the audience and keeps them in constant suspense, and alert the audience as to when the action will begin in the scene. The usage of a low playing song with a drum beat in the background can also be heard as the cop's effectively 'suit up' for the chase scene. The director may have used this to build tension leading up to the climax of the opening.  

Mise-en-scene:

The mise-en-scene of the justice building is highly dilapidated. The 'U' within the sign in the foreground reading 'Halls of Justice' is crooked and the building behind the entrance is in an obvious state of disrepair. To the right of the buildings entrance and framing the shot is a stop sign. This acts as sign of caution, creating a theme of intimidation surrounding this building and those who help to create 'justice.' However, as we see later on in the opening, those in authorial positions wear no real uniforms, like we see in other action films; and along with the appearance of the justice building, the director could be attempting to allude the the cops and justice system is crumbling like the building. Which creates yet more tension and intimidation for the audience.
The overall mise-en-scene of the opening includes warm neutral lighting tones throughout, providing the scene with a very 'earthy' feel; perhaps alluding to the calm before the storm as the action begins. Comparative to the Mission Impossible opening I analysed, a key similarity between the two action films is the usage of plants and nature within the mise-en-scene of the openings. It also reinforces the location whereby the film is set. (Australian Outback) 

Setting/Geographical Markers:

The geographical markers within this scene depict that the opening is set on dirt track roads in the middle of nowhere, the vegetation in the background appears dry and sparse. In coherence with the Australian accents, one could assume that the geographical location of the scene is within the vast Australian outback. The barren landscape also uses dull neutral colours, which are juxtaposed by the bright yellow car that zooms past.

Period Markers:

A key period marker evident in this scene is the yellow V8 Interceptor, based on a Ford Falcon XB police car. This was an Australian car produced from 1973-78, alluding that this is the period the scene was set in. 
The temporal markers in the scene are evident throughout the light sky, with the brightness stating that it is daytime, and in coherence with the unknown crime committed by the members in the runaway car, emphasises the trope of daylight robbery.


Lighting, and Colour:

The lighting was overall very dim and dismal, using predominantly natural light, due to the choice of shooting on location. In post production the shots were graded in order to make them appear slightly darker and less saturated. The dull and drab colours in the shot working with the barren landscape of the outback, which is contrasted heavily by the bright yellow car. 

Costume and Makeup:

The costume of the officers consisted of leather jackets and black trousers with dark shaded sunglasses. This emphasises an informal nature surrounding these officers, who not in real uniform, chase bandits around the dirt tracks of the Australian Outback. However, the dark black colours of their outfits (contrasting to the warm mis-en-scene) create an impression of authority and danger surrounding these men, which is a characteristic of many protagonists within action films. (An example of a protagonist who wears dark colours being James Bond, a man who is of a high stature and authority but who is also lethal, with his trademark 'black' suit.) The bandits in the car are wearing dark ripped scruffy clothing which gives the appearance of these antagonists being people who live life on the edge, wild and  ready to break the rules. Their costumes also adhere to the steryotypical perception that bandits are often those who are of a low position in society; their ripped clothes and old beaten up car perhaps display they are seemingly poor and unruly, therefore having a motive to commit crime. 

Motifs/reoccurring imagery:

The bright yellow car is recurring motif, that is used by the 'cops' to chase down the bandits in the famous chase scene. One could depict that the director has utilised the bright yellow car as a motif for justice. The road sign reading 'Anarchie Road' is misspelt playing a integral role in the hyper imagery of the film, as the definition of the word means lack of order. With the undetermined time and incorrect location, it displays the film is highly chaotic. 
Typography:

The white capitalised bold typeface of the credits is highly minimalistic, with the text appearing slightly squashed on the screen, this plain appearance juxtaposing the action packed opening of the scene. 

Effective shots, transitions, and camera movements:

A particuarly effective sequence of shots in my opinion were the shots in the action sequence. In particular the two-shot of two deployed police officers in a car at a three-quarter angle. This provides the audience with a perception that makes them feel as if they are a third passenger in the car, which increases tension for an audience member as they feel more submerged in the action. The shots in this scene were highly faced paced with quick cut transitions that again increased pace and action. 
The shots revealing Mad Max were framed incredibly meticulously in order to not reveal his face and true identity until the action begins. For example when he is zipping up his jacket and grabbing his gun, the medium tracking shot follows his body without having his face in shot. 

What have I learnt?:

The opening of Mad Max is a good presentation of the action genre, with many iconographic features included within the opening (including the bright yellow car and crooked justice sign). However, the film was made in 1979, which leads me to believe that some of the content and technology used within the film is slightly outdated and certain elements, such as not revealing the main protagonist until 2 minutes into the film and using fade transitions which appear slightly tacky, would perhaps not be things that I would chose to incorporate into my opening scene. 

From deconstructing this film opening I have learnt the importance of pace and how it can effectively build tension and how motif’s within the mise-en-scene can create themes that run through the entire opening. The inclusion of stereotypical features of the action genre such as weaponry, machinery and vehicles is also conformed to in this opening. 
However on the scale of our opening scene we will be unable to incorporate these features into our opening scene. Therefore instead, I will attempt to incorporate the low-key lighting and low-angle shot’s to imply a character’s power in a scene (which were evident throughout the opening scene). This will be useful when filming the guard in my own opening scene.