Questions on 'Watching' Documentary

1) What does Thomas Sutcliffe mean when he says "films need to seduce their audience into long term commitment. While there are many types of seduction, the temptation to go for instant arousal is almost irresistable"?


 A)  It is very important for films to grab it's audience attention from the early start of the film this will then "seduce their audience into long term commitment", meaning they will want to continue watching the film till the end. 


2) According to director Jean Jacques Beineix, what are the risks of 'instant arousal'?


A)  Beineix believes instant arousal is not very successful with the audience. Instant arousal provides its audience with a dramatic opening, Beineix argues if you start strong will you be able to provide your audience with a good plot throughout the movie. The best way to start is to 'slowly nurture your desires' 


3) Explain why "a good beginning must make the audience feel that it doesn't know nearly enough yet, and at the same time make sure that it doesn't know too little."


A) A film must begin with an engaging opening in order to attract the audience. A good film keeps its audience on the edge of their seat waiting for the film to unveil.  It is crucial to get the right amount of information across in the first few minutes, just like the quote above illustrates. A good film opening does't give out a lot of information to keep its audience engaged with the plot desperately trying to find out more. 


4 ) What does critic Stanley Kauffmann describe as the classic opening? Why does this work?


A) Stanley describes a classic opening beginning with an 'establishing shot' for example of a city the film is set in. The camera should then move on to introducing the character. Through this the audience are already familiar with the setting, the character and the genre. Hence why Stanley describes it as a " simple, classic process". 


5) Why is Kyle Cooper's title sequence so effective? 


a) The opening credits to 'Se7en' perfectly captures the genre of the film by the use of colour and sound. The scary images and close-up's of books engage the audience into finding out what significance this has to the plot and also foreshadows the story of the film. 


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